For a first team Bandos trip, assign one player to tank General Graardor and have the attackers wait until he has that player’s attention. The tank uses Protect from Melee; players who are not his target normally use Protect from Missiles. Everyone still needs food because Graardor’s shockwave and his three bodyguards create damage that one overhead cannot completely block.
This OSRS General Graardor guide focuses on first kills with a small team and explains how solo progression differs. It covers the route, realistic equipment choices, a repeatable kill sequence and the recovery plan. A precise Bowfa door–altar circuit is a separate method to learn with its own tile layout and timing.
Access and a realistic starting point
You need 70 Strength to enter Bandos’ Stronghold, and it cannot be boosted. Bring a hammer, or a compatible weapon such as a dragon warhammer or Elder maul, to strike the entrance gong. For the dungeon itself, use the quest route through Dad in Troll Stronghold or an unlocked Ghommal’s hilt teleport. A rope is needed at the dungeon entrance on your first visit.
Have at least 43 Prayer for all three protection prayers. For a learner team, around 80 or higher in the relevant combat skills is a practical preparation target rather than an entry requirement. A tank benefits strongly from higher Defence, Hitpoints and Magic; the Magic level also helps reduce incoming Magic accuracy. Lower levels and weaker equipment reduce the room available for mistakes.
Normal Ironmen should plan a solo kill rather than use a main-account tank: outside damage or tanking can invalidate their loot. Group Ironmen can coordinate with their own group under the mode’s rules. A main-account duo strategy is not automatically an Ironman progression method.
Reach the door without wasting your supplies
Equip Bandos and Zamorak protection for the stronghold, plus protection needed for the central route. An ancient mace or war blessing can provide Bandos affiliation; an unholy blessing or a suitable Zamorak item can provide Zamorak affiliation. You have only one ammunition slot, so two blessings cannot be worn together. Plan the complete equipped combination.
Bandos’ Stronghold is north-west of the main dungeon. Gather the normal 40 Bandos essence from followers such as goblins, or use your reduced Combat Achievement threshold: 35 at Hard, 30 at Elite, 25 at Master or 15 at Grandmaster. An ecumenical key is an alternative entry resource. Strike the gong with your hammer and continue to the boss door.
Use Peek before entering. Confirm that everyone has enough essence, food, Prayer and a working teleport. The tank enters first with Protect from Melee active; attackers follow on the agreed cue and avoid taking the first attack. Do not split the team across different worlds or room types.
Gear by role: tank versus attacker
Role | Useful starting choices | What matters |
|---|---|---|
Melee tank | Barrows tank armour, a suitable shield, fury or blood fury; fang, tentacle or whip according to budget | Ranged Defence, sustainable health and reliable melee protection |
Melee attacker | Accurate melee weapon, defender, strength equipment and a sensible defensive baseline | Damage after the tank has aggro; enough food for minions |
Ranged attacker | Bowfa with crystal armour or another suitable Ranged setup | Follow the team plan and avoid accidentally becoming the melee target |
These are examples, not complete ranked best-in-slot sets. Check requirements, charges and the final equipment screen before leaving. Full justiciar and a Dinh’s bulwark can support a dedicated tank role, but expensive tank gear is not a requirement for joining every learner team. Tell teammates your setup so they can judge whether the group has enough damage and sustain.
A tank who uses melee protection still takes the Ranged slam and minion damage. High Ranged Defence therefore has a purpose. Magic defence also matters, especially with fewer attackers sharing the bodyguards’ attention. Do not replace every defensive slot with strength bonuses simply because the overhead blocks Graardor’s punch.
A practical first-trip inventory
For a short melee learner trip, start with a super combat potion, several Prayer-restoration potions, the hammer, a one-click teleport and high-healing food. As an adjustable example, one four-dose super combat, five four-dose super restores, a hammer and teleport leave twenty food slots before optional items. Deduct space for travel items, Bones to Peaches or a healing switch. This is a starting layout, not a promise of a particular number of kills.
Only add Saradomin brews if you understand their combat-stat drain and restoration sequence. After brewing, restore drained stats and reapply combat boosts as needed. Taking several potions without knowing their order can reduce damage enough to make the trip harder. Keep food and teleport in fixed, easy-to-reach slots.
Recognise the attacks and bodyguards
Enemy or cue | Threat | Learner response |
|---|---|---|
Graardor’s punch | Melee hit up to 60 on his target | The tank keeps Protect from Melee active |
Graardor slams the floor | Ranged shockwave; successful hits deal 15–35 to players in the room | Attackers normally protect Ranged; the tank maintains health for unblocked damage |
Sergeant Steelwill | Magic bodyguard | Prioritise after Graardor; protect Magic if the minions focus you |
Sergeant Grimspike | Ranged bodyguard | Kill after Steelwill; protect Ranged as appropriate |
Sergeant Strongstack | Melee bodyguard | Usually leave until last and coordinate any healing plan |
Bodyguards can target attackers during the fight; being off-tank does not mean you receive no damage. After Graardor dies, they tend to focus one player, often whoever landed the final blow. Watch your own incoming attacks rather than assuming the designated tank is still taking everything.
Repeat this kill sequence
Set the entry: tank first, Protect from Melee on, attackers wait for confirmation before attacking.
Deal damage: attackers use their offensive prayer and normally Protect from Missiles. The tank watches health and Prayer while keeping Graardor’s attention.
Handle danger early: eat before health becomes critical. Graardor and a minion can combine damage, so surviving one isolated hit is not a reliable health target.
Clear the sergeants: after the boss dies, the focused player protects Magic while Steelwill is alive, then Ranged against Grimspike. Finish Strongstack last unless the team agrees otherwise.
Reset together: loot, heal, restore Prayer and choose the tank’s position before the next spawn. Graardor’s normal respawn is 90 seconds.
If an attacker gets targeted, that player should immediately protect Melee and tell the team. Do not keep the attacker overhead simply because that was the assigned role at the start. Avoid attempting a confused target swap while low on health; leave if the team cannot stabilise.
Extend trips after the basic loop works
Bones to Peaches can turn the four suitable bone drops from a complete boss-and-minion cycle into peaches worth 32 Hitpoints in total. Loot and convert the bones, then eat between encounters. Guthan’s can heal on remaining minions when the team leaves one available; agree this before attackers kill the intended healing target.
Blood spells are another option with Ancient Magicks, runes and suitable Magic equipment. Do not bring a large healing switch on a first trip if you cannot use it confidently. The room altar has a ten-minute Prayer-restoration cooldown and requires you to be out of combat, so maintain a potion reserve.
Solo players: choose the method you can execute
Standing in melee with Protect from Melee is mechanically simple but often produces very short solo trips. Graardor’s Ranged attack and the bodyguards still drain food. A single kill for an unlock can be a reasonable target, while sustained farming usually rewards learning a movement method.
The Bowfa door–altar method uses a four-tick weapon, exact tiles and red-click movement on the altar and door to prevent Graardor attacking when performed correctly. RuneLite’s Tile Indicators current-tile display helps show where your character actually is. Markers support the route; they do not perform its timing or correct a missed click. Learn the first-kill entry and recovery sequence before treating it as a farming setup.
If you lose the cycle and Graardor reaches you, switch to Protect from Melee and prioritise survival. A team melee instruction cannot substitute for the ranged circuit’s timing. Ironmen should choose a method around available weapons, crystal charges, blood-spell supplies and their tolerance for practice losses.
Rewards, death and when to leave
Graardor can drop the Bandos chestplate, tassets, boots, hilt and godsword shards. His listed specific armour-piece rate is 1/381 and the hilt is 1/508; those are per-kill probabilities, not a guaranteed completion schedule. In a normal team, decide splits, free-for-all rules and who records valuable drops before starting.
This is a dangerous boss. For normal gravestone deaths, your grave is placed outside the boss room; bring faction protection for the recovery route. Loose items in an abandoned private instance can be lost. Ultimate Ironmen need a separate recovery plan, and Hardcore accounts risk their status here.
Leave when the tank cannot comfortably survive another kill, Prayer restoration is nearly exhausted or the escape plan is becoming unreliable. Use your one-click teleport for the cleanest exit; the room altar also has a right-click Teleport option into the wing. Record whether damage, minion handling or supplies ended the trip, then improve that specific bottleneck before buying another expensive item.
For alternatives and the account unlocks behind them, return to the OSRS PvM progression guide. A successful first Bandos trip is one you can explain and repeat, including what to do when the planned tank or prayer sequence goes wrong.
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