If you're lucky, your reward may include some of the new items, such as elegant clothing, new versions of old amulets, shirts featuring Bob the cat, full helmets bearing the heraldry that adorns the kiteshields already available and composite bows. The luckiest players will be given items from the 3rd Age sets, which cover all combat styles and consist of level 65 armors whose stats justify the rarity of their appearance.

Are you feeling lucky? Read all about the new items, and get details on the emote trails in the Knowledge Base today! Everyone, get trailing!

As you trek about the world searching for treasure, don't forget to pause and take a look at the creatures that have been updated. New, shiny, woolly and scuttley versions of sheep and spiders have appeared today with the aim of brightening up the landscape. The ogre city of Gu'Tanoth has also had a makeover, as have the Watchtower Wizards and the arcane machinery they guard. So whatever you do, don't forget to take time out from the digging and dancing to take a look!

In other news...

The mighty Guthix, in his wisdom, has decided that it is now safe for his Tears to award Hunter XP to adventurers for whom that is their lowest skill.

A bug has been fixed that prevented players from moving for a moment after arriving on Entrana.

The Rock Golem random event has grown tired of sitting behind rocks and glaring at pesky human miners, and has started training his Ranged skill. He's now talented enough to chuck rocks at anyone who annoys him, so watch out for stony missiles when you're mining!

The special attack of the Granite Maul has had a bug fixed that was draining too much of players' special attack energy while only performing one attack if they accidentally double-clicked on the bar.

This month, we will kick straight off with a new batch of treasure trails, featuring new challenges based on emotes and items to get you to that crucial next part of the trail. High level trails will require even more thought, but this batch will also come with a huge new set of more than 100 rewards, featuring composite bows, high level prayer gear and new high quality versions of old favourites, such as glory amulets. We're also going to release heraldic helms to go with your armour and some really rather glorious looking posh and emote-improving gear.

All this, and we haven't even mentioned the utterly unmentionable Third Age items! Items that will be even more difficult to obtain than a Champions Scroll from a pesky imp! Items that will be more sparkling than a wizard's lucky bead! Items so... ahem. Well, we'll let you find that out for yourself.

Reldo and his Knowledge Base team will also be releasing more of the popular area guides to places like Tirannwn, Gu'Tanoth, Morytania, the Kharidian Desert and Ape Atoll, as well as updating some of the older quests to use the Quest Help system.

Speaking of quests, this month's adventure will be an archetypal damsel in distress quest. Sort of. Well, it's going to have a damsel in it, and she'll in a spot of trouble... as anyone would be if they had taken up residence inside Draynor Manor. Will you stop by later this month to assist her with a rather poultry matter? Those who do are bound to find a use for her and her rather odd interpretation of Animal Magnetism.

We will also release a festive edition of the gallery, featuring some of your Christmassy submissions (keep sending them in), plus a few rather special comics. Naturally, Postie Pete's been especially busy preparing for the Christmas rush, but he tells us that he'll still be preparing another batch of letters for your yuletide enjoyment.

The ogres have been petitioning Bandos for a while for a new look fortress, and this December they will get it! He has agreed to give the city of Gu'Tanoth a lick of paint and a spot of spring cleaning, so keep your eyes peeled for a general area improvement of this mysterious, yet rather thuggish place.

And finally, the Christmas Update! This year, the little known Shanty Claws (the Sailor Werewolf) has heard terrible stories about evil activities underneath Karamja Volcano. Apparently children are going missing in the area, and for some strange reason, snow is predicted for the first time on this tropical island! What is really going on here? Are the TzHaar to blame, or is something more sinister up to some rather goblinny tricks? When this update is released later in the month, members and non-members alike will be welcome to join and earn a new seasonal object, and members will receive an additional treat for their player-owned houses.

We hope that your holiday breaks bring you happiness and celebrations, wherever you are!

We are currently in the process of upgrading our recovery answers systems.

During this time players will not be able to recover accounts and set or cancel recovery answers.

We appreciate your patience while the changes are taking place.

This will not affect users trying to login to the game.

RuneScape's mail service is second to none, as many of you will know: Postie Pete goes about his job with a cheerful grin and many a joke on his, err, lips. He may only be a head with a bag and a hat, but no one knows how to get around the lands of RuneScape like Postie Pete. He's been working hard again, and now he brings you the latest replies from such diverse characters as the Evil Chicken, Miss Schism, Burnt Meat the troll and Reldo. On top of that, he's even managed to snag another of the Wise Old Man's Wise Old Tips!

As always, Pete enjoys taking your letters into caves, houses, swamps and graveyards, so don't hesitate to put your quill to paper.

Click here to check out November's Postbag from the Hedge.

It had been a tough month at Ardougne Zoo. Word had come from Matthias, the falconer, that a Hunter skill was coming, and the keepers knew they had to do something to keep the zoo interesting. A new exhibit, it had been decided, was needed to draw the crowds away from the chinchompa-baiting to the south and Nickolaus - Ardougne's self proclaimed top Hunter - had taken the task upon himself. There was one animal in particular that he believed would keep the zoo bustling and popular. Nickolaus was going to hunt a ferret!
Unfortunately, not everything has gone according to plan. After setting out for the far western reaches, somewhere between the Piscatoris Fishing Colony and the Tree Gnome Stronghold, nothing more has been heard from the zoo's eccentric associate. Can you help to find Nickolaus? Has his disappearance got anything to do with the fabled Eagles' Peak? And what does all this have to do with rabbits?

Visit Charlie, one of the keepers at Ardougne Zoo, to begin a quest that will no doubt involve a spot of dressing-up, elaborate trials and several additions to your Hunter skill!

In other news...

The Sandwich Lady went through a traumatic experience last week when she decided that the Drunken Dwarf had been stationary too long and needed a visit. Five hours of "kebab, please!" later, the frustrated and shaken Sandwich Lady has decided to make her interface a little more accessible by adding a menu that will help customers identify her wares. Hopefully, this will stop beer-swilling dwarves from making the same mistake again. Hopefully!

When you kill someone who's using the Retribution prayer, you're supposed to take a little damage as a penalty for killing them. However, it's previously been quite easy to avoid this damage by running away. It won't be quite so easy now.

The graphical improvement for sheep and spiders has had to be postponed by a few days. But don't despair - those critters will get their promised makeover next week.

Like a seasoned Hunter, skulking behind trees and keeping unseen, the Hunter skill has waited for the right moment and pounced. That's right - after many months of patient tracking - the Hunter skill is upon us! Those stealthy and bold enough to become a master of the Hunter skill should begin at Yanille or Nardah. Marked by animal-skin icons on the minimap, two Hunter shops have taken up premises, selling the wares necessary to begin. A quick browse and shop for bird snares, teasing sticks and magical imp boxes, amongst others, will put you in fine stead for the adventures ahead! Who knows, you may even encounter Leon, an amateur inventor who has found a bow-dacious use for animal bones...

Ready to hunt and laden with animal traps, you will now be looking for somewhere to start your training. The Hunter skill comes with three brand new and vast areas, all denoted by the animal paw icon on the minimap. A quick scurry past the ogres of Gu'Tanoth and over the Feldip Hills will lead to the Feldip Jungle, teeming with explosive chinchompas, spined larupia and various other beasties. A trek past Rellekka, toward Trollweiss Mountain, will reveal the fearsome sabretooth kyatt and cohorts, while the grounds north of the Gnome Stronghold, now connected to the Piscatoris Fishing Colony, will open up - amongst others - Matthias's magnificent falconry area!

Phew! This lengthy list does not even include the Hunter area near Uzer, nor the graahk stomping grounds round Cairn Isle, or the salamander and lizard trapping areas scattered throughout the world. See the Knowledge Base article for an extensive list of where you can test your abilities.

The Hunter skill brings with it not only new areas, but new experiences. Watch your falcon swoop after dashing kebbits. Jump over pits as you lure unwitting sabretooth kyatts into them. Scour the plains for butterflies with a net and jar in tow. Master the patient, yet rewarding, technique of animal tracking. These diverse abilities will be available to you as your Hunter skill develops.

As any esteemed Hunter will tell you, the thrill of the chase is also about the reward, and a career of hunting will provide you with so many. Arm yourself with the chinchompa, an explosive rodent that can be thrown long distances! Aid your battle-weary friends with stat-boosting butterflies! Load your swamp lizard and toast enemies with its flame-throwing abilities! Collect or sell the furs of your catches, possibly even making them into weight-reducing capes, gloves for Thieving or full camouflage gear! Oh, and don't forget the imp-in-a-box, who will reluctantly help you when called upon...

So go hunt, stalk your prey stealthily and feel the call of the wild...

Improvement!

It would, of course, be improper to leave out the other important updates for this week. As if the Hunter skill weren't impressive enough! That's right, the imps have had their impending makeover early, as a special treat for the impudent little blighters. Little do they know that weeks of being imprisoned in magical boxes lie ahead of them.

Fairy rings

Keen-eyed adventurers may find two new fairy rings that can transport them to two of the more remote Hunter training areas. The codes to access these rings will be published in our Knowledge Base in a few days - we're not doing all the work for you!

Juna, the ancient snake who guards the Tears of Guthix, wishes it to be known that Guthix, in his wisdom, will not award Hunter XP to adventurers who drink his tears so soon after this skill is released. Anyone who would normally expect to gain Hunter XP as their reward will instead receive the bonus in their second-lowest stat.

When Guthix removes this restriction in early December, it will be announced in a news post.

Certain random events that give costumes as rewards will no longer hand out items that players already have stored in their houses' costume rooms.

The attack animations of metallic dragons have been adjusted to fix the glitch that made their chests stretch incorrectly when they attempted to breathe fire.

You can no longer turn yourself into a rock or an egg while trying to pump or pedal the Blast Furnace!

This week, the gods of RuneScape take a wee bit of a breather as the scribes and artists bring you their finest work. So what have Reldo, Postie Pete, the Makeover Mage and the Bank of RuneScape been up to?

First up, straight off the presses come the next batch of Area Guides. This time the researchers have been wandering westwards and brought back tales of Kandarin, Karamja and the Void Knights.

Postie Pete, of course, has had a hand (or a chin) in this update as well, bringing together some remarkable art by adventurers, heroes, scoundrels and curs from across the length and breadth of RuneScape. There are some amazing pieces in there, so you'd best put on your cleanest looking-at-artwork suit to visit the Player Gallery.

Reldo has also sent one of King Roald's finest portrait painters to the Makeover Mage to capture some art for the Wallpapers section. It turns out the Mage has been busy updating some creatures, and we can now present you with the artists' work - keep an eye out for these updated NPCs in the future. The sheep are gloriously fluffy; the imps look as mischievous as they behave; the spiders are as terrifying as Evil Dave's Basement of DOOM.

The Bank of RuneScape has used all the revenue they gained from some very clever investments, and have added twenty-four more slots to all members' accounts!

Diango's Halloween problems have also sorted themselves out, so you'll no longer be able to go into the workshop to defeat ghosts. If you've already got your rewards from there, though, Diango will be happy to give them back if you lose them.

We've also made the following changes and bug fixes:

• Rune pouches don't give you a message when you drop them. Instead, they just empty and fall on the floor.
• Switching from any other weapon to a staff properly remembers your combat style.
• Yew and magic trees in farming patches regrow properly when you chop them.
• You can now take enchanted secateurs to Entrana when you go on a balloon trip there.
• In Trouble Brewing, you can't drop torches on the floor. This is to stop players dropping them for members of the opposing team, and spoiling their own team's fun.
• Noted items are back to having a black outline around the picture of the item.

Auguste the monk is one of the more interesting brothers on Entrana, but the locals don't always like the idea of his "air-brained" schemes. This time he's been working on a plan to lift his spirits to new heights...

In this new quest, you'll be invited to use your skills to help Brother Auguste reach his dreams (and earn you some experience on the way). Unlock a new costume and a brand new transport system, providing you're talented enough to tackle a unique-looking puzzle.

Pack light and travel to the south-west corner of Entrana to meet with Auguste for a thrill-seeking journey across the globe. Keep your eyes open for all sorts of interesting sights on this Enlightened Journey.

Once you have helped Auguste prove his theories, you will have the opportunity to help him expand his enterprise all over RuneScape, so long as you have the talent and the materials to get you there...

In other news...

A new farming patch has been added to the Gnome Stronghold for growing trees. It's west of the agility course, near the bank. Like the other four tree patches, this one has an obliging gardener willing to look after your saplings in exchange for a little payment, and also a handy Leprechaun to keep hold of your tools.

When you switch weapons after you've been autocasting spells with a staff, your combat style will now attempt to stay on the last melee combat mode you selected rather than always defaulting to the Defensive mode.

The demon butler has been updated to match the other demons.

The special attack of the rune throwing axe will no longer "steal" other people's random event monsters from combat, causing them to attack you.

Runecrafting pouches have always automatically emptied themselves when you drop them on the ground. We have now added a warning message to ask if you're sure you wish to drop them.

Trimmed wizard hats have been updated to match the change that was made to the untrimmed versions a couple of weeks ago.

The trimmed Cape of Achievement for Woodcutting had a bug where it would change its colour to match your character's leggings. This has now been fixed.

We are pleased to announce the launch of payment by SMS/Text Message in the United States!

This service is in addition to the existing Pay by Phone option and allows a quick and easy way to get our optional "members game" for those without a credit card.

Payment by SMS/Text Message in the United States costs $9.99 for one month of membership. The higher cost of this payment method covers the additional costs we incur running the convenience of this service.

Please note: Our other existing payment methods are still the same price as before. e.g. subscription via credit-card in the US is still only USD$5.00 a month.

Also please note that boost, T-mobile and Verizon Mobile Phone Companies do not currently support the PaybySMS option in the United States.

All US customers who wish to subscribe using PayBySMS/Text can now do so by clicking the 'Start a new subscription' link from our front page. For more information about Payment by SMS/Text message, please click here.

We are constantly looking to make our PayByPhone and PayBySMS/Text Message payment option available for more countries. If these payment options are not yet available in your country, be sure to check the latest news and announcements regularly.

Welcome to November's Behind the Scenes article!

First to be released this month, we have Enlightened Journey. Rumours from Entrana suggest that one of the monks has an even greater desire to rise to the heavens than the others. In fact, his desire is so great that he is planning to make a hot air balloon! An experiment like that will need the expert help of an adventurer, so later this month don't be surprised if you get invited to join Auguste on a trip across the world.

Watch out for trouble from the locals and a unique puzzle to tax your brain. For those who can keep their heads above the clouds, a rather nice reward awaits...

We're also updating the website with a plethora of new area guides! About 20 new guides in total will be launched including the Void Knight Outpost, Brimhaven dungeon, Isafdar and the TzHaar City. Along with this we will also be launching a new set of wallpapers, another popular gallery page (for which the Postie is eternally grateful) and, of course, a new set of readers' letters.

After that little lot, we'll be giving you something we know all our members will be happy about: More bank space! We will be adding another three rows to the bank so you can store even more - erm - stuff! Hopefully, many of you are also using the new costume room (released last month) to store your costumes in, so you'll find you've got even more room to keep all of your gear.

Now, we know what you're thinking: "What on RuneScape can I do with all that new bank space?"
Well, how about we release lots of new equipment and objects for you to store, and perhaps even use with a shiny new skill? Yes, towards the end of the month we will be releasing the Hunter skill.

This new addition to the RuneScape skill list gives the player the opportunity to track, net, trap and generally scare the fur right off a brand new range of creatures! Hundreds of new objects and large areas of the map will now be opened up to you to explore and lay in wait for these pesky varmints. Rewards range from brand new weapons and armour all the way to your own imp in a box.

Speaking of imps, they are due to go "under the knife" this month, along with spiders and sheep. These three beasties have somehow barged their way to the front of the queue and will be receiving the full treatment from the Makeover Mage and his (or her) team of surgeons. Naturally, this means all of the spiders will be getting a new look, so be prepared for some rather scary legs to be creeping round a forest / jungle / ice plateau / cavern near you.

And finally this month, we release our second quest: Eagles' Peak. This exciting update is focused around the Hunter skill again, inviting the player to learn more about the mysterious disappearance of one of Ardougne Zoo's freelance specimen hunters. After promising them the delivery of a rare ferret the poor chap set out to the far western reaches, somewhere between the Piscatoris Fishing Colony and the Tree Gnome Stronghold. Something strange must have happened to him, though, as he has been missing for days! Will you be able to use your new-found skills to track him down?

Don't forget: The Halloween update will be taken down on the 13th of November, so don't delay - get your pumpkin hats today!

The time is here once again; the evenings are drawing in, the pumpkins have been carved, and RuneScape is once more filled with seasonal spookiness!

Halloween this year brings problems for Diango in his workshop in the form of enough poltergeists to fill a gnomeball stadium. The evil tree that seems to keep eating passers-by in the middle of the room is also cause for some concern.

Rewards to be had for combating this spectral and... err... woody threat include a full Halloween costume and a Jack o'Lantern helmet. It doesn't matter if you are a member or not, as all of the prizes are available to both members and non-members. For those of you who were not here last year, the 'Scared' emote is also back, but try not to get too frightened!

After the event is done, you'll find that Diango's new holiday item recovery system will also make getting your bobble hats back for winter a lot simpler. It will also cover the recovery of almost all of the holiday event items that you would have to otherwise go looking all over the place for.

Speak to Diango by his stall in Draynor to start this year's Halloween event.

Don't forget to check the Knowledge Base for more information.

In other news...

If you've got a Bank PIN, you will now be asked to enter it before removing items from your house's costume room, in much the same way that you enter it before removing items from your RuneScape bank account.

If you haven't got a Bank PIN and you'd like to set one, visit your local branch of the Bank of RuneScape and speak to the bankers today!
We'd like to remind you all once again that the Bank PIN is NOT a substitute for other forms of account security, and players still need to make sure no-one finds out their passwords. Visit our Knowledge Base to learn about keeping your account secure.

It's October, and Postie Pete has been hopping around the world again collecting replies to your questions! This month we look at why rats run widdershins, ask chaos dwarves how they remain so cool, and finally we get that long-awaited reply from the Wise Old Man!

Click here to see what they have to say for themselves.

Trolls have never been renowned as farmers. But Burntmeat the troll cook has heard a rumour that humans are able to grow goutweed, and he's keen to give it a try. In the kitchen of the Troll Stronghold, Burntmeat is hoping for a kind adventurer to teach his assistant this skill.

If you've done Eadgar's Ruse and The Feud, come back to the Troll Stronghold and meet My Arm, Burntmeat's exasperating young assistant. With My Arm by your side, prepare for a memorable voyage to sunny Karamja as you discover exactly how stupid a troll can be! This bizarre quest features jungle villagers, seafarers, dung and trolls aplenty.

If you can survive all that and help My Arm grow his own goutweed, you'll earn yourself a nice xp reward, plus a little something to help you get more out of the Farming skill.

But watch out for an encounter with the biggest bird ever seen in RuneScape...

A note about the Quest Point Cape:

Now that we've just released a new quest, all the players who'd got the new QP cape or hood will find that they've no longer got the right to wear these items since they haven't got all the available quest points. If you were wearing the QP cape or hood when you logged off before the update, the items will try to take themselves off you when you log back in.

If there was not sufficient space in your inventory or bank for the items to appear, you will be able to retrieve them from the Wise Old Man of Draynor Village free of charge. You will be able to wear them again as soon as you have the maximum possible number of quest points.

In other news...

The new Fletching cape is now available from Hickton in Catherby rather than the Ranging Guild. This allows players with level 99 fletching to buy the cape even if they have never gained access to the Guild.

If you have completed Darkness of Hallowvale and One Small Favour, you can now save an extra bankspace by storing the Meiyerditch short-cut key on your keyring.

Players who have completed the Rag and Bone Man quest, but who have not yet found all the bones on the wish-list, will now see a little yellow asterisk (*) on their quest list to remind them that they still have more work to do if they want to earn all the quest points available from the Odd Old Man.

Many people have requested that costumes stored in their houses' costume rooms should be protected in some way by the Bank PIN system. Although we have not yet made this change, we are working on it, and it should be released in the near future.
In the meantime, we'd like to remind you all that the Bank PIN is NOT a substitute for other forms of account security, and players still need to make sure no-one finds out their passwords. Visit our Knowledge Base to learn about keeping your account secure.

Are you one of the hottest firemakers? Craftier than a clockwork cat? Bit of a wiz at wizardry? Try out our new Capes of Achievement today!

Experts across RuneScape are now selling these stylish new additions to your wardrobe... but watch out! Only players who have reached level 99 of a specific skill or completed all of the quests will have the right to wear the latest in-game fashion and gain access to a funky new emote to show off their new cape!

Each cape comes with a matching hood, and if you've mastered more than one skill, a trimmed model will highlight your talent. So whatever skills your achievements lie in, you can show off your dedication with these elite new items. For those of you who still wonder about reaching level 100 ... there's a sneaky boost to your stat on each cape, temporarily giving you the effects of that unattainable century!

To find out where you can buy one, wander over to the Knowledge Base article.

This week also sees the release of a tough, new breed of animals. Herds of Desert Goats can now be found wandering around the Kharidian - um - Desert. Now there's a surprise!

Intrepid explorers who go hunting for these bleating beasts will find that they can collect goat horns, which, when powdered and mixed with Harralander, can make a new Combat potion. This magical (level 36) elixir combines the properties of a basic Attack Potion and Strength potion, so it's a handy addition to your inventory when heading into difficult combat situations.

Warning: Goats and the desert effect can be bad for your health!

Do you love to collect different outfits for your character but have trouble finding room for them all in your bank? Is your local banker buried under a heap of lederhosen and frog masks? Your problems are solved!

From now on, if you have level 42 Construction, you can add a costume room to your house. Chests, wardrobes and cape racks in this room can be used to store many of the ensembles you can acquire around RuneScape, including:

• Treasure trail reward costumes
• Random event reward costumes
• Minigame reward costumes (such as Castle Wars armour)
• Quest reward costumes (such as Temple Knight armour)
• Recent holiday event rewards - you will find that the room automatically stores any holiday event reward you are entitled to!
• Plus, of course, the new Capes of Achievement!

Naturally, bigger, higher quality pieces of furniture in this room can store more stuff.

Please consult the Knowledge Base article for the complete list of storable costumes.

In other news...

As always, we've been working hard behind the scenes to fix glitches in the game. This week, among many other minor bugfixes, watch out for the following changes:

• Higher-level slayers may be pleased to hear that Duradel, the Slayer Master of Shilo Village, has finally restored Nechryael to his list of assignments.
• Giant rats, bats and bears have had their models and animations upgraded.
• Ever since the update to the combat interfaces, your attack style would be reset to Accurate mode if you switched weapons to a magic staff. This will no longer happen unless there is no appropriate attack style available on the staff to match your previous mode.

For the past two months Postie Pete has been struggling to our gates with sackfuls of your fantastic artwork. Sculptures, paintings and etchings have been flooding in at a rate that has made even Pete sweat. He has collected together some of those that made him go "oooh", "aaah" or even made him chuckle a little. These fantastic creations are now available for viewing within the Players' Gallery.

The high-standard of work has made us want to return the favour, so we have cleaned our brushes, paid Aggie for a few vials of dye and made some of our own. So, available for download to your desktop, are six sparkling wallpapers for your viewing pleasure.

Will you dare go eyeballs to eyeball with the dreaded 'penance healers', who posed for this wallpaper between training for one of next year's updates, Barbarian Assault? Will you choose to marvel at the revised look of the rats, bears and elementals with our concept art? Or will you be sipping at a Blurberry Special in the gnome restaurant? The choice is yours.

The far-flung areas of RuneScape have allowed our writers in to explore for another batch of Area Guides. We have been mapping the dungeons, tasting the cuisine and chatting to various characters to give a comprehensive guide of what to expect in such treacherous areas as Waterbirth Island, the Falador Mole Lair and the Cave Goblin Mines.

Following the teleportation jewellery changes of last week, we have made another clutch of items usable while they are worn. The following can now be used with a simple right-click on the item and choosing the Operate option: the blessed silver sickle, the progress hat from the Mage Training Area, Prayer books, the Amulet of Catspeak, rubber chickens and the Nature Amulet.

There has also been a slight name change to the magic staff reward received from the White Knights. It is now called a 'white magic staff'.

Will you follow in the steps of the great metallurgist Vitruvius? Dare you try to rediscover his lost arts, or will you suffer the same fate as his apprentice? New armour and new ways to treat your Elemental ore are on offer to those brave enough to think out this new chapter of history...

In other news...

In response to feedback from players over the last week, we've adjusted the new interfaces to make them easier to use. In particular, the Run button has been moved to the bottom of the Options interface so that it's more convenient to click. The buttons have also been redesigned to make it more obvious exactly where you can click to toggle them.

The stats interface has returned to its old yellow colour since people were having trouble reading the orange version.

We've also fixed the bug whereby you could no longer get defence xp while autocasting magic spells.

You can now operate teleportation jewellery while you're wearing it! Just right-click on the item and choose the new Operate option. Do bear in mind that you'll have to click through the same "where would you like to go?" options as before, so it won't make it any easier for you to evade pkers.

The clickable areas on the spinning wheel interface have been enlarged to make them easier to use.

27 September 2006 - Postbag from the Hedge

In this month's edition of the postbag, we have the answers to all those questions that have been bothering you for so long:

Who's the better swordsman - Vannaka or Harrallak Menarous? Where did Baba Yaga get that amazing house? Why do hill giants keep their boxer shorts so shiny and clean? Plus a poem from a crab, and much more...

Don't forget to keep sending us your artwork for the forthcoming Gallery!

27 September 2006 - Skill Tutors

This week the Duke of Lumbridge has recruited a number of tutors to help our new players, both F2P and members. Adventurers fresh from Tutorial Island can often find themselves a bit lost in Lumbridge, so he decided to offer a bit of a helping hand.

The tutors (marked with a "?" icon on your minimap) are mostly based in Lumbridge, with just one residing in Varrock. As well as offering free advice on skills at any level, they also give you basic equipment should you lose it and even some training weapons and basic supplies.
Other additions include:

• A Lumbridge bank, found at the top of Lumbridge Castle.
• A revamp of the way signposts work.
• A glassblower on Entrana.
• An improved Newcomer map - to offer more information on where you are in the world.
  Available from certain General Stores.
• Useful reminders on what to do if you should happen to die while young.
• A free teleport to help the lost adventurer who has no clue where they are.
  Please note – this teleport cannot be used to evade combat.

Along with the new guides you'll find the swamps south of Lumbridge have received a bit of landscaping with more rocks being exposed for mining, new fishing spots in the river and Father Uhrney moving his hut even further away from the hustle and bustle of city life. With all this recent tectonic movement going on, a small island has appeared in the middle of the River Lum enabling those crossbow-equipped adventurers to cross to Al Kharid and back.

27 September 2006 - Player interfaces

We've now been able to rework some of the core interfaces used for controlling your character. The combat, worn-items and options interfaces have been completely changed, getting away from the old designs which featured text on tiny buttons and replacing them with clearer graphics.

Naturally these changes will take you a little while to get used to, so please check out the Knowledge Base page that explains what's happened before you do something dangerous like rushing into the Kalphite Queen's hive...

27 September 2006 - Area Sounds

The way we use sound in the free and members' worlds gets its well deserved update this week with the inclusion of Area Sounds. These ambient effects add a new level of immersion into our game world, with waterfalls growing louder as you walk towards them, trees with birds and animal sounds in them, bubbling fountains, wind whistling through the mountains, the sound of the sea lapping against the shore and mysterious howls haunting the peaks of the Wilderness. It really does add a new dimension to the game.

As well as new ambient sounds, you'll also notice you can hear a lot more of what other people are doing around you, especially when they're fighting.

We hope you enjoy them as much as we have enjoyed developing them.

In other news...

Along with the area sounds, interface updates and new tutors, we've been busily improving existing features of the game. This week:

• Adventurers who have defeated the terrible Iban and obtained his staff may use its new right-click option to check how many charges it has.
  Don't forget - it takes one charge to cast Iban Blast on a monster but two to cast it on another player.
• Baby dragons have now shrunk slightly to solve the problem where their heads rendered incorrectly when they leant forwards. This doesn't affect their stats.
• Rune and Adamant boots now have a +2 and +1 strength bonus respectively.
• The random junk you occasionally found in chests and crates around the world has now been removed. Members can still get all those items from sources such as the Trawler, the HAM cave and the Digsite.