In Old School RuneScape, the Dragon Warhammer is a weapon of notable prestige and utility. Its significance within the game is multifaceted. Primarily, it’s used for its powerful special attack, which can dramatically reduce an opponent’s defense. This feature makes it particularly valuable in high-level PvE and PvP encounters, where reducing an enemy’s defense can be crucial for victory.
Obtaining the Dragon Warhammer, however, is a journey that requires both patience and skill. This valuable item is a rare drop from Lizardman Shamans, which reside on the Continent of Kourend, in the Lizardman Canyon and the Lizardman Settlement. Due to its low drop rate, players often invest considerable time in farming these monsters, especially Ironman players who cannot trade OSRS gold at the Grand Exchange to get one that way. You will need a high combat level and strategic planning, as the area where Lizardman Shamans are found is often crowded and can be dangerous. You need to meet specific requirements before going there and unique gear to make the fight more manageable.
Lizardman Shamans
Lizardman Shamans are high-level monsters generally fought primarily for their Dragon Warhammer drop since they are the only monsters that drop this handy item. Before you can fight them, however, you need first to unlock access to them, which requires a blend of quest completion and earning favour of the Shayzien House in Great Kourend, as well as a small grind for some other pieces of equipment and even slayer points, if you want to fight them on task.
Preparation
Your initial step involves completing the Client of Kourend quest, an essential prelude that introduces you to the various houses of Kourend, including the Shayzien House. This quest lays the foundational knowledge and access you need for your journey. Once you’ve completed this quest, your focus should shift to gaining favour with the Shayzien House. This is achieved by participating in activities and tasks specific to this house, such as aiding in medical tents or combating lower-tier Lizardmen. These tasks contribute to increasing your favour and prepare you for the more challenging encounters with the Shamans.
Shayzien Favour
Reaching 100% favour with the Shayzien House is a critical milestone. It ensures that you have unrestricted access to the best in slot gear (Shayzien armour 5) for fighting and obtain access to killing Lizardman Shamans and, importantly, prevents attacks from other Lizardmen in the area, allowing you to concentrate on your primary target. Remember that Lizardman Shamans are tough opponents with unique attacks that can damage substantially. Therefore, it is advisable to gear up appropriately, focusing on both defensive and offensive capabilities, and to ensure your combat stats are sufficiently high.
Shayzien Gear
After you gain 100% Shayzien favour, you can fight the hardest tier of Shayzien soldiers in the Shayzien Combat ring and obtain the tier 5 Shayzien armour, which is necessary to negate one of the special attacks of the lizardman Shamans. This will make the grind for the Dragon Warhammer far more manageable, and you will end up using fewer consumables, such as food.
Kourend and Kebos Hard Diary
Completing the hard Kourend and Kebos diary will also help you in your journey to obtain the Dragon Warhammer since one of the perks obtained from completing it is that you will be able to use your slayer helm as the Shayzien armour 5 headpiece after speaking to Captain Cleive. This is very important because your slayer helm will give you 16,67 percent more accuracy when killing slayer monsters while on a slayer task, which ultimately means more DPS output. The slayer helm can make the difference in grind time for the Dragon Warhammer.
Lizardman Shaman Locations
Lizardman Shamans are located in specific areas, and engaging them as part of a Slayer task adds an extra layer of reward and excitement to your quest.
Lizardman Shamans inhabit two primary locations: the Lizardman Canyon and the Lizardman Settlement. The Lizardman Canyon, accessible after gaining significant favor with the Shayzien House, offers a more open space for combat. However, it’s often crowded, requiring you to be vigilant of the Shamans and other players. On the other hand, the Lizardman Settlement, located in the northern part of the Kourend, provides a multi-combat area, ideal if you prefer group battles or using area-of-effect attacks.
Slayer
To add Lizardman Shamans to your Slayer task list, you must first unlock this ability through the Slayer reward point system. This requires you to have a sufficient Slayer level and enough points to spend on the unlock. Once you have done this, you can receive assignments from a Slayer master to kill Lizardman Shamans, turning your battles against these creatures into a more rewarding experience as you earn both Slayer experience and the chance at their unique drops.
Dragon Warhammer Requirements
The Dragon Warhammer requires 60 Attack to wield and is known for its crushing blows, attributed to its high strength bonus. While its accuracy may not be as high as some other weapons, the sheer force of its hits compensates for this, making it a good weapon in specific combat scenarios. However, Its real power lies in its special attack, Smash.
Special Attack
This special attack consumes 50% of your special attack energy and can lower your opponent’s defense by 30% of their current level if it succeeds. This feature is handy against opponents with high defense, making the Dragon Warhammer an invaluable tool in boss fights and high-level player-versus-monster engagements.
The practicality of the Dragon Warhammer extends beyond just its combat capabilities. In PvP scenarios, it can be strategically used to weaken opponents significantly, giving you a substantial advantage. Additionally, in team settings, the Warhammer’s ability to lower an enemy’s defense can benefit all group members, making it a much sought-after weapon for team raids and boss battles.
Where to Use
The Dragon Warhammer excels in battles against foes with high defense ratings. This makes it ideal for boss fights. However, in situations where your opponent has a lower defense, or you require more accurate and consistent damage output, other weapons might be preferable.
For instance, the Abyssal Whip, renowned for its balance of speed, accuracy, and strength, is more suitable for general combat and training. Its faster attack speed makes it a better choice for sustained damage over time. Similarly, the Godsword, with its higher strength bonus and special attacks tailored for different combat styles, might be more effective in certain PvP scenarios or against specific bosses.
The Dragon Warhammer is the BiS spec weapon against:
- Abyssal Sire
- Cox
- Coporeal Beast
- Galvek
- Giant Mole
- General Graador
- Kalphite Queen
- Skotizo
- Theatre of Blood
Ultimately, your choice of weapon in OSRS should align with the specific requirements of your combat situation. While the Dragon Warhammer is unmatched in lowering enemy defenses, you might want other spec weapons for different bosses, so keep an eye on the OSRS gold price and diversify your arsenal with weapons that offer higher accuracy, speed, or special attacks. Your adaptability and strategic weapon choice will define your success in OSRS.
