Diablo 2: Resurrected — Complete guide to runes and runewords

Runes and runewords were introduced in Diablo 2's expansion Lord of Destruction. Whereas in the base Diablo 2 game you had to rely on unique weapons and armor for end-game gear, this new ranked system gave the game an entirely new feel. Now you could find runes anywhere in the game, to be traded or hoarded to create powerful runewords. Since Diablo 2: Resurrected folds in the base game and the expansion, runes will play a huge role in the online economy and in the power ranking of your characters. Let's take a look at how runes work, what runes afford what abilities, and how to create runewords. This guide also includes a full list of the runewords available in Diablo 2: Resurrected.

Diablo 2: Resurrected runes and abilities

Single runes can drop anywhere in Diablo 2: Resurrected, starting in Normal difficulty through to Hell difficulty. Runes are socketable items, just like gems, meaning you can put them into socketed gear to receive their effects. However, the real magic of runes comes when you combine them in a specific order in a specific item. Runewords, as they're called, are some of the most powerful items in the game, right up there with set items and uniques. A full list of runewords can be found in the next section.

Mid and high runes should not be parted with easily. They are incredibly rare and can fetch a lot of loot in the game's online economy.

Runes can also be used in certain Horadric Cube recipes. For example, you can combine a Ral rune with a damaged piece of gear to repair it. This is a great trick when you're low on gold and can't afford repairs at a vendor. Runes can also be combined together in the Horadric Cube; this is colloquially called "cubing up" and it is a common way to get to the next level rune without having to find it in the wild. For example, if you have three El runes and need an Eld rune, you can place the three El runes in the Cube and hit the transmute button. Out will pop an Eld rune. This upgrade recipe is included in the rune chart below.

The Hellforge quest in Act 4 will always drop some runes, and it is often used as payment for a rush through the acts. The Countess, found at the bottom of the Forgotten Tower in Act 1's Black Marsh, is another great source of runes.

Because runes have a set rarity moving from the most common (El) up to the rarest (Zod), they're often used as the economy in Diablo 2. El through Lem are generally considered low runes, Pul through Gul are generally considered mid runes, and Vex through Zod are generally considered high runes. If you find mid or high runes in your travels, be sure to not part with them easily!

Following is a chart with all of Diablo 2: Resurrected runes and their effects.

Diablo 2: Resurrected runewords explained

Runewords are some of the most powerful items you can craft in Diablo 2: Resurrected, though they do take quite a bit of work to accomplish. You must first find the proper runes to create the runeword, then you must find the corresponding weapon, shield, or armor that can accept the runeword. The item must have the exact number of open sockets for the runeword to work, and the runes must be placed into the socketed item in the correct order. The item must also be plain (white); magic (blue), rare (yellow), unique (gold), and set (green) items with the right amount of sockets will not work for runewords.

For this reason, you need to take great care when creating a runeword. Double- and triple-check the item type is proper — for example, the Insight runeword can be created in polearms and staves but not spears — and lay out the runes in the proper order before socketing them into the item.

There are a few intricacies when it comes to weapon and armor types that you should make note of. "Body armor" only includes items worn on your torso. General "armor" includes shields, boots, gloves, helms, etc. Hammers will not work with runewords meant for maces. "Melee weapons" do not include ranged weapons, like bows and crossbows. Orbs are also not considered melee weapons.

When creating runewords, many have variable stats that determine how good of a roll you've created. A perfect runeword roll is always worth a lot more than an imperfect roll. In the same sense, using the best runeword base (an item with sockets) possible is always recommended. For example, if you're creating a runeword to equip on a mercenary, always use an Ethereal base. Mercenary weapons and armor don't lose durability, so you can get the stat boost from the Ethereal property and not worry about it ever breaking. Every little boost to stats counts in Diablo 2: Resurrected.

Runewords can be equipped on any type of character. They will receive the runeword's bonuses unless otherwise stated. That means you can equip, say, a Beast runeword on a Sorceress and give her the ability to turn into a Werebear. This diversifies builds and gives players plenty of options when it comes to fun playstyles.

Following is a list of runewords that are available in Diablo 2: Resurrected, as well as which items work and which runes are required.

There are also a number of runewords only available to those who choose to participate in the online ladder system. These runewords won't be available to players who are playing offline singleplayer.

It's now been stated that all Diablo 2: Resurrected runewords will be available to ladder, non-ladder, and singleplayer characters. This is a welcome change. Similarly, Uber Diablo and the Pandemonium Event are now available to all characters. Here are the runewords that were once limited to ladder play but can now be accessed by everyone.

Whether you're completely new to the game or are coming back after an extended hiatus, I've also put together this collection of 15 beginner tips and tricks for Diablo 2: Resurrected. And if you're worried you won't be able to run the game to its full potential, have a look at the best laptops for playing Diablo 2: Resurrected.