RuneScape Kalphite King Guide

RuneScape Kalphite King Guide by Torez x

UPDATES
29/05: I’ve managed to solo KK http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=I7KkTpDi9Vs

Hi guys! So I’m a huge fan of KK and was a little disappointed when the infamous nerf of 17 June came about, but actually, KK isn’t as bad as most people think now.

Contents:
Post 1: Intro and Requirements
Post 2: Gear
Post 3: Inventory
Post 4: Roles and Tactics
Post 5: Provoker
Post 6: Tanker
Post 7: Attacker
Post 8: Abilities
Post 9: Miscellaneous Advice
Post 10: FAQ’s

So, this guide-thing will be aimed at higher end pvm’ers. Why? Because with the highest drop being around 83m (as of post creation), large teams just don’t cut the job for making money anymore. I wouldn’t recommend KK’ing with anymore than 4 people.
So with such small teams, you’re going to need really high end stats/gear.

Requirements:
Max combat. Or very close to.
Overloads, Turmoil/Torment/Anguish, Yak
PoP/Nex/GWD armour sets. (Gano is the exception to this rule!)

The fewer requirements you meet ^ the less effective your team is. Sure you can follow this guide with 70 Prayer, 80 Herblore, Full Bandos and Chaotics but bare in mind you’re going to be hitting 1 possibly 2 kills per trip. Not effective.

Since the update which greatly buffed minions, it is now required to kill them for efficiency, greatly reducing the value of a Kalphite Task. They are no longer required.

Gear

/ Represents what ELSE must be taken
= represents alternatives in that order.
For questions regarding alternative gear, see below.
*Remember it might appear high end gear, but this is for the BEST results*

PROVOKER
Helm: Torva
Chest: Torva
Legs: Torva
Mainhand: Drygore Rapier
Offhand: Chaotic Kite = Divine Spirit Shield = Any other shield
Gloves: Torva
Boots: Torva
Neck: Fury
Cape: Tokhaar-Kal
Ring: Ring of Vigour
Ammo: n/a
Aura: Invigorate(highest tier) = Penance = Reverence = Vampyrism
Scrimshaw: Vampyrism

TANKER
Helm: Superior Tetsu Helm
Chest: Superior Tetsu Platebody/Superior Death Lotus Chestplate
Legs: Superior Tetsu Platelegs/Superior Death Lotus Chaps
Mainhand: Drygore Rapier/Ascension Crossbow
Offhand: Off-hand Drygore Rapier/Off-hand Ascension Crossbow
Gloves: Pneumatic
Boots: Steadfast
Neck: Fury
Cape: Tokhaar-Kal
Ring: Ring of Vigour
Ammo: Ascension Bolts
Aura: Vampyrism = Penance = Reverence = Invigorate(highest tier)
Scrimshaw: Vampyrism

ATTACKER
Helm: Torva
Chest: Torva/Pernix
Legs: Torva/Pernix
Mainhand: Drygore Rapier/Ascension Crossbow
Offhand: Off-hand Drygore Rapier/Off-hand Ascension Crossbow
Gloves: Torva
Boots: Torva
Neck: Fury
Cape: Tokhaar-Kal
Ring: Ring of Vigour
Ammo: Ascension Bolts
Aura: Invigorate (highest tier) = Penance = Reverence = Vampryism
Scrimshaw: Vampyrism

ACCEPTABLE SWITCH-OUTS:
Acension Crossbow for Zaryte bow or Royal c’bow. *DON’T FORGET BOLTS*
Comp/Max/Skillcape (t) for Tokhaar-Kal.
Different Drygore types.
Tetsu/* Lotus for Torva/Pernix

Any types of downgrading, ie. Virtus to Ganodermic, WILL still work, but everytime you switch down like this it WILL affect the performance of your team. If you can afford it; buy it. I don’t have to list these, I’m sure you can work it out.

INVENTORY

I’m not going to list 28 lines containing 28 items, because each role will have a different amount of gear in it’s inventory. So I will name what you NEED to take and what to fill empty space up with.

2 Overload Flasks.
2 Prayer Renewal Flasks.
6 Saradomin Brews.
6 Super Restores.
1 Adrenaline Flask.
Runes to cast 100 Heal Other Spells *PROVOKER ONLY*

Leftover space should be filled with Rocktail Soup. Provokers will wish to take more prayer, as healing should be covered by Resonance.
Attackers may also wish to prioritise Super Restores, depending on how fast you can switch and how well you can avoid Mage Balls.
Tankers will, ofcourse, wish to prioritise food.

EVERYBODY SHOULD HAVE A YAK.
Why?
Because when the tank runs out of food and everybody has to sit around at the Lair waiting for him to bank, THIS IS AURA WASTE. Share the food, take full yaks, help him out. If you’re a cheap ass then ask for money.

DO NOT TAKE AN AGGRESSIVE FAMILIAR
I cannot stress enough how important this is. The King is already uneasy with whom he attacks right now, having aggressive familiars will only create more risk.
Allowed (useful) familiars;
Yak
Unicorn
Bunyip

THE TEAM

So let’s talk about this team we’re making on a whole.

4-Man Team
– 2 Attackers
– 1 Tanker
– 1 Provoker

This is entirely doable with a trio team taking away 1 attacker, but is much more effective as a 4.

UNIVERSAL ROLE

So since the minions got buffed, you’re going to be killing them all.
This means as soon as they spawn, the 2 attackers take them all out as quickly as possible while the tanker and DPS help out when KK digs/charges/heals.

THIS MUST BE DONE.

PROVOKER:

To start off with, Adrenaline is your friend. You need to build it as much as possible, all the time. Your ultimate aim is to always have 100% adrenaline when the King provokes. Sounds impossible, right? Well you have 3 things to assist you. Ring of Vigour, Adrenaline Flask, Invigorate Aura. Combining these 3 will make it fairly easy to hit 100% everytime however, adrenaline flasks are for emergencies only.
This means the only time you’re allowed to use Threshold abilities is during Mage Phase when Kalphite King does not Instakill.
‘But gf dps?!’ Yes, but you are the provoker, your job is to save people, not to do DPS. You don’t want your team-mates taking backup shields every trip because you’re known as the person who risks resonance all the time.
So how do I get my heal? You can still use Resonance, but you must use Immortality before-hand. There is plenty enough time you will find to hit that ultimate and pop Resonance on too.
So why only 1 attack style? I have provoked using hybrid and tribrid methods, and while it is certainly a faster method of killing, there is a huge lack of adrenaline build up (due to the cooldown on abilities after switching gear). This leads to lots more Risk Resonances, ultimately causing more deaths and team-chaos as someone else tries to adapt their role to a Provokers role.
So what about these Heal Other runes? Well here’s where your tank (and others!) will really fall in love with you. Everytime you use Barricade to protect from an Insta-Kill, you have 10 seconds to spam Heal Other on every team-member possible. This gives them a 75% heal and inflicts no damage on you. A common tank-voke partnership will allow the tank to let his HP to drop knowing the voker will heal him up.

‘What if I have to risk Resonance?!’ It happens, it always does. Do your best to leave it as late as possible, move to the other side of the King to the Marauders.

Don’t forget to kill minions during digs/charges/heals.

TANKER:

You need good reactions. The best tankers I have KK’d with can go through 1-2 food per kill through Prayer management, fast armour switches, quick Mage Phase reactions and ofcourse a high-end Provoker with Heal Other.
The length of the trip depends on your resources, so pay thorough attention on melee phase to any Slaughter bleeds and hit Freedom ASAP. Be ready to switch to Range Prayer at any given time as he really packs a punch to those not praying! And ofcourse, don’t get caught up in a bunch of balls on Mage Phase.

Abilities you should use: Adrenaline Builders, Assault, Massacre. *NOT DESTROY – SEE BELOW*

Use your Adrenaline flask to boost up to Threshold/Ultimate when you see a gap in stuns on Range phase and try to max out DPS.

During the first part of the kill, the King enjoys switching between players even with your incite on. Be sure to include Provoke as your adrenaline builder at this stage.

When he switches to Mage Phase, don your ranger gear, throw on Soul Split and catch some health. Be ready to switch Prayers though!

‘So Torez, why only 2 attack styles, not 3?’ Well I have tried tribrid tanking and the loss of HP during armour switches and prayer switches just isn’t worth the extra DPS. You may try, and it may serve you better, but this is my guide and this is the way I prefer.

Again; Do not forget to kill the minions during digs/charges/heals.

ATTACKER:

You should be praying Soul Split for most of the kill, Range phase is a preference, I like to pray Range.

Melee phase ; Build up Adrenaline to 100%, use Assault after the first charge. NOT DESTROY *SEE BELOW

Range phase ; Equip your armour and Drygores and go at him like a bat out of hell – this is where you will do most damage. It is important in the early stages of your life as a KK’er to learn the King’s move sequences, particularly on Range/Mage phase, as it will greatly increase your DPS. Knowing that he will typically Instakill, do 1 normal attack, do a Stun Attack, dig, allows you to use Anticipate during the instakill and procede with Assault knowing it won’t be interrupted. Also knowing when he’s about to spawn minions and stun you will allow you to use Anticipate and use more combo-abilities uninterrupted.

You should use Assault as he switches to this phase, then hit him with normal abilities until he digs, then use Berserk as he comes up, followed by a sip of Adrenaline potion, anticipate and whatever else it takes for you to get to an uninterrupted Assault

Mage phase ; Kit out in Range and start using basics and thresholds. Don’t bother with ultimates as multiple Dualshots/Rapid fires/Bombardments outweigh any Range ultimates here. Again, another handy sequence to watch out for is:

Mage switch,Green balls,Blue balls,Green,Green,Green,Dig,Green,Green,Charge,Blue,Green,Green,Green,Dig etc.
This is typical, and does have a chance of varying depending on how much DPS your team is doing/how much you’re stunning. The key is to use Anticipate as soon as you see him switch, and to use it again during the charge. The second one allows you to use Rapid Fire during the after-charge blue ball uninterrupted.

KILL ALL MINIONS AS SOON AS THEY SPAWN

ABILITIES

Here are the advised set-ups and abilities to avoid and why.
A number enclosed in ()’s regards a recommended hot-key assignment, ie. Freedom (1) = hot-key is 1. You are free to change these, but it is advised to at least have them hot-keyed.

Provoker:
Freedom (1), Anticipate (2), Slice, Punish, Sever, Backhand, Assault, Heal Other (5), Provoke, Immortality, Resonance, Barricade.

Tanker:
BAR 1) Freedom (1), Anticipate (2), Slice, Punish, Sever, Havoc, Backhand, Assault, Massacre, Range Protect, Soul Split, Provoke.
BAR 2) Freedom (1), Anticipate (2), Piercing Shot, Dazing Shot/Needle Strike, Binding Shot, Fragmentation Shot, Ricochet, Bombardment, Snap-shot, Rapid Fire, Soul-Split, Provoke.

Attacker:
BAR 1) Freedom (1), Anticipate (2), Wrack, Impact, Sonic Wave, Combust, Chain, Wild Magic, Asphyxiate, Metamorphosis (0), Ranged Protect, Provoke.
BAR 2) Freedom (1), Anticipate (2), Slice, Punish, Sever, Havoc, Backhand, Assault, Berserk (0), Ranged Protect, Soul Split, Provoke.
BAR 2) Freedom (1), Anticipate (2), Piercing Shot, Dazing Shot/Needle Strike, Binding Shot, Fragmentation Shot, Ricochet, Bombardment, Snap-shot, Rapid Fire, Soul-Split, Provoke.

*ABILITIES TO AVOID*
Now there are a ton of you reading this exasperated as to why I have recommended avoiding Destroy and Asphyxiate; ‘But Torez moar DPS nao!!!@@’. You might not notice, but while you’re using these 2 abilities and watching those pretty hits stack up, they’re actually making the King cycle through attacks with every hit, causing, well, chaos. It could and probably will cause an unpexpected insta-kill and catch your Provoker off-guard, it might cause stunning blue-balls to pop out unexpectedly and lead to being caught up in a bunch of green balls. They also make him dig. A lot. Use Destroy on Range phase he’ll dig 3 times back to back to back (and you always wondered why he did that, huh?).

MISCELLANEOUS ADVICE

1) DO NOT TANK ON A WALL OR ANYWHERE NEAR ONE. Stay 2 squares space from the lairs’ walls at ALL times if you’re the tank. He will hit you randomly (and often!) for 4k+ damage if you are.

2) RUN AWAY WHEN MINIONS SPAWN. Pro KK’ers should know when minions are going to spawn. As soon as you get stunned, run 4 squares.

3) HAVE YOUR PROVOKER SET UP INSTAS. He needs the time least. The tanker will want to use Regenerate and the Attacker will want to preserve adrenaline.

4) PRESERVE ADRENALINE. Inbetween kills while your Provoker sets up the insta, toggle Freedom, Anticipate and Surge.

5) DON’T BE RECKLESS. Longer the trips the better, don’t hang around on Mage Phase to hit that extra 1k, it isn’t worth the damage you’ll take.

6) STUNS ARE YOUR FRIENDS. Except during Instakills. Using Stun abilities (Backhand/Kick/Impact/Binding Shot) will stun KK for around 2 seconds. The time between his attacks is roughly 3 seconds. Using a stun less than 2 seconds before his next attack will cause him to skip that attack and he will not move for a total of up to 5 seconds (the sub 2 seconds + 3 of the next attack gap). Using a stun more than 2 seconds before the next attack and he will become free again and use his attack as normal.

7) EXCEPT DURING INSTAKILL. Any form of stun during the last 3 seconds of an instakill will delay the instakill by approx. 3 seconds. If your tanker is spamming provoke this will result in him being killed. If your voker is relying on a resonance, it increases the chances of failure.

8) USE BREWS. Statistically Sara Brew Flasks heal more per invent slot than Rocktails and don’t drain adrenaline. Sipping 3 doses + 1 Restore dose during charges/digs is a great way to heal without losing time/adrenaline.

9) MYSTICAL 24K HEAL. Not 100% sure on this, but it looks like stunning him for more than 7 seconds in a row (team effort) will make him heal 24,000hp.

10) NO FRENZY. He will use Barricade if you use this ability.

FAQ’s

Q: So much gear, why not use Void with helm switches?
A: Void is awful.

Q: Is this the best way to KK?
A: Yes and no. You can certainly kill it quicker, but this method makes for a much more relaxed, reliable and efficient trip whilst still being very quick.

Q: Can I tank in a Nex set?
A: You can tank in a Bandos set if you want, as always, any downgrades will just decrease efficiency. If your teams fine with it, go for it, but you should always strive for maximum efficiency.

Q: Is this guide up-to-date?
A: YES. As we all know, there is an update to the combat system all too frequently at the moment, I will do my best to adjust to any updates and change where necessary.

Q: Can I Kalphite King with you?
A: Yes, but my chat is always set to ‘Friends’. Leave a post here and I’ll get back to you ASAP.

Q: I need help with something related to KK/I didn’t understand a certain bit of your guide.
A: Same as above, leave a post here and I’ll get back to you ASAP.

Q: What’s the most gp-efficient sized team?
A: 4