Strategies for Volcanic Cave
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This article is a strategy guide for Volcanic Cave.
This guide is meant for single clears and to enable idling with as low as possible requirements. Not to be the most effective method. Information on equipment, mechanics and strategies are on this page.
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The Volcanic Cave is the dungeon that unlocks all of the Legendary dungeons. The guide covers gives recommendations on gear needed to idle this dungeon. Idling has a significantly higher skill and equipment requirements than manual clears.
Please note that 
Malcs, the Guardian of Melvor is unable to perform any normal attacks due to the special attacks it has. Therefore, the maximum damage dealt by Malcs is 520 from Razor-Sharp Claws special attack, not the 982 damage from the normal attack.
- If you wish to tweak the Combat Simulator Exports yourself, they can be found here.
Why Clear Volcanic Cave?
- Clear 1 time:
- To unlock
Air God Dungeon - To get the
Fire Cape which grants 2% DR - To get the
Elite Chest
- To unlock
- Clear 50 times:
- For a Township Task that gives
Dragon Bones, 
and 
- To start obtaining
Ancient Armour in preparation for the Air God Dungeon
- For a Township Task that gives
- Clear 100 times:
- To unlock
Infernal Stronghold - To unlock Ancient Magicks which gives you powerful spells such as
Slicing Winds, 
Icicle Volley, and 
Ignite - To farm 100 Fire Cape for a Township Task that gives 4 Infernal Claw
- To unlock
- Clear 100+ times:
- To farm for the full
ancient armour set - To farm for the 10
Amulets of Fury needed for the 
Fury of the Elemental Zodiacs (FEZ). Check the FEZ/Guide for more details
- To farm for the full
Ancient Armour is not required for Air God Dungeon if you're willing to Manual Eat that dungeon 2-5 times.
It is hotly debated what the correct course of action would be in many circumstances. This guide will not recommend either way and will merely present the options to the Player.
- Ancient Armour is required for a 100% safe idle setup for Air God Dungeon, but will take an estimated 35+ hours to obtain.
- When using a Manual Eat for a couple of clears
Rune Armour or 
Dragon Armour will suffice.
According to simulations, to get the full Ancient Armour set it will likely take:
- 640 clears with a 50% chance
- 817 clears with a 75% chance
- 1,377 clears with a 95% chance
When to Clear Volcanic Cave?
There are no downsides to attempting Volcanic Cave early as you will obtain powerful gear if you manage to complete it. However, it will be a significant challenge if you attempt this dungeon under-levelled.
In general, you will want at least 
Level 70 so that you can equip the Ancient Armor and you should be able to complete 
Dragons Den relatively easily before attempting this dungeon. Ideally, you will want sufficient 
Auto Eat to survive the dungeon without resorting to manual eating, but if you take this route then see the last section for further recommendations on how to survive the dungeon the hard way.
Ancient Magicks
After you clear the Volcanic Cave 100 times you gain access to Ancient Magicks which are a more powerful form of magic. When you have a Ancient Magicks spell equipped, there are no curses available, but you can still use Auroras.
The spells you receive are:
- Slicing Winds is best used when your chance to hit is relatively low because you are guaranteed not to miss if your accuracy is 20,000+.
- Ignite is a more powerful spell and has a good chance of killing monsters in one-shot.
- Icicle Volley is a good all rounder, and can be used in all other cases.
Ancient Magick spells do not scale in the same way as standard magic (i.e. with equipment buffs and debuffs), but they are still impacted by the Combat Triangle in the normal way. Typically, when you first obtain Ancient Magicks it is more powerful than the regular magic and so should used in preference. However, these fall off relatively quickly.
Standard Guide
The following Setups were calculated without any Pets, 
Astrology or Potions.
These Guides will only assume the required 
Hitpoints and 
Agility based on not having any of those, if you do have Pets like 
Leonardo or 
Finn, the Cat, you may be able to get away with slightly less.
Melee
The following table shows a Rune Armour setup.
Both sets have roughly the same 20 clears per hour.
- Rune Armour requires:
- Level 78
Level 70.
- Dragon Armour requires:
- Level 75
- Level 50
Gear
A 
Sandstorm Ring can be equipped for around 3.5-4 more clears per hour. This will require 1 more level in Hitpoints.
- Prayers:
Incredible Reflexes & 
Chivalry
| Slot | Item | DR% |
|---|---|---|
 |  (G) Rune Helmet | 5% |
 |  (G) Rune Platebody | 5% |
 |  (G) Rune Platelegs | 5% |
 |  (G) Rune Boots | 5% |
 |  Paladin Gloves | 4% |
 |  Obsidian Cape | 0% |
 |  Elite Amulet of Defence | 2% |
 |  Silver Diamond Ring | 1% |
 |  Sunset Rapier | 0% |
 |  (G) Rune Shield | 5% |
 |  Occultist   Minotaur | 0% |
| Total | 32% | |
Agility
| Slot | Obstacle | Bonuses |
|---|---|---|
| 1 |  Cargo Net | +3% Global GP (except Item Sales) +2% Fishing Mastery XP |
| 2 | Rope Jump | +3% Smithing Mastery XP |
| 3 | Pipe Climb | +5% Melee Evasion +5% Melee Maximum Hit |
| 4 | Coal Stones | -4% Skill XP for all Skills +10% Base Food Healing Value +20% GP gained from Thieving +3% Chance to Preserve Resources in Skills |
| 5 | Cliff Balance | +20 Maximum Hitpoints +5% Ranged Accuracy Rating +2 Prayer Point Cost for Prayers +5% Magic Accuracy Rating +5% Melee Accuracy Rating |
| 6 | Rocky Waters | +50 Maximum Hitpoints |
| 7 | Boulder Trap | -20% Chance to Preserve Resources in Skills |
| 8 | Raft Building | +20 Maximum Hitpoints +2% Damage To All Monsters +1% Damage Reduction |
Pre 100 Clear Volcanic Magic
Magic is slightly higher than Melee at this point at roughly 15 clears per hour. Yet they are lower if Melee uses Sandstorm Ring.
The requirements are however lower.
You will only need either Level 72 and Level 50 or Level 78 and no Agility.
Either Skill combination will still require you to use 
Weakening III.
Gear
- Spell:
Fire Surge - Curse: Weakening III
- Prayers:
Mystic Lore & 
Mystic Might
| Slot | Item | DR% |
|---|---|---|
|  Fire Expert Wizard Hat | 5% |
|  Fire Expert Wizard Robes | 5% |
|  Fire Expert Wizard Bottoms | 5% |
|  Fire Expert Wizard Boots | 5% |
| Paladin Gloves | 4% |
|  Skull Cape | 3% |
|  Elite Amulet of Magic | 2% |
| Silver Diamond Ring | 1% |
|  Magic Wand (Powerful) | 0% |
| (G) Rune Shield | 5% |
| Occultist  Witch | 0% |
| Total | 35% | |
Agility
| Slot | Obstacle | Bonuses |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cargo Net | +3% Global GP (except Item Sales) +2% Fishing Mastery XP |
| 2 | Rope Jump | +3% Smithing Mastery XP |
| 3 | Pipe Climb | +5% Melee Evasion +5% Melee Maximum Hit |
| 4 | Coal Stones | -4% Skill XP for all Skills +10% Base Food Healing Value +20% GP gained from Thieving +3% Chance to Preserve Resources in Skills |
| 5 | Cliff Balance | +20 Maximum Hitpoints +5% Ranged Accuracy Rating +2 Prayer Point Cost for Prayers +5% Magic Accuracy Rating +5% Melee Accuracy Rating |
| 6 | Rocky Waters | +50 Maximum Hitpoints |
Fire Robes have the exact same stats as 
Air Robes. The secondary effect of robes (+20 minimum hit for matching spells) outweighs the damage increase of higher level spells. However, you should use the highest level spell and robe combination available to you.
100+ Volcanoes Magic
After clearing the 
Volcanic Cave 100 times you will unlock Ancient Magicks which require a minimum of 
Level 70.
We will however be using Icicle Volley which requires Level 74.
You will also require Level 77, Level 80 and 
Level 80.
You can play around in the Combat Simulator to find your optimal skill and prayer combination.
This has an average clear speed of 32 per hour.
Gear
- Spell: Icicle Volley
- Aurora:
Surge II (Optional) - Prayers: Mystic Might &
Stone Skin
| Slot | Item | DR% |
|---|---|---|
| Fire Expert Wizard Hat | 5% |
| Fire Expert Wizard Robes | 5% |
| Fire Expert Wizard Bottoms | 5% |
| Fire Expert Wizard Boots | 5% |
| Paladin Gloves | 4% |
| Skull Cape | 3% |
| Elite Amulet of Magic | 2% |
| Silver Diamond Ring | 1% |
| Magic Wand (Powerful) | 0% |
| (G) Rune Shield | 5% |
| Occultist Witch | 0% |
| Total | 35% | |
Agility
| Slot | Obstacle | Bonuses |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cargo Net | +3% Global GP (except Item Sales) +2% Fishing Mastery XP |
| 2 | Rope Jump | +3% Smithing Mastery XP |
| 3 | Pipe Climb | +5% Melee Evasion +5% Melee Maximum Hit |
| 4 | Coal Stones | -4% Skill XP for all Skills +10% Base Food Healing Value +20% GP gained from Thieving +3% Chance to Preserve Resources in Skills |
| 5 | Cliff Balance | +20 Maximum Hitpoints +5% Ranged Accuracy Rating +2 Prayer Point Cost for Prayers +5% Magic Accuracy Rating +5% Melee Accuracy Rating |
| 6 | Rocky Waters | +50 Maximum Hitpoints |
| 7 | Boulder Trap | -20% Chance to Preserve Resources in Skills |
| 8 | Raft Building | +20 Maximum Hitpoints +2% Damage To All Monsters +1% Damage Reduction |
| 9 | Ice Jump | +20 Maximum Hitpoints +5% Base Food Healing Value +5% Chance to Double Items Globally +10 Mining Node Hitpoints +10% Chance to Preserve Resources in Skills |
Magic builds using Ancient Magicks generally produce more drops per hour than the Melee equivalents. However, due to the number of runes needed, and the non-scaling nature of Ancient Magicks, as you progress 
Melee builds will eventually give faster clear times.
Manual Eating
The gear needed for a manual run through the dungeon is significantly lower than needed for idling. However, it also depends on how well you time your eating as this will interrupt your attack and lengthen the combat time.
In general, if you are considering a manual run it is recommended that:
- You have
Level 70 so that you can equip the Ancient armor as soon as it becomes available. - You have the highest Auto Eat tier possible to avoid accidental deaths
- You use a Melee build with a fast weapon, such as
Sunset Rapier, so that you can recover quickly after eating. - You start with the highest DR and HP so that you have an easier time.
For example, in theory, this build could work with a hard cap of 40 for all skills (i.e. Level 40):
| Slot | Item | DR% |
|---|---|---|
|  (G) Adamant Helmet | 4% |
|  (G) Adamant Platebody | 4% |
|  (G) Adamant Platelegs | 4% |
|  (G) Adamant Boots | 4% |
|  Adamant Gloves | 0% |
|  Knight's Cape | 1% |
|  Silver Topaz Necklace | 0% |
| Silver Diamond Ring | 1% |
|  Adamant Sword | 0% |
|  (G) Adamant Shield | 4% |
| Occultist Minotaur | 0% |
| Total | 22% | |
In addition:
- Optionally, equip
Ultimate Strength and 
Safeguard - Optionally, equip
Wolf and 
Yak
However, any improvements on this equipment set would be highly recommended as clearing the dungeon with this build would take around 13 minutes.
Manual eating has a significantly lower requirement, but requires skill to not die.
Ancient Relics Guide
This guide is written around the restrictions of the 
Ancient Relics game mode. Ancient Relics restricts the player's maximum levels for combat skills to 10 plus 5 times the number of dungeons completed.
Based on the suggested dungeon order, this dungeon guide will assume the player's combat stats will be capped at a maximum of 65
Suggestions assume no Pets, Relics, Agility, 
Cartography or Astrology.
Just like most previous Dungeons, this will require you to Manual Eat again.
Make sure you spam eat through 
Prat, the Protector of Secrets Volley Attack, this attack hits 3 times. Also be mindful of Malcs, the Guardian of Melvor Double-Claw attack. This hits twice for a large amount of damage.
Melee
Melee is the slightly slower version of the 2, however it does not have a Rune cost and the Food cost is about the same.
The average clear time for this dungeon is roughly 4.5 minutes with 
Rune Claw. You can use 
Ice Sword as an alternative, this will however increase clear time to 6 minutes.
The clear speed of 
Adamant Armour and Rune Armour is about the same and can also be used for Air God Dungeon.
- Adamant Armour uses roughly 260
Lobster for a single clear - Rune Armour uses roughly 230 Lobster for a single clear
- Prayers: Ultimate Strength & Incredible Reflexes
Magic
If you wish to continue with Magic, you will need a 
Runecrafting level of 55+.
- Using
Earth Surge clears this dungeon in roughly 4 minutes while using 200 Lobster per clear - Using
Earth Bolt clears this dungeon in roughly 5 minutes while using 270 Lobster per clear
Witch Yak has a large impact on both Food consumed and clear speed due to having to eat less.
- Spell: Earth Surge or Earth Bolt
- Curse:
Soul Split III - Aurora:
Fury II (Optional) - Prayers: Mystic Might & Mystic Lore
Idle for Ancient Relics, Hardcore & Adventure
This guide assumes Auto Eat - Tier III has been unlocked.
Melee
This setup will require 890 Health & 32% Damage Reduction and can expect roughly 11 clears per hour.
This will require Level 89 without Agility or Level 82 with Level 50.
- Prayers: Chivalry & Incredible Reflexes
| Slot | Item |
|---|---|
 | (G) Rune Helmet |
 | (G) Rune Platebody |
 | (G) Rune Platelegs |
 | (G) Rune Boots |
 | Paladin Gloves |
 | Elite Amulet of Defence |
 | Silver Diamond Ring |
 | Sunset Rapier |
 | (G) Rune Shield |
| Slot | Obstacle | Bonuses |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cargo Net | +3% Global GP (except Item Sales) +2% Fishing Mastery XP |
| 2 | Rope Jump | +3% Smithing Mastery XP |
| 3 | Pipe Climb | +5% Melee Evasion +5% Melee Maximum Hit |
| 4 | Coal Stones | -4% Skill XP for all Skills +10% Base Food Healing Value +20% GP gained from Thieving +3% Chance to Preserve Resources in Skills |
| 5 | Cliff Balance | +20 Maximum Hitpoints +5% Ranged Accuracy Rating +2 Prayer Point Cost for Prayers +5% Magic Accuracy Rating +5% Melee Accuracy Rating |
| 6 | Rocky Waters | +50 Maximum Hitpoints |
Magic
This setup will require 950 Health & 32% Damage Reduction and can expect roughly 9 clears per hour.
This will require Level 95 without Agility or Level 88 with Level 50.
- Spell:
Wind Surge - Prayers: Mystic Might & Mystic Lore
| Slot | Item |
|---|---|
|  Air Expert Wizard Hat |
|  Air Expert Wizard Robes |
|  Air Expert Wizard Bottoms |
|  Air Expert Wizard Boots |
| Paladin Gloves |
| Elite Amulet of Magic |
| Silver Diamond Ring |
| Magic Wand (Powerful) |
| (G) Rune Shield |
| Slot | Obstacle | Bonuses |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Cargo Net | +3% Global GP (except Item Sales) +2% Fishing Mastery XP |
| 2 | Rope Jump | +3% Smithing Mastery XP |
| 3 | Pipe Climb | +5% Melee Evasion +5% Melee Maximum Hit |
| 4 | Coal Stones | -4% Skill XP for all Skills +10% Base Food Healing Value +20% GP gained from Thieving +3% Chance to Preserve Resources in Skills |
| 5 | Cliff Balance | +20 Maximum Hitpoints +5% Ranged Accuracy Rating +2 Prayer Point Cost for Prayers +5% Magic Accuracy Rating +5% Melee Accuracy Rating |
| 6 | Rocky Waters | +50 Maximum Hitpoints |
| Melvor Idle version v1.3.1 (Released: 30th October 2024) |
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 Combat: Attack •  Strength •  Defence • Hitpoints •  Ranged • Magic •  Prayer •  Slayer •  Corruption
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Skills:  Farming •  Township •  Woodcutting •  Fishing •  Firemaking •  Cooking •  Mining •  Smithing •  Thieving •  Fletching •  Crafting • Runecrafting •  Herblore • Agility •  Summoning • Astrology • Alternative Magic • Cartography •  Archaeology •  Harvesting
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Other: Beginners Guide •  Guides •  Bank • Combat •  Mastery •  Money Making •  Shop •  Easter Eggs • Pets •  Golbin Raid •  Full Version •  Throne of the Herald •  Atlas of Discovery •  Into the Abyss
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| Reference Tables: Items, Equipment, Experience Table, Upgrading Items, Combat Areas, Slayer Areas, Dungeons, Strongholds, The Abyss, Monsters |
