Retrospective wisdom drawn from playing Runescape and its relevance for becoming a better athlete

Yep, it’s one of those weird articles where I draw inspiration and anecdotes from some left of field source and somehow make it relevant to the sports training world. Whether or not you played this video game, there is much to be learned from this article. Give it a chance and let me know what you think.

I started playing Runescape when I was 10 or 11 years old (which was about a year before it went from RS1 to RS2). For those unaware what Runescape is, essentially, it was a MMORPG (mass multiplayer online role playing game) which was played by thousands from around the globe in the mid 2000s. The game was free (although you could pay for membership) and so it was played by people whose parents either didn’t want to fork out a subscription for World of Warcraft; or they were too scared to ask. Runescape is set in mediaeval times. You control a single character and although most would say that the purpose of the game is to complete quests and level up skills; you can essentially play it however you wish. It was not uncommon, for example, for players to log on and stand near willow trees and talk about politics or television with complete strangers for hours on end. The game fostered a great community; and thousands look fondly back on the days they spent during their childhood levelling up skills as stupid as fletching (which was the creation of bows and arrows - accomplished by using a ‘knife’ on ‘logs); or the hours spent in front of Varrock (the capital city) bank attempting to merchant the lobsters they worked tirelessly fishing and cooking.

Anyways, I clocked up likely thousands of hours playing this game and it taught me a lot about life. Here are some takeaways which I think are important and applicable to becoming a better athlete.

1. Levelling up becomes incrementally harder

2. Delayed gratification

3. To overcome an obstacle, you may need to broaden your skill set

4. One of the worst things that can happen to you is luck

5. What’s efficient is often boring

6. You can do things your way

7. Celebrate milestones

8. People cheat

9. Those who enjoy the process the most, end up at the highest level

10. One day, you can lose it all for no reason

Levelling up becomes incrementally harder the better you get

In RS, there are 23 skills to level up. Some are combative, such as Attack, Defence, Range, Magic and others are considered more ‘skill’ based, such as Farming, Cooking, Fishing, Woodcutting. In almost all of the skills, you begin at level 1 and the highest level you can achieve in every skill is 99. To get from Level 1 to Level 2, you require 83 experience points (which can be gained with a multitude of methods depending on the skill). I’ll use Attack as an example for skill training. When you engage in combat, you have the opportunity to inflict damage. With every damage point inflicted on the opponent, you gain 4 experience points. With that in mind, you need to inflict 22 damage to get from Level 1 to Level 2. This may take 2-3 minutes to accomplish; and you’ll probably be in combat with a low level monster (such as a chicken or a cow). As you gain more levels, you become more efficient in training and you’re able to maximise higher experience points per hour of training. You’re able to wield greater weaponry and are able to attack higher level monsters with higher total hit points. You may start fighting chickens and in the late stages of the game, be fighting dragons. This is necessary, as with each time you level, the experience required to level up increases. To get from Level 98 to Level 99, it requires 1,228,825 experience points; which would be 307207 total damage inflicted. Even if you’ve levelled up; this takes forever. Even the total experience points to obtain Level 98 are only 90% of the total experience required to get to 99. I played RS for years, consistently. Likely thousands of hours were spent on this game, and the highest skill level I was able to accomplish was Level 88 Woodcutting (which was one of the easiest skills). You need to dedicate time to be Level 99; and not many people get there.

I think this is a great example of the realities of phenomena such as noob gains; plateauing and how difficult it is to become a truly elite athlete. When you begin training, you’re able to level up rapidly. For myself, an example may be that I was able to get to a 100kg Bench Press within three months of training. The gains were rapid, and I was able to level up weekly. However; now that I’ve been lifting weights for a further 8 years; the rate of improvement slows down greatly and the amount of time and effort it takes to level up the Bench Press is ten fold compared to the initial efforts. Furthermore, what got me from a 60kg Bench Press to a 100kg Bench Press likely cannot be the same as what gets me from a 140kg Bench Press to a 160kg Bench Press. As you level up, it takes more time and better methods improve. You cannot spend training punching chickens for your whole life.

Delayed Gratification

Now that you’ve had an insight into the levelling experience of RS, you may be able to grasp that the game is a legitimate grind. Even to accomplish the aforementioned Level 88 Woodcutting, it required hours (more like days and weeks) of me sitting behind a computer and clicking on an animated tree. Sure, I was multitasking and chatting to chicki-babes on MSN at the same time, but the Woodcutting training was a means to an end. I wanted to chop down Logs to sell for money; which I’d then use to purchase a weapon called the Abyssal Whip I could not magically print money within the game, and if I wanted a greater user experience playing the game, it required me to put in hours of quite mundane work to accumulate enough wealth to acquire items which meant I could take down bosses or complete quests. It is good to have a goal in mind for the future, such as taking down the Kalphite Queen or running a Personal Best Time; however, if you’re unable to remain steadfast on the work that is required to reach that goal; it will never happen. If you want the Abby Whip, grab your rune axe, walk to Camilot and get chopping. If you want to run a personal best, grab your shoes, get to the nearest track and get running.

To overcome an obstacle, you may need to broaden your skill set

Quests in RS often had level requirements for completion. Examples may be that to complete Animal Magnetism, a quest that is extremely helpful to become a better Ranger, you require not only Level 30 Ranged, but also intermediate levels of Crafting, Slayer and Woodcutting. As much as most who begin playing RS enjoy combat skills, you know, to fight dragons and kill other players; you often had to dedicate time and energy to skills which you found literally laborious. No one playing RS enjoyed training Runecrafting or Firemaking, for example, but they are necessary requirements for the completion for some of the most important and enjoyable quests in the game.

If you have hit a wall in your athletic development, how can you broaden your skill sets to overcome obstacles? Perhaps, for example, you are level 99 in Strength; but you’re unable to PB in whatever you’re trying to accomplish because you’re level 1 in Diet, Recovery, Mindset. Are there qualities within your athletic profile which are too low a level for you to move forward and prosper? If you have hit a wall, look laterally and become a better athlete holistically. You may need to train Firemaking to maximise your enjoyment and potential as an athlete.

One of the worst things that can happen to you is luck

You’re able to trade in RS, and there’s a complex yet logical economy governed by a trading market. The currency is called GP; and you can acquire it by selling goods that you’ve gathered or by looting the items monsters drop. One of the trends in the Runescape YouTube community (I occasionally dable to relive some nostalgia) is higher level players gifting lower level players with money. In the comments sections of these videos, there is always someone highlighting an important reality of what gifting someone money does. It takes away the enjoyment and it caps their potential as a player. If you are a noob and you’re able to stumble across success, the following happens:

• You invest the GP poorly

• You lose it dying to another player

• You don’t know what to do with it

• Your motivation to earn money is decimated

• You don’t develop the skill sets as to how you can make the GP in the first place

By undermining the required rigour of the game; through hours upon hours of work; the noob with a Million GP does not know how to move forward. They’ll likely quit the game much earlier than the noob who was able to overcome the struggle.

Likewise, it is not uncommon in the sporting world to come across success through chance. It may be due to raw talent; it may be for other reasons. The reality of sporting success is that to completely fulfil your potential, it is a byproduct of an extremely long period of time that requires sacrifice; diligence and consistency. The rigour and the hard work required to make it in sport is what makes me love it. To be successful over a long period of time (which is what is required to be truly great); it cannot be from weeks or months of work. It is years upon years compounding upon one another to create an actual beast.

If you are a noob and you’ve been given a break; the best thing you can do is to drop the Million GP given by the higher player. Strip yourself of the luxuries given before your readiness for them and learn how to embrace rigour.

What’s efficient is often boring

As mentioned in the earlier part of this (increasingly long) article, some players used to stand in groups around the world of RS and spend their playing time just shooting the shit. Levelling up for them really wasn’t what it is all about; and that’s one of the things that made this game great. You could have your own goals and do it your way.

On the flipside, there are those playing who are trying to completely maximise their experience per hour (in sometimes more than one skill at a time) at all costs. They’re not socialising; they’re not talking to friends on MSN at the same time or watching netflix. In my opinion, they’re playing in a manner which is extremely monotonous and boring. But to their credit, they’re going to be Level 99 before everyone around them.

Similarly, levelling up your athleticism isn’t accomplished through talking. Levelling up your athleticism isn’t accomplished through constantly changing the goal posts or chasing novelty in training. It’s levelled up through punching in the clock and doing training which has been proven to maximise adaptations and make you better. As someone in the world of track who once was well in the world of football and other sports, this is a reality which can be hard to grasp for many. Track and Field is a sport which requires someone to enjoy the monotony; to enjoy the process; to enjoy clocking in and then clocking out on repeat for months on end. For someone to get faster, for example, is probably going to be dictated by how many high(ish) velocity exposures they can get through over a long period of time. This is boring, but it is true.

You can do things your way

With 23 skills to work on in RS, you could create your own identity. Myself, my brother and some friends around the corner used to play together and it was interesting how we would all gravitate to some kind of different warrior archetype. We created identities for these characters; “I’m a mage, but I’m just trying to level my mining as a source of money”; or “I’m a ranger but I’m making money from fishing” - you could really create an identity and do things the way you want to do them. I think that this is similar to the athletic experience.

We all have similar goals - we all want to maximise our potential within a sport and to be absolute beasts. But, the road to get there or perhaps, what that ultimate performance looks like will and can differ for everyone. What this looks like is probably dictated by some innate personal interest; by what could be the most ‘optimal’ based on genetics, anthropometrics or capacity to handle the training or perhaps it’s just sourced from an inspiration. When I was in my late teens, I’d go play pickup basketball near Central station with people who were older than me. They’d all be yelling “Kobe!” as they shot a contested fadeaway from the elbow - this was the way they wanted to play basketball. Their generation was inspired by Kobe. It probably wasn’t optimal, it’s a really hard shot to hit; but it is the path they chose to play basketball. You can really choose the athlete you want to be. For those most successful, they’ve probably meshed the perfect blend of personal interest; genetics; the sport they’ve chosen and a driving purpose to be truly great.

Celebrate milestones

When you level up in RS, you get a notification at the bottom of your screen and little crackers go off around your character's head. If you’re around other players, they may say “Grats” or “Gz” (which in hindsight is pretty cute) and you may respond with “Ty :)”. From Level 2 through Level 99, you were celebrated (Level 99 is a bit more extravagant). This is important, as what I’ve discussed highlights the tough rigour of sport, meaning you’re going to be doing this stuff for many hours and most of it will be mundane. You need to celebrate milestones, whether they’re at Level 2; Level 20; Level 60; Level 90; Level 98 or ultimately, Level 99. Sadly, I don’t think that many celebrate until they reach what they consider Level 99, and those people probably will never get there. If you’re able to acknowledge your work and process; and to be supported by a community who are willing to acknowledge it with a “Grats”; it will make a huge difference in ultimately getting to Level 99. If all your coach, or yourself, or your teammates and friends are waiting to celebrate is Level 99; you need to segment significant moments and along the journey and be grateful that things are moving forward.

People cheat

There are rules in RS - most of them designed to eliminate unfair advantages between players or to bring down the user experience of others. Whether it is in life or in RS, people will cheat. ‘Botting’ in RS is when someone has a script to control a player and to train them without the user experience. This is a bannable offence; but when I played it often went undetected. Bots became rampant in the game and I even watched a YouTube video a few years ago which looked into the use of ‘Bot Farming’ from Venezuelans as they used the RS currency to convert it into USD and to use it to feed their families. Pretty full on. Anyways, people will always be cheating and shortcutting the system. Maybe when I was younger, I’d get cut about this reality. Why is it fair that someone can level up higher than I with way less effort? This obviously happens in sport. Perhaps, how bullshit is it for someone to make a team for political reasons? Doping? People short changing themselves in training? Whether it is in an online game or in sport, you cannot let it ruin your experience and joy for the game and you should be content with the fact that those who cheat will probably be found out and banned.

Those who enjoy the process the most, end up at the highest level

As mentioned earlier, the highest level I accomplished playing RS was Level 88 Woodcutting. I quit shortly after. To level up things became tiresome. The game became a grind, and that’s not really what I seek in a video game experience. I want to have fun, be challenged and to explore. I obviously liked clicking on a pixelated tree enough to reach Level 88, but I obviously didn’t love it. I stopped. I never got to Level 99.

At some point in the training process, outcomes may stagnate; obstacles may need to be overcome; you may get injured; you may plateau. So many things can happen in sport that are both in and out of your control which can stop you moving forward. It’s at this stage in which your love for whatever you’re doing is tested.

Do you really love it?

Or are you just intoxicated by the idea of greatness?

Are you doing it because you were good as a kid?

Are you doing this because of loyalty to your team and your coach?

Would you be willing to throw away other pleasures in your life for it?

How much are you willing to do that isn’t enjoyable in order to progress?

How much monotony can you handle?

How much adversity and chaos can you handle?

If you love rocking up to work (or clicking on pixelated trees for Woodcutting experience); you already know the answers to these questions. If there are ulterior motivations for your pursuit in sport, you’ll reach these questions and many conk out.

One day, you can lose it all for no reason

As with any game (or possibly, anything online); you can log-in and find your account hacked. Perhaps you cannot log in at all because your password has been changed or your account has been identified as suspicious for botting. Perhaps (this may or may not have happened to me); you were 12 years old and you became friends with someone online who said they were a female 16-17 year old, gained your trust and then used you to complete quests, kill bosses and to not share the loot and you were backstabbed. Perhaps someone says they can ‘trim’ (wink wink) your armour set for free; only to take it and never give it back. Perhaps you’re lured into a part of the RS world in which other players can attack you and take your items. Perhaps you’re lured to an altar in which aggressive wizards cast magic spells on you and take your items. Well and truly, these instances are unpredictable. They are humbling, infuriating and heartbreaking. Even if I shed a tear once or twice when I was wrongly betrayed or scammed in RS when I was a kid, I’m glad that these things happened to me while playing this game - they’re things which happen both in and out of sport all the time.

Many things can happen in sport. Injury can strike; relationships may fray; friends can become enemies; money can get between a game you grew up playing for fun; people may try to use you; people may tempt you to cheat; people may tempt you only to bring you down. This sounds like the words of someone truly scarred; but I think it’s a reality of sport. It is not as robust and eternal as we think while we’re in the midst of it taking place. There should always be a sense of gratitude and purpose as an athlete. You do not have forever to reach your goals. You need to ensure the security of your foundations (complete the Stronghold of Security for all you ex-RS players) and to ensure that you’re only giving away private and important information to people who truly care about you.

On the flipside, if you were once at the top and if things do go belly up, if you’ve reached that original peak through hard work, consistency, rigour; you can always find yourself back there. Your account on RS may be stripped of all its GP, but you can always pick up an axe and get woodchopping. If you’ve been there, you know you have the capacity and the talent to get there again - this time, it will be different though. You need to learn your lessons and to be a better athlete than you were before.

Closing sentiments

Obviously, this game left quite a mark on me. It was nice to break a writing rut - I have been writing some stuff I’d like to sell at some point in the future but would like to have a greater audience to try and release it to. If you enjoyed reading this, please share this article on Social Media platforms to help spread the word of the brand of Track Speed Development. If you want to talk to me about the good old days of RS, hit me up on Instagram. If you liked this article and want me to write more, let me know. When I’m in a mojo, an article like this only takes 1.5 hours. Cheers.