Exciting things are coming to OSRS in 2023. Who would’ve thought we would get an update to the Woodcutting skill? Forestry is blowing new life into one of the oldest skills in the game. That’s of course super exciting. So it was no surprise that when polled, the Forestry update was approved by 90.7% voted in favor.
What is the Forestry update, what will it entail and how will it change the OSRS landscape? This article covers everything you need to know about this spectacular update to our beloved game.
⚠️ This article is outdated. Visit our OSRS Forestry Guide for up-to-date info on the Forestry Update. ⚠️
What is Forestry?
Forestry is the upcoming rework of the woodcutting skill.
This update changes the way trees work in the game. No longer are other players a nuisance because they ruin your exp rate, and instead chopping down a tree with others will mean increased experience. Furthermore, the update will have a new quest, tons of rewards, and woodcutting events to make the skill exciting once again.
What I love about this update is that it turns Woodcutting once again into a community activity. If you played the original game, you’ll know how communal the hotspots for Magic Trees and Yew Trees used to be. It didn’t use to be competitive, people didn’t use to hop worlds to find empty woodcutting spots. It used to be a social gathering where people had fun conversations while training some Woodcutting.
Forestry plans to bring that communal way of Woodcutting back into the game. Alongside a ton of other content with events and fun rewards.
When will forestry be released?
The first part of the Forestry update will release on Wednesday, June 28, 2023, with the second part coming sometime in August.
How will forestry work?
Here are some of the things we know about the Forestry update thus far.
Tutorial Quest
Forestry will come with its own tutorial quest. This will be a beginner-level quest that serves as a tutorial for everything that is included in the Forestry update. The reward from the quest will be the Forestry Kit.
We have seen similar tutorial quests for the Giants Foundry update (smithing) & Guardians of the Rift updates.
Group Tree Chopping: Invisible Experience Boost
The first thing the update plans to do is change the way trees are chopped. Under the rework, the Old School Team wanted to make Woodcutting a community activity. They are doing this by changing the way trees work in the game.
Let’s take a look.
Old/current System:
- 1/8 chance of tree depleting after chopping a log
- more people = higher chance of tree depleting
- Basically makes Woodcutting a solo activity
New System:
- Trees despawn on a timer
- Players chopping the same tree, get an invisible boost for each player with the boost maxing out at 10 players
- Basically, more people = more experience per hour
Essentially this new Group Tree Chopping method changes Woodcutting from a solo activity into a community activity. Expect to see Woodcutting worlds, Woodcutting Group Chats, and so forth in the future where people will come together to train the skill.
Tree Timers
When Forestry releases, trees will no longer despawn based on the logs that are chopped and instead despawn based on a timer. Here are the timers for each tree in the game:
- Oak: 27s
- Willow: 30s
- Teak: 30s
- Maple: 1m
- Hollow Trees: 36s
- Mahogany: 1m
- Arctic Pine: 1m 24s
- Yew: 1m 54s
- Magic: 3m 54s
- Redwood: 4m 24s
Forestry Events
Events are a major part of the upcoming update. Every time you are chopping a tree, you have the chance to spawn an event in which everyone will be able to participate. These events are more likely to spawn, the more people are chopping a tree. Furthermore, the events are scaled with the number of players present. The more players, the more difficult the event will be, and the better the rewards will be.
The Old School team has a bunch of ideas for these events which is exciting because that means there will be more than one event in the game. With a large variety in events, the Woodcutting skill will never be boring again.
The events will be divided into two categories: during-chopping and after-chopping events.
Here are some of their propositions:
During Chopping Events:
After Chopping Events:
Anima Infused Bark
Anima Infused Bark is a brand-new currency that will be unlocked while chopping wood in Gielinor or participating in Forestry Events. This currency will allow you to purchase rewards from the Freaky Forester’s store.
Forestry Kit
The Forestry Kit will be a wearable reward from the upcoming quest. It will essentially function as a tool belt for woodcutting.
The kit will be upgradeable as well!
Social Campfires that gives buffs
It wouldn’t be a woodcutting update without some firemaking being added to the mix. Campfires will be coming to the game which will give players a woodcutting buff. These buffs will be available to any player within reach of the campfire. This is yet another great way to make woodcutting more social.
Tea Brewing
Brewing Teas is another feature that will be added in the gaming following the Forestry updates. Here’s a little example image of what Jagex has in mind for this:
Teas will be brewed by using tree leaves dropped by trees. These will give buffs similar to potions in the game and will require you to have a certain herblore level to make them.
Originally, the proposition was to add combat buffs in the game with these teas but this was voted against by the community.
Forestry Experience and profit per hour
Forestry EXP Rates
Forestry EXP rates will be similar to the experience rates from Sulliuscep Mushrooms. Currently, Sulliuscep Mushrooms offer the fastest experience per hour in Woodcutting when not including tick-manipulation.
Here’s what this would look like:
- 60+ woodcutting: 80k exp her hour
- 90+ woodcutting: 100k exp per hour
- 99 woodcutting: 110k exp per hour
Forestry Money Making
Forestry is not designed as a money making method and thus won’t give you riches beyond your dreams. According to Jagex, profits from forestry will sit somewhere between chopping Magic Trees and Mahogany Trees. Meaning somewhere between 110k-130k GP per hour.
Forestry Rewards
Of course, the Forestry Update will come with some exciting rewards. Here are some of the rewards:
Log Basket
The Log Basket will allow players to carry 28 logs inside the basket, essentially it is possible to carry 55 logs during a Woodcutting trip before going to the bank. The log basket functions similarly to the Coal Bag and Plank Sack.
It can also be combined with the Forestry Kit and Sturdy Harness to create a Forestry Basket which is equippable, unlocking 56 logs per trip.
Forestry Outfit
A brand new woodcutting-themed fashion-scape outfit for OSRS killers.
2 Handed Axes
Axes in the game have never made much sense. Which forester uses 1 hand to chop a tree? The two-handed axes that are coming with the Forestry update will come in all metal types and give you enhanced experience rates over the original axes.
To get your hand on two-handed axes, you will have to purchase the exclusive Axe Handle from the Forestry shop and attach it to your current axe to make a 2-handed version. This step will be irreversible and 2-handed axes will be tradeable on the Grand Exchange.
While the axes chop at the same speed as regular axes, you get 18% additional experience with the tradeoff that your 40 points of run energy is used up for every swing of the axe. There’s also a 20% chance you will not gain a log.
To combat this, players can use Foresters’ Rations, a stackable snack that gives you 30 points of run energy for every swing you take at the tree. Thus, you only lose 10 percent run energy in total when using 2-handed axes in combination with the Foresters rations.
2-handed axes should increase your exp rate by 10% exp/hr compared to regular axes.
Lumberjack Outfit
If you don’t like Temple Trekking, you’re in luck because in the future you’ll be able to get the lumberjack outfit from Forestry rewards.
Arborist Gloves
These gloves will give players benefits when training the Farming skill. When worn, they will decrease the protection costs of tree patches, provide the player with higher yield and exp rates as well as boost the growth time of trees.
Sawmill Voucher
Get bonus planks when converting logs into plank at the sawmill operators around Gielinor.
Funky-Shaped Log
This will be a transmog for your beaver pet (if you have one).
How Forestry will impact the future of OSRS
Forestry is an exciting update to one of my personal favorite skills in the game. Woodcutting was my first 99 in the original game, so it holds a special place in my heart. With the forestry update blowing new life into this old skill, one could wonder which skill is next. If Woodcutting is receiving an update, what is stopping the Old School team from pushing updates in other skills such as Mining and Fishing?
We could be looking at some exciting updates in the coming years that will improve the older skills in OSRS and make them more future-proof, thus lengthening the lifespan of Old School Runescape.
Originally, OSRS was fueled by nostalgia which brought people back to the game who played in the early 2000s. But right now, it’s much more than that. New people are joining the game every day, even though the graphics make the game look like it doesn’t belong in 2023. (Luckily, HD plugins are helping with that)
But if we want to keep this influx of new players, we have to make the game approachable to new players as well. Constantly doing updates to improve the end game of the game (such as adding Raids 3: Tombs of Amascut) is good to keep the active player base happy, but it’s also important to make the game enjoyable for newer players who have a long path ahead of them before they will ever participate in a Raid.
That’s why I’m honestly so excited about this update, and what it will unlock in the future. Sure, we’ve had plenty of Skillbosses in the game (e.g. Wintertotd) now which improve skilling, but these are just an addition, they don’t really change the way the skill works. That’s why Forestry is so thrilling as an update, it changes the way the skill works. And I hope it changes the way most skills work in the future.
And don’t worry about OSRS becoming like RS3 with all these updates. That couldn’t happen to OSRS. Everything is polled and if it doesn’t pass the poll, it won’t be put into the game. We have control here, to keep OSRS at the very top of MMORPGs on the internet.
Forestry FAQs
When is Forestry coming to OSRS?
The first part of the Forestry update will release on Wednesday, June 28, 2023, with the second part coming sometime in August.
Is Forestry available to Ironman accounts?
Forestry and its events will be available to ironman accounts. You won’t be able to benefit from campfires (unless you are a GIM and the campfire is made by a group member) but you will be able to benefit from all the other things such as invisible EXP boosts, events, and rewards.
Is Forestry available to F2P players?
Some parts of Forestry may be available to Free-to-Play players but Jagex is still working out the details. Sharing trees and the invisible experience boost for up to 10 players will be included in F2P mode for sure.
What are the expected EXP Rates for Forestry?
Forestry is expected to be similar to Sulliuscep Mushrooms, so expect experience rates between 80k and 110k per hour.
Read also: Everything you need to know about the upcoming Sailing Skill
