In Old School RuneScape (OSRS), the Fire Cape and Infernal Cape are widely considered the overall best capes, particularly for their exceptional combat statistics and prestige. However, the "best" cape often depends on the specific activity or skill a player is focusing on.
The Best Overall Combat Capes
For players seeking the pinnacle of combat performance, especially in melee, the Fire Cape and its upgraded version, the Infernal Cape, stand out.
- Fire Cape: Obtained by completing the Tzhaar Fight Caves, this cape offers significant offensive and defensive bonuses, making it a crucial piece of gear for all combat styles in many situations. It provides best-in-slot melee attack and strength bonuses for the cape slot for many players.
- Infernal Cape: The ultimate upgrade to the Fire Cape, earned by successfully completing the even more challenging Inferno. It boasts even higher combat stats than the Fire Cape, making it the absolute best-in-slot melee cape and a highly sought-after item that signifies immense player skill.
Other Top-Tier Capes for Specific Uses
While the Fire and Infernal Capes dominate the combat scene, several other capes are invaluable for their unique utility, skill-specific benefits, or niche combat applications.
Utility and Quest Capes
- Ardougne Cloak (Ardy Cloak): Available in various tiers (1-4) by completing the Ardougne Achievement Diaries. The Ardougne Cloak 4 provides unlimited teleports to the Ardougne Monastery, a convenient prayer training spot, and a 10% chance to rogue's chest loot in the Wilderness, making it excellent for various activities.
Skill Capes
Upon reaching level 99 in a skill, players can purchase its corresponding Skill Cape. These capes often provide unique perks that benefit the associated skill, making them highly desirable for dedicated skilling.
- Cooking Cape: Offers an unlimited teleport to the Cooks' Guild and an incredibly useful perk of never burning food while cooking, making food preparation efficient and cost-effective.
- Hitpoints Cape: While primarily a cosmetic item signifying dedication to combat, it offers a slight passive health regeneration bonus, which can be marginally useful in certain prolonged scenarios.
- Ranged Cape: Provides a handy perk of retrieving 100% of your arrows, bolts, or darts, making ranged training and combat more economical.
- Runecrafting Cape: Grants unlimited essence pouch repair, saving time and money when crafting runes.
Imbued Capes
- Imbued God Capes: These capes are obtained from the Mage Arena II mini-game after initially acquiring God Capes from Mage Arena I. They offer significant magic attack and defence bonuses, making them the best-in-slot magic capes for offensive spellcasting.
Niche Combat Capes
- Obsidian Cape: While not as universally powerful as the Fire or Infernal Cape, the Obsidian Cape is noteworthy for its unique synergy. When worn with a full set of Obsidian armour (Tzhaar-ket-om, Tzhaar-ket-ak, Tzhaar-ket-em), it provides a damage boost, making it a viable option for specific training methods, such as training with a a Tzhaar-ket-om (Obsidian Maul).
Summary of Top Capes
| Cape Name | Primary Use / Benefit | Category |
|---|---|---|
| Infernal Cape | Best-in-slot melee combat; ultimate prestige | Combat (Melee) |
| Fire Cape | Excellent combat stats; prestigious achievement | Combat (Melee/Hybrid) |
| Ardougne Cloak 4 | Unlimited teleports; thieving utility | Utility |
| Imbued God Capes | Best-in-slot magic offence/defence | Combat (Magic) |
| Obsidian Cape | Niche melee strength bonus with Obsidian armour | Combat (Melee) |
| Cooking Cape | Never burn food; Cooks' Guild teleport | Skilling |
| Hitpoints Cape | Minor passive health regeneration | Skilling/Cosmetic |
| Ranged Cape | 100% ammunition retrieval | Skilling/Combat |
| Runecrafting Cape | Unlimited essence pouch repair | Skilling |
Ultimately, while the Fire Cape and Infernal Cape reign supreme for overall combat effectiveness, the "best" cape for an individual player depends on their current goals, whether it's maximizing combat performance, efficient skilling, or utility.
