Ironman Prayer Training Guide
Quest to 43 Prayer for protection prayers. Train with blessed bone shards (safe) or Chaos Altar (fast but risky). Get bones passively through Slayer — don't grind dragons specifically unless you need levels urgently.
Prayer is one of the most impactful skills for ironmen. Protection prayers at 43 unlock safe-spottable content, and Piety at 70 is a massive DPS increase. The challenge isn’t training — it’s getting the bones.
Key Milestones
| Level | Unlock | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|
| 43 | Protection prayers | Safe-spot bosses, survive dangerous content |
| 44 | Eagle Eye | Ranged DPS boost |
| 45 | Mystic Might | Magic DPS boost |
| 70 | Piety | Massive melee DPS boost, unlocks serious bossing |
| 74 | Rigour (scroll) | BIS ranged prayer |
| 77 | Augury (scroll) | BIS magic prayer |
For most ironmen, 43 is the first goal and 70 is the second. Don’t rush 99 — you’ll get there naturally through Slayer and bossing.
Early Game: Quest to 43
Questing is by far the most efficient way to get early prayer levels. These quests have low requirements and stack nicely:
| Quest | Prayer XP | Requirements |
|---|---|---|
| The Restless Ghost | 1,125 | None |
| Priest in Peril | 1,406 | None |
| Recruitment Drive | 1,000 | Black Knights’ Fortress, Druidic Ritual |
| Holy Grail | 11,000 | Merlin’s Crystal, 20 Attack |
| The Great Brain Robbery | 6,000 | Various (mid-game) |
| His Faithful Servants | 20,000 | 30 Construction, Children of the Sun |
If you complete most prayer-granting quests, you can reach the low 40s without training at all.
Training Methods Compared
| Method | XP Multiplier | Risk | Requirements | Best For |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| Blessed bone shards | 5-6x | None | 30 Prayer, Varlamore access | Everyone — safe and efficient |
| Chaos Altar | 7x average | High (Wilderness) | None | Fast XP if you don’t mind dying |
| Gilded Altar | 3.5x | None | 75 Construction | Legacy method — rarely worth it now |
| Ectofuntus | 4x | None | Priest in Peril | Legacy method — rarely worth it now |
| Offering spells | 3x | None | 70 Magic, wrath runes | Passive during Slayer |
Blessed Bone Shards (Recommended)
The Varlamore method has changed ironman prayer training. It’s safe, efficient, and you can collect shards passively.
How It Works
- Get blessed bone shards (see sources below)
- Get jugs of wine (buy from wine sellers or make with 35 Cooking)
- Bless the wine at the exposed altar south of the Teomat (30 Prayer)
- Sacrifice shards at the libation bowl north of the altar
XP Rates
- 5 XP per shard with blessed wine
- 6 XP per shard with blessed sunfire wine (add sunfire splinters before blessing)
- One jug of blessed wine covers 400 shards
- Sacrifice up to 100 shards per action
Where to Get Shards
| Source | Requirements | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Hunter rumours | 46 Hunter | Passive while training Hunter |
| Calcified deposits | 41 Mining | AFK in Cam Torum, crush on anvil for 5-15 shards each |
| Breaking down bones | Chisel | Bless bones first, then chisel into shards |
The number of shards from bones scales with bone tier:
| Bone Type | Shards |
|---|---|
| Regular bones | 1 |
| Big bones | 2 |
| Dragon bones | 9 |
| Superior dragon bones | 12 |
Sunfire Splinters
Adding sunfire splinters to wine before blessing gives 6 XP per shard instead of 5 — a 20% boost.
Where to get splinters:
- Colosseum (Wave 1 farming is fastest)
- Various Varlamore content
- Sunlight antelope hunting
Worth doing if you have splinters, but don’t grind specifically for them unless you’re pushing high prayer levels.
Chaos Altar (Fastest)
The Chaos Altar in level 38 Wilderness offers the best XP rates but comes with PKer risk.
XP Mechanics
- 3.5x base XP per bone
- 50% chance the bone isn’t consumed
- Effective multiplier: ~7x on average
This makes it roughly 40% faster than the gilded altar, but you will die occasionally.
Strategy
- Use a 3-4 item setup (bone carrier + 3 protected items)
- Bank at Ferox Enclave (Ring of dueling)
- Accept that deaths happen — budget for losing some bones
- Go during off-peak hours for fewer PKers
- Bring cheap bones first to learn the route
Gilded Altar (Legacy Method)
Once you have 75 Construction, you can build a gilded altar in your POH chapel. However, blessed bone shards are better in almost every way.
Setup
- Gilded altar (75 Construction)
- Two incense burners (61 Construction each)
- Both burners lit = 3.5x XP
Why You Probably Shouldn’t Use This
- 3.5x multiplier vs 5-6x for shards — significantly worse
- Requires 75 Construction investment
- Only real advantage is using bones directly without processing
The gilded altar made sense before Varlamore. Now it’s a legacy method that’s hard to justify unless you’re a HCIM who somehow can’t access Varlamore content.
Ectofuntus (Legacy Method)
The Ectofuntus in Port Phasmatys offers 4x XP per bone with zero risk. Like the gilded altar, it’s been outclassed by blessed bone shards.
Process
- Grind bones in the bone grinder (top floor)
- Collect ecto-tokens from slime (basement)
- Worship at the Ectofuntus with bonemeal + slime
Why You Probably Shouldn’t Use This
- 4x multiplier vs 5-6x for shards
- Tedious multi-step process
- Only advantage: earns ecto-tokens for Morytania diary
The only reason to use Ectofuntus is if you specifically need ecto-tokens. Otherwise, use shards.
Offering Spells (Passive)
At 70 Magic with wrath runes, you can cast offering spells during Slayer tasks.
- Sinister Offering — bones (3x XP)
- Demonic Offering — ashes (3x XP)
Requirements
- 70 Magic (Sinister) or 84 Magic (Demonic)
- Wrath runes (95 Runecrafting or Wrath altar access)
- Arceuus spellbook
This isn’t a primary training method — it’s passive XP while doing Slayer. Cast when you have a full inventory of bones/ashes.
Where to Get Bones
Don’t grind dragons specifically for prayer unless you urgently need levels. Most bones come passively.
Passive Sources (Recommended)
| Source | Bones | Notes |
|---|---|---|
| Slayer | Various | Dragon tasks, boss tasks — let them accumulate |
| Vorkath | Superior dragon | 2 noted per kill |
| Zulrah | Dragon | Noted drops |
| Dagannoth Kings | Dagannoth | 77 XP per bone |
| Alchemical Hydra | Hydra | 110 XP per bone |
| Moons of Peril | Various | Generous bone drops |
Active Grinding (If Needed)
| Location | Bones | Rate | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
| Wilderness green dragons | Dragon | 300-330/hr | Risky, but fast with diary |
| Myths’ Guild dragons | Dragon | ~200/hr | Safe, requires DS2 |
| Blue dragons (Taverley) | Dragon | ~150/hr | Safe-spottable |
| Forthos red dragons | Dragon | ~180/hr | Altar nearby for immediate use |
Ensouled Heads
Ensouled heads from Slayer can be reanimated for prayer XP using the Arceuus spellbook.
| Head Tier | Prayer XP | Magic Level |
|---|---|---|
| Basic (goblins, etc.) | 130-520 | 16 |
| Dragon | 1,560 | 93 |
Honest assessment: The XP rates are slow and it’s not worth going out of your way to farm heads. They’re a minor bonus from Slayer, nothing more.
Recommended Progression
Fresh Account → 43 Prayer
- Complete The Restless Ghost and Priest in Peril
- Do Holy Grail when you have 20 Attack
- Complete His Faithful Servants (Varlamore) when accessible
- Use any method to finish off remaining XP to 43
43 → 70 Prayer
- Collect bones and shards passively through Slayer and Hunter
- When ready, use blessed bone shards (safe) or Chaos Altar (fast)
- Don’t rush — you’ll get there naturally
70+ Prayer
At this point you have Piety and can do most content. Continue collecting bones/shards through PvM and train when you have large stacks.
Related Guides
- Varlamore Guide — Blessed bone shards, Hunter rumours
- Mining Guide — Calcified rocks for passive Prayer XP
- Herblore Secondaries — Getting snape grass for prayer potions
- Early Game Roadmap