05. Pest Control, What Heart is all about! Options

[Heart]

Table of Contents

5. Pest Controllers Reference
   1. The basics of PC
      1. Location
      2. Layout of the outpost
      3. The game itself
      4. The monsters
   2. The portals
      1. Portal sequences
   3. What to bring
      1. A melee's equipment
      2. A mage's equipment
      3. A ranger's equipment
   4. Why all the prayer boosting gear!?
   5. Let the game begin!
      1. Defenders (4-6 Players)
         1. Void Knight Guards (2-3 Players)
         2. South Gate Guards (2-3 Players)
      2. Attackers (19-21 Players)
         1. Eastern Attackers (9-10 Players)
         2. Western Attackers (9-10 Players)
   6. Rewards
   7. Additional information
      1. Hybrids?
      2. Credits & Copyright
   8. Heart Unit PC related IRC commands
   9. Community Members - how to get access to the PC world
      1. How to apply (Community Members/Retired Staff/Elite Members only)
      2. Members who joined prior to January 01, 2008
   10. PC Activity - How to Avoid Demotion
       1. I am going on vacation/very busy for the next couple of weeks - will I be demoted?
       2. Is it only Squires that can be demoted?
       3. I was demoted! How do I get my rank back!?!

[Heart]

5. Pest Controllers Reference ^[TOP]

Even though we would expect you to know what Pest Control (referred to as PC from now on) is, since you made it this far, and how to play it, this guide is gonna try to cover everything, even the most basic stuff.

5.1 The basics of PC ^[TOP]

PC is safe mini game, meaning that you will NOT loose any items in case you die while playing this mini game. The entire area of this mini game is in multi-combat area, meaning you can pile portals/monsters, and the monsters can pile you.

5.1.1 Location ^[TOP]

To get to play this mini game, you need to speak with the void knight at Port Sarim:



Talk with the void knight and request to be taken to the void knights' outpost.

5.1.2 Layout of the outpost ^[TOP]

Pest control has been split into three separate landers. The lander you will use is the "Veteran" lander, and you must be over 100CB to enter. Anyone below 100CB will not be able to board.


The "Veteran" lander is located at the far south west of the island.

5.1.3 The game itself ^[TOP]

Once 25 people have boarded the lander, a game will begin. If there are more than 25 people in the lander, some of the more unfortunate players will not get in the game and instead wait back in the lander for the next game to begin. This is called Priority, and depending on how many players there are in boat, you may get priority of more than 1. The best way to avoid priority is to get straight back into the boat as soon as you return from a game.

If 5 minutes has passed since the first person joined the lander and there are 5+ people in the lander, the game will also begin.

When the game begins you will be on another island with the following layout:



The goal of the mini game is to keep the void knight alive. There are different strategies to do this, but we will only deal with one of them in this guide as this is the only one that will allow you to play with Heart Unit, as the others will break Heart Unit rules.

N.B. All gates should be shut by the last person through them. Closed gates can save Knights lives

Each portal has 250 hp, and is protected by a shield. Shields will automatically drop through out each game with the first portal dropping after 15 seconds, and the last portal dropping after 1 minute and 45 seconds. If it all goes well everyone should be on the last portal as the shield drops, and the portal should go down in 1-3 hits. Games should be done and dusted in under 2 mins.
Veteran games give 4 points per game win, as well as a nominal amount of GP (10 times your combat level)

After the game has ended, you will find yourself on the boarding plank ready for another game. Your run, prayer, all your stats and your special bar will restore to full. If you used pots to boost your stats you will loose the effect of the pots as well.

Please note: You need to inflict 50 damage (also called getting (50) zeal) during the game to gain 4 Pest Points + getting the GPs.

You should not idle during the game, so the chances of not getting 50 zeal is very very slim

5.1.4 The monsters ^[TOP]

Brawlers

These big monsters will annoy you a lot. They are the only monster that are solid and can't be walked through. They stand around the portals and do nothing but attack people and block the way. They hit hard with melee.

Shifters

Shifters attack with melee and are able to teleport around the map. Usually they will head for the void knight and will teleport next to him. We recommend you ignore shifters unless you are defending the void knight.

Torchers

Torchers attack both players and the void knight, they attack with mage from a long distance and can be quite dangerous to the Void Knight. These are best distracted and killed.

Defilers

Defilers are a lot like Torchers except for the fact that they attack with range instead of mage. Apart from that, the two monsters are a lot alike. Again distract and kill them as they can inflict significant damage.

Spinners

Spinners will be your worst enemy. They will repair the portals, healing 10 hp on the portal, just about every time you will be able to hit the portal once with a whip. Killing the spinners will be your top priority whilst at a portal, they can no longer be distracted. Once the portal is killed the spinners explode and inflict damage of 5 (in the form of poison) to everyone at the portal.

Splatters

Splatters make no big threat, they do nothing but destroying barricades and the gates. They do this by running into the stuff they want to blow up and when they do that, they will explode and by that damaging the object + anyone around it. They can hit fairly high so try to evade being near an exploding splatter if possible.

Ravager

Ravagers destroy barricades and gates, just like splatters, only difference is these will not do it by exploding them, but simply meleeing the object. Ravagers should be killed if at all possible.

5.2 The portals ^[TOP]

Now you know all the basics, lets get started with some of the more advanced knowledge, attack plans for the different portals...

There is a lot to say about the portals, they have 250 hp and it is your job to take them down to 0. As said earlier though, the spinners will try to heal the portals.

The strategy we will be dealing with is to destroy all the 4 portals once their shields have dropped. Every time a portal gets destroyed the void knight will gain 50 hp (up to his max and starting hp of 200). To get to the portals, run south from the starting point and depending on what portal you wish to head to, take different routes through the gates:

Purple portal - Easy enough - head through the west gate and continue west towards the purple portal. Purple portal is weak against range.

Red portal - Experience tells us that this portal will not unlock first. Any players intending to head here first should instead head directly to the other portals.The red portal is said to be weak to crush attacks.

Yellow portal - There are two ways to reach the yellow portal, however you are likely to encounter difficulties using one route over the other. If you can, avoid taking the dashed line route and follow instead the straight route past the blue portal. Yellow portal is weakest against slash attacks, so a whip really hits well on this portal, but most attack types will do adequate damage.

Blue portal - Run through east gate, around the barricades and a bit more east and you're there. Blue portal is weak against mage.

5.2.1 Portal sequences ^[TOP]

The sequences that the portals drop in are shown below, note that the red portal is never 1st and HU players should not go there 1st.

Blue, Red, Yellow, Purple
Blue, Purple, Red, Yellow
Yellow, Purple, Red, Blue
Yellow, Red, Purple, Blue
Purple, Yellow, Blue, Red
Purple, Blue, Yellow, Red

5.3 What to bring ^[TOP]

When it comes down to what to bring to PC there is a lot you need to take into consideration:

1. Your budget
2. Your stats
3. If you care just a bit of how you look or if you just want the best stats available
4. What weapon you choose to launch the specials with
5. If you want to use pots or not

5.3.1 A melee's equipment ^[TOP]

With melee you have a lot of different choices, I will try to list the setup that I have found being the best here, although it is more than likely that you will disagree with me on one or more areas.



Focusing on what is equipped in the picture, I have tried to maximize the attack, strength and prayer bonuses that your equipment offers. If you try to have the same mentality when you pick your equipment you wont go wrong

1. Head gear - Helm of neitiznot - I prefer the neitiznot helm as it gives the same stats as a berserker helm but also adds a nice prayer bonus, and it is even better than the berserker/warrior helm on some of the other stats areas. I would never swap this out for a berserker helm, but if you're low attack picking a warrior helm instead can be a good idea.
   
2. Neck - Amulet of Fury - Not a lot to say here, the fury provides the best overall stats. It -2 str compared to a strength amulet, but it provides a decent amount of attack bonuses that the strength amulet will not. If you cannot afford a fury I'd suggest a glory instead, because it will make you hit a lot more than a strength amulet will.
   
3. Chest - Bandos Chestplate - It gives you a +4 strength bonus and also +1 for prayer. It also has good defensive stats so should keep you well protected. If you cant afford it get a Fighter torso which offers +4 str. If you don't have one, a proselyte plate will be your next best pick.
   
4. Legs - Bandos Tassets - This is the best item for the legs slot as it is the only legs item that is non-degradable and gives a strength bonus. +2 strength is also aided with the +1 prayer bonus the tassets offer. Your next best option are Proselyte legs which give no str bonus, but a heafty +5 for your prayer. If you do not have these, Veracs skirt would be a good option (+4 prayer).
   
5. Boots - Dragon boots - Not much to say, best melee boots existing, they are quite cheap, but if you can't afford it, using Rune boots will do.
   
6. Gloves - Best RFD Gloves / Barrows gloves - Again, best gloves there is, so not a whole lot to say, if you haven't done all of RFD, use the best gloves available to you from the chest, or cooking gauntlets / klank's gauntlets.
   
7. Ring slot - Berserker ring - Again I prefer strength bonus over attack bonus, but if you'd rather have the attack, because of a lower attack level, use a warrior ring. If you haven't got either, I'd leave this slot empty.
   
8. Cape slot - Fire cape - The fire cape provides you with the best melee stats you can get. If you haven't got one, a trimmed 99 cape would be your best choice. Again if you haven't got two 99 skills, an untrimmed cape or obby cape will be good, and then at last a legends cape will also do.
   
9. Shield slot - Rune defender or Dragonfire shield - Both are good options as they provide offensive bonuses, however most pick the Rune defender due to it being cheap and providing attack bonuses as well as strength.
   
10. Weapon slot - Abyssal whip - Not much to say, great to train attack and defence with, and really it is a must.
    - Godsword option - You will see many godswords around pest control because they are a very powerful base weapon and on top of that Bandos and Armadyl have damage boosting specials. The godsword can also train strength just as well as attack and defence which is a reason why it is used by so many.
    There are lots of alternatives to these two weapons, but the most picked options are firstly the Saradomin Sword and then the cheap option of a Dragon scimitar.
    
    Often weapons are brought just for there special attack options - many people use the Godsword's special attack(s) or use the DDS (ddp++) spec and then switch to whip. There are lots of choices here so I shall leave it up to you to find a favourite
    
    Some players decide on taking pots to PC - the best options are combat potions or regular strength and attack pots. I have also seen Zammy brews used. Taking potions however is not necessary and entirely up to you.
    
    Please note: Some people find it useful to bring Full Dharok's get low on HP and by doing that hit high. I have purposely not included any information about this here, as my personal experience tells me that it is good for nothing but the fun of seeing a high hit now and then. It's hard to zeal on the portals with it, because it hits so slow, and in general not very useful. Thus said, if you do have it in your inventory, and you happen to be low on health towards the end of the game, you might find it useful to switch to using Dharok's, as a high hit can bring down the last portals quickly.
    
    Void Knight Melee - This is a good alternative to the corresponding equipment slots as the full set offers +10% attack AND strength and can be baught through pest control points.

5.3.2 A mage's equipment ^[TOP]

For a mage, what I would go for is equipment stats that offer the highest mage bonus possible so your wasting as few runes as possible. You are also going to want to autocast spells (duh) so two setups are shown, one for ancient autocasting and the other for normal mage.

Ancient mage


Modern mage

1. Head gear - Ahrim's hood - Provides a good amount of mage attack, and fair defence bonus. If you cannot afford it, a Farseer helm will be your best bet. Also an infinity hat would be a good choice if you do not want to have all the repair cost of the barrows armour.
   
2. Neck - Third age amulet - This is the best mage bonus a neck item currently will offer. The next best is a fury ammy and in general this is used more because of its ease to purchase and its cheaper cost. Bottem of the pile is an amulet of magic.
   
3. Chest - Ahrim's top - Great mage offense, fair amount of defence. If you do not want the repair cost and can afford it, infinity top* could also be a good choice. If you can't afford either, I'd go with a Splitbark top.
   
4. Legs - Ahrim's bottom - Great mage offence and decent on defence. If you do not want the repair cost and can afford it, infinity bottom* would be a good choice. If you can't afford either, I'd go with a Splitbark bottom.
   
5. Boots - Infinity boots - Not much to say, best mage boots that exist in RuneScape. If you can't afford them, mystic boots will do.
   
6. Gloves - Best RFD Gloves / Barrows gloves - Again, best gloves there is, so not a whole lot to say, if you haven't done all of RFD, use the best gloves available to you from the chest, or infinity gloves.
   
7. Ring slot - Seer's ring - +4 mage bonus makes it the best ring option. The alternatives are the lunar ring (+2 mage bonus - from the lunar quest) and the Beacon ring (+2 mage bonus - What lies Below quest)
   
8. Cape slot - God cape - Gives +10 mage attack, so not really up for discussion, best mage cape to bring, otherwise fire cape -> trimmed 99 cape -> untrimmed 99 cape / obby cape is the order to go (from best to worse).
   
9. Shield slot - Mage's book - Best item item choice for the shield slot, if you can't afford, bring a god book (Zammy -> Guthix -> Sara). (edit: If the Arcane Spirit Shield becomes available/cheaper get that as its +20 magic)
   
10. Weapon slot - Master wand / Ancient staff - This depends a lot on your budget and whether or not you will be using ancients or not. An elemental staff will be a good choice as well if you want to save some elemental runes.

* Be aware that infinity has very low defence stats and that you need to be careful when using these robes. Defence is also why I have put Splitbark instead of mystic because it has higher defence stats.

There is not a lot to say, as a mage I'd strongly advise you to go to blue portal, and if you're using ancients, you need to help with the spinners. You have the ability to attack more spinners at once and you need to take advantage of that.

Void Knight Mage: This is also a good option as you get +30% mage accuracy with the full set and many feel this is preferable to the magic bonus ahrims and RFD gloves offer.

5.3.3 A ranger's equipment ^[TOP]

Being a ranger you have tons of different opportunities, I'll try to cover some of the more popular ones, but do know that I can't possibly cover every single good way of training range in PC.

1. Head gear - Armadyl helmet - +10 range bonus tops that of a robin. Your next best bet would be the robin hood hat, followed by a zammy/sara/guthix coif or an Archer helm.
   
2. Neck - Amulet of Fury - Not a lot to say here, the fury provides the best overall stats. If you cannot afford a fury a glory will be your best bet.
   
3. Chest - Armadyl Chestplate - Armadyl armour offeres great range attack bonuses if you can afford it. If not stick with the dragonhide options (black/god).
   
4. Legs - Armadyl Plateskirt - Same stuff goes as for the top.
   
5. Boots - Ranger boots - Best range attack for boots spot, if you can't afford it, snakeskin boots are a good choice.
   
6. Gloves - Best RFD Gloves / Barrows gloves - Again, best gloves there is, so not a whole lot to say, if you haven't done all of RFD, use the best gloves available to you from the chest or black d'hide vambraces.
   
7. Ring slot - Archer ring - Only ring really worth bringing, if you can't afford, bring none.
   
8. Cape slot - Ava's Accumulator - Essential in my opinion. Looks aweful yes, but it not only offers a range bonus but collects your arrows for you as well! The single best range item thats out there to be honest. The quest, Animal Magnetism, is very short and I highly recomend doing this and getting the item before you start ranging as you will save thousands if not millions of GPs.
   
9. Shield slot - N/A - Using a two handed weapon in the picture so none, however if you're using a single handed ranged weapon a zammy book will be your shield/book of choice. If you do not have zammy book, guthix book will do you good. Preferably something that does not lower your range attack bonus.
   
10. Weapon slot - Magic Shortbow / Crystal bow / Rune Crossbow / Dorgeshuun crossbow / Throwing knives or darts.
    These are the best choices, I dont recommend the dark bow as its far too slow. Pick your ammo dependant on your budget. I tend to go for steel but its up to you.
    
    Void Knight Range: This gives +10% to range attack and damage and it one of the most used range armours out there. Certainly worth a think.

5.4 Why all the prayer boosting gear!? ^[TOP]

Seeing as how your prayer will be recharged once a game ends, there is no legit excuse to not enable all your offensive prayers + the redemption prayer*. Below is shown what your prayer screen should look like, depending if you're a meleer, mage or a ranger.

* Redemption prayer is optional and you cannot be forced to use it, but... well you should

Melee's prayer screen



Seeing as you should be 110+ (or close to) combat, defence prayer is not really needed. However if you are low defence and/or wearing low defence equipment and you have high prayer, enabling the defence prayer (next to the strength prayer) might be a good idea.
With the release of Chivalry (level 60) and Piety (level 70) you would be advised to use those over the two single prayers. Chivalry and Piety require the quest King's Ransom & the Training Room to have been completed fully, and of course have the appropriate pray levels. If you don't have the appropriate prayer level - Pc them!

Ranger's prayer screen



Again, you should have fairly high defence so defence prayer should not be needed, however of course if you find yourself in trouble, don't hesitate to active it. Also you can enable protect from melee prayer if you're getting heavily piled by monsters.

Mage's prayer screen



Mage's generally doesn't have a whole lot of defence, so if you're having trouble with getting killed, using defence prayer and protect from melee/range will be a good idea.

5.5 Let the game begin! ^[TOP]

The boat lands on the island and 25 players are released. 10 of the players should run through the East Gate (towards the Blue Portal) and another 10 players should run through the West Gate (towards the Purple Portal), the remaining 5 players should go immediately on defence.

5.5.1 Defenders (4-6 Players) ^[TOP]

The Defenders split into 2 groups and must stand their posts until the 3rd portal falls.

5.5.1.1 Void Knight Guards (2-3 Players) ^[TOP]

There should be roughly 5 dedicated defenders. 2-3 Players should remain with the Void Knight until the first 3 portals have fallen or there are no more shifters attacking the Void Knight. The Void Knight defenders are ultimately responsible for keeping the GATES CLOSED. (Yes all members are required to close the gates, but it is the specific responsibility of those guarding the Knight to keep the gates closed.)

5.5.1.2 South Gate Guards (2-3 Players) ^[TOP]

The remaining defenders (2-3 Players) should be defending south area of the island (just south of the South Gate). It is the responsibility of these players to attack the Defilers, Torchers, and Ravagers. Other monsters should be disregarded with the exception of Shifters which can be attacked, but only if all the ranging monsters have been distracted or killed. It is advisable to stand near the Yellow and Red Portals in order to hit the ranging monsters before they have a chance to attack the Void Knight.

5.5.2 Attackers (19-21 Players) ^[TOP]

The Attackers split into 2 groups and work their way around to each unlocked portal.

5.5.2.1 Eastern Attackers (9-10 Players) ^[TOP]

Eastern Attackers run through the East Gate (towards the Blue Portal). Most of the games begin on this side of the map, most games start with the Yellow Portal unlocking first. Half of the Eastern Attackers should run to the Yellow Portal and the other half should stay at the Blue Portal.

Blue/Yellow Unlocks First
If the Blue/Yellow Portal unlocks first then all Eastern Attackers should rush the unlocked portal. Once the first portal is down a majority of the Eastern Attackers should run to the Red Portal and only a few should remain at whichever eastern portal didn't unlock first, as mostly likely it will be last (occasionally it can be the third to unlock). At the Red Portal all attackers should kill any spinners and make sure to distract the ranging monsters from heading to the South Gate. Once the second portal falls (either Red/Purple Portal) the attackers should move to that portal as fast as possible, and every unlocked Portal subsequently.

Purple Unlocks First
If Purple unlocks first then half the Eastern Attackers should remain at Blue and half should remain at Yellow until the second portal is unlocked. The second portal will always be Blue/Yellow if Purple is first. After Purple drops all Eastern Attackers should rush to the unlocked portal (Blue/Yellow). If Blue drops second then Yellow will drop third. When Purple is first, the second and third portals are always Yellow/Blue. Once the Eastern Portals have been taken care of, all Eastern Attackers should run to the Red Portal as this will always be the last portal when Purple is first.

5.5.2.2 Western Attackers (9-10 Players) ^[TOP]

Western attackers run through the West Gate (towards the Purple Portal). It is recommended that for the first 15 seconds of the game most Western Attackers remain at the Purple Portal as this is the only Western Portal to unlock first.

Blue/Yellow Unlocks First
If Blue/Yellow Portal is first to unlock then half of the Western Attackers should run the Red Portal to kill the Spinners and the ranging monsters. The second portal will either be Red/Purple so when the second portal unlocked all Western Attackers should run to that portal as fast as possible, and every unlocked portal subsequently.

Purple Unlocks First
If Purple Portal unlocks first then most all of the Western Attackers should be there already waiting those first 15 seconds of the game at the portal (killing ranging monsters, spinners, and ravagers). Once Purple falls the Western Attackers should run to Yellow to attack ranging monsters and wait for either Blue/Yellow to unlock. The Western Attackers should then go to each unlocked portal as the shields are dropped.

*IMPORTANT: Remember that you are better at pest control than most of the people out there. You will see leakers and non-HU players who do not know the tactics to this minigame - they will leave gates open, not attack portals, even sit and stun monsters. Sadly it is up to us to compensate so remember that you have to stay versatile and be ready to fill in at any position mentioned.

5.6 Rewards ^[TOP]

Every time you win and get the zeal needed you are awarded one Void Knight Commendation point, and lovely gps. The amount of cash awarded is ten times your combat level, so at level 105 you will get 1050gps.

The commendation points can be accumulated, but only until you have 250. You will then get an in game message advising you that if you play any more you will not accumulate any more points.




Points:

Novice Boat: For 40+ combat-leveled players. If you win you will receive 2 pest control points.

Intermediate Boat: For 70+ combat-leveled players. If you win you will receive 3 pest control points.

Veterans Boat: For 100+ combat-leveled players. If you win you will receive 4 pest control points.

Rewards (approximately)

Points are best cashed in when you have 100 as there is a 10% bonus, or at 10 for a 1% bonus. They can be spent on any of the combat skills (excluding slayer). The screen you get when you cash with the Void Knight by the bank is shown here:



The amount of experience awarded is calculated as follows:

For Melee and HP: (your level)*(your level)/ 17 = (exp given)
For Mage and Range: (your level)*(your level)/ 18.8 = (exp given)
For Prayer: (your level)*(your level)/ 34.3 = (exp given)


So for example if your defence level is 95 then you are awarded 95*95/17 = 530 experience, but at level 95 prayer only 263 experience. These add up fast and so if you are cashing in the 100 on defence at level 95 you will get 58400 experience, not bad for 2-3 hours work. This is also helped by the in game experience you have accumulated on the way.

There is debate here as to when it is better to train through PC for things such as prayer. At level 60 prayer you will get 11545 xps for 100 games, but by level 90 this will rise to 25976xps for the same effort. If you have bones banked it will be better to use them therefore for the lower levels and PC for the higher.

Other rewards are available with your points. The main being the Void Knight armour,






Cost of VK items:
Top: 250 points | Robe: 250 points | Gloves: 150 points | Helm: 200 points | Seal: 10 points to buy and per [8] recharge

Wearing the full set of Void Knight reward armor gives the wearer a set bonus based on the Void Helm they are wearing. [The Void Knight Mace is not required to achieve the set bonus.]

Melee helm: +6 to all defence stats, set bonus: +10% to melee attack and damage
Ranger helm: +6 to all defence stats, set bonus: +10% to range attack and damage
Mage helm: +6 to all defence stats, set bonus: +30% to magic attack
Top +45 to all defence bonuses
Robe +30 to all defence bonuses
Gloves |Stab: +6|Slash: +6|Crush: +6|Magic: +4|Range: +6|
Void Knight Seal: +1 to all defence stats, plus holds [8] renewable charges that will damage all NPC's in the immediately surrounding area.
Void Knight Mace - Attack Bonuses | Stab: +22 | Slash: +0| Crush: +41 | Mage: +8 | Range: +0 | Defence Bonuses | Stab: +2 | Slash: +2 | Crush: +2 | Mage: +2 | Range: +2 | Other Bonuses | Strength: +38 | Prayer: +6 |

Seed and mineral packs are also available (30 points each) but these are rarely used by the serious PC'er. I struggled to find information on the pack as no one really uses them and the contents are random.


To give you some idea of the number of games needed to level, if you cash at 100 points and train the skill you are leveling in game (average 300 hitpoints damage per game). Leveling attack 90-91 is 600 points and level 90-99 is 6700 points. The final 98-99 will be 1100 points. These can all be calculated on irc using the !pc command. For example !pc #99 strength.
Training prayer in game from level 90-99 will take you a huge 26800 points , which at a rate of 30 games per hour, 4 points per game is a nice 313 hours at the Void Knight Outpost.

5.7 Additional information ^[TOP]

Throughout this guide we have tried to cover everything you need to know to play PC in the most efficient way, however there is some bits of information that have been left out, we will try to cover some of it in this section.

5.7.1 Hybrids? ^[TOP]

As you can see, being a mage/melee hybrid is not listed anywhere. If you are meleeing you are not able to hit with your spells without switching equipment. It was done that way, because ahrims is the only mage armour you can use that will give you at least a bit of defence (around same melee defence as mith armour) while still being able to mage. However, if you equip ahrims in all of your games, you will end up with a huge repair cost. You may wish to carry your mage equipment in your inventory instead, then it can be equipped as it is needed.

If you decide to be a mage/melee hybrid you can easily equip ah top+bottom, use climbing boots instead of Dragon boots, and a god cape instead of the fire cape. That way you can be melee/mage hybriding, attacking with melee, and maging when needed.

5.7.2 Credits & Copyright ^[TOP]

This guide is written to be used on Heart Unit forums, and may not be posted elsewhere without express permission from Heart Unit Staff.

Original PC guide
Kastermester
Rust Buket
Chemicalmum.

October 2007 Update
Chemicalmum
Kastermester
Lisa B F
Rust Buket
Titan Zeus
Wahrheit87
Willow Web

November 2008 Update
Freechange1

Also I'd like to state that all images that are not in game screenshots are property of Jagex Ltd. The in game screenshots are to be used in this guide only and you are not allowed to use them elsewhere unless you mark a clear source.

[Heart]

5.8 Heart Unit PC related IRC commands ^[TOP]

If you are using our IRC channel #heart on RuneheadIRC - there are one very useful command you can use. In case a world starts to go bad and you would want for a change to happen soon - you can file a complaint in #heart by typing the following:

!complaint reason

An example would be:

!complaint World is getting worse, we're loosing every other game and the games that we win take too long

This will then notify our online staff so the message can be brought on further to the rest of our alliance and the situation can be resolved.

[Heart]

5.9 Community Members - how to get access to the PC world ^[TOP]

As an existing member of Heart Unit, you need to post a new topic requesting access in the Zone of Commitment to be able to view the PC world. However a few things have changed, and you must be aware that you are required to have a certain degree of activity at PC and on the forums, if you fail to do so, your rank will be set back as a Community Member again.

5.9.1 How to apply (Community Members/Retired Staff/Elite Members only) ^[TOP]

To apply, simply click here to create a new topic saying that you'd like to become a PCing member, and an Operator will set your status to the lowest PCing rank "Squire" as soon as possible. Note: Using the link above will create a new post in the correct place, no need to worry. Your request for Squire doesn't have to be elaborate, a simple 'Can I be a Squire, please?' will do.

5.9.2 Members who joined prior to January 01, 2008 ^[TOP]

All Heart Unit members who had joined before January 01, 2008 will be set as a Squire, as long as they are not members of another PC team or there are any restrictions on their account. If you were a member before January 1st, 2008 you do not have to meet the 109+ requirement - but you cannot be a member of another PC group while holding a PC rank with Heart Unit, you must have the ability to get on the Veteran boat and you must remain active within the community and within reason at PC or you will be demoted to Community Member. Note: If your inactivity continues for an extended period of time (6 months or more) your account may lose all member status and be set to Validating rank. If this happens, you will need to re-apply for Heart Unit like a new member in order to get a PC rank - and you will need to meet the current requirements to join. If you look after the community, the community will look after you.

[Heart]

5.10 PC Activity - How to Avoid Demotion ^[TOP]

We don't expect our PC members to no-life PC all the time, but we do want our PC'ers to be reasonably active. This means that any member whose account has been inactive and appears to have been abandoned will be demoted to Community Member. This is part of the reason we ask our members to get the world only from the world page on our forums - if you are active - even if you don't post your account won't become inactive because you're getting the worlds in the right way. If you are demoted for inactivity, you will not be permitted to re-apply for a PC rank (Squire, Knight, Champion - or have that rank as a secondary rank) for 2 weeks after you are demoted. The date you can re-apply will usually be found in your warn log or your PM inbox. (Note: If you have a warn level related to inactivity at PC - this can be removed when you re-apply successfully for a PC rank or by posting to the Warn Reduction forum after the 2 weeks is up.)

5.10.1 I am going on vacation/very busy for the next couple of weeks - will I be demoted? ^[TOP]


It's probably unlikely you will be away long enough for us to believe your account has been abandoned but if you know you will be away from Heart Unit or PC for at least two weeks, it might be a good idea to post to the Quitting forum and request Community Member rank while you're away - but only if you're sure you won't want to PC before those 2 weeks are up! When someone retires or quits PCing - we give them 3 days to reconsider, the same as we offer someone who has decided to leave HU - but once those 3 days are up and their rank is changed - they need to wait 2 weeks from the date they made their post before they can re-apply for a PC rank.




5.10.2 Is it only Squires that can be demoted? ^[TOP]


No! Squires are demoted if it appears they have abandoned their account (which means no activity in a long time). Paladins may also get demoted exactly the same way as Squires. To keep the Paladin rank we only expect the same levels of interest in PC as our Squire rank. Knights and Champions are our ranks for our most active PC'ers - and to keep the rank they need to continue to be regularly active at PC. Again - we're not asking anyone to no-life - just be regularly active. If Knights and Champions start to go inactive - they will start to lose ranks and will eventually end up Community Members if it appears their account is inactive. It takes a Champion and a Squire the same amount of time to reach Community Member if they are demoted due to inactivity.




5.10.3 I was demoted! How do I get my rank back!?! ^[TOP]


First - check your warn log and find out why you were demoted - the date you can re-apply will be in your warn log or it may also be sent by PM. Once you reach that date simply make a request for Squire rank in the Zone of Commitment - Request Squire forum. If you have any questions about how to apply for the Squire rank, please read here.