While Guthix Sleeps (WGS) is a Grandmaster quest and, since 20 October 2026, the only entry requirement for The Fractured Archive, the fourth raid. It is also one of the longest unlocks in the game: six unboostable skill levels between 62 and 72, 180 quest points, Warriors' Guild entry, and 41 prerequisite quests plus a miniquest.
This page is the ironman prep sheet, not a walkthrough. The OSRS Wiki already has the full walkthrough and the quick guide; keep one open when you start. Everything below is about getting to that point without a Grand Exchange: what each requirement costs you, what order to do the chain in, what to bank before you talk to Ivy Sophista in Taverley, and which fights can end a hardcore. Every number is from the wiki as of October 2026.
The three walls
- 65 Herblore. The wiki's ironman Herblore guide calls it arguably the hardest skill to train on an ironman, and expects around 67 to 69 by the time all hard diaries are done if you make every potion along the way. For most irons, WGS is ready when the hard diaries are.
- 72 Thieving and 66 Agility. Long, but the methods pay you back: Thieving funds Miscellania and Agility gets you graceful.
- The levels hidden in the chain. 61 Crafting, 60 Mining and 55 Woodcutting for Lunar Diplomacy, 60 Strength and 56 Slayer for The Path of Glouphrie, 55 Smithing for Defender of Varrock and 85 combat for Dream Mentor. None of them are boostable.
Requirements
While Guthix Sleeps
- 180 Quest pointsNeeded to start
- 72 ThievingNot boostable
- 67 MagicNot boostable
- 66 AgilityNot boostable
- 65 FarmingNot boostable
- 65 HerbloreNot boostable
- 62 HunterNot boostable
- 49 FiremakingLight the sapphire lantern
- Warriors' Guild entryAttack + Strength of 130, or 99 in either
- 95 CombatRecommended
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| Requirement | Boostable | What it means for an ironman |
|---|---|---|
| 180 quest points | n/a | The whole prerequisite tree is worth 77 QP. The other 103 come from quests outside the chain. |
| 72 Thieving | No | The highest skill level anywhere in WGS or its chain. |
| 67 Magic | No | You cast Astral Contact four times during the quest, and Astral Contact is itself a level 67 Lunar spell. Lunar Diplomacy already needs 65. |
| 66 Agility | No | The Path of Glouphrie only needs 45, so the last 21 levels are for WGS alone. |
| 65 Farming | No | Garden of Tranquillity needs 25. |
| 65 Herblore | No | Eadgar's Ruse needs 31 (boostable). |
| 62 Hunter | No | Defender of Varrock needs 52 first. |
| 49 Firemaking | Not marked | Used to light the sapphire lantern. Lunar Diplomacy needs 49 unboosted, so you will have it. |
| Warriors' Guild | No | See below. |
| 95 Combat | Recommended | Dream Mentor needs 85 to start. |
Warriors' Guild entry
Ghommal only lets you in with a combined Attack and Strength of 130, or 99 in either, and the wiki says temporary boosts do not count. You need to get inside during the quest to recruit Ghommal, Harrallak Menarous and Sloane.
The chain does most of the work. The Path of Glouphrie forces 60 Strength (unboostable), so 70 Attack finishes the sum. The quests on the way pay a lot of melee XP: The Grand Tree 18,400 Attack, Waterfall Quest 13,750 Attack and 13,750 Strength, Fight Arena 12,175 Attack, Tree Gnome Village 11,450 Attack, Death Plateau 3,000 Attack, and The Path of Glouphrie itself 30,000 Strength.
The prerequisite quest tree
WGS lists ten direct prerequisites: Defender of Varrock, The Path of Glouphrie, Fight Arena, Dream Mentor, The Hand in the Sand, Wanted!, Temple of the Eye, Tears of Guthix, Nature Spirit and A Tail of Two Cats. Their chains pull in 31 more quests and the Enter the Abyss miniquest, for 41 quests and 77 quest points in total. These are the highest skill levels anywhere in that tree:
Highest levels in the prerequisite chain
- 61 CraftingLunar Diplomacy
- 60 MiningLunar Diplomacy
- 60 StrengthThe Path of Glouphrie
- 56 SlayerThe Path of Glouphrie
- 55 SmithingDefender of Varrock
- 55 WoodcuttingLunar Diplomacy
- 47 RangedThe Path of Glouphrie
- 40 DefenceLunar Diplomacy
- 35 RunecraftWhat Lies Below
- 5 ConstructionThe Eyes of Glouphrie
- 85 CombatDream Mentor
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All of those are unboostable. One more is easy to miss: The Path of Glouphrie needs a mith grapple and a crossbow, and an ironman has to make the grapple (59 Fletching and 59 Smithing, both boostable) or get it as a drop in the Ancient Cavern, which opens after the first part of Barbarian Firemaking at 35 Firemaking.
The tables below follow the order in which the wiki's ironman optimal quest guide reaches each quest, grouped by stage. Our own quest order uses the same dependencies.
Stage 1: early account
No real skill gates: The Restless Ghost, Romeo & Juliet, Gertrude's Cat, Demon Slayer, Rune Mysteries, Tree Gnome Village, Waterfall Quest, Druidic Ritual, Black Knights' Fortress (12 QP), Priest in Peril, Nature Spirit, Jungle Potion (3 Herblore), Death Plateau and Goblin Diplomacy. The ones with something to know:
| Quest | Gate | Ironman notes |
|---|---|---|
| Enter the Abyss (miniquest) | Rune Mysteries | Starts in level 4-7 Wilderness. The wiki tells hardcores to be extremely cautious. |
| Fight Arena | None | Every fight is safespottable. 2,175 Thieving and 12,175 Attack XP. |
| Below Ice Mountain | 16 QP | The level 25 Ancient Guardian is optional with a pickaxe and 10 Mining. |
| Recruitment Drive | Black Knights' Fortress, Druidic Ritual | Dying to Sir Leye costs hardcore status. UIMs need an empty inventory and nothing worn. 1,000 Agility and 1,000 Herblore XP. |
| The Grand Tree | 25 Agility (boostable) | Level 172 black demon, safespottable. 7,900 Agility XP. |
| Shield of Arrav | A partner | Ironmen are allowed to trade the certificate halves; the wiki points to the "OSRS SOA" chat channel to find one. |
| The Lost Tribe | 13 Agility, 13 Thieving, 17 Mining (boostable) | |
| Icthlarin's Little Helper | Gertrude's Cat | Needs willow logs (30 Woodcutting). 4,500 Thieving and 4,000 Agility XP. |
| Wanted! | 32 QP, Recruitment Drive, The Lost Tribe, Priest in Peril, Enter the Abyss | 5,000 Slayer XP. |
Stage 2: mid-game
| Quest | Gate | Ironman notes |
|---|---|---|
| Creature of Fenkenstrain | 20 Crafting, 25 Thieving (boostable) | 4 Smithing for a bronze wire. Gives the ring of Charos. |
| Garden of Tranquillity | 25 Farming (not boostable) | Olivia in Draynor sells every seed. The Wise Old Man activates your ring into the ring of Charos(a) early in this quest; keep it for WGS. 5,000 Farming XP. |
| A Tail of Two Cats | Icthlarin's Little Helper | Two 2,500 XP lamps for skills above 30. Put them on Herblore. |
| Troll Stronghold | 15 Agility (boostable) | Troll General (113) is safespottable. |
| Eadgar's Ruse | 31 Herblore (boostable, but you boost twice) | Needs a ranarr potion (unf): grimy ranarr from chaos druids, or the Sorceress's Garden at 45 Thieving. 11,000 Herblore XP. |
| The Fremennik Trials | None | A raw shark: 76 Fishing, or buy one from Frankie's Fishing Emporium in Port Piscarilius. Dying to Koschei in his first three forms is a safe death. |
| Shilo Village | 20 Crafting, 32 Agility (boostable) | 4 Smithing for a bronze wire. Nazastarool is safespottable. |
| The Eyes of Glouphrie | 46 Magic, 5 Construction (not boostable) | Needs a mud rune (13 Runecraft, or the Mage Training Arena shop) plus maple and oak logs. 12,000 Magic XP. |
| Temple of the Eye | 10 Runecraft (not boostable) | Unlocks Guardians of the Rift, which Lunar Diplomacy accepts as access to the elemental altars. |
| Lost City | 31 Crafting, 36 Woodcutting (boostable) | Tree spirit (101) is safespottable. |
| Temple of Ikov | 42 Thieving (boostable), 40 Ranged | The Ranged requirement can be bypassed. 10,500 Ranged XP. |
| Tears of Guthix | 43 QP; 49 Firemaking, 20 Crafting, 20 Mining (boostable) | Needs the sapphire lantern you will use again in WGS. Unlocks a weekly minigame that gives XP in your lowest skill, so the wiki suggests doing it as soon as you have 49 Firemaking. |
| The Hand in the Sand | 17 Thieving, 49 Crafting (not boostable) | 9,000 Crafting XP. |
| Family Crest | 40 Mining, 40 Smithing, 59 Magic, 40 Crafting (boostable) | Takes you into the Wilderness section of Edgeville Dungeon, where you fight Chronozon (170, safespottable). |
| What Lies Below | 35 Runecraft (not boostable) |
Stage 3: the four walls
| Quest | Gate | Ironman notes |
|---|---|---|
| Lunar Diplomacy | 61 Crafting, 60 Mining, 55 Woodcutting, 65 Magic, 49 Firemaking, 40 Defence, 5 Herblore (none boostable) | Bring a finished bullseye lantern, a dramen staff and the four elemental talismans, or use the Abyss or Guardians of the Rift. Unlocks the Lunar spellbook and Baba Yaga's astral rune stock, and the reward includes 50 astral runes, plenty for WGS's four Astral Contacts. The Dream World here is on the wiki's safe-death list. |
| Dream Mentor | 85 combat | Four bosses (343, 223, 274 and 108) with no prayer. The wiki says this dream world is not safe, and the lectern is the only way out: no teleport works, ring of life included. 10,000 Magic and 15,000 Hitpoints XP, plus a dreamy lamp worth 15,000 XP in any combat skill except Attack and Prayer (the wiki's ironman order puts it on Magic). |
| Defender of Varrock | 55 Smithing, 52 Hunter (not boostable) | Armoured zombies (85) in a multicombat dungeon and chaos golems (70). 15,000 Smithing and 15,000 Hunter XP, plus a 5,000 XP antique lamp (any skill at 30 or higher) from Historian Minas in the Varrock Museum. |
| The Path of Glouphrie | 60 Strength, 56 Slayer, 56 Thieving, 47 Ranged, 45 Agility (not boostable) | Mith grapple and crossbow. Three warped terrorbirds (138); the wiki recommends earmuffs or a slayer helmet. 30,000 Strength, 20,000 Slayer, 5,000 Thieving and 5,000 Magic XP. |
Fastest ironman routes to each level
These come from the wiki's Ironman Guide page for each skill, plus the quest XP the chain hands you on the way.
72 Thieving
| Levels | Method | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1-18 | Hazeel Cult (1,500 XP) and Fight Arena (2,175 XP) | No requirements for either |
| 5+ | Cake stall in East Ardougne | Steal from the safespot; bank the cakes for questing |
| 25-45 | Hosidius fruit stalls | Around 37,000 XP an hour on the two stalls inside the house; bank the strange fruit |
| 30 / 34 | The Feud (15,000 XP), Death on the Isle (10,000 XP, needs 32 Agility) | The two largest rewards on the wiki's ironman Thieving quest list |
| 45+ | Blackjacking bandits in Pollnivneach | Very click-intensive. The wiki advises hardcores to wear an escape crystal in case they disconnect |
| 50 | Rogues' Den | Needs 50 Thieving and 50 Agility; around 90 minutes for the full rogue outfit |
| 50+ | Stealing valuables in Varlamore | Low intensity; needs Children of the Sun |
| 55+ | Knights of Ardougne | Slower but easier; take the medium Ardougne Diary first |
| 64+ | Stone chests under Molch | 280 XP per chest; the wiki quotes 90,000-110,000 XP an hour at around 78 with a lockpick. 45 Farming lets you use the Farming Guild bank. Bring antipoison |
The chain adds 4,500 Thieving from Icthlarin's Little Helper, 5,000 from The Path of Glouphrie, 2,812.4 from The Fremennik Trials and 1,000 each from Creature of Fenkenstrain and The Hand in the Sand. The cash from blackjacking and knights is the wiki's suggested way to fund Managing Miscellania; see our money making guide.
66 Agility
| Levels | Method | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1-36 | Recruitment Drive (1,000), The Tourist Trap (4,650 twice; pick Agility), The Grand Tree (7,900), Death on the Isle (7,500) | Two of these are in the WGS chain anyway |
| Any | Rooftop courses | A new course every 10 levels (Canifis at 40, Seers' Village at 60). Marks of grace buy graceful. Alch or fletch between obstacles |
| 40-60 | Brimhaven Agility Arena | 50,000-60,000 XP an hour; 200 coins to enter |
| 50 / 62 | Colossal Wyrm Agility Course | Up to 31,181 XP an hour on the basic course and 42,834 on the advanced course, plus blessed bone shards for Prayer |
| 30+ | Agility Pyramid | Slower XP but each pyramid top is 10,000 coins: roughly 130,000 coins an hour at 30-50 |
Icthlarin's Little Helper (4,000) and The Fremennik Trials (2,812.4) add a little more. The Hallowed Sepulchre, the wiki's fastest method from 72, only starts once you are past the requirement.
65 Herblore
| Levels | Method | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1-26 | Quests | Druidic Ritual, Jungle Potion, Recruitment Drive, Zogre Flesh Eaters, The Dig Site, Shades of Mort'ton and Heroes' Quest give 9,350 XP between them |
| Chain | Eadgar's Ruse (11,000), A Tail of Two Cats (two 2,500 lamps) | Both are WGS prerequisites |
| Lamps | Every experience lamp and book of knowledge | The wiki's advice. Its ironman quest order spends the medium diary lamps, the Defender of Varrock antique lamp and all six chapters of the Sins of the Father tome (15,000 XP each, for a skill already at 60) on Herblore |
| 60+ | Mastering Mixology in Aldarin | Needs Children of the Sun. Much more XP per herb and no secondaries |
| Always | Make every potion you can | See the ladder below |
The wiki's potion ladder up to the requirement, with the ironman source for each secondary:
| Level | Potion | Secondary and where it comes from |
|---|---|---|
| 3 | Attack potion | Eye of newt packs from Betty in Port Sarim |
| 26 | Energy potion | Chocolate dust from Hudo at the Grand Tree, or chocolate bars from Hudo, Rok's Chocs Box in Nardah or the Culinaromancer's Chest |
| 38 | Prayer potion | Snape grass spawns on the Hosidius hobgoblin peninsula and Waterbirth Island |
| 45 | Super attack | Eye of newt from Betty |
| 52 | Super energy | Mort myre fungus from Bloom in Mort Myre Swamp or sulliuscep mushrooms |
| 55 | Super strength | Limpwurt roots grown in flower patches at 26 Farming; the seeds drop from kurasks, nechryaels and deviant spectres |
| 63 | Super restore | Red spiders' eggs from spidines in the Tower of Life or temple spiders in Forthos Dungeon |
Herbs come mostly from farming: Miscellania with 10 workers on herbs at all times, herb runs with ultracompost, master farmers for seeds, Slayer drops (nechryael in the Slayer Tower for herb seeds) and Wintertodt. Super restores at 63 also matter for the Balance Elemental fight. Our Herblore guide has the full ladder.
65 Farming
| Levels | Method | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| 1-37 | Quests | Freeing the Goblin generals (1,000), Fairytale I (3,500), Forgettable Tale... (5,000), The Garden of Death (10,000), Garden of Tranquillity (5,000) and Enlightened Journey (3,000) give 27,500 XP |
| 34-65 | Tithe Farm | The wiki's pick for rapid XP to 65. Also unlocks auto-weed, the seed box and the herb sack |
| Always | Tree runs with ultracompost, herb runs | Herb runs are your Herblore supply; Resurrect Crops covers the odd dead tree |
Seeds come from bird houses on Fossil Island, Slayer drops, master farmers (from 38 Thieving) and Wintertodt. 65 Farming also opens medium Farming contracts, which the wiki calls the most consistent seed source for ironmen.
62 Hunter
| Levels | Method | XP an hour (wiki) |
|---|---|---|
| 1-9 | Natural history quiz in the Varrock Museum (1,000 XP) | n/a |
| 9-13 | Feldip weasels with a noose wand | Around 13,000 |
| 13-25 | Desert devils near Uzer | Around 18,500 |
| 25-39 | Sapphire glacialis butterflies (Rellekka, Farming Guild, Mons Gratia) | Around 28,500 at 25 |
| 39-43 | Embertailed jerboas at Locus Oasis | Up to 50,000 with 3 traps |
| 43-57 | Spotted kebbits with falconry (500 coins) | 60,000-70,000 |
| 57-62 | Dark kebbits with falconry | 75,000-80,000 |
Run bird houses on Fossil Island the whole way (Bone Voyage); they also feed your Herblore and Farming. Eagles' Peak at 27 gives 2,500 XP, and Defender of Varrock pays 15,000 Hunter once you have its 52. Hunters' Rumours in Varlamore open from 46, and orange salamanders in the Necropolis (after part of Beneath Cursed Sands) are an AFK option at 60.
67 Magic
Our Magic guide has the full route. The short version: five quests to 34, then the Arceuus Library (15 XP per Magic level per book, around 120-150 books an hour, so 108,000-135,000 XP an hour at 60) and the Mage Training Arena from 33. The chain pays 12,000 from The Eyes of Glouphrie and 2,150 from The Grand Tree on the way up, then 5,000 from Lunar Diplomacy, 10,000 from Dream Mentor plus its 15,000 XP dreamy lamp, and 5,000 from The Path of Glouphrie once you are past Lunar Diplomacy's 65.
49 Firemaking
The wiki route is to cut and burn oak logs to 39 and teak logs from there; teaks are south-west of Castle Wars or south of Civitas illa Fortis. Wintertodt needs 50, so it comes straight after.
The chain's other levels
| Level | For | The wiki's ironman route |
|---|---|---|
| 61 Crafting | Lunar Diplomacy | Glassblowing from 35, with buckets of sand and soda ash bought from trader crewmembers. The same glass makes WGS's unpowered orb (46) and lantern lens (49). See our Crafting guide. |
| 60 Mining | Lunar Diplomacy | Iron ore to 45, then 3-tick granite. The Motherlode Mine is moderately efficient from 55 and pays for the coal bag and gem bag. |
| 55 Smithing | Defender of Varrock | Gold ore at the Blast Furnace from 40 (230,000+ XP an hour, around 4 coins per XP), or the cheaper Giants' Foundry. See the Smithing guide. |
| 55 Woodcutting | Lunar Diplomacy | Teaks from 35; Wintertodt from 50 Firemaking also trains Woodcutting. |
| 60 Strength, 47 Ranged | The Path of Glouphrie | Normal combat training; Temple of Ikov gives 10,500 Ranged. |
| 56 Slayer | The Path of Glouphrie | See the Slayer guide. Wanted! gives 5,000 Slayer. |
| 59 Fletching, 59 Smithing (boostable) | Mith grapple | Or the Ancient Cavern drop. See the Fletching guide. |
