Edit: The updates of November 30 '08: Grammar; removed bitchin about randoms; changed amounts of bolts, purple sweets and fruit bat scrolls; added more inventory suggestions (pics) and items; added titans and unicorn familar options; added some useful info.
This is a short overview guide written specifically to serve the clan. I believe the best tutor is first-hand experience, and therefore won't expand it beyond the essentials.
First of, if you have never been inside the God Wars dungeon, this should provide an excellent (and must, before going on with the guide) read. I recommend reading the guide twice, top to bottom, to build a nice picture of how the inventory and equipment blend into the actual fighting process.
Preparations:
It's worth noting that this trip requires Saradomin brews and super restores (many clan members can help you make these), on top of expensive equipment, so keep it in mind before deciding to go on with inventory preparations. Additionally, getting into the Saradomin Encampment requires base 70 Agility, which cannot be affected by boosters.
First time GWDers going on this specific trip should be ready with equipped Saradomin and Zamorak items, a Falador teleport and 3 ropes. After talking to the dying knight and delivering the message to Sir Tiffy, you are free to attach your first rope to the edge of the pit, and descend. Continue east, south of the waterfall, and attach your second rope. Then, carry on with the track and attach the third rope. The ropes will permanently remain attached.
Equipment:
The two most common equipment sets to use on a Saradomin GWD trip are either a Verac set, or a Godsword of any kind (Zamorak/Saradomin hilts would be an advantage) with melee armour. The whip+defender combination is said to be ineffective due to the boss' high defence, however, I've never used it on these trips so I can't comment on that.
For rangers, the common tank setup - melee armour with a ranging torso, a crossbow and a shield - works fine. 400 diamond and 300 ruby bolts should last for a whole trip.
Inventory:
This relies on your experience of S-GWD trips and levels, most notably, Summoning. In general, no Summoning level is required for this trip, though not having enough may drastically lower the trip's length.
Base equipment:
Two teleportation tablets (of any location); Zamorak and/or Saradomin items; Saradomin brews and super restore potions at a ratio of 3:1, with 4 extra restores.
Custom equipment:
Summoners of level 67 and below should take BoB* familiars, with enough pouches to last for two hours (inside the room, see the times table). In general it's around 5-7 for the Terrorbird/Bull Ant and 4-5 with the Tortoise.
From level 69 and above, you can easily survive off the Fruit Bat or Unicorn if used properly, although you can still bring extra supplies with BoB familiars if it's one of your first encounter with this boss, or just to support clanmates.
BoB - Beast of Burden familiar. One that carries items.
Track:
To make the most out of your inventory space, you can fill the two empty spaces created after teleporting to Trollheim by doing the 'teleport drop trick'. To do this, start by having enough runes for two Trollheim and one Camelot teleports. Once arrived to Trollheim, drop two items on the floor, teleport to Camelot, fill in the empty slots, then teleport back to Trollheim and pick what you've dropped.
No smuggling of familiars required.
Battle:
The Saradomin area, as well as the boss monster, Commander Zilyana, are considered to be rather demanding from the player. This interprets in lengthier Kill Count build up and a requirement for speedier reactions when fighting Zilyana. If you've any connection lag (slow clicking response) which you can solve by turning this or that, doing so might help quite a bit preserving your HP.
Kill Count:
All of the Saradomin followers in the dungeon have high defence, so getting KC may take a good 30 minutes. It's recommended to attack the NPCs which are already fighting each other to avoid losing HP or wasting Prayer points. Having 68 Slayer and above is an advantage as it allows you to damage spiritual warriors, which are the most busy fighters in the Saradomin quarter. At 83 Slayer things are a bit more easier as there're plenty of spiritual mages around.
Fighting Zilyana:
Zilyana has two types of attacks, both roughly at the speed of darts. The first is a powerful multi-target magic attack, which hits up to the low 30s and seems to stack up (multiple hits), so Protect from Magic should be kept on as long as she's alive. The second is a, just as powerful, single-target melee attack.
For a melee group, the best tactic is to run away from her in turns, until she switches a target, then returning to attack. This a technique easy to learn, but hard to master, since efficiency depends on your speed reacting to her attack (conserving HP) and returning to combat (inflicting damage). It's worth noting that tanking is out of the question. You can do it for a good laugh, but if you'll screw around for too long she'll hit three 30s on you.
Once she's dead, the sergeants are to be killed in the following order: Growler (magic based) first, then Starlight (melee) and then Bree (ranger). If you're using a Fruit Bat, this is a good time to start spawning fruits around as you'll probably need more than you can hold or more time for them to spawn.
After you've finished preparing for the next round, stand along the southern wall and wait for Zilyana to spawn, as it's the point most far from her spawn location. The first person to hit, or get hit, by her, will become the target, so rangers can make the process a bit less painful.
The Altar:
The altar can replenish your Prayer points (giving a minor boost) about every 10 minutes. You may also notice it has a right-click Teleport option. This teleports you outside the room yet inside of the encampment. If you choose to do it instead of using a teleportation tablet, make sure you equip your Saradomin item prior, or immediately after teleporting. Note that you'll need 40 fresh kills to re-enter the room.
Final Notes:
Spirit Terrorbird inventory (exclude the scrolls):
Fruit Bat inventory:
Equipment suggestions: White marks the 3 items you keep on death, yellow the one extra.
Melee: Best, to affordable. You can replace the Godsword with Verac's flail, just don't forget the helm.
Ranged: Affordable to compromised.
Additional info:
Bit of extra info for those of you that been on, or at least seen, S-GWD trips before.
First of all, it seems mixed teams of melee fighters and rangers are getting popular, and for good reasons. On spawns, rangers can snipe Zilyana without anyone else (including themselves) getting hit, causing a nice red splash with 51 damage points at occasions. Additionally, it's a role that requires a lot less attention, since you just stand there and shoot, running away for a bit every now and then. As long as you've at least a Fruit Bat familiar, this is a role easily performed, so to conclude this up, ranging isn't a bad option, despite not saying much about it above.
Second on the update list is the imp-in-a-box, box. The main use for these during the trips is to send away valuable drops, say coins from a hilt share, which takes off a lot of worrying about losing what you worked hard to earn.
Thirdly, another useful item. The explorer's ring you get after completing the Lumbridge achievement diary (which is a piece of cake), is able to restore some of your run energy, as well as teleport you south of Falador, and cast Low Alchemy, all in one!
Also, a note about the Zamorak Godsword. There's not much talk about it as freezing stuff is something your average mage is able to do without paying 30m (as of writing). However, at the hands of a player with a high Attack level, this weapon has proved to be a very helpful tool (especially with small 3-4 man teams), as its freezing qualities clears the mess in the room for a bit, letting everyone concentrate on hitting. At the hands of two or three players with a high Attack levels, these can improve the trip by a lot.
