OSRS Steel Dragons Guide: Slayer Task, Loots & Locations

Steel Dragons are a powerful type of metal dragon, a step up from their Iron cousins. They are a high-level Slayer monster known for their incredible defensive capabilities and the punishing damage they can inflict on unprepared players.

While often considered one of the least desirable tasks, this guide will cover the best strategies to make your Steel Dragon assignment as efficient as possible.

The Mandatory Requirement: Dragonfire Protection

This is the most critical rule for fighting any dragon.

  • The Attack: Their dragonfire breath can deal devastating damage.
  • The Protection: You need two layers of defence to survive.
    1. An Anti-dragon Shield (or Dragonfire Shield/Ward).
    2. An Antifire Potion.

With both of these active, you will take minimal damage from their dragonfire attacks.

Locations

  1. Brimhaven Dungeon (Recommended): This is the classic and most popular location for a Steel Dragon task. There are several spawns in the deeper parts of the dungeon.
  2. Catacombs of Kourend: A great alternative. The dragons here are aggressive and can drop Ancient Shards and Dark Totem pieces, adding extra value to the task.

The Fight Strategy

Steel Dragons use both Melee and Dragonfire attacks.

  • The Prayer: The best strategy is to use Protect from Melee. This will block their standard physical attacks.
  • The Weakness: Steel Dragons have extremely high Defence against most attack styles. Their main weakness is Magic. However, due to the high cost of runes, most players opt for Melee.
  • Melee Strategy: If using Melee, you must use a weapon with a high Stab bonus to have any chance of hitting accurately. A Zamorakian hasta or a Dragon Hunter Lance are the best options.
  • Stat Reduction: Using a Dragon Warhammer or Bandos Godsword special attack at the start of each kill is highly recommended to lower their massive Defence stat.

Notable Drops

Steel Dragons have a solid loot table, but the slow kill speed can impact overall profit.

  • Dragon bones & Steel bars: A 100% guaranteed drop.
  • Draconic Visage (1/10,000): An extremely rare drop used to create the Dragonfire Shield.
  • Dragon platelegs & plateskirt: A rare but valuable drop.
  • Runes: A good source of blood and soul runes.

Conclusion: To Slay or to Skip?

Steel Dragons are one of the most commonly blocked tasks in the game for a reason. Their sky-high Defence makes kills slow and tedious, which results in poor Slayer XP per hour. While their drop table is decent, it often doesn't compensate for the time and supplies spent per kill.

For most players focused on efficiency, skipping this task is the best choice. However, for those who enjoy a challenge or are hunting for the Draconic Visage, they offer a tough and methodical fight.

Want to get to the higher Slayer levels without dealing with slow tasks like Steel Dragons?

→ OSRS Slayer Services
→ For a much more profitable metal dragon, see our Rune Dragons Guide