Account

The Old School RuneScape Wiki also has an article on: osrsw:Account

A player logging in

An Account is the means by which a player is identified in RuneScape. It holds all the information on the player's in-game activities, including their skills and achievements, all the items they possess, and the quests they have done. It also makes the player accountable for anything they have said via the game's chat interface, specifically including any breaches of the Rules of RuneScape.

A player's account is similar to, but separate from, their character. The character is represented by an avatar that exists in-game. The avatar is customizable to allow the player to feel individual.

Players may receive messages from Jagex via their Message Centre when they log into the game. This is the only means by which Jagex contacts players individually, never through email. Players also need to log into their account to use certain functions on the RuneScape website, including posting on the RuneScape Forums, (for those that have not attained 350 overall total level) vote in official polls, and accessing the player moderator centre (if the player has player moderator status).

As of 24 January 2010, players are required at sign-up to provide Jagex with an email address, which serves as the account's registered email. It may be toggled in the account settings if you wish to receive newsletters and special offers via email.

Creation

A player must create an account in order to play the game. The account starts out as free-to-play by default, but the player can choose to pay a monthly fee to gain extra pay-to-play content and functionality or stay a free-to-play.

A player can create more than one account, and can interchange between playing them with no limits. It used to be forbidden to log into more than one of their accounts at the same time, but this was changed in May 2014 , explicitly allowing trade and other interaction between alternate accounts "as long as it doesn't involve rule breaking or gameplay exploitation." One may not allow anyone else to use any of their accounts at any time. Jagex also prohibits the sale of accounts. Jagex keeps a strict surveillance on players attempting to sell accounts, and an offender is liable to incur severe penalties, such as being banned, if they should attempt to either buy or sell an account.

The first part of account creation is done on the RuneScape website:

1. To start, wait for the game client to load, and press the following underneath the login section. This will open a link to the RuneScape website, where it will prompt you to enter a login email and password, or continue with a third party provider:

   

2. Once the account has been created, log into the game with your username/email and password, or login with your third party created account:
   
3. After that, select your gender (don't worry, it can be changed at a later time):
4. If you want your account to be ironman or hardcore ironman mode, be sure to use the "Advanced Play Mode" button located below "Done" and change "Standard" to either "Ironman" or "Hardcore Ironman mode"

   

5. And then choose your hair colour; your facial hair would also be the same as said colour.

   

6. After choosing your hair, you will see what outfits you can choose from. Once again it may be changed at a later date.

   

7. And then your legs, and the colour of it:

   

8. Now you can choose what boots you want:

   

9. And finally, you can choose your facial hair. The colour you chose for your hair will also apply for your facial hair:
10. Now click done and enter your character name:

    

11. Now you can click "Done" and you are done and ready to play RuneScape.

Account settings

How account settings appear on the website

Account settings are where you can view, customize, and manage important details and preferences for your account. Within your account settings page, you are able to view and manage the following aspects of your account:

• Authenticator
• Linked accounts
• Character name
• Password
• Email and communication preferences
• Message Centre
• RuneMetrics
• Active Sessions
• Membership subscription

To view your account settings, open the main RuneScape website and click on the button in the top right of the page, then click on 'My Account' and log in when prompted.

Safety

Main article: Account security

General tips for keeping your account and self secure:

General safety

• Do not share sensitive personal information (such as full name or phone number) online
• Avoid real life meet-ups, and take a trusted friend or family member if meeting someone met online
• Avoid common scams and always be wary of giving away or dropping valuable items, or entering the wilderness.
• Report players who break the rules or encourage you to.

Account security

Set a unique password:

• Set a unique password for all of your online accounts. That way, if one is compromised, your other accounts remain secure. A good password should be memorable but difficult to guess. Having unique passwords for your entire online presence can be hard to manage, so consider using a password manager.

Enable the RuneScape Authenticator:

• Setting up the authenticator adds an extra layer of security to your game account, and protects unauthorised access even if a hijacker knows your password. However, if a hijacker accesses your registered email, they could disable your authenticator so it is also imperative to keep your email account secure

Protect your registered email:

• A secure email address will keep your other accounts safe, so ensure to set a strong password on it, and utilise a form of 2-Factor authentication on your email as well.

Keep the device you play on secure:

• Keeping your device locked with a passcode can keep it safe from any nearby threats. You should also enable your preferred antivirus and anti-spyware software and scan your device regularly.

Keep your device up to date:

• Keep your operating system and applications up to date. Missing a critical security update could make your device less secure. A quick search in your favourite search engine will provide you with some steps.

Secure any linked accounts:

• If your game account is linked to a third party, ensure you've utilised the third party account's security features

Manage your active sessions:

• If you've forgotten to log out of your account on a shared device or suspect a third party has access to your account, you can end all active sessions from within your account settings which will log you out on all devices.

Use a bank PIN for extra security of items if your account is compromised:

• A Bank PIN works like a PIN code for your credit card; hijackers won't be able to access the items in your Bank without knowing the PIN.

Do not share your account with anyone.

Avoid phishing sites that may offer RuneScape cheats, moderator status, etc. If there are any test servers available, they will be accessible by navigating through the main page.

Account types

Main account

The term main account (also referred to as a main or primary account) usually refers to a player's highest levelled account or their most frequently used account. This term, however, is mostly used by players who have lower levelled or less frequently used accounts.

Alternate account

An alt account or alt (short for alternate) is any account that is distinct from the main account. Various reasons for having an alternate account beside include:

• Testing different account builds, such as combat pures or skill pures
• Ironman Mode and Fresh Start Worlds
• Old School RuneScape (as one account cannot log into both games at the same time)
• Replaying limited content
• Playing group content
• Circumventing Grand Exchange buying limits
• Collecting resources, such as for Archaeology (although not against the rules, this is a controversial practice)
• Holding excess items due to limited bank space (such accounts are often called "mule" accounts)
• Farming rewards from Treasure Hunter and other promotional content

Accounts owned by the same person are allowed to interact with each other so long as they are not manipulating any game mechanics. For example, trading money from one account to another is acceptable, but logging into another account and killing it to upgrade a Duellist's cap is not.

Throwaway

A throwaway account is an alternate account that has been created to carry out a certain task with the owner having no intention of developing the account. They are sometimes used to accomplish something controversial or malicious, such as griefing or disrupting the community. They can also be used to experience or re-experience low level content and quests.

Players may also use throwaway accounts in situations in which their main account may be compromised. Jagex has suggested creating a new account if a player suspects that a game server may be fake.

Personal data rights

Players' legal rights are described in Jagex's privacy policy, subject to the GDPR (for EU residents), the California Consumer Privacy Act (for California residents), and the DPA 2018 (amended by the Data Protection, Privacy and Electronic Communications (Amendments etc) (EU Exit) Regulations 2019).

Under certain circumstances, outlined in the privacy policy and UK legislation, players may:

• Request access to their personal data
• Update their personal data
• Remove their personal data and permanently disable their account
• Restrict the processing of their personal data
• Obtain and reuse their personal data
• Request information about the use of their personal data

A data subject access request may be submitted using this form (requires login). Jagex must respond with the outcome of the request within 3 months, and inform the player if the request takes more than one month to process.

Gallery

• 

  Old account creation screen.

• 

  The message that appears when you log into an account that was made before 24 January 2010 and haven't validated your email yet.

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  The message that occasionally appears when you log into an account that was made before 24 January 2010 and haven't validated your email yet.

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  The "Thank You" message that appeared for all players upon the 200 millionth account's creation.

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  An account, which has validated their email

Update history

This information has been compiled as part of the update history project. Some updates may not be included—see here for how to help out!

• patch 24 October 2022 (Update):
  • An issue has been fixed where some leg gear was showing the incorrect preview image in Character Create.

• patch 1 March 2021 (Update):
  • Fixed an issue with the 'Randomize' button not functioning on the facial hair section.
  • Fixed an issue with the Graphics Options when running the auto-setup from the Character Creation screen.

• patch 14 May 2018 (Update):
  • Added extra code for date of birth checks

• patch 3 April 2018 (Update):
  • Thank you web page pop up no longer appears on character customisation when you create a new character.

• ninja 17 October 2016 (Update):
  • The character rotating cursor will no longer cover the Ironman Mode dropdown menus in the Character Creation window.

• patch 3 October 2016 (Update):
  • The email address field on the “Account Create” interface will now accept various international characters.

• patch 15 February 2016 (Update):
  • New players will now see a helpful web page to show them how to play the game when creating a new account.

• patch 1 July 2014 (Update):
  • Pre-RS3 accounts no longer have their game world blacked out on their first log-in.

• patch 21 January 2014 (Update):
  • Several issues with character creation colours have been fixed.

• patch 30 October 2013 (Update):
  • Players will no longer be met with a blank screen under some circumstances relating to email validation in the lobby.

• patch 13 August 2013 (Update):
  • Several small changes and tweaks have been made to streamline the Account creation process.
  • The lobby now displays the correct amount of days before email validation becomes mandatory.

• patch 24 July 2013 (Update):
  • Several changes have been made to make the account creation process work better with accounts with no display name

• patch 3 July 2013 (Update):
  • The mage's divided skirt will now change colours in the character creation screen.

• patch 23 July 2013 (Update):
  • Some fixes were made to how email validation works with accounts with no display name.

• patch 28 January 2013 (Update):
  • The Character Creation screen sounds have been updated.

• patch 9 November 2009 (Update):
  • Improved the various error messages when trying to create an account.

Trivia

• The number of RuneScape accounts reached 200 million on 19 July 2012, and 300 million in 2022.
• In the character selection, (the first screen after logging in) the character wields weapons/items that are not available in the rest of the game.
• Before the character is named, it is called "#PlayerXXXX", where XXXXs are random numbers.
• If a player rotates the character during the account creation, it will play an animation of getting dizzy.