Blackjacking in Old School RuneScape (OSRS) stands out as a highly effective, albeit click-intensive, method for training the Thieving skill. If you’re aiming to boost your Thieving level rapidly, blackjacking surpasses traditional pickpocketing, market stall thieving, or even Pyramid Plunder in terms of experience points per hour at many levels, especially when considering the minimal gold investment required. This guide will walk you through everything you need to know to master blackjacking and achieve high Thieving levels efficiently.
Blackjack Training Requirements
To start your blackjacking journey, you’ll need to meet a few prerequisites. While you can technically blackjack villagers from level 30 Thieving, the experience gained is negligible. For effective training, aim for:
- 45 Thieving Level: This is the minimum level to effectively blackjack Bearded Bandits in Pollnivneach, providing worthwhile experience.
- Access to Pollnivneach: This desert city is unlocked during the ‘The Feud’ quest. You’ll need to begin this quest to access Pollnivneach and the blackjacking NPCs.
- Blackjack Knowledge: During ‘The Feud’ quest, you learn the ability to use a blackjack to knock out NPCs, which is essential for this training method. Completing the entire quest isn’t mandatory to start blackjacking, but claiming the 15,000 Thieving XP reward from the quest is highly recommended, regardless of your current level.
Beyond these requirements, you’ll need a blackjack weapon itself. Any type of blackjack will suffice; the type does not influence your success rate when knocking out NPCs. Your success in blackjacking hinges solely on your Thieving level, reaching a peak success rate of 94% at level 99 Thieving.
NPCs for Blackjacking Training
There are three main types of NPCs suitable for blackjacking, each requiring a different Thieving level and offering varying amounts of experience:
- Bearded Bandits (Level 45 Thieving): Found in Pollnivneach, these bandits offer 65 Thieving XP per successful pickpocket. They are your entry point into blackjacking.
- Unbearded Bandits (Level 55 Thieving): Also located in Pollnivneach, these bandits provide an increased 84.3 Thieving XP per pickpocket, making them a better option as you level up.
- Menaphite Thugs (Level 65 Thieving): These are the highest-level blackjacking NPCs in Pollnivneach, granting a substantial 137.5 Thieving XP per successful pickpocket. Training on Menaphite Thugs is the fastest blackjacking experience.
You gain Thieving XP from both the knockout and pickpocket actions, though the knockout XP is minimal. The majority of your experience comes from the pickpocketing action itself.
Recommended Equipment for Efficient Blackjacking
While a blackjack is the only essential item, certain equipment can significantly enhance your blackjacking efficiency and extend your training sessions:
Rogue’s Outfit
Acquiring the Rogue’s outfit is highly beneficial. You can access the Rogue’s Den minigame at level 50 Thieving (and 50 Agility). Wearing the full Rogue’s outfit grants a 100% chance to receive double loot from pickpocketing. While blackjacking from level 45 to 99 might only yield an estimated 2.5 million in loot (or 5 million with the outfit), the extra income is always helpful. Moreover, if you plan to profit from Thieving later by pickpocketing Elves or Vyres, the Rogue’s outfit becomes even more valuable.
Hitpoints Cape
The Hitpoints cape is another useful item to consider. When you fail to knock out a bandit, they will attack you, causing minor damage. Wearing a Hitpoints cape increases your natural hitpoint regeneration from 1 HP per minute to 2 HP per minute, reducing your reliance on food during longer sessions.
Food
Since you will take damage from failed knockouts or attempting to pickpocket without knocking out, bringing food is necessary to sustain your HP. You can bring noted food and un-note it at the Pollnivneach general store, or purchase wines directly from the Pollnivneach bartender for quick and easy healing.
Optimal Times to Utilize Blackjacking for Thieving Training
Blackjacking is most effective for rapid Thieving training within specific level ranges. For an optimized Thieving training path, consider this strategy:
- Levels 45-49: Blackjacking. Start your fast training immediately at level 45.
- Levels 49-65: Stealing Artifacts (Desert Treasure quest). Switch to stealing artifacts for a less click-intensive, yet still fast, alternative during these levels.
- Levels 65-91: Blackjacking. Return to blackjacking with Menaphite Thugs for the most rapid experience gains.
- Levels 91-99: Pyramid Plunder. Transition to Pyramid Plunder at level 91 for a less intensive and still very effective method to reach level 99.
Mastering the Art of Blackjacking: A Step-by-Step Guide
Once you’ve arrived in Pollnivneach, locate a bandit or thug appropriate for your Thieving level. To begin:
- Lure an NPC: Right-click on the bandit or thug and select ‘Lure’. Guide them into an empty building.
- Ensure Privacy: Close the building’s curtains. Blackjacking requires privacy; you cannot perform the action if other NPCs are watching.
- Knock-out: Right-click the bandit or thug again and select ‘Knock-out’.
- Pickpocket Immediately: Quickly right-click the NPC again and select ‘Pickpocket’. Perform two successful pickpockets.
- Repeat: After two pickpockets, re-initiate the ‘Knock-out’ and ‘Pickpocket’ sequence.
It’s crucial to only pickpocket twice after each knockout. Attempting a third or fourth pickpocket is likely to fail, resulting in the NPC hitting and stunning you. If you fail to knock out the NPC, they will become aggressive. To prevent this, quickly interrupt them by either starting a dialogue or attempting to pickpocket them. This rapid right-clicking between ‘Knock-out’ and ‘Pickpocket’ is key to efficient blackjacking.
Pro Tip: Enhance your pickpocketing efficiency by hiding the ‘Attack’ option for NPCs in your game settings. This reduces the right-click menu options and makes pickpocketing slightly faster and less prone to misclicks, a valuable optimization for the high-click nature of blackjacking.
Conclusion
Blackjacking is undeniably one of the quickest routes to achieving high Thieving levels in OSRS. While demanding in terms of clicks and requiring focus, the experience rates are unmatched at certain level brackets. By following this guide, understanding the requirements, utilizing the right equipment, and mastering the technique, you can effectively leverage blackjacking to swiftly train your Thieving skill and reach level 99 efficiently.
