Uploaded August 2026 | Updated September 2026, 3 weeks ago
Jagex is asking what RuneScape’s endgame should actually look like. But before we can talk about rebalancing it, we probably need to figure out what the endgame even is.
Is it level 80+ skilling? Getting into high-level PvM? Chasing 120s and 200m? Or is there a late game somewhere in between that RuneScape has never quite defined?
This week, we look at where progression starts to get awkward. Herblore has some questionable stretches, Magic and Ranged gear can have some very strange stepping stones, older rewards have been left behind by newer tiers, and plenty of systems were built around assumptions about what “endgame” meant years ago. The question is how much of that can actually be addressed by a rebalance built largely around number changes rather than full-scale reworks.
Then we turn back to Leagues II with SquigglyLemon, the first player to reach 200m all in Equilibrium. We talk about what worked in their route, what they would change, where relics started falling off, and what pushing the League that far tells us about progression when many of RuneScape’s usual restrictions are stripped away.
And perhaps that is the interesting connection between the two discussions. RuneScape’s endgame is not necessarily lacking things to do. In many places, the bigger issue is whether the steps between those things still make sense, and whether progressing through them continues to give players tangible reasons to move forward.
This week on RSBANDBUpdate!:
• What actually counts as RuneScape’s endgame?
• Where post level 80 skilling progression starts to break down
• The strange state of Magic and Ranged gear progression
• Whether older endgame rewards still have a place
• What Jagex can realistically accomplish with an endgame rebalance
• Lemon’s road to 200m all in Leagues II
• Relic choices, mistakes, and what changes on a second League run
• What Leagues can teach us about RuneScape’s main-game progression
RSBANDBUpdate! is a weekly RuneScape podcast focused on long-term systems, lore, design philosophy, player expectations, and the direction of the game.
Timestamps:
0:00 - What is the end-game?
6:06 - What is actually in scope?
12:41 - What's not working at the high level?
18:14 - Combat gear accessibility
23:58 - When end-game gear becomes obsolete
28:34 - What Leagues reveals about gear progression
33:14 - What is high level skilling?
38:18 - Which skills actually feel high level?
47:08 - What the community sees as endgame issues
53:14 - Bad luck mitigation and dupe protection
57:32 - Lemon's 200m all Leagues run
1:04:56 - Relics as skilling solves
1:10:03 - Transmutation as a springboard
1:14:41 - Rejuvenate and relic regrets
1:20:52 - What is the point of Leagues?
1:24:47 - Playing the League "wrong"
1:29:12 - Region locking rewards planning
1:34:04 - What changes on a second run?
1:39:23 - Were players too strong?
1:47:19 - Shane's Progression and Bossing League
1:52:43 - Could Leagues combat work in the main game?
1:59:02 - Xurdones' Dragon Trophy
2:07:04 - Why Lord of Light won out
2:12:06 - Achievements
2:13:39 - RSBANDB at RuneFest
2:15:31 - Pick of the Week
Full show notes and links: update.rsbandb.com/2026/08/rsbandbupdate-1105-hard-core-leagues
Join our Discord: https://update.show/discord
Join our friends' chat: BitsBytes
Support us on Patreon: patreon.com/rsbandb
Jagex is asking what RuneScape’s endgame should actually look like. But before we can talk about rebalancing it, we probably need to figure out what the endgame even is.
Is it level 80+ skilling? Getting into high-level PvM? Chasing 120s and 200m? Or is there a late game somewhere in between that RuneScape has never quite defined?
This week, we look at where progression starts to get awkward. Herblore has some questionable stretches, Magic and Ranged gear can have some very strange stepping stones, older rewards have been left behind by newer tiers, and plenty of systems were built around assumptions about what “endgame” meant years ago. The question is how much of that can actually be addressed by a rebalance built largely around number changes rather than full-scale reworks.
Then we turn back to Leagues II with SquigglyLemon, the first player to reach 200m all in Equilibrium. We talk about what worked in their route, what they would change, where relics started falling off, and what pushing the League that far tells us about progression when many of RuneScape’s usual restrictions are stripped away.
And perhaps that is the interesting connection between the two discussions. RuneScape’s endgame is not necessarily lacking things to do. In many places, the bigger issue is whether the steps between those things still make sense, and whether progressing through them continues to give players tangible reasons to move forward.
This week on RSBANDBUpdate!:
• What actually counts as RuneScape’s endgame?
• Where post level 80 skilling progression starts to break down
• The strange state of Magic and Ranged gear progression
• Whether older endgame rewards still have a place
• What Jagex can realistically accomplish with an endgame rebalance
• Lemon’s road to 200m all in Leagues II
• Relic choices, mistakes, and what changes on a second League run
• What Leagues can teach us about RuneScape’s main-game progression
RSBANDBUpdate! is a weekly RuneScape podcast focused on long-term systems, lore, design philosophy, player expectations, and the direction of the game.
Timestamps:
0:00 - What is the end-game?
6:06 - What is actually in scope?
12:41 - What's not working at the high level?
18:14 - Combat gear accessibility
23:58 - When end-game gear becomes obsolete
28:34 - What Leagues reveals about gear progression
33:14 - What is high level skilling?
38:18 - Which skills actually feel high level?
47:08 - What the community sees as endgame issues
53:14 - Bad luck mitigation and dupe protection
57:32 - Lemon's 200m all Leagues run
1:04:56 - Relics as skilling solves
1:10:03 - Transmutation as a springboard
1:14:41 - Rejuvenate and relic regrets
1:20:52 - What is the point of Leagues?
1:24:47 - Playing the League "wrong"
1:29:12 - Region locking rewards planning
1:34:04 - What changes on a second run?
1:39:23 - Were players too strong?
1:47:19 - Shane's Progression and Bossing League
1:52:43 - Could Leagues combat work in the main game?
1:59:02 - Xurdones' Dragon Trophy
2:07:04 - Why Lord of Light won out
2:12:06 - Achievements
2:13:39 - RSBANDB at RuneFest
2:15:31 - Pick of the Week
Full show notes and links: update.rsbandb.com/2026/08/rsbandbupdate-1105-hard-core-leagues
Join our Discord: https://update.show/discord
Join our friends' chat: BitsBytes
Support us on Patreon: patreon.com/rsbandb
