Method Description, Instructions and Tips for Success

General Description

Coal is one of the fundamental raw materials in the Smithing skill, used in the smelting of steel, mithril, adamantite and runite bars. It traditionally has been mined in the conventional way that all ores are, by going to a mining site with rocks strewn about and going from one to the next hitting them to get chunks of coal.

In September 2009, Jagex added a new feature to RuneScape: the Living Rock Caverns. This new high-level area provides access to high-level Fishing, Mining and combat content, including two new special types of mining rocks: concentrated coal and gold deposits. You get the same coal or gold from these rocks as you would from conventional ones, but they don't "go dead" after a single ore is obtained -- they give ore continuously as you mine them, allowing you to stand in one place much the way you do when Fishing or Woodcutting. This means much less running around, more coal per hour, more XP per hour, and much less need to constantly devote 100% of your attention to the screen.

There are some drawbacks, however. First, there is only a deposit box nearby, not a real bank. Second, there are dangerous monsters in the cavern, so it is not suitable for players with low combat skills. Finally, you do not get gems when mining concentrated deposits.

Despite those drawbacks, though, this is the clear choice for coal mining for players who have the necessary Mining level (77) and who have combat abilities sufficient to avoid getting killed by the cavern's guardians.

Because you get ore so quickly here, using a beast of burden is better than a familiar that boosts Mining level silently; war tortoise pouches are expensive, so you don't earn much more money with one than using a spirit terrorbird, but at least there is less running around.

I recommend logging in to World 2 if you plan to spend a lot of time in the Living Rock Caverns -- the more players there, the less the chance of you being targeted by the monsters.

Finally, note that a dragon pickaxe will provide more yield than a rune pickaxe for those with Mining levels above 60. Due to its very high cost, however, I have decided not to include it in the Moneymaking Guide at this time.

Specific Method Details

Log in to World 2 and head to the bank in Edgeville. Equip yourself in standard melee gear, with two exceptions. First, wear your Varrock Armour so you get an increased chance of mining two ores at once (you also sometimes do this anyway, just because of how the deposits work). Second, wear a regen bracelet to help you recover damage from the monsters (since you don't want to keep food in your inventory.) Take out of the bank your rune pickaxe (or dragon pickaxe if you have one), and one or more pack yak pouches. Each pouch lasts a little under an hour, so take several if you plan to mine for a while; the trade-off here is that more pouches means fewer ores per trip to the deposit box.

Run northwest, then west and south, past the Prayer Guild and towards Ice Mountain. Go south, cross the bridge into the area where the dwarves are, and continue until you see a ladder heading down to enter the Dwarven Mine.

Run south a little bit and you'll find the rope that grants access to the Living Rock Caverns.

The coal deposits are scattered about the caverns, but there are three relatively close to each other south and southeast of the deposit box. Head due south of the bank to find one; there is another just northeast of there, and another northeast of it. There are also more in other quadrants of the dungeon.

Start mining, and summon your pack yak when your inventory is full, and store coal within it until it is maxed out. If the vein you are mining "collapses", look for another one, or just take the opportunity to bank.

If you get attacked by the living rock creatures, you can often avoid damage or wasting time killing them by trapping them on the opposite site of a deposit you are mining. If you can't avoid fighting one, be sure to take its drops and also mine the living minerals from them and bank them. Also be on the lookout for other creatures' drops, which many players leave behind, and rock creature corpses you can mine for living minerals (after waiting one minute from the time it is killed).

If you need to recharge your Summoning points, there is an obelisk up the rope just east of the cavern entrance.