Throughout the Runescape universe, the Runescape Website, and Runescape fansites (like this one) you hear the word members. Most people know what that means. But some don't. And some of those who do may not know the whole deal. Well, this is not advertisement for Members, I'm simply telling you about it. I am a member, and it is pretty cool. Now for the good points of being a member:
You have access to every skill (check out the Skill Guides for more info)
You can go anywhere in Runescape (check the Map for more info)
You can go into the member's worlds (there are 32 of them-you can only use member's things in them)
You can use member's items, such as dragon weapons
You have access to all member's quests and free quests, giving you access to TONS of quests.
There are added bits to the non-member's skills (see some of the Skill Guides for examples)
There are tons of member's monsters (some are included in the Slayer Skill)
You get access to more music
You can duel other players in Al-Kharid desert
You can play Castle Wars, a team game
You can play more mini-games
More customer support
Access to writing in forums
Ability to vote in polls
Now for the bad news:
It costs $5 a month...not a lot right? After all, for one year that's only...$60!!!!!!!
Here is the lesson here; unless you are completely certain about this, I would not advise it. If there was no cost, or it was cheaper, I would have been a member a looong time ago.
Now for every detail in...well, detail.
As for items, there are a variety of them. There are the Dragon Weapons, which all require lv 60 (attack for weapons, defense for armor and shields). The best part is that they all have a special attack, which only the most powerful weapons have. Getting to lv 60, however, is not an easy task. Take it from someone with experiences, even if the only thing you train is attack/defense, it still takes a few days to get there. Another thing is that you can use halberds, claws, and other new weapons in addition to the new dragon weapons. You can use more staffs than you would normally be able to, such as Zamorak, Guthix, and Sarodomin, who happen to be gods in Runescape also.
As for the quests, I won't name them all. However, I will tell you that there are a lot of hard ones and some strange ones, too. Like Gertrude's Cat Quest, you get a kitten as a reward. Very weird I know...
You may have gone everywhere in free Runescape, yet you still are missing many of the songs. This is because you get Songs from member's places, too. Personally, I usually have the sound off completely, but for those who enjoy this music, its another reason to be a member.
As for Dueling, it is not like fighting in the wilderness. You fight with your friends, but you can set antes (prizes) and you can set conditions. These are things like no weapons, no magic, no prayer, etc. Plus, you can't have anyone else waiting around, and treasure hunting PKs ( see the Things of Interest section for information on PKs and the wild) can't stick around to watch and jump you. Plus, enemies and PK teams (once again check the Things of Interest section for info) may be too much of a threat, make you jumpy, and thus make it less relaxing. This is what is great about Dueling.
Castle Wars is really fun. You choose a team (Zamorak or Sarodomin) by going through one of the colored portals. Guthix takes you to a team that has space on it, i think. It's capture the flag in medieval times. The point is to grab the other team's flag (you can beat down the doors, climb up the walls with a rope, or use the underground passages) and then run back to your base and deposit the flag at your flag holder. It then disappears and you get a point for your team. If your team wins, you get 2 tickets, if you tie, you get 1 ticket (this is for the whole team) and if you lose, you don't get tickets. Tickets can be traded for decorative armor, (not very good, but as the name suggests, you can show off with it) capes and hoods that are from castle wars, and other such things.
Some of the Mini-games are cool. The Trawler mini-game is the only way to catch Manta Rays (of course you need lv 92 fishing to catch them...). The Gnome ball mini-game is cool, too. It's basically football, except to score you throw it into a net (that's the only way to) and only one side can score; yours. You can play alone, or gather all your friends together and then make it a team effort. Once you get 5 points, you can take a Gnome ball out of the ring. It doesn't really do anything, but you can fight with it or just show off with it. I have to say that mini-games are a pretty cool addition.
As for Customer Support, that's pretty self-explanatory. As for the polls, there is a monthly poll. Jagex, to stop people from creating a new account just to vote their way in the poll, made it members only. Sorry to disappoint you. Mostly, these polls are to help Jagex to help you. They ask what kind of new stuff you would rather have. This is so they know what kinds of items to create and which ones not to create. Finally for the forums; recently Jagex has allowed non-members to visit the forums, but they cannot start a thread, or post on a thread.
Yes so that is the main features of members. Let me tell you that I think it's worth it. The first day I was a member, my first thought was, "OK, what should I do first?" And when Jagex says that it'll keep you playing till the early hours of the morning, they mean it.