Elder Runes are special stones that go into your equipment's sockets. A trigger rune and an effect rune together form a runeword: the trigger gathers rune power in a certain situation, and when the power reaches the effect rune's cost, the effect fires on its own.
"When the Dawnwardens forged the Dawnstone, they carved runes into the seal stones. Wherever a shard fell, those runes glowed again."
The basics
- There are 24 runes: 12 trigger and 12 effect runes, in three rarities: common, rare and legendary.
- Runes can be used from level 30.
- You socket a rune the same way as a stone: drag it onto your weapon or armor in the bag. Socketing always succeeds.
- Runeword = 1 trigger + 1 effect rune in the same item. You can have two runewords at once: one in your equipped weapon and one in your equipped armor. Each runeword gathers its own rune power.
- In an item, the first trigger and the first effect rune count; two identical runes cannot go into the same item.
- If a runeword changes (you swap a rune or equip a different item), its rune power resets to zero.
- Rune power caps at three times the effect's cost. A runeword's effect can fire at most once every 1.5 seconds.
In the interface
- The Runes tab of the Runs window (O key) shows your two runewords (weapon and armor) with their rune power bars, and opens the Rune Codex and rune exchange.
- Item tooltips show a rune's type (trigger or effect), its power or cost, and the runeword in the item.
- When an effect fires, a short notice appears on screen.
Trigger runes
| Rune | Rarity | Gathers power when | Rune power |
|---|---|---|---|
| Ash Rune | common | you kill a monster | 50 |
| Blood Rune | common | you take damage | 25 |
| Storm Rune | rare | you land a critical hit | 60 |
| Time Rune | common | every 5 seconds | 20 |
| Shard Rune | common | you use a skill | 50 |
| Moon Rune | rare | your health drops below 40% (once every 10 s) | 100 |
| Wear Rune | rare | you evade an attack | 60 |
| Echo Rune | rare | you damage a boss or world boss | 30 |
| Chain Rune | legendary | you kill 3 enemies within 2 seconds | 150 |
| Silence Rune | common | after 5 seconds out of combat | 100 |
| Ember Rune | rare | you burn or poison an enemy | 60 |
| Crown Rune | legendary | you gain a level | 200 |
Effect runes
| Rune | Rarity | Effect | Cost (rune power) |
|---|---|---|---|
| Lightning Rune | common | lightning strikes up to 3 nearby enemies | 100 |
| Shield Rune | common | +25% defense for 6 seconds | 100 |
| Wind Rune | common | +30% movement speed for 4 seconds | 80 |
| Flame Rune | rare | a ring of fire: nearby enemies burn for 3 seconds | 120 |
| Salve Rune | rare | restores 15% of your health | 120 |
| Shadow Rune | rare | 50% chance to evade attacks for 2 seconds | 150 |
| Stone Rune | common | 4 seconds of stun immunity | 100 |
| Mirror Rune | rare | reflects the next monster hit: the attacker takes the damage instead of you | 100 |
| Ashstorm Rune | legendary | a damaging ashstorm around you for 6 seconds | 150 |
| Timetrap Rune | common | nearby enemies are slowed by 40% for 4 seconds | 100 |
| Bloodleech Rune | rare | your next 3 hits drain 20% of their damage as health | 120 |
| Resurrection Rune | legendary | passive: instead of dying you stay up with 30% health, once every 5 minutes | none (needs no rune power) |
The Resurrection Rune also only works as part of a complete runeword, so it needs a trigger rune in the same item.
Where to find them
| Source | What it gives |
|---|---|
| World bosses | the player who lands the final blow always gets a random rune from all 24 |
| Ashwell | a chance of a rune from tier 5; rare runes too from tier 30 |
| Dread Gate seals | 3 modifiers: 50% chance of a common rune; 4 modifiers: a guaranteed rare rune |
| Dungeons | Heroic: 30% chance of a common rune; Legendary: one rare rune |
| Any monster | very rarely from monsters above level 30 (some of them rare) |
Legendary runes come from world bosses and from rune exchange.
Rune exchange
On the Runes tab of the Runs window you can trade in spare runes:
- 3 runes of the same rarity → 1 random rune of that rarity.
- 5 common runes → 1 random rare rune (the Upgrade to rare button).
You need all the selected runes on you, and no trade, storage or shop window may be open.
Rune Codex
The Rune Codex lists the runes you have discovered. A rune is added to the codex if you have it on you (in your bag or socketed in your equipped weapon or armor) when you open the codex.
See also: Runs, Ashwell, Dread Gates, Dungeons, Item Upgrading.