Combat follows the classic 2006 triangle. Attack and Strength drive melee accuracy and max hit, Ranged covers distance attacks, Magic covers spellcasting, Defence reduces damage across all three, and Hitpoints grows as you deal damage. Combat level is calculated from all of them together.
Ashmarch has six combat skills. Attack, Strength and Defence are trained with melee, Ranged with bows, crossbows and thrown weapons, and Magic with combat spells. Hitpoints rises with all of them. Prayer and Slayer have their own pages, as does Magic.
Every hit pays 4 XP per point of damage in the skill your attack style trains, plus 1.33 Hitpoints XP per point. Ranged pays 4 XP per damage the same way. A combat spell pays its own base XP plus 4 per damage. This is base XP: your game mode multiplies it (see Game Modes). XP stops counting at 200 million in any skill.
| Weapon | Attack level | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Iron scimitar | 1 | Good first weapon |
| Steel scimitar | 5 | |
| Mithril scimitar | 20 | |
| Adamant scimitar | 30 | |
| Rune scimitar | 40 | The standard mid-level weapon |
| Dragon scimitar | 60 | Special attack stops the target using protection prayers |
| Dragon dagger (p++) | 60 | Fast double-hit special |
| Abyssal whip | 70 | Drops from abyssal demons (Slayer 85) |
| Weapon | Ranged level | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Shortbow / longbow | 1 | Shortbows fire faster, longbows reach further |
| Oak, willow, maple, yew bows | 5, 20, 30, 40 | Make your own with Fletching |
| Magic shortbow / longbow | 50 | Both have special attacks |
| Rune crossbow | 61 | Fires bolts; sold in the PK and Slayer shops |
| Armour | Defence level |
|---|---|
| Bronze to steel | 1–5 |
| Black / white | 10 |
| Mithril | 20 |
| Adamant | 30 |
| Rune | 40 |
| Dragon | 60 |
| Barrows sets | 70 |
Ranged armour is crafted from dragonhide (see Crafting). Barrows sets come from the Barrows.
In the Warriors' Guild in Burthorpe, every cyclops you kill has a 1 in 9 chance to drop the next defender up from the best one you own: bronze, iron, steel, black, mithril, adamant, then rune. A defender you are wearing, carrying or keeping in your bank all count, so you never have to bring the old one with you. Defenders can also be bought with PK points or Slayer points.
Many weapons have a special attack that spends energy from a shared bar of 100%. The bar refills over time. Switch to the weapon, click the special bar and attack.
| Special attack cost | Weapons |
|---|---|
| 25% | Dragon dagger, dragon longsword, dragon mace, Vesta's longsword, abyssal dagger |
| 30% | Dragon halberd |
| 35% | Statius's warhammer |
| 50% | Abyssal whip, abyssal tentacle, granite maul, every godsword, armadyl crossbow, dragon claws, Vesta's spear, voidwaker, ursine chainmace, webweaver bow, accursed sceptre, toxic blowpipe, abyssal bludgeon |
| 55% | Dragon scimitar, magic shortbow, magic longbow, dark bow |
| 100% | Saradomin sword |
Reach 99 in any skill and the Wise Old Man sells you its skillcape and hood for 99,000 coins. You need two free inventory slots. Once you have 99 in more than one skill your capes are trimmed automatically. Skillcapes give the cape's emote; they have no other bonus.