Archaeology is the newest gathering skill in RuneScape 3. Released in March 2020, archaeology has provided many benefits to the players since then. Relic powers, ancient summoning, and artifact weapons are some of the benefits of archaeology. Furthermore, archaeology is one of the best gathering skills in RuneScape 3 for money-making purposes. In this guide, we’ll run through some of the best RuneScape 3 archaeology money-making methods, complete with its requirements and expected gold per hour.
Screening Soils
Requirements:
- Level 99 Archaeology.
- Level 91 Magic.
- Completed the Lunar Diplomacy quest to unlock the Lunar spells.
- Guildmaster qualification at the Archaeology Guild.
Gold per hour: 6M-10M
Screening soil using the Sift Soil spell is one of RuneScape 3 best archaeology money-making methods. The Sift Soil spell allows you to screen soil without using a screening station. Therefore, you can use this method near any bank to remove the need for notepapers or porters.
There are five different types of soil that you can use for this method. They are ancient gravel, fiery brimstone, saltwater mud, aerated sediment, earthen clay, and volcanic ash. The buying limit on the Grand Exchange for each soil is 5000 per 4 hours. Therefore, you need to alternate between the types of soil you choose to screen to avoid downtime.
Excavating Blood of Orcus
Requirements:
- Level 90 Archaeology
Gold per hour: 4M
The Blood of Orcus is an archaeological material obtainable by excavating from various excavation hotspots and material caches. While level 58 Archaeology is sufficient to gather this material, it is recommended to have level 90 Archaeology for optimal effectiveness in this money-making method. With level 90 Archaeology, you’ll have access to Elder Rune Mattock (or better alternatives) that allows you to gather Blood of Orcus quicker. If you’re using an augmentable mattock such as Imcando Mattock, you can add both Honed and Fortune perks to increase your gold per hour. Furthermore, you can use the waterfiend familiar for a 5% chance to double the gained resources.
For this money-making method, you’ll be excavating from Material caches (Blood of Orcus) which you can find on the 3rd floor of the Slayer Tower in Canifis. There are three material caches available at this location. You can hop worlds once you’ve exhausted all three material caches. Don’t forget to wear your master archaeologist’s outfit for this method to get a 7% increased excavation rate.
Excavating Stormguard Steel
Requirements:
- Level 78 Archaeology
Gold per hour: 4M
The Stormguard steel is an archaeological material obtainable by excavating from various excavation hotspots and material caches. While level 78 Archaeology is sufficient to gather this material, a higher level of archaeology and mattock used will increase your profit. If you’re using an augmentable mattock such as Imcando Mattock, you can add both Honed and Fortune perks to increase your gold per hour. Furthermore, you can use the waterfiend familiar for a 5% chance to double the gained resources.
For this money-making method, you’ll be excavating from Material caches (Stormguard steel). You can find them on the Research & Development southwest excavation site at Stormguard Citadel. Wingsuit v1 is required to access this location. There are three material caches available at this location. You can hop worlds once you’ve exhausted all three material caches. Don’t forget to wear your master archaeologist’s outfit for this method to get a 7% increased excavation rate.
Making Component Crates
Requirements:
- Level 20 Invention
- Level 70 Archaeology
Gold per hour: 7M
You can make the following component crates and sell them on the Grand Exchange for profit.
- Large crate (historic components). You can make them on an invention workbench with 1000x historic components, 100x padded parts, and 2x protective components.
- Small crate (classic components). You can make them on an invention workbench with 100x classic components, 100x padded parts, and 2x protective components.
Padded parts are obtainable by disassembling staves and ranged armor, while protective components are obtainable by disassembling shields and armor. You can read a comprehensive guide on getting protective componentsย here.
In this money-making method, you’ll spend most of your time obtaining historic and classic components. These components are obtainable by disassembling restored archaeology artifacts. You can excavate from Venator remains in the Kharid-et Dig Site to obtain artifacts faster. While only level 5 Archaeology is needed to excavate from this spot, a minimum of level 70 Archaeology is highly advised for this money-making method.
You can increase the amount of artifacts you obtain by using an augmented mattock with a Honed perk attached. Furthermore, you can use the waterfiend familiar for a 5% chance to double the gained resources. Don’t forget to wear your master archaeologist’s outfit for this method to get a 7% increased excavation rate. If you have level 67 Invention, you can use an Auto-screener v1.080 to screen gathered soils into materials.