Posted on April 2, 2026 in General
RuneScape: Dragonwilds Release Day Guide: Everything You Need to Know
by Jolynne M.
RuneScape: Dragonwilds has officially arrived, and if you've been waiting to explore Jagex's brand-new survival game, today is the day. Set in the dangerous land of Ashenfall, Dragonwilds takes the world and lore of RuneScape and transforms it into a full survival crafting experience.
If you're wondering what RuneScape: Dragonwilds is, how multiplayer works, what dedicated servers do, or whether it's worth playing, here's everything you should know before you begin your adventure.
What Is RuneScape: Dragonwilds?
RuneScape: Dragonwilds is an open-world survival crafting game set in the RuneScape universe. Instead of the traditional MMORPG gameplay found in RuneScape and Old School RuneScape, Dragonwilds is more similar to games like Valheim, Enshrouded, and Palworld.
Players are dropped into Ashenfall, a wild and dangerous continent filled with dragons, ruined civilizations, monsters, ancient magic, and valuable resources. Your goal is to survive, build a base, level your skills, gather better equipment, and eventually take on the Dragon Queen herself.
You can play solo or with friends, making Dragonwilds feel like a mix between classic RuneScape progression and modern survival gameplay.
The Story So Far
Dragonwilds takes place after the Dragon Queen has awakened and begun spreading chaos across Ashenfall. Entire regions have been overrun by dragons, undead, and strange magical corruption.
As you explore, you'll uncover lost ruins, complete quests, meet familiar RuneScape-inspired characters, and learn more about the ancient history of Ashenfall. The deeper you venture, the stronger the enemies become.
Right now, the story is still growing because Dragonwilds is in Early Access. Jagex plans to continue adding new quests, regions, bosses, and lore updates throughout 2026.
Core Gameplay Features
Dragonwilds combines survival mechanics with RuneScape-style progression. Some of the biggest gameplay features include:
- Gathering resources like wood, stone, ore, herbs, and food
- Building bases, workshops, and defenses
- Crafting tools, armor, weapons, and potions
- Fighting enemies using melee, ranged, and magic combat
- Exploring dungeons, ruins, and large open regions
- Leveling skills to unlock stronger gear and recipes
- Completing quests and discovering hidden secrets
Unlike many survival games, Dragonwilds places a huge emphasis on skills and progression. If you've ever spent hours woodcutting, mining, fishing, or crafting in RuneScape, you'll feel right at home.
Skills in RuneScape: Dragonwilds
One of the most exciting parts of Dragonwilds is that it brings classic RuneScape skills into a survival game.
At launch, players can level skills like:
- Woodcutting
- Mining
- Smithing
- Crafting
- Cooking
- Farming
- Runecrafting
- Combat skills
Runecrafting has become especially important, allowing players to create magical items, unlock new powers, and progress into stronger areas.
Farming was added in the Fellhollow update and lets players grow crops, gather resources, and support long-term survival.
Fishing is also coming soon and is expected to arrive in the first post-launch update.
Regions You Can Explore
Ashenfall is split into multiple large regions, each with its own enemies, resources, quests, and bosses.
Ashenfall
Ashenfall is the starting region and where most players begin. It introduces the basics of gathering, combat, crafting, and building.
Fellhollow
Fellhollow is a darker, more dangerous region added later in Early Access. It introduces:
- Undead enemies
- New quests and NPCs
- Stronger armor and weapons
- The Soul-rift mechanic
- New dragons and mini-bosses
- Farming progression
Fellhollow is meant for players who are ready for a bigger challenge after mastering the starting areas.
Dowdun Reach
Dowdun Reach launches today as part of the latest major update. This new region expands the world even further with additional quests, enemies, crafting opportunities, and progression.
Jagex has also confirmed that more regions are planned later this year, including Umbral Sands.
Multiplayer and Co-Op
RuneScape: Dragonwilds can be played solo, but it is clearly designed with co-op in mind.
At launch, you can play with up to 4 players in the same world. One player hosts the world, and everyone else joins them.
You can:
- Create private worlds for friends
- Make your world public
- Use passwords to keep your server private
- Convert a solo world into a multiplayer world at any time
The biggest downside to the current system is that the host must be online for everyone else to play. If the host logs off, the world goes offline too.
Dedicated Servers Are Here
The biggest feature arriving today is dedicated server support.
Dedicated servers let players create a world that stays online 24/7, even when nobody is playing. This means your friends can keep building, gathering, and exploring without waiting for the host to come online.
Dragonwilds dedicated servers include:
- Support for up to 6 players instead of 4
- Persistent worlds that stay online all the time
- Admin tools to kick, ban, and manage players
- Easier world browsing and filters
- The option to use mods and custom settings
- Separate secure "vanilla" servers for players who want an unmodified experience
Players can either:
- Host their own dedicated server using the free Steam server tool
- Rent a hosted server through an official provider
Jagex's official hosting partner is Shockbyte, but several other hosting companies are already supporting Dragonwilds servers as well.
For most players, renting a server is the easier option because it avoids the need to open ports or set up a cloud server manually.
Is RuneScape: Dragonwilds Worth Playing?
If you enjoy survival crafting games and love RuneScape, Dragonwilds is easy to recommend.
The game already has:
- A strong foundation
- Fun progression systems
- Familiar RuneScape-style skills
- Co-op gameplay
- Plenty of room for future updates
The biggest thing to remember is that Dragonwilds is still in Early Access. Some systems are unfinished, more regions are still coming, and balance changes happen often.
That said, today feels like the biggest step forward yet. With dedicated servers, a new region, and more content on the way, Dragonwilds is finally starting to feel like the long-term survival game RuneScape fans have been waiting for.
RuneScape: Dragonwilds 2026 Roadmap
Jagex has already shared a rough roadmap for the rest of the year. Players can expect:
- More major region updates
- New quests and activities every few months
- Fishing and additional skills
- More bosses and dragons
- Better server tools and higher player counts
- More ways to customize worlds
The current plan is for Dragonwilds to continue receiving one major update followed by smaller content updates throughout the year.
RuneScape: Dragonwilds is one of the most interesting new survival games of the year because it does not just borrow RuneScape's name. It actually feels like RuneScape in a completely different genre.
Whether you're here for skilling, building, exploring, boss fights, or playing with friends, Dragonwilds already has a lot to offer on release day.
And with dedicated servers now live, there has never been a better time to jump into Ashenfall.