Having travelled to the ogre town of Oo'glog, Balnea could not have expected such an irresistible business opportunity. The town may be full of annoying bugs and surly ogresses, but it's also home to some rather miraculous pools!

These pools seem to have all manner of benefits to health and performance; with this in mind, Balnea has become determined to change the primitive encampment into a luxurious health spa! Unfortunately, managing a team of ogres has proven more of a challenge than Balnea bargained for and she could use your help to get the spa up and running.

It certainly won't be easy: bugs circle the spa pools, the hotel owner seems to think that slabs of beef make good pillows and the local chef couldn't rustle up the simplest of recipes. Resolve these issues, however, and you'll have access to the full range of Oo'glog's offerings, including shops, spa pools, ogre wigs, mud packs and the ability to trap three new Hunter creatures. Keen woodcutters will also find a new tree - the eucalyptus.

Summary

In other news...

We've fixed an issue that sometimes caused players to appear to disappear in Clan Wars. This was only happening in some areas and has been changed so players won't vanish anymore!

The one-dose Zamorak potion wasn't behaving in the same manner as the other versions. This has been corrected so that all doses give you the same benefits.

Rings of life will no longer teleport you out of Clan Wars when you're low on Hitpoints. This is a safe minigame, so there was no need for it to teleport you to safety.

The pine forests of Isafdar provide a fresh hunting ground for intrepid box-trappers. Two recently-discovered beasts have survived by avoiding the traps, pits and dire wolves of Isafdar, so will prove pretty elusive, even for experienced and knowledgeable hunters.

Pawyas are timid creatures that scour the forest in search of fruit to eat, hiding underground at the slightest noise. It is rumoured that they are particularly fond of papaya - something of a rare commodity in their native environment.

Grenwalls, on the other hand, are carnivores with limitless appetites and a prickly attitude. They will compete with you by hunting and devouring any pawya unfortunate enough to cross their path. In order to outwit these tricky critters, experienced hunters will need to hone their skills by using a suitable bait to trap them...

Those who do succeed in trapping a grenwall will have access to a hefty slice of XP, as well as the spines that cover the creature's body. Their tough, rigid nature makes them ideal for use as arrow shafts. In particular, the proprietors of the Yanille and Nardah Hunter stores are extremely keen to get their mitts on these items, so there may be some profit in it for you.

Summary

In other news...

We've added a new fruit tree patch in Lletya. This is particularly useful for those who wish to grow papaya as pawya bait.

Strange obelisks have been spotted underground and in the farthest reaches of RuneScape. What could they be for? Who put them there? And what do they have to do with our new members-only skill, Summoning?

One obelisk in particular has been causing trouble for Taverley's most well-known summoner, Pikkupstix, as a giant wolpertinger has used it to break free from the spirit plane. This pesky rabbit, wolf, reindeer...thing is now munching on Pikkupstix's bedclothes, and the druid needs your help to do a spot of banishing...

So begins this week's Wolf Whistle quest, which you will need to complete if you wish to start training the Summoning skill, in much the same way as Druidic Ritual opens up the Herblore skill.

To get more information on how to start Summoning, visit the Summoning - The Basics page in our Knowledge Base.

Once you have completed the Wolf Whistle quest, you can begin raising your stats on your way to the Summoning skillcape! Some of the familiars you summon can help in combat, healing you or attacking with claws, paws, missiles or magic. This is reflected in an increase to the maximum Combat level, taking it to 138. This increased Combat level is not visible on free worlds.

Other familiars aid you outside of combat, including the ability to store items for you - like the pack yak, which acts as a temporary bank for 10 of your items. Some have slightly...stranger effects. Might 'Fish Rain' interest you?

New creatures - barker toad and bunyip - share room with those that are more 'familiar', like the smoke devil (the relative of the dust devil) and the spirit dagannoth. Those with a high enough Summoning level will even be able to talk to them - but beware, they aren't used to talking to humans...

You will recognise many familiars from previous newsposts, wallpapers, Development Diaries and Postbags from the Hedge, while others will be a complete surprise! There is such a wealth of familiars - 53 in fact - that it'll take months for even the most persistent to master their abilities, special moves and Summoning requirements.

In addition, high-level Summoners will unlock an array of 22 new pets. New dogs are at the lowest level, while the hardest pet to tame is...drum-roll...a dragon!

Phew! There is barely a moment to remind you of the extra batch of Summoning familiars and pets coming next month. If you think some of the creatures in this update are big, wait till you see what February brings...

Summary

What better way to practise your Summoning than exploring a new members-only multicombat dungeon! Earthquakes have split the earth north of Edgeville, revealing the fearsome Chaos Tunnels. Here, a wide variety of creatures guard chaos portals that behave a little erratically...

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Contact! sent you on your adventurous way to face the followers of Scabaras, making grim discoveries of death and intrigue beneath the desert. In Dealing with Scabaras there has been a reaction to these events, dragging you kicking and screaming into a tale of revenge and redemption.

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From this moment on, no unbalanced trades may be made. We would recommend that you 'read more' to find out how this affects you. Also, following your feedback, we have raised the proposed 3,000gp margin for duelling and trading, depending on the number of Quest Points you have!

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This month is a mix of the expected and the unexpected. No doubt you have been expecting to summon spirit wolves and wolpertingers in our brand new Summoning skill, but were you expecting to get hit in the face with an ogre mudpack? You have probably been expecting and planning for unbalanced trade removal, but were you expecting three quests in one month, for the first time ever? Not even Gypsy Aris could have foreseen that...

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