Rune Guardians

"Forgive me for this rather dramatic scene, sometimes you need a bit of theatre to get people's attention." - Zamorak

This page serves as a source for information about how this subject is applicable to World 42 Roleplay. It may contain Lorebending information and such should not be considered 100% Jagex canon.

200px-Rune guardian (Rune Mysteries) — The most recent image of a rune guardian, seen in the ruins of the Old Wizards Tower.

This page serves as a source of information for Rune Guardians as applicable World 42 roleplay characters. Please feel free to edit the page and add missing information.

History[]

Rune guardians were first created early in the Fifth Age after the rediscovery of runes. They were used exclusively in the Mage Training Arena and the first Wizards' Tower to assist young wizards in their training. After the Fremennik attack on the Training Arena and the cataclysm that happened to the first Wizards' Tower, the ability to create rune guardians was lost. Rune guardians were not totally lost however.

When the Wizards' Tower was rebuilt and the Mage Training Arena restored, the wizards reanimated old rune guardians to assist them in teaching magic to the masses. Later in the Fifth Age, the Adventurer helped the young wizard, Clerval to rediscover the ability to create rune guardians.

General Description[]

Rune Guardians are constructs created out of rune essence that is carved into a humanoid shape and imbued with magic to animate it. They are often large and bulky-looking, and are usually seen carrying a staff.

Accepted Lore[]

This section contains lore about Rune Guardians that is widely accepted or understood as a result of gameplay.

Dialogue pertaining to the creation of Rune Guardians.

Rune guardians are constructs that were originally based off of the design of golems, specifically the golems of Uzer.
Steam, mind, and body magic is used in unison to animate rune guardians as shown in the Rune Mechanics Quest.
Rune guardians are the most intelligent of all the constructs due to the magic used to create them. As a result, they are capable of speaking languages very fluently compared to most golems and automatons and have a high degree of free will compared to other constructs.
Rune guardians are capable of freely casting magic.
Rune guardians maintain their energy by recharging at places that provide magical energy, like rune altars.
If properly maintained and taken care of, rune guardians can last indefinitely.
Rune guardians come in several different types based on what magical energy they are imbued with after their creation. These different forms affect what magic they commonly use, empower their abilities to cast magic in that form, and give them different appearances. These forms include all of the runic magic groups: Earth, Air, Water, Fire, Cosmic, Death, Blood, Mind, Body, Chaos, Astral, Nature, and Law. They also have a basic gray form which is more universalist, though they aren't particularly more powerful in a given form of magic rather than another.
Rune guardians are stronger than humans and capable of lifting very heavy objects with little effort.
While rune guardians are usually created in a humanoid image, they can technically be carved into any shape. This shape, however, is still required have its moving pieces separate in order for them to work, (arms, legs, head, torso, jaw, etc.) as well as a large enough body to hold the magics that animate rune guardians. A rune essence carved into the shape of a rune, for example, will not hold all the magic necessary to power the guardian.

Debated Lore[]

This section contains debated lore about Rune Guardians and is subject to change if new lore says otherwise.

Larger rune guardians may not have to recharge their inner energies as often as smaller rune guardians due to the fact that they have a greater volume of rune essence to store energy within. This would explain why the rune guardian in the First Tower still has energy within it after a hundred years.
Rune guardians are more durable than clay golems according to the wizard Edvin, though since they are made of rune essence it is possible to damage or crush

A small rune guardian being created.

them with the proper amount of force and leverage.
Rune guardians may be created with innate knowledge of magic and speech.
While rune guardians have a high degree of free will compared to other constructs, they can still be programmed to perform a specified task and are obedient to whomever their creator deems worthy of their command. Their programming can end up causing them to perform a task for an eternity, hence the Wizards' Tower guardian's constant vigil over the ruins of the first Tower.
Rune guardians are not as powerful as high-ranking wizards, such as archmages or other very powerful wizards. They have about the same power as an average master wizard, or a wizard who has the experience and skill to teach others.

Common Mistakes[]

This section addresses mistakes of new or inexperienced roleplayers with rune guardian characters.

None as of yet.

Abilities[]

Note: Some of these abilities are acquired from debated lore, and are subject to change if disproven.

Rune guardians have a great deal of knowledge regarding magic and can cast it at the same level as a wizard teaching magic could. Because of this, rune guardians can make great tutors for wizards.
Rune guardians are strong and durable in a similar way to golems, only the fact that they are made of rune essence makes them stronger than a clay golem. A rune guardian has no vital systems operating within it that could be damaged besides the energies that make them operate, meaning the only way to truly kill a rune guardian is to either reduce it to dust or to somehow magically damage their life forces (Even by just ripping the magical life force away, the rune guardian's body could still be revived into a 'new' guardian later).
Rune guardians have a high degree of intelligence. Their minds are capable of solving complex problems and even pondering philosophy.
Rune guardians can be empowered in a field of magic by imbuing them with a large amount of energy from that form of magic. They become more adept in that magical field and can cast slightly more powerful magic from it.

Weaknesses[]

Note: Some of these weaknesses are also acquired from debated lore, and are subject to change if disproven.

Rune guardians, like most constructs, are still bound by what they were programmed to do or who they were programmed to obey. A rogue rune guardian is often one that lost its creator and is still performing its task, which could cause it to end up performing that task for centuries.
An experienced wizard can reprogram a guardian, given a few hours of time, to alter a rune guardian's mind via a magical connection. This reprogramming can entail changing the guardian's programmed task or purpose, wiping the guardian's memory (The knowledge of magic and speech is not included in this), or suppress an aspect of the guardian's personality.
Rune guardians need to recharge magical energy given a certain amount of time or exhaustion of magical energy to perform a complex spell. A rune altar or a large amount of energy must be used to recharge the guardian fully. Larger rune guardians may only need to recharge once every few decades, maybe even a century, while small ones must recharge once every few weeks.

Other Info[]

Rune guardians are mostly used in magical institutions, including the Wizards' Tower.
Rune guardians have different colors based on what magical energy they are aligned to.
An example of a rune guardian's voice taken from Rune Mysteries.