Archaeology Training Guide for RS3: 1 to 120, Dig Sites and Rates

Archaeology is a gathering skill with a maximum level of 120. You dig up damaged artefacts at dig sites, restore them with the materials you gather, and hand them to collectors. Along the way it unlocks relic powers (permanent passive buffs), Ancient Summoning, Ancient Invention, dragonkin potion recipes and two artefact weapons, the inquisitor staff and the Spear of Annihilation.

How the skill works

• Excavate. Use a mattock on excavation hotspots. Each gives materials, soil and, when the blue progress bar fills, a damaged artefact. A time sprite moves between spots: excavating the highlighted spot builds Sprite Focus, which speeds up progress.
• Restore. Restore damaged artefacts at an archaeologist's workbench, using materials, for larger amounts of XP.
• Collect. Give restored artefacts to collectors for XP and chronotes (the skill's tradeable currency). A full collection gives a bonus, and can be completed again and again.
• Soil. Screen it at the Archaeology Campus for extra materials and, rarely, artefacts.

Around that loop sit mysteries (miniquest-like tasks that unlock areas and give one-off XP), research (sending a team out, paid in chronotes, which the Wiki calls a passive way to gain extra XP; see dailies and passive XP) and qualifications, which unlock shop upgrades. The Wiki's priority: mysteries, then first completions of collections, then research, then qualifications.

Getting started

Archaeology is available up to level 20 in free-to-play; the rest is members. Talk to Acting Guildmaster Reiniger at the Archaeology Campus to start the tutorial, which takes you to level 5 and gives you the soil box. The dig sites:

Training by level

1 to 42: Kharid-et and the Infernal Source

The Wiki says to finish all the content here before moving on, so you unlock the assistant qualification. Buy missing materials on the Grand Exchange.

• 5 to 12: venator remains at Kharid-et.
• 12 to 17: the Breaking the Seal mystery, then legionary remains in the barracks. Pylon batteries drop from here; charging pylons gives XP.
• 17 to 24: castra debris.
• 24 to 25: lodge art and lodge bar storage at the Infernal Source (Eyes in Their Stars mystery).
• 25 to 29: administratum debris back at Kharid-et. Finish Prison Break.
• 29 to 36: cultist footlockers in the Dungeon of Disorder.
• 36 to 42: sacrificial altar.

At 40, claim the assistant qualification from Reiniger, buy the soil box, storage and precision upgrades, and start research.

42 to 70: Everlight, Moonrise and Senntisten

The associate qualification at 70 needs five collections, 250 restored artefacts, 10 mysteries and 24 hours of research. The Wiki warns you will be short of artefacts by 70 and suggests venator remains or repeating the Zarosian I collections (4,271.8 XP bonus each).

• 42 to 51: prodromoi remains at Everlight (42), monoceros remains (48).
• 51 to 60: amphitheatre debris (51), lunar wheel debris at Moonrise (52), ceramics studio debris (56).
• 60 to 70: Senntisten's ministry remains (60), cathedral debris (62), marketplace debris (63) and inquisitor remains (64), then shakroth remains (68; completes Dagon Bye) and the Dominion Games podium (69).

70 to 90: Stormguard, Daemonheim and Warforge

The Wiki route hops between Ikovian memorials at Stormguard (70), Daemonheim's castle hall rubble (73) and the Warforge's gladiatorial goblin remains (76), and on through the 80s. Keep the four imcando metal pieces you find at Warforge: once you've done the Into the Forge mystery (83), they and a dragon mattock make the imcando mattock.

If you are not going for the later qualifications, the Wiki suggests repeating collections instead: Zarosian I until 76, then from 83 (after the Out of the Crucible mystery) Green Gobbo Goodies I, at 34,533.5 XP per completion plus a tetracompass piece. Tetracompasses lead to ancient caskets holding complete tomes, worth at least 22,857.6 XP each at level 83. The professor qualification comes at 90.

90 to 99: Orthen and the high-level rates

Orthen opens at 90. From here the Wiki gives XP rates, each with an imcando or elder rune mattock, all mattock upgrades and the full archaeologist's outfit:

At 97 you can repeat Green Gobbo Goodies II for 60,666.6 XP per completion. Unlock the guildmaster qualification at 99 (99 takes 13,034,431 XP).

99 to 120

With a Mattock of Time and Space, all mattock upgrades and the full master archaeologist's outfit, the Wiki puts the level 100 hotspots (such as culinarum debris) at about 183,000 XP an hour. At 104, the hellfire forges at the Infernal Source are around 210,000 XP an hour with bonuses, per the Wiki. Its repeatable collections in this range:

The Wiki calls Dragonkin II effective up to about level 110. At 120 (104,273,167 XP), saurthen debris in Xolo City is the highest hotspot.

Boosts and gear that matter

• Mattocks: better ones raise precision (artefact progress) and focus (materials), from bronze up to the Mattock of Time and Space at 99, with Guildmaster Tony's mattock (also 99, from a display case opened with a shadowy key) above it. From 22 Invention you can augment the dragon and later mattocks for perks; the Wiki suggests Honed 6, Hasty 5 with Preservationist 5, or Fortune 3 with Imp Souled 2. See the Invention guide.
• Archaeologist's outfit (70, associate): up to 6% XP. The master archaeologist's outfit (99, guildmaster) adds 7% to excavation success and precision, faster restoring, and three Fixate casts a day.
• Archaeologist's tea: +50% XP while excavating for 20 minutes. Hi-spec monocles give +20% base precision. Reiniger hands out a few of each with every qualification from assistant on.
• Balarak's sash brush (80) raises excavation success and base precision by 5%. The cosmic accumulator (90, after Desperate Measures) keeps sprite focus from dropping below 20% while you excavate.
• Signs of the porter send materials to storage, and the auto-screener v1.080 (associate, 67 Invention) turns soil into materials as you dig, but gives no artefacts.

What you unlock

• 40: assistant qualification and research teams.
• 68: Ancient Summoning binding contracts, after the Dagon Bye mystery.
• 70: associate qualification and the archaeologist's outfit.
• 90: professor qualification, and an extra relic loadout slot to buy.
• 95: Ancient Invention blueprints, after Howl's Floating Workshop.
• 99: guildmaster qualification, master outfit, Archaeology cape.
• 102: Flow State, +20% base precision but no soil.
• 120: Archaeology master cape.

Relics are unlocked through collections and dig site exploration. You can run three at once, swapped at the mysterious monolith for chronotes and monolith power.

Track your Archaeology on The Codex

• The box at the top of this guide shows your level once you look yourself up; your profile shows daily and weekly gains.
• The Archaeology skill page has the XP table and who gained most this week.
• The XP calculator shows the XP between any two levels, and the goal planner helps you set a target such as 99 or 120.

Sources

• RuneScape Wiki, Archaeology training: the hotspot route by level, qualifications, XP rates, collection XP, mattocks, perks and equipment.
• RuneScape Wiki, Archaeology: the skill overview, free-to-play cap, consumables, relics, rewards and the release unlocks.
• RuneScape Wiki, Dig sites: the dig site list with levels and requirements.

References courtesy of the RuneScape Wiki.