OSRS Prayer Guide 1–99: Gilded Altar, Chaos Altar, Ensouled Heads and Bone Costs

Overview

Prayer is a buy-it-with-bones skill, and almost every decision in it is about how much you are willing to pay per XP. The methods differ by speed, cost and risk rather than by mechanics.

The important thing is that Prayer is a milestone skill, not a cape skill. Protection prayers, Piety, Rigour and Augury each sit at a specific level, and most accounts get more value from reaching one of those than from finishing 99.

This guide covers the gilded altar, the Wilderness Chaos Altar, ensouled heads, the Ectofuntus, and which levels are worth targeting before you commit to the whole grind.

Quest and Diary Unlocks That Change the Route

Prayer's unlocks are less about access and more about which prayers you get and how cheaply you can offer bones.

Recommended Equipment and Boosts

Prayer has no combat gear requirement — the equipment that matters either increases XP per bone or reduces how many bones you need.

Level-by-Level Training Table

Prayer levels come from bones, so the route is really a choice of altar and bone tier. Pick the milestone you need first, then decide how you are paying for it.

Fastest Route

The fastest route is a gilded altar in your own house with both burners lit and the highest bone tier you can afford, run in tight banking loops.

1. Reach 75 Construction and build a gilded altar, or use a friend's house with both burners lit.
2. Buy Zealot's robes for the bonus XP chance before you start buying bones in bulk.
3. Light both burners every trip; running unlit burners throws away a large part of the XP.
4. Buy bones in bulk at the highest tier your budget supports.
5. Set up a house teleport and bank loop so each trip is a fixed click pattern.
6. Do the Prayer quest rewards first — Holy Grail and The Great Brain Robbery are free levels.
7. Stop at your milestone. Most accounts need 77 for Augury, not 99.

Cheapest and Most Affordable Route

• The Ectofuntus is the cheapest XP per bone in the game. It is also the slowest by a wide margin, so it suits patient Ironmen more than mains.
• The Chaos Altar in the Wilderness has a chance not to consume the bone, which roughly halves your bone bill — at the cost of PK risk.
• Ensouled heads are cheap and are often a byproduct of Slayer, so they cost time rather than GP.
• The bonecrusher necklace makes Prayer effectively free while you train Slayer.
• Do every Prayer quest reward before buying a single bone.
• Use big bones and regular dragon bones rather than premium tiers if cost is the priority.

AFK and Low-Intensity Route

• Prayer has no AFK method — offering bones is a click per bone regardless of which altar you use.
• The bonecrusher necklace is the closest thing: Prayer XP accumulates passively while you do Slayer.
• Ensouled head reanimation is a slower loop with more time between decisions than altar offering.
• The Ectofuntus is repetitive rather than AFK; the pace is slow but the clicks never stop.

Ironman Route

• Ensouled heads from Slayer tasks are the primary Ironman route. They arrive as a byproduct of content you are doing anyway.
• Get the bonecrusher necklace from the Hallowed Sepulchre; passive Prayer XP is worth more to an Ironman than to a main.
• Farm dragon bones from green dragons early and from Vorkath later.
• Build a gilded altar at 75 Construction; the multiplier matters far more when bones are finite.
• The Ectofuntus is genuinely viable for an Ironman — you have no bone market, so XP per bone beats XP per hour.
• Do not chase 99. Reach the milestone your build needs and spend the bones on something else.

Common Mistakes

• Offering bones at a gilded altar with the burners unlit, which wastes a large share of the XP.
• Skipping Zealot's robes before buying bones in bulk.
• Taking valuable bones to the Chaos Altar without accepting that PKers are part of the method.
• Chasing 99 when the account only needed 77 for Augury.
• Buying premium bone tiers at low Prayer levels where cheap bones would do.
• Training Prayer separately instead of wearing the bonecrusher necklace during Slayer.
• Skipping the Prayer quest rewards and buying those levels instead.
• Building a gilded altar without a fast bank-to-house loop, which doubles the real time cost.

Useful Plugins

• Chaos Altar / Wilderness warnings — surfaces PK risk before you commit a load of bones.
• Bank Tags — one-click bone withdrawals so altar trips stay tight.
• Inventory Tags — keeps bones and marrentill in fixed slots.
• Menu Entry Swapper — makes bone-on-altar a single action.
• XP Tracker — compares altar tiers and bone tiers against your actual spend.
• Prayer — tracks prayer drain and remaining points during PvM.

FAQ

What is the fastest way to train Prayer?

A gilded altar with both burners lit, using the highest bone tier you can afford. Zealot's robes add a bonus XP chance on top.

Is the Chaos Altar worth the risk?

It has a chance not to consume your bone, which roughly halves your bone bill. That is a real saving, but it is in the Wilderness — bring what you can afford to lose.

What Prayer level should I aim for?

43 for Protect from Melee, 70 for Piety, 74 for Rigour, 77 for Augury. Most accounts get more value from stopping at 77 than from reaching 99.

How do I train Prayer as an Ironman?

Ensouled heads from Slayer tasks, dragon bones from green dragons and Vorkath, and the bonecrusher necklace for passive XP. The Ectofuntus is viable because XP per bone matters more than XP per hour.

Do I need 75 Construction for Prayer?

Not strictly, but the gilded altar is the standard fast method and the multiplier matters. You can use a friend's house instead.

How much does 99 Prayer cost?

It depends entirely on current bone prices and which altar you use. Price your chosen bone tier live rather than trusting a fixed total.

Related Guides

• Slayer 1–99 — the bonecrusher pairing that makes Prayer nearly free.
• Construction 1–99 — the gilded altar at 75.
• Chambers of Xeric — where the Rigour and Augury scrolls come from.
• Agility 1–99 — the Hallowed Sepulchre bonecrusher upgrade.

Bottom Line

Prayer is a milestone skill. Decide whether you need 43, 70, 74 or 77 before you decide how to pay for it.

Gilded altar with both burners lit is the fast answer, the Chaos Altar is the cheap-but-risky one, and ensouled heads plus a bonecrusher are the Ironman answer.

If you just want Augury and Rigour without the bone bill, our Prayer training is hand-done.