Master the art of rune socketing to enhance your weapons and armor with powerful magical effects
Runes are obtainable tokens which let you place special traits on weapons and armor (for example, mining speed buffs). Different runes offer different effects and costs; some are stronger or more expensive to apply than others.
This page ranks runes & engravings by how consistently strong they feel in real gameplay, not just on paper stats. It assumes solo / small party play with reasonably forged gear and focuses on overall value, not niche memes.
Each row represents a different rarity band. Higher tiers are rarer and more build-defining, while lower tiers are more supportive or starter-oriented.
Higher rows generally indicate rarer, more defining picks, while lower rows tend to be more common support pieces or niche options.
Some runes may have secondary traits that grant extra buffs. These traits can appear on weapons or armor and stack with the rune's main effect.
| Secondary Trait | Ability |
|---|---|
| Attack Speed | Increases attack speed by 5-18% |
| Lethality | Increases the weapon's damage by 5-15% |
| Critical Chance | Increases the chance of landing a critical hit by 6-15% |
| Critical Damage | Increases the damage of critical hits by 5-15% |
| Fracture | Increases stun damage by 5-20% |
| Secondary Trait | Ability |
|---|---|
| Endurance | Increase stamina by 4-10% |
| Surge | Decreases dash cooldown by 3-11% |
| Vitality | Increases health by 5-10% |
| Swiftness | Increases movement speed by 4-10% |
| Phase | Increases dash invincibility duration by 4-11% |
| Stride | Increases dash distance by 4-15% |
Not all weapons and armor have rune slots. Look for equipment that specifically mentions available rune slots when you craft or find it.
Runes are obtained by defeating specific enemies, completing challenges, or finding them in treasure chests throughout The Forge world.
Take your equipment and runes to the Runemaker NPC who can socket the runes into your gear for a fee.
Mythic Engravings and Grand Sigils
Forged Glyphs and Etched Marks
Basic runes for beginners
Kill Bombers in World 2 to farm Miner Runes. These are essential for your pickaxe optimization and mining efficiency.
Use Lethality substats on your runes for maximum damage output with fast-hitting weapons.
Use Attack Speed substats on your runes to compensate for slower swings and improve DPS.
For all weapons, run one Drain Rune and one Blast Rune for optimal combat performance.
Choose between Vitality (more health) or Movement Speed (better mobility) based on your playstyle preference.
Briar Runes are among the best options for armor slots due to their balanced effects.
Use our tools to plan your equipment builds and rune combinations
Open Calculator Weapon Guide Back to Wiki