War

A war is a PvP engagement between two or more clans. Wars differ from PK run-ins in that wars are planned in advance, generally giving members multiple days' or even weeks' notice to prepare, while PKRIs occur when two clans encounter each other while on PK trips. Historically "war" would refer to a knock-out (sometimes called an "all out" or "full out") fight in which players were not allowed to return to the battle after their first death, while a PKRI would generally have players on both sides constantly returning until one clan was "cleared" (they did not have enough players on the battlefield to continue fighting) or "ended" (their members ceased to return). Gradually the phrase "run-in" was applied to planned fights where returning was permitted, and time and kill caps were introduced as alternative methods to determine a victor. The modern clan war can be either a knock-out or a run-in, the latter of which is significantly more popular.

Structure

To organise a planned fight, the leadership of one clan chooses an opponent and offers a declaration of war, to which the opponent considers and accepts or rejects. Historically this was done via diplomatic boards on the Forums but is generally simple enough to be done via a message on Discord.

Preparation

If an offer for a fight is accepted, the Terms of War are then discussed which include:

• The date and time of the war.
• If it will be a P2P or F2P war.
• If the war will take place in the Wilderness (and if so, what the location and boundaries are) or the Clan Wars Arena (and if so, if there will be multiple rounds).
• If the war is a knock-out or run-in, and what method should be used to determine the victor.
• Restrictions on numbers (a "matched-opts" fight will require both clans to start with an even number of members).
• Restrictions on styles (such as a single-spells fight which prohibits the use of Ice Burst/Barrage).
• Restrictions on gear (such as a cap on the value of items).
• Any other provisions.

Once terms are agreed upon, clan members will be notified of the upcoming fight and instructed to prepare. The amount of time ("prep") the clan may have varies greatly, from as little as half an hour to as much as a week or more. The details of the fight will be posted on the forums and members are expected to familiarise themselves with the rules, prepare their accounts in-game to ensure they have the necessary gear and supplies, and make time for themselves to attend the fight when possible.

Just before the starting time, the clan will organise themselves in-game ("mass") at a pre-determined location, usually a bank. Common massing locations for WG are Juliet's House in Varrock and the west bank in East Ardougne. Members will prepare themselves for battle and the will depart once they are ready. WG occasionally enjoys taking part in historical traditions such as marching up into the Wilderness from Edgeville, and occasionally the leadership giving a Pre-war speech for the most important of fights.

It is common for the two or more clans fighting to greet each other before the battle, compare starting numbers and cut members to match if necessary, and wish each other good luck. One clan will then "defend" (usually the clan with greater numbers) and take up a defensive formation within the war zone. Common defensive positions are:

• Spread out, sometimes around an obstacle such as a rock or tree. Common in P2P multi-spells fights.
• A death dot (DD) where members all stand on one square. Common in P2P single-spells fights.
• A death dance where members all follow each other, making it harder for the attacking clan to right-click and choose a target. Common in F2P fights.
• A box formation. Common in historical F2P fights.

The attacking clan, when ready, will charge the defending clan and the battle will commence.

Battle

The goal of a knock-out fight is to kill all the members of the opposing clan, while the goals of a run-in vary and can be either:

• Clear the opposing clan - kill enough of their members so that they cannot continue fighting.
• Outlast the opposing clan - continue the fight long enough that they decide to "end" and their members stop returning.
• Have the most members remaining at the end of the fight - a common method of determining a victor in a fight with only a time cap.
• Obtain more kills than the opposing clan - some CWA fights have a "kill cap" where the first clan to reach a certain number of kills is declared the victor.

In order to ensure victory, clans and members utilise various tactics and strategies to try and beat their opponent.

Offensive Tactics

• Piling - all members focusing on one enemy player so as to kill them as quickly as possible.
• Transitioning - switching quickly to a different target in the hopes of catching them off-guard for an easy KO.
• Clumping - concentrating multi-combat attacks (such as ice barrage and black chinchompas) on enemies that are closely grouped together.
• Sniping - having a select few members target enemies who are not the current pile (usually mages). Mass-sniping involves all members sniping with no main pile going.
• Sneak maging - switching into mage robes, casting a spell, and quickly switching back to other gear such as dragonhides.

Defensive Tactics

• Tanking - switching to armour with high defensive bonuses and eating to try and survive an enemy pile as long as possible.
• Hugging - manoeuvring around furniture such as trees or rocks to try and clump an enemy pile or delay their attacks.
• Dragging - running a great distance (sometimes away from the main battle) to disorganise the enemy and/or make them drop the pile.
• Returning - upon death, re-gearing at a bank and returning to the battle to continue fighting as quickly as possible.

In the event of interference by another clan (crashing), the two fighting clans may choose to leave and restart the fight (possibly in a different location), or team together in order to fight the crashing clan.

Conclusion

At the end of a war with no issues (clean), it is common for the victor to take a fall-in and take screenshots of their final numbers (taking ending). The clan may also spam messages such as a "good fight" to respect their opponent's performance, and the opposing clan if still present may do the same. All players then leave the area. The staff member who organised the war will post a recap of the war on the Forums for members to discuss the fight, as well as posting the result on any public communities or social media.

Notable Wars

WG vs Rune Outlaws

File:First War.jpeg

WG vs Rune Outlaws. The first ever war WG took part in.

WG's first war was against the Rune Outlaws, held on November 27th, 2004. Around or before November 14th, an unknown member of the Rune Outlaws sent a message via a form used for alliance or war requests to WG. The message contained insults directed at His Lordship's combat level, and stated "[The Rune Outlaws] can kill [WG] anytime". Upon receiving the message, His Lordship attempted to contact a RO official. He spoke originally with Deadlyjosh, a Paladin of RO on November 16th, who claimed he was in charge and could accept the declaration. His Lordship requested a full-out war, while Deadlyjosh wanted a matched-opts fight of no more than 20v20. Eventually, a full-scale war was agreed upon after a long and heated debate. The war was finalised with Renesito, the leader of RO on November 21st.

War details were arranged for Saturday, November 27th 2004, at midnight (Sunday) GMT. The war took place in F2P, on world 20. However, on the day of the war, a member of the Knights of Death requested a war with WG as well. His Lordship, believing it was a RO member, provided the details of the RO war. KoD believed WG wanted to fight them at that time. KoD had originally planned to fight WG with The Synergy, who called WG for help, but later backed out themselves. His Lordship agreed to fight KoD directly after RO.

WG, led by His Lordship, made their way up to the Demonic Ruins and charged from the west, but found only looters and spies. With RO nowhere in sight, the WG members lowered their guard. Only seconds later, KoD rushed in from the south-east and hit the unprepared WildGuard. It is unclear when RO became involved. An intense three-way fight ensured, and the battle spread halfway across the Wilderness. All sides suffered heavy casualties. After a while, WG pulled out of the fight. However, RO was later exposed for cheating by wearing multiple capes, leaving and re-entering the war zone, and bringing friends and allies (Anarchy was also present, according to some sources).

Very little was known about the WG vs RO vs KoD war except for the clan's history's account. On November 2nd, 2009, surviving footage of the war (Recorded by Wildflame110 of WG) was edited and released by WG Keanu as a video entitled WG - First Blood (inset) to YouTube. The video shows WG walking to the Demonic Ruins and the start of the fight; however, the footage ends only a few minutes after the fight began, as Wildflame accidentaly backspace-logged out. Two other members, Noricle and Maxrobinsun, also were known to have recorded the war - though the whereabouts of the footage are unknown.

X vs DS

The war, known as "X vs DS" was hosted on July 23rd, 2006. Group "X" was composed of the Wilderness Guardians, their junior clan Descendant Guardians, Chivalry Legions, Rune Raiders, and RR Juniors. "DS" was a combination of Dark Slayers and their future applicants. A source from 2008 suggests that WG/DG and RR/RR Juniors had ~200 members present each, while CL had ~170, totalling around the 570-member mark. X had multiple fall-ins. His Lordship's fall-in had 372 opts as is shown from the video prior to the start of the war. A click on DS's fall-in showed they had at least 110 members, although someone is noted to have said "Omg ds have 600 opts", so it is likely that there were more.

The deathmarch of X started at Juliet's house in Varrock, and followed the course of through the Barbarian Village to the Monastery (To recharge prayer and gain the +1 bonus), then into the wild, and ending at the Demonic Ruins. With an estimated 500+ people involved, it is the single largest deathmarch in RuneScape history.

The battle itself started at the typical war location - the large, open area of flat land west of the Demonic Ruins and south of the Members' Gate. His Lordship was one of the first piles, and was KOed instantly, with time only to say "Go". Despite DS being drastically outnumbered, X lost the war, as the vast majority of the clan fell victim to KOs from DS's unchallenged organization and skill.

The video was filmed by Jrm_04 of X, and uploaded to YouTube on February 3rd, 2007. Despite it containing legendary and historical footage from one of the greatest wars in RuneScape, it has gained only around 400 views.

The Great War

One of the most important wars in WG's history, and only one of two which have been given a special title. After events which happened in 2008/2009, WG had begun to lose the strength and effort to progress forwards. On January 23rd, His Lordship addressed the issues and WG's plans for the future in a video known as the Great Announcement. The video, which included an address from Council/Warlord Stokenut, also outlined an upcoming war against Dragonwood on the 31st.

With only a week's preparation given, it was intense. His Lordship followed up the announcement with three war-prep videos and a Flash banner, although he himself could not attend (Due to the real-life meeting #3 taking place). Only hours before the war, Dragonwood pulled out, so WG declared on The British Crusaders for the same day and time.

WG massed 47 members at Juliet's house in Varrock (An amazing turnout for only a 1-week prep - something WG could not have achieved 6 months previously), each with over 2,000,000 coins worth of gear. Several WG members even changed their RuneScape names for the war (To variations of "WE GOT TEA", a WG reference joke). Despite the incredible amount of work and effort put in by everyone, TBC outpulled with 54 and won the war. However, a large amount of respect from the clan community was paid to both clans, and the war is considered by WG as a morale victory.

WG vs Poison

🧐 This page requires input from an expert on WG's history.