OSRS Infernal Cape Guide: Waves, Zuk and Setup

The OSRS Infernal Cape is the reward for clearing the Inferno: 69 waves of TzHaar monsters under Mor Ul Rek that end with TzKal-Zuk, a level 1,400 boss you can only hit with ranged or magic. You pay one fire cape to get in, keep your items if you die, and restart from wave 1 every time you fail. This guide covers entry, stats, gear, the prayer for every monster, the Jad waves and a phase-by-phase plan for Zuk.

How the Inferno works

The Inferno sits inside Mor Ul Rek, the TzHaar city under Karamja. To unlock it, give a fire cape to TzHaar-Ket-Keh. That is a one-time fee: once paid, the entrance stays open for every future attempt. Jagex released it on 1 June 2017 as the successor to the Fight Caves.

It is a solo minigame with strict rules. You cannot restock between waves, you cannot use purple sweets, and teleporting out was removed shortly after launch. If you die, you keep your items, but the run resets to wave 1. That makes the Inferno a test of supplies and focus over a long session rather than one hard fight.

• Pausing: logging out between waves pauses the run. Since March 2018 you can no longer log out right at the start of a wave, so plan breaks at the end of a wave.
• Pillars: three pillars (255 HP each) stand on the map from wave 1. They block line of sight and give you safespots, and Jal-Nibs try to knock them down. Any pillars still standing collapse at the start of wave 67 and can hit you if you stand next to them.
• Slayer: after your first Zuk kill, the Inferno can be assigned as a TzHaar Slayer task. The task is cancelled if you die.

Stats and unlocks you should have

You can technically enter with any stats, but the wiki's suggested levels are a sensible floor for a first cape. Below them, every wave takes longer and drains more of the brews and restores you cannot replace.

If your Magic is below 94, you can still clear Nibblers with other area spells, but Ice Barrage is the comfortable option. If you are missing Rigour, unlock it before you spend anything on gear: it is the cheapest large upgrade for this fight.

Gear and inventory

The wiki calls the Twisted bow the single most influential item for the Inferno, but plenty of players get their first cape without one. What matters is a strong ranged weapon for big targets, a toxic blowpipe for fast kills, and a staff or sceptre for Ice Barrage.

For armour, Masori (f) with Virtus robes or crystal armour with Ancestral are the top picks, and the wiki notes that crystal armour beats Armadyl or dragonhide. Dizana's quiver from the Fortis Colosseum, Ava's assembler or a max or ranging cape go in the cape slot. On a budget, prioritise the toxic blowpipe and a good bow over armour upgrades.

Your inventory should be mostly Saradomin brews and super restores, plus a ranging or bastion potion and a stamina potion. Bats drain your run energy, and a long run with no restocks punishes a light inventory far more than a slightly slower kill speed. Start each attempt with the same layout so your hands know where every item is.

Every Inferno monster and the prayer to use

Almost every death in the Inferno comes from praying against the wrong attack. Learn this table before you worry about gear. The key rule is simple: when several monsters can hit you at once, use the pillars to break line of sight so only one style reaches you.

The Blob is the classic trap. About 3 ticks before it attacks, it reads your protection prayer and picks a style to beat it. Because its projectile has a delay, you can switch to the right prayer after it commits. If you stand in its melee range without Protect from Melee, it can also hit you with melee.

Waves 1–66: how to get through them

The first 66 waves add monster types in blocks: Nibblers, Bats, Blobs and Melee first, Rangers from wave 18, Magers from wave 35, then mixed Mager and Ranger waves from 50 to 66. The approach stays the same across all of them.

1. 1
   Protect the pillars. Barrage Nibblers as soon as they reach a pillar. Losing pillars early removes the safespots you need for waves 50–66.
2. 2
   Kill in priority order. Magers first (they revive the dead), then Rangers, then Blobs. Bats and Melee wait until it is safe.
3. 3
   Use line of sight. Stand where a pillar blocks most of the wave, so only one or two monsters can attack you at once and you only need one prayer.
4. 4
   Handle the Melee early. Trap it behind a pillar, but remember it burrows to you if it cannot attack for about 30 seconds.
5. 5
   Watch your supplies at wave 50. If you reach the mixed waves with less than half your brews and restores, think about how efficient your setups are before your next attempt.

Practise prayer flicking on easier waves. Every point of prayer you save early is a restore you still have for Zuk.

Waves 67 and 68: the Jads

Wave 67 is a single JalTok-Jad, and wave 68 is three Jads at once. Each Jad uses magic, ranged and melee, and at half health it summons healers: five in wave 67 and three per Jad in wave 68. With no pillars left, you rely entirely on reading the attack animation and switching prayers.

In wave 68, a common plan is to tag the Jads in turn so their attacks fall on different ticks instead of all landing together. Work on one Jad at a time and leave the healers until the Jad you are focusing is low. If two attacks land on the same tick, pray against the more dangerous one and eat through the other.

Wave 69: how to kill TzKal-Zuk

Zuk has 1,200 HP and attacks every 6 seconds with magic or ranged. His hits reach up to 169 with ranged and 128 with magic, and they cannot be tick-eaten, so being outside cover is how runs end. Melee cannot reach him. A moving shield, the Ancestral Glyph, floats between you and Zuk; it can take 600 damage before it breaks.

1. 1
   Start of the fight: stand behind the shield and move with it. Attack Zuk with your strongest ranged weapon.
2. 2
   Every 3:30: a Jal-Xil (ranger) and a Jal-Zek (mager) spawn behind you and attack the shield. Kill them quickly. Once you attack them they switch to you, so pray accordingly. If you ignore them, the shield breaks.
3. 3
   At 480 HP: a JalTok-Jad spawns and attacks the shield. This adds a one-time 1:45 to the spawn timer. Kill it with correct prayers while keeping the shield between you and Zuk.
4. 4
   At 240 HP: Zuk enrages and attacks 3 ticks faster, and four Jal-MejJak healers appear on the lava. Hit them, ideally with Ice Barrage, to stop the healing; they also splash 5–10 damage around you.
5. 5
   Finish: burn Zuk down. All remaining minions die when he does.

Many players plan their damage around the 3:30 timer, trying to push Zuk below 480 HP at a point where the next set and the Jad do not overlap. That control is what separates a calm kill from a panicked one.

Infernal Cape rewards and stats

A Zuk kill guarantees the Infernal Cape and pays 16,440 Tokkul, doubled with the Karamja Elite Diary. Each kill also rolls the Jal-Nib-Rek pet at 1/100, or 1/75 on a TzHaar Slayer task. Spare capes can be handed to TzHaar-Ket-Keh for a second 1/100 roll each, about 1/50 overall.

Combine the Infernal Cape with a max cape to make the infernal max cape. The Inferno also has 12 Combat Achievement tasks worth 69 points, which matters if you are working toward Master or Grandmaster tiers.

OSRS PvM and progression services

View OSRS Capes & Quiver

OSRS Capes & Quiver

• Fire & Infernal Capes
• Dizana’s Quiver
• Piloted Completion

FROM$11.69

View service

View OSRS Bossing & Gauntlet

OSRS Bossing & Gauntlet

• Named Bosses
• Normal & Corrupted
• Piloted Completion

FROM$0.89

View service

View OSRS Combat Achievements

OSRS Combat Achievements

• Named Combat Tasks
• Regular & Ironman
• Piloted Completion

FROM$7.19

View service

View OSRS Skill Leveling

OSRS Skill Leveling

• 23 Skills
• Up to Level 99
• Piloted Leveling

FROM$7.10

View service

Related guides: plan the stats and unlocks you need before your first attempt with our OSRS progression guide, or browse every Old School RuneScape guide. For services, see OSRS Capes & Quiver for Fire Cape, Infernal Cape and Dizana's quiver, and OSRS Bossing & Gauntlet for other PvM goals.