Construction is a trainable skill in the MMORPG RuneScape. It is available only to those players who pay a monthly fee to play (P2P). The construction skill is used to upgrade player owned houses (POHs) or to make items to sell to other players.
History
The construction skill was introduced by Jagex on May 31, 2006. Introduction of the skill was hinted at in the Behind The Scenes for May, but many players were surprised by its release. The large number of players trying to train the skill caused many players to experience lag. Within days, Jagex installed eleven additional servers (worlds) to help alleviate the problem.
On June 6, 2006, the first player to reach level 99 construction threw a large party at his mansion. When the house owner decided to expel all his guests, some players who were fighting in a combat ring in the house exploited a bug that gave them the ability to attack other players outside the wilderness. This type of bug had not been seen since the RuneScape Classic days. Some players were killed and items were lost before the situation was rectified by Jagex personnel. Jagex investigated the situation, and the players who exploited the bug have been banned from the game.
Rooms
Players have a wide array of rooms available for customisation. Players can plant trees and shrubs in their garden or build furniture for their parlour, dining room, study, and bedroom. Players may also construct specialty furniture for their kitchen, workroom, and game room. Houses may also have unorthodox rooms such as a personal chapel, dungeon, throne room, and portal chamber, a room which provides teleports to various areas on the map.
Effect on the economy
To train construction requires more money than any other skill requires. Many items cost an extreme amount of money in supplies, and can only be acquired by paying the large sum. Construction has been viewed as a successful method by Jagex to curb the rate of inflation.