Runewords are back, being added to Diablo 4 in the Vessel of Hatred DLC, but how do they work and what does each Rune do?
Those who played Diablo 2 will remember Runewords as being a great way to unlock some unique powers and these have now been added to Diablo 4. Every Rune is an individual item that can be added to the socket of a weapon or a piece of armor. Each one features a different word and by adding multiple Runes to one piece of gear, you can create certain Runewords which each have their own special ability.
While it can be fun to experiment with different Runes many what every Runeword combination brings to the table. So we’ve got all the information you need below.
How do you use Runewords?
To use Runewords you need to mix Rune with two opposing types, Runes of Ritual and Runes of Invocation. Runes of Ritual will have glowing yellow symbols on them while Runes of Invocation feature purple symbols. Yellow Runes will instruct you to complete a certain task while the purple ones will signify the effect mixing those two Runes will have.
For example, a yellow Rune called “Zan” may ask you to cast your Ultimate Skill, while the purple Rune called “Ceh” might feature the power to summon a wolf follower, even though you’re not a Druid class.
Putting them together creates the Runeword ZanCeh and each time you cast your Ultimate Skill, it has the chance to summon the wolf. Mixing different Runewords is a fun and powerful way to make use of various skills your class may not otherwise have access to, and knowing which Runewords to use can complement your build nicely.
Be aware, that you’ll need a resource called “Offering” to trigger your Runeword ability, this is generated by your Rune of Ritual and consumed when your Rune of Invocation uses its power. This means that you’ll need to make sure you have enough Offering for your Runeword to trigger and will need to wait for it to build up again if it depletes.
As some Runes generate more Offering than they use, you can see an overflow where skills can be cast more than once within the same period without needing a cooldown.
Subscribe to our newsletter for the latest updates on Esports, Gaming and more.
All Runes in Diablo 4
Here’s every Rune of Ritual in Diablo 4 and the trigger for its power:
| Rune | Offering | Trigger |
|---|---|---|
| Ahu | 10 | Lucky Hit up to a 100% chance against Injured enemies. |
| Bac | 50 | Move 5 meters |
| Cem | 50 | Cast Evade |
| Cir | 25 | Cast the same non-channeled Skill 3 times in a row |
| Feo | 1000 | Become Injured or Crowd Controlled |
| Kaa | 2 | Lose 1% of your health |
| Lith | 25 | Stand still for less than a second |
| Moni | 10 | Cast a skill after moving |
| Neo | 300 | Deal damage after not taking any within 5 seconds |
| Noc | 5 | Inflict a Crowd Control that isn’t Slow or Chill |
| Poc | 2 | Spend 5% of your Maximum Resource |
| Tam | 25 | Cast a non-Channeled Core Skill |
| Ur | 10 | Your Minion or Companion kills an enemy or dies |
| Xol | 150 | Evoke power from another Class |
| Yax | 100 | Drink a Healing Potion |
| Yul | 50 | Cast a Skill with a Cooldown |
| Zan | 150 | Cast an Ultimate Skill |
Here’s every Rune of Ritual you can find in Diablo:
| Rune | Offering cost | Power |
|---|---|---|
| Ceh | 100 | Summon a Spirit Wolf to attack enemies for 8 seconds |
| Eom | 100 | Reduce your active Cooldowns by 0.25 seconds |
| Gar | 25 | Gain 2.5% Critical Strike Chance for 5 seconds, up to 25% |
| Jah | 500 | Replace your next Evade with the Sorcerer’s Teleport, blinking further, dealing damage, and becoming Unstoppable. |
| Kry | 500 | Evoke the Spiritborn’s Vortex, dealing damage and Pulling In enemies |
| Lac | 800 | Evoke the Barbarian’s Challenging Shout, reducing your damage taken |
| Lum | 5 | Restore 1 Primary Resource |
| Met | 100 | Gain a shadow from the Rogue’s Dark Shroud, reducing damage taken per shadow |
| Mot | 150 | Gain a shadow from the Rogue’s Dark Shroud, reducing damage taken per shadow |
| Ner | 700 | Evoke the Rogue’s Countering Concealment, gaining Dodge Chance, Movement Speed, Unstoppable, and Stealth |
| Ohm | 500 | Evoke the Barbarian’s Enhanced War Cry, increasing your Movement Speed and damage dealt |
| Ono | 25 | Evoke the Druid’s Dancing Bolts, seeking and dealing damage to enemies |
| Qax | 400 | Your next non-Basic Skill cast spends all of your Primary Resource to deal up to 100% increased damage |
| Qua | 400 | Evoke the Druid’s Earthen Bulwark, granting yourself a Barrier |
| Tal | 100 | Evoke the Spiritborn’s Pestilent Swarm, dealing damage to enemies |
| Teb | 100 | Evoke the Necromancer’s Abhorrent Iron Maiden, counterattacking damage from enemies and Healing you when they die |
| Tec | 100 | Evoke the Barbarian’s Earthquake, dealing damage to enemies within |
| Thul | 400 | Evoke the Sorcerer’s Mystical Frost Nova, inflicting Freeze and Vulnerable onto enemies |
| Ton | 25 | Evoke the Sorcerer’s Meteorites, dealing damage to enemies |
| Tun | 100 | Evoke the Rogue’s Stun Grenades, Stunning and dealing damage to enemies |
| Tzic | 250 | Evoke the Spiritborn’s Concussive Stomp, dealing damage and Knocking Down enemies |
| Vex | 400 | Gain +3 to all Skills for 5 seconds |
| Wat | 100 | Evoke the Necromancer’s Horrid Decrepify, Slowing enemies, reducing their damage, and letting you Execute them |
| Xal | 200 | Gain 20% Maximum Life for 4 seconds |
| Xan | 700 | Your next Skill cast will be a guaranteed Critical Strike and Overpower |
| Yom | 500 | Evoke the Druid’s Petrify, Stunning enemies and increasing your Critical Strike Damage against them |
| Zec | 200 | Reduce your active Ultimate Cooldown by 4 seconds |
Where can I find Runes?
The good news is Runes can be found out in the wilds like any other loot. However, we found that the higher the difficulty, the more drops we received.
We also found a higher frequency of Runes dropped during Helltides, against Elite enemies, and when taking part in other Seasonal or endgame content.
To learn more about the new mechanics in Diablo 4: Vessel of Hatred, check out our guides on the Kurast Undercity, the Dark Citadel, and the new Realmwalker events of Season 6.