Facebook
Reddit
Email
Dive into our Diablo 4 Runes Guide! Get the lowdown on rune mechanics, how to combine them, and strategies to elevate your gaming experience.
If you are a Diablo veteran, you’re likely aware of Runes since Diablo 2. However, this Diablo 4 rune guide is for those fans who are new to the franchise or may need a refresher on what Runes are and what they do. Also, Runes work very differently in the newer game than they used to, so even seasoned players should pay close attention. In this comprehensive guide, we will tell you all about the Runes, Runewords, and how each of them modifies your stats. So, let’s jump in!
Diablo 4 Runes Guide: What Are Runes?
Introduced in the Vessel of Hatred expansion for Diablo 4, Runes are socketable items that you can integrate into your gear. However, socketing a single rune doesn’t do anything. If you are able to socket two of them, it will create a Runeword. All Runewords provide powerful advantages, including stat boosts and skill triggers.
These runes are available almost everywhere you go during Diablo 4’s endgame content. From Whisper Caches to Nightmare Dungeons, each of them should help you build a significant rune collection. You can also transmute Runes by collecting three of the same rune. Transmutation grants you a brand-new rune, and you can undertake this process by visiting one of the Jewelers.
Also, find out how you can level up glyphs in Diablo 4.
How To Use Runes To Create Runewords?
Let’s take a more specific look at how Runes and Runewords work in the game. Firstly, you must understand that Runes are broadly divided into two parts — Ritual Rune and Invocation Rune.
You will need to socket a Ritual Rune in the top slot of a gear, followed by an Invocation Rune in the bottom slot to create Runewords. The Ritual Rune generates Offerings, which are necessary to trigger the effects of the Invocation Rune. For instance, a Ritual Rune could generate 60 Offerings every time you evade an enemy. If that is tied to an Invocation Rune that grants +1% critical chance for every 20 Offerings, then your Runeword will basically let you increase your damage output when you evade in combat.
If you slot the right Runes in the right places, you will see an icon appear just above your skills bar indicating that the Runeword is activated. Also, if you manage to generate excess Offerings, you will get a bonus to the main resource, which in this case was a boost to your critical hit chance. Keep in mind that you can also keep two Runewords active at one time, and these need to be slotted into different pieces of gear, not the same one.
Using Runewords
The next part of this Diablo 4 Runes guide is understanding how to use the Runewords that you create. As we said previously, a maximum of two Runewords remain activated at a time. During combat, you will see the icons for the Runewords fill up slowly. When the runewords reach their maximum potential, they will automatically unleash their effects. After that, the Runewords will reset and begin filling up once more.
You can also change the Runewords you have slotted in at any point. Simply go to the inventory and remove the current one and slot in a different one. You do not need to visit a Jeweler every time you decide to slot in a new Runewords.
Keep in mind that since Runewords require two Runes to be slotted in simultaneously, only gear with two open slots can have Runewords. In Diablo 4, such items are limited to the legs, chest, head armor, and two-handed weaponry. So, only these items can have Runewords attached to them.
Also, read how you can get your hands on Occult Gems in Diablo 4.
All Runes Available in Diablo 4
Let’s end our Diablo 4 rune guide by listing down all of the different Ritual and Invocation Runes you can find.
Ritual Runes
| Rune Name | Offerings Generated | How To Generate |
| Tam | 25 | Casting any non-channeled core skill |
| Ahu | 10 | Lucky Hit (works best on enemies that are injured) |
| Cir | 30 | Cast the skill 3 times back to back (Must be non-channeled) |
| Cem | 50 | Evade |
| Lith | 25 | During combat, stand still for 0.3 secs |
| Bac | 50 | Move 5 meters |
| Feo | 1000 | Either get injured or become crowd-controlled. Has a 10-second cooldown. |
| Neo | 200 | After avoiding damage for 3 seconds, inflict damage |
| Moni | 25 | Once you move, cast a skill. Hass a cooldown of 0.2 seconds. |
| Poc | 5 | Use 5% of the maximum resource |
| Yax | 200 | Use a health potion |
| Noc | 10 | Use a crowd control effect besides chill and slow |
| Xol | 150 | Use a power from another class |
| Zan | 150 | Use an ultimate skill |
| Yul | 50 | Use any skill that has a cooldown |
| Ur | 10 | Your companion dies or takes out an enemy |
| Kaa | 2 | Lose 1% of your total health |
Invocation Runes
| Rune Name | Offering Cost To Activate | Effect |
| Gar | 25 | The critical chance increases by 2% for 5 secs. Can stack up to 20%. |
| Ceh | 100 | The critical chance increases 2% for 5 secs. Can stack up to 20%. |
| Jah | 400 | Your next evade will trigger the Sorcerer’s Teleport ability |
| Eom | 100 | For 8 seconds, summon an allied Spirit Wolf to attack foes. |
| Lac | 400 | Trigger the Challenging Shout ability of the Barbarian class |
| Kry | 300 | Trigger the Vortex ability of the Spiritborn class. |
| Mot | 150 | Trigger a shroud using the Dark Shadow skill of the Rogue class. |
| Ohm | 600 | Trigger the War Cry ability of the Barbarian class. |
| Ner | 600 | Trigger the Countering Concealment ability of the Rogue class. |
| Lum | 5 | Restore a primary resource |
| Qax | 400 | Cooldowns for all abilities were reduced by 0.1 secs. |
| Que | 300 | The next non-basic skill you use will do 100% more damage, but use up all primary resources. |
| Tal | 100 | Trigger the Pestilent Swarm ability of the Spiritborn class. |
| Qua | 50 | Increase movement speed by 5%. Can stack to a max increase of 30%. |
| Tec | 100 | Trigger the Earthern Bulwark ability of the Druid class. |
| Ton | 20 | Trigger the Earthquake ability of the Barbarian class. |
| Teb | 100 | Trigger the Meteorite ability of the Sorcerer class. |
| Thul | 300 | Trigger the Abhorrent Iron Maiden ability of the Necromancer class |
| Wat | 100 | Trigger the Mystical Frost Nova ability of the Sorcerer class |
| Tun | 100 | Trigger the Decrepify ability of the Necromancer class |
| Vex | 1000 | Adds to 3 every skill for 7 secs |
| Tzic | 250 | Trigger the Stun Grenades ability of the Rogue class |
| Yom | 500 | The critical chance increases by 2% for 5 secs. Can stack up to 20%. |
| Xal | 200 | Your Max health increases for 6secs by 20% |
| Zec | 200 | Trigger the Petrify ability of the Druid class |
| Xan | 900 | Reduces the cooldown for your Ultimate by 2 seconds. |
| Met | 100 | Trigger the Petrify ability of the Druid class |
We hope this comprehensive Diablo 4 Runes guide helped you gain better insight into the game’s rune and Runeword system. Also, read when the Diablo 4 Season 7 ends.
Looking For More?
Thank you for reading the article. We provide the latest news and create guides for Baldur’s Gate 3, Starfield, ARK Survival Ascended, and more. Also, watch Deltia play games on Twitch or visit his YouTube channel!
