Combat skill
Defence training
Reduces the chance of being hit and unlocks armour. Trained on the Defensive attack style, usually alongside Attack and Strength.
Methods
4
Ranked by xp/hr
Top xp/hr
60,000
Fastest listed
Best gp/hr
400k
Most profitable
Milestones
5
Key unlocks
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Why train Defence?
Defence cuts how often you're hit and unlocks nearly all armour. It's also the most build-defining combat stat — leaving it low is the core of a pure or a defence-capped account.
ScapePath reads your Defence when it checks whether you can equip a boss's recommended armour, so a Defence gap often explains why a piece of gear or a fight shows as 'not ready yet'.
40 gives rune, 60 dragon, 65 Bandos, 70 Barrows and most mid-tier armour, and 75 covers Justiciar, Masori and the endgame sets. Decide your account's Defence identity early — it's the hardest combat choice to reverse.
Milestones
The levels that actually change what you can do — link your account above to see how close you are.
- Level 40Rune armour (F2P best)
- Rune armour
- Level 60Dragon armour
- Dragon armour
- Level 65Bandos armour
- Bandos chestplate
- Level 70Barrows / most mid-tier armour
- Barrows armour
- Level 75Justiciar / Masori / most endgame armour
- Most endgame armour
Important unlocks
What levelling Defence opens up across the game.
Gear
- Bandos chestplateLv 65
Utility
- Rune armourLv 40
- Dragon armourLv 60
- Barrows armourLv 70
- Most endgame armourLv 75
Training methods
Ranked by xp/hr. gp/hr is signed — green earns, red is the cost to train. Figures are conservative experienced-player estimates.
Nightmare Zone (Defensive)
AFK Defence XP with overloads + absorptions.
60,000
xp/hr
−50k
gp/hr
Slayer tasks (Defensive)
Bank Defence XP on Defensive style while earning gp and Slayer.
45,000
xp/hr
+400k
gp/hr
Sand / ammonite crabs (Defensive)
Switch to the Defensive style to bank Defence XP; very AFK.
30,000
xp/hr
Low-level monsters (Defensive)
Free F2P Defence XP on the Defensive style.
15,000
xp/hr
Money-making methods
Ways this skill can earn while — or after — you train it.
Bosses that need this skill
Encounters Defence unlocks or eases — a reason to hit that next level.
Requirements, milestones and unlocks are verified against the OSRS Wiki. xp/hr and gp/hr are conservative experienced-player estimates that vary with gear, efficiency and live Grand Exchange prices — use them to compare methods, not as exact quotes. Personalized recommendations are derived from your public RuneScape Hiscores. ScapePath is a fan-made companion and is not affiliated with Jagex.