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Melee Basic DPM Advice

Introduction

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Prelude: Learning PvM is a journey from tackling the basic concepts of DPM to mastering the nuances and techniques at the highest level. DPM-Advice-Basic focuses on the fundamental concepts to dealing efficient DPM to match the level of our basic boss guides. If you're deciding on a style, curious about melee, and/or would like to revisit the fundamentals this guide is for you!

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This guide will go over abilities, weapons & gear, approaching a boss, and refining mistakes.

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Ability Themes

Melee abilities vary in their themes. Some are strong individually, some comboed and some provide powerful utility values. Currently, they can be interpreted into four different classes with three different damage types.

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Classes:

⬥ Power: Deal high damage.

⬥ Auxiliary: Deal equal or less damage but enhance other abilities.

⬥ Utility: provide low or non-damaging utility buffs.

⬥ Subpar: as we know of lack any serious use. Generally avoid unless theorycrafted in advance.

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Damage Types:

⬥ Instant: Deal damage immediately

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Examples: cleave cane deci sever havoc gbarge punish slice

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⬥ Channelled: Deal channelled damage.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Channels lock the player into using the ability.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• After 1.8s or 3t, it can be freely cancelled by casting another ability.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Examples: fury gflurry flurry destroy assault

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⬥ Bleed/Burn: Deal damage that is spread over time.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• This is isn't boostable in zerk zgs spec

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• But is boosted by DBA spec berserker mahj Vuln

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎⬩ Full list here: Damage over Time - https://runescape.wiki/w/Abilities#Damage_over_Time_abilities

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Examples: dismember bloodtendrils slaughter

Basic Abilities

Melee basics are common use abilities with 2 purposes:

⬥ Gain 8% adrenaline.

⬥ Deal Damage.

Here are some examples:

⬥ Power:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• punish backhandflank deci sever cleave dismemberlunge dismember havoc

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- backhandflank denotes backhand (flanking)

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- dismemberlunge denotes dismember (lunging)

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- punish deals 150% damage when target is below 50% health.

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⬥ Auxiliary:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• chaosroar gbarge gfury fury

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⬥ Utility:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• bd dive kick backhand

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⬥ Subpar:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• slice Sacrifice Tuskas

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Sample Auxiliary Combos

⬥ gfury → backhandflank

⬥ fury → backhandflank

⬥ chaosroar → slaughter

⬥ gbarge → assault destroy gflurry

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Utility Examples:

⬥ slaughter + kick

⬥ surge + bd

⬥ surge + dive

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Extends the range of surge and redirects with bd dive

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Threshold Abilities

Melee thresholds are stronger than basics however are more taxing to use. These abilities have 2 purposes:

⬥ Sacrifice 15% adrenaline.

⬥ Deal higher damage.

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⬥ Power:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• assault destroy cane bloodtendrils slaughter

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- destroy does stun however is more renowned for its damage.

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⬥ Utility:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• fbackhand gflurry quake

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⬥ Subpar:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• stomp

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Auxiliary/Utility Examples:

⬥ gflurry : Reduces remaining cooldown of zerk

⬥ quake : Lowers the enemy's defenses for 60s.

⬥ fbackhand : Stuns target for 3.6s.

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Ultimate Abilities

Melee Ultimates deal maximum damage and or elevate other abilities. They typically have 1-3 purposes:

⬥ Sacrifice 100% adrenaline.

⬥ Deal devastating damage.

⬥ Provide a longstanding buff.

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⬥ Power:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• overpowerigneous

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⬥ Auxiliary:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• zerk meteorstrike

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⬥ Utility:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• pulverise

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⬥ Subpar:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• balancedstrike frenzy massacre overpower

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Berserk:

⬥ zerk is Melee's strongest ability and the core of Melee DPS.

⬥ Typically, melee will cast zerk and then optimize a series of abilities while zerk is active for high burst.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• This is called a zerk Berserk Rotation.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• The Berserk Rotation will be covered after introducing weapons.

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Weapons & Gear:

⬥ In this section, we'll introduce the 3 weapons used for the rest of the guide.

⬥ Melee weapon(s) have several key descriptors which describe its capabilities.

If you are familiar with this feel free to skip ahead.

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Sample Weapon Breakdown:

⬥ Dragon Rider Lance, Dark Ice Shard and Dark Ice Sliver: dragonriderlance darkiceshard darkicesliver

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Accuracy: This is assigned from the Main Hand's accuracy value.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- darkiceshard has a t85 accuracy value of 2178.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- dragonriderlance has a t90 accuracy value of 2458.

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‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Damage: Auto attack damage from the respective weapon.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- darkiceshard has a t88 damage value of: 844.5.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- darkicesliver has an off-hand t88 damage value of: 422.4.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- dragonriderlance has a t80 damage value of 1788.

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‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Attack Speed: Auto attack speed of each weapon.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- darkiceshard darkicesliver each auto attack once every 2.4s (4t).

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- dragonriderlance auto attacks once every 3.6s (6t).

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‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Tier: Requirement to wield.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- Both Require 85 Attack.

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‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Passive(s):

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- Can cast cane with darkicesliver

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- Unlinks cooldown of destroy and cane when using both darkiceshard darkicesliver

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- dragonriderlance is a Halberd class 2H weapon.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- Halberds gain +1 attack range.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- Example: cane normally strikes in a 3x3 aoe; strikes in a 5x5 withdragonriderlance

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⬥ Ability Damage:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• This is damage dealt with abilities.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• It is calculated with Auto attack damage value(s), weapon attack speed, strength level and other boosts.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- darkiceshard darkicesliver have Tier 88 ability damage: ~1637.65.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- dragonriderlance has Tier 80 ability damage: ~1523.25

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎- With 99 strength, no boosts.

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Armour & Other Gear

⬥ T70 Bandos Power Armour bandoschest Bandostassets Bandosgloves

⬥ T80 Laceration boots Laceration

⬥ T85 Jaws of the Abyss jawsoftheabyss

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• When casting basics gain +2% adren per active bleed.

⬥ Any necklace/cape slot is okay. Preferably strength cape 99/120strcape

Auras:

⬥ berserker +15% str/att -10% def.

⬥ mahj +5% dmg.

⬥ darkmagic Deal magic damage over time.

⬥ brawler +10% accuracy.

⬥ vampaura +5% healing (capped).

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Archaeology Relics:

⬥ conservationofenergy berserkersfury fontoflife

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Conservation of Energy: refund 10% adren on casting ultimates.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Berserker's Fury: Deal more damage when lower health.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Font of Life: +500 Max LP.

Planning a Fight:

We'll use this sample 14-ability action bar.

In this section We'll cover three fundamental steps to tackling bosses for the first time.

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Step 1: Identify Key Abilities:

All of these abilities are enhanced by zerk except for bleeds dismember bloodtendrils slaughter

Berserk Enhanced Abilities

⬥ Power Basics 1-4: deci cleave sever havoc

⬥ Auxiliary Basic 5-6: fury gbarge

⬥ Power Thresholds 7-9: assault destroy cane

⬥ Utility Threshold 10: gflurry

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Step 2: Analyzing the boss:

⬥ We'll use Vindicta and Gorvek Vindicta as our sample boss. Vindicta and Gorvek Vindicta has 2 phases, each with 100k health.

⬥ Higher DPM is one part familiarizing with boss threats and another part executing a strong rotation.

Analyzing Vindicta Vindicta

⬥ Phase 1:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Vindicta Does a spinning melee special attack ... "I should protect/deflect melee."

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Vindicta Does a fire breathing magic special attack ... "I should move away from it."

⬥ Phase 2:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Vindicta attacks 3 times. Melee, ranged, melee... "The ranged one hits hard, I should use a defensive or pray ranged.**"

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Vindicta does her fire breathing magic special attack... "I should move away from it."

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Rough Plan:

⬥ zerk rotation for the first 100k health.

⬥ dismember bloodtendrils slaughter and strong Power Thresholds for the last 100k health.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• From now on we'll focus on the zerk rotation.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• The rest is left for the reader's exercise.

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Step 3: Create & Test the plan:

Now let's try making a rotation. Here's our general zerk approach:

⬥ Use Power Abilities but also plan around strong Auxiliary combos.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• With current gear gbarge is the only worth while auxiliary ability.

⬥ Utilize thresholds but also manage adrenaline.

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Brainstorm

⬥ We're at 100 adren, so let's use zerk + adrenrenewal

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• [zerk] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ]

⬥ Since we're out of combat, let's use gbarge to gain voke effect.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• [zerk] → [gbarge] - [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ]

⬥ We want adren, let's use two Power Basics: sever havoc

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• [zerk] → [gbarge] - [sever] → [havoc] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ] → [ ]

⬥ The gbarge voke effect is expiring soon so let's use a channelled Power Threshold. Our adren is above 50, let's use more Thresholds.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• [zerk] → [gbarge] - [sever] → [havoc] → [destroy] → [gflurry] → [assault] → [ ] → [ ]

⬥ Okay looks like we need more adren, let's use a Power Basic: deci and finish strong with cane

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• [zerk] → [gbarge] - [sever] → [havoc] → [destroy] → [gflurry] → [assault] → [deci] → [cane]

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Rough Rotation:

⬥ zerk + adrenrenewal → gbarge → havoc → sever → destroy → gflurry → assault → deci → cane

VOD Reviewing

Refining is considerably the most important practice of improving DPM. It exercises many healthy thought processes to rationalize where a boss encounter did not go as planned. Viewing a recording or VOD of your encounter is critical to identifying mistakes.

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Below, is a video sample of the rough rotation alongside a list of mistakes. Try identifying the mistakes inside the video as an exercise.

Rough Rotation Video:

Final/Refined Rotation Video:

Comparing Final vs Rough Rotation

⬥ Rough: zerk + adrenrenewal → gbarge → havoc → sever → destroy → gflurry → assault → deci → cane

⬥ Final: zerk + adrenrenewal → gbarge → deci → sever → destroy → gflurry 5t → deci → cleave → assault → cane

⬥ Damage Difference: ~85k vs ~113k

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Identifying Mistakes:

⬥ Firstly, it only uses 32t out of the available 34t from zerk

⬥ Secondly, there isn't enough adrenaline to cast cane

⬥ Thirdly, there are better Power Basic options than havoc

⬥ Lastly, cane isn't in zerk

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Timestamps are at 0:30 cane and 0:19 havoc respectively.

Refining each mistake

⬥ #1: deci > havoc

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• deci deals more damage.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Net Gain: +18.5%​

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⬥ #2: shorten gflurry , cancel with deci

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Shortening gflurry from 7t to 5t, 4 hits to 3 hits.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎⬩ Allows deci to cancel gflurry

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎⬩ Net Loss: -94.2%​

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎⬩ Gain 2t of time. Can squeeze in another ability; #3.

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⬥ #3: Add cleave

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Gains +8% adren.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Net Gain: 104.6%​

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎⬩ Recall cleave is casted with t80 damage dragonriderlance

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⬥ #4: Cancel assault with cane

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• This places cane inside zerk

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Retain all assault hitsplats

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Net Gain: +256%​

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Results:

Average Ability Damage, (AAD) = Average ability % of rotation

⬥ Rough vs Final AAD: 1804% vs 2089.1%

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• ~16% DPS increase

⬥ Final rotation deals ~16% more damage

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• (2089.1/1804) - 1 ~ 0.158,

⬥ Net Gain from these 4 fixes:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• 256% + 18.5% + 104.6% - 94% = 285.1%​

⬥ Total AAD difference between Final and Rough:

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• 2089.1% - 1804% = 285.1%​

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We've unknowingly introduced, in #2, #4, a vital mechanic called Cancelling Channels. This will be the final basic melee tip for the guide.

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Cancelling Channels

Why Channelled Abilities are Important

⬥ Cancelling channelled abilities saves time.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• Animations are sometimes unsynced with the hitsplats.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎• It can be higher damage-per-tick and more adrenaline friendly to cancel early.

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎⬩ Frequently cancelled: gflurry fury

‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎ ‎⬩ See the following example with conc from magic. (Functionally identical to fury)