Runescape News: Behind the Scenes - June

Instead of beginning with a starter or main course, we will skip straight to desert this June! If that pun doesn't kill you, the beasties just might in Smoking Kills, our brand new desert quest. At the start, it won't seem too dangerous: a red-headed citizen of Pollnivneach has lost her sister down a well and wants you to retrieve her. Explore the depths, however, and you'll find yourself in situations more uncomfortable than sand between your toes.

Aside from a touch of trap-dodging and cat whispering, Smoking Kills demands the best of seasoned slayers, who will need to use their resources in innovative new ways to survive. Those who manage it will find their Slayer skill improved, with extra gear, a new Slayer Master and some pretty special rewards that will raise their Slayer game.

So, we've had the sun and the sand - now fer the sea, me hearties! Rabid Jack has been pretty quiet recently, seemingly taking a holiday from his nefarious ways. That would be the perfect opportunity to gather information on the old sea dog, but the pirates of the great seas won't say a word. Instead they will point you towards The Rock - the only prison in RuneScape where it's harder to get in than out...

This, the second of our quests this month, will have you punishing your liver with Braindeath's 'rum', finding imaginative uses for a seagull and getting up-close and personal with 50% Luke's wooden leg! It's all in a day's work for an intrepid would-be pirate who's used to Rocking Out once in a while.

At the end of the month, there will be a break of a couple of weeks with no game updates. These two weeks are hugely important to us, as they allow us to prepare for the major graphical improvement in early July. It's one of the most complex releases we've ever attempted, so we need the extra time to get it ready and make sure the launch goes smoothly.

You can read more about this update in our Image of the Future and Image of the Not-So-Distant-Future newsposts, along with our Development Diary - A New Look RuneScape. The second Development Diary on the subject will be released later this month.