OSRS Zalcano Guide: The Skilling Boss of Prifddinas

Zalcano is a unique boss in Old School RuneScape that challenges your skilling prowess rather than your combat stats. Located in the elven city of Prifddinas, this encounter is a fantastic way to train your non-combat skills while earning consistent and substantial profit.

This guide will walk you through the four phases of the fight, the mechanics, and the valuable rewards that await you.

Getting Started: Requirements

  • Quest: You must have completed the grandmaster quest Song of the Elves to enter Prifddinas.
  • Recommended Skills: 70+ Mining, Smithing, and Runecrafting.
  • Gear: Bring your best Pickaxe. You do not need combat gear, but weight-reducing clothing like the Graceful set is very helpful.

The Fight: A Skilling Cycle

The fight against Zalcano is a four-step process that repeats until she is defeated.

Step 1: Mine the Tephra (Mining)

Zalcano will be active in the center of the room. Around her are four glowing rock formations. Your first job is to mine these rocks to get tephra. You will need this tephra to damage her.

Step 2: Refine the Tephra (Smithing)

Take your raw tephra to the furnace on the edge of the room. Use it on the furnace to create refined tephra. This is your ammunition.

Step 3: Imbue the Tephra (Runecrafting)

With your refined tephra, run to one of the active runic altars around the room. Use your tephra on the altar to create imbued tephra. This is your final, powered-up ammunition.

Step 4: Throw the Tephra

Throw the imbued tephra at Zalcano. Each successful hit will deal a large amount of damage to her stone shield. Once her shield is broken, she will fall to the ground, stunned.

The Damage Phase

When Zalcano is stunned, this is your chance to deal real damage.

  • Switch to your Pickaxe: Run up to the downed Zalcano and start mining her. Each successful swing of your pickaxe will deal a large amount of damage to her health pool.
  • Rinse and Repeat: After a short time, she will rise again, and the four-step cycle begins anew.

Key Mechanics to Avoid

While you can't be killed by direct damage, Zalcano has several attacks that will hurt you and disrupt your skilling.

  • Rockfall: Golems will appear and throw boulders, which you must dodge.
  • Red Circles: Red circles will appear on the ground. Step out of them to avoid taking damage.
  • Blue Circles: Blue circles will appear, which you must stand in to avoid damage from her shockwave attack.
  • Destruction of Altars/Furnace: Zalcano will occasionally destroy the furnace or altars, forcing the team to move to the other side of the room.

The Rewards: A Skiller's Dream

Zalcano's drop table is packed with valuable skilling resources.

  • Consistent Loot: Every kill rewards you with a large quantity of high-level ores, bars, runes, and herbs, making her one of the most consistent money-makers in the game.
  • Crystal Tool Seed (1/200): The most valuable unique. Used to create the Crystal Pickaxe and Crystal Axe.
  • Zalcano Shard (1/200): Can be attached to a Dragon Pickaxe to create a cosmetic variant.
  • Smolcano (1/2,250): The Zalcano pet.

Conclusion

Zalcano is a brilliantly designed piece of content that offers a refreshing and profitable alternative to traditional combat bossing. It's a great way to train multiple skills at once and is one of the best money-making methods for players who prefer skilling over combat.

Want to reap the skilling rewards of Prifddinas without the long quest grind?

→ Get your Song of the Elves Quest Done
→ Let us handle the skilling grind for you with our OSRS Skilling Services