how to Get 40 Ranged Fast (F2P)

Ranged is always good to have in Runescape, especially for fighting mages (to wear d’hide) or whenever you need to attack something without it attacking you.

Depending on what arrows you use, this can cost from 20k to 70k (using adamant arrows for training is moronic).

You should safespot whenever possible.

Required equipment to get started
You will need a shortbow, oak shortbow, willow shortbow, and a maple shortbow. Also buy leather vambraces, chaps, body, cowl, boots, and an amulet of power (also bring a cape, and food if you are a pure). You can buy d’hide chaps, vambraces, and a cowl now or after your training if you don’t have enough money. Main accounts should also buy a hard leather body, studded body, studded chaps, and d’hide body.

Levels 1-5
If you have just made your account, quickly do the two strongholds for the 20k, boots, gloves, and 1000 xp. You will not be using the boots or the gloves to train ranged. If you decide to use the xp lamps on ranged, skip this step as you will have 9 ranged. Head to chickens and shoot these guys with iron arrows until 5 ranged. TRAIN ON RAPID, ALWAYS. This should take about a minute, and should require no more than 50 arrows. Hold on to the feathers. Any arrows over iron are not really worth it at these levels. Equip your oak shortbow and keep shooting down chickens until 10 ranged. If you have defence, you can move up to cows at five range if you want (slightly faster xp if you don’t have to make bank trips to eat).

Option 1 (Pures)
If you need to pick up your arrows and are a pure, stay at chickens until 12 to 15 ranged. Having to eat frequently will substantially slow your training, and until ten ranged training at cows with 1 defence is not fast xp. Also, you may be lucky and get a cornucopia (which can be filled with two trouts and eaten in one bite, like a swordfish for 60 gp).

Levels 10-20
This step will be significantly longer. Head on over to cows. I recommend the cowfield with Beefy Bill (and gnomecopters), as you can bank cowhides and meat. If you aren’t just starting your account and have a good amount of money train on the more densely populated cow pastures (e.g. the one south of Falador, next to the Crafting Guild). Cows are easy to safespot over the fence and there are even several safespots within the fields, behind feed troughs and the like. You may use iron or steel arrows, whatever your budget allows. Monks are also decent xp at these levels if they aren’t crowded. Scorpions are fine until 25 ranged, then they start to become slow.

Levels 20-30
Equip your willow shortbow, studded chaps and coif. If you have 20 defence also put on your studded body. Here there are a couple options. You can train at monks, which can heal pures but there are only four (spread out over the monastery) and are often crowded. Cows aren’t bad xp, but a monster with a few more hitpoints would be better. Your two best options are scorpions and flesh crawlers. If you have defence, i would definitely go with steel arrows at scorpions in the Al-Kharid pit. If you’re a pure, you can use bronze arrows and range them from above for extremely fast xp, or you can go to fleshies. I would recommend 25 range before hitting up fleshies, so you can kill scorpions or guards until then. The best room for ranging flesh crawlers is the one two rooms to the west from the ladder room; the one with only two flesh crawlers and a couple rats. There are a ton of safespots, and at these range levels they will spawn fast enough so you will never be waiting around. This place is extremely fast xp with steels (irons not recommended until 40 or so). Uncut diamonds and other gems are possible drops, and bottom of sceptre is a very common drop. Don’t shoot the rats; they aren’t good xp and can be used as blocks.

Level 30-40
This is the last stage. Equip your maple shortbow. Stay at flesh crawlers and keep grinding away until you hit 40 ranged. This entire process should take no more than a few hours. Put on your d’hide and celebrate!

And Beyond
This guide only covers up to 40, but I’ll give you a brief summary of the training to 99 ranged. Level 40-60: Flesh Crawlers (Hill Giants give much better drops but are always crowded). Level 60-80: Moss Giants are good xp and there is a safespot in Varrock Sewers, however it is very far from the bank. Hill Giants are fine and so are Lessers. Flesh Crawlers: at 73 range with no pot on rapid you can 2 hit KO… not too good xp (Level 61 with Eagle Eye and accurate can 2 hit KO). By 80 you should be at Lessers with steels (don’t actually have to finish Dragon Slayer to go here).