Jagex is continually thinking of making improvements to the game to keep players interested in logging in often to play the game. It makes sense, as membership is what has and will continue to fund the game. The latest update introduces Hero Pass. A new core RuneScape experience, inspired by Yak Trak, will reward players for partaking in all aspects of RuneScape.
How Hero Pass Works in RuneScape
Table of Contents
Hero Pass Overview
RuneScape’s Hero Pass aims to reward players who interact with various in-game content. Players will be rewarded with cosmetics and buffs for simply playing the game. Players can earn these rewards by redeeming Hero Points. These are rewarded when doing anything in-game. However, players can always accept Missions to increase the amount of Hero Points that will be obtained. Every three months the Hero Pass will be refreshed to keep players engaged with new content offerings.
The first Hero Pass, Underworld, will launch on September 4, 2023. There are 54 cosmetic items that players can receive from this pass alone. Premier members have even more opportunities to dive into the fashionscape scene, with 94 cosmetic items. Jagex has stated that these items will range from pets, armor styles, Necromancy conjure variant appearances, and ability overrides.
Why Hero Pass is Being Implemented
Jagex noted that when comparing RuneScape to other live service games, they noticed that other games incorporated better reward systems that players engaged with and which felt more authentic to the player experience. They are the first to state that their previous efforts in this area had not precisely worked as intended, and so with Hero Pass, they went back to the drawing board and constructed a whole new RuneScape Battle Pass-like content from the ground up.
They stated that they had three main goals when developing Hero Pass.
Jagex, August 29, 2023
- Deepen the RuneScape experience with a new reward system that fits into natural play.
- Ensure rewards are earnable for the majority of players, and invest more in designing unique rewards that are worth the player’s time.
- Encourage players to engage and catch-up with recently released content.
As previously stated, Jagex has dug deep into what succeeded and what was unsuccessful when it came to Yak Trak and used this further to develop a more authentic experience in Yak Trak. They listened to a wide variety of feedback from the community and noted these points in particular.
Jagex, August 29, 2023
- Designing Missions for consistency so they don’t become increasingly grindy as you progress, which sometimes turned the Yak Track experience into a chore at later levels (and in turn encouraged Skips).
- Making sure Missions feel integrated into your day-to-day experience, encourage you to focus on the latest content releases and don’t create a significant distracting commitment from other goals you have for the game.
- Ensuring Hero Pass has an ample run-time to complete through gameplay, is more rewarding for non completionists, and is always-on, to reduce time pressure.
The integration and ample run-time are of particular note. Often, limited-time events in-game have a short duration, and with an ever-increasing amount of content that players do daily, it can feel like adding to the to-do list instead of just having fun. This is something that Jagex wanted to avoid by making it an immersive experience that rewarded normal play as opposed to something players had to go out of their way to participate in.
How Hero Pass Works
At the base level, Hero Pass is an experience that is always in the background, rewarding players for just playing the game itself. You will be rewarded for doing the things that you usually do. You can open the interface anytime to look at missions and redeem rewards singularly or cumulatively. That said, there are ways that you can intentionally increase the rewards that you receive.
Missions boost the Hero Points that players receive, making it easier to level up the Hero Pass. There are three different Missions that players can take on.
Daily Missions
When you log into RuneScape for the day, there will be a daily mission that you can complete for Hero Points. To make it more accessible to a broader number of players, there are three tiers to these missions. Rewards increase as the tier increases. On top of this, skilling the relevant skill will also reward Hero Points.
Note: You can use Vis Wax to re-roll Daily Missions into a skill of your choosing.
Weekly Missions
Weekly Missions award more Hero Points than Daily Missions due to the more significant required task. There are two kinds of Weekly Missions. The first is called the Weekly Basic Mission and is similar to that of the Daily Missions, earning points through play and which reset weekly.
The second is called the Weekly General Mission and has more specific requirements. Similar to that of the Daily Task system. You can expect to be asked to obtain a certain number of resources, kill a certain number of enemies, brew a certain number of potions, and more. These Weekly General Missions will remain active over the whole Hero Pass, so you can pick and choose which to do when and what aligns to what you currently want to do in-game, providing some flexibility.
Special Missions
Special Missions focus on new or updated RuneScape content, hoping players will spend more time engaging with it. For example, the upcoming Hero Pass will have Special Missions focusing on Necromancy and Fort Forinthry, the latest additions to the game.
The Daily Missions are made to be completed in under an hour, and the Weekly and Special Missions are cumulative over the whole Hero Pass to try and erase the feeling of needing to grind to get the content done. Jagex has attempted to create a fully integrated system that exists alongside what you are doing in-game, as opposed to one that is a distraction from how you would typically play.
Related: RuneScape Necromancy Quick Level 5-49 Guide
Hero Pass Rewards
The Hero Pass Reward system will be broken down into two parts so that players can receive more worthwhile rewards. These parts consist of the 1-99 and 100-120 categories.
As mentioned above, the first Hero Pass has 54 total cosmetic override rewards for regular members and a total of 94 for premier members. There will also be a range of unique buffs for each Hero Pass.
Core Levels (1-99)
The majority of cosmetic rewards will be received during these levels. Each level will require 1000 Hero Points to continue on to the next. Jagex has stated that even a moderately active player should be able to hit 99 and receive one of the best cosmetic items in the pass. On top of this, hitting level 99 will also give you a 10-level head start on the next Hero Pass.
Heroric Levels (100-120)
Whilst the majority of cosmetics are unlocked in the Core Levels, more dedicated players will be rewarded for their hard work. Each level will require 3000 Hero Points to continue on to the next. The best cosmetics will be unlocked via these levels, as will buffs, and emblems too.
Hero Pass Store
Emblems can be collected and then spent in the Hero Pass Store. The store offers additional customization items not earned through the Hero Pass itself. There is no specific path to these rewards, so you can choose to redeem them in any order you prefer. Jagex has stated that old Yak Trak rewards will be available in the store, and potentially previous Hero Pass rewards.
The store also offers the most dedicated players an incentive to continue playing. After 120, players can earn a special cosmetic item by unlocking other items in the store. The total cost of this exceeds how many Emblems you will receive by the time you hit Heroic Level 120, so you will need to continue past this if you want to earn everything the Hero Pass offers.
Buffs
Buffs will be specific to each Hero Pass to provide a unique feeling to each individual pass, and keep players engaged. Most of these buffs will be tailored to the latest in-game content to allow for a more efficient experience. Players do have the option to turn buffs on and off at any time.
Buffs have a limited number of charges that are earned when leveling through the Hero Pass. Both regular members and Premier members have access to these abilities, although Premier members will be rewarded with a higher number of charges per buff.
Jagex has stated that XP buffs will unlock through Hero Pass progression and cap at 15%. These XP buffs will be grouped into the usual categories – Combat, Gathering, Support, and Artisan.
Hero Pass Satchels
The Hero Pass Satchels offer random rewards from a drop table that have been chosen to add to the gameplay experience and benefit the player. Example items are Gifts of the Reaper, Sealed Clue Scrolls, Slayer VIP coupons, Ports resources, Starved Ancient Effigies, Dungeoneering Tokens, Goebie Burial Charms, and more.
Note: Ironmen can participate and any reward that is not Ironman eligible will be automatically converted into Oddments instead.
With the introduction of Hero Pass, we will be saying goodbye to Daily Missions. It will be interesting to see how players react to this change and the Hero Pass as a whole. Jagex has stated that they are open to feedback and will seek it out to ensure this new feature will be a beneficial addition to the game. As with the ongoing changes to Necromancy, we can expect to see similar when it comes to Hero Pass.
Published: Aug 30, 2023 12:44 pm