Runes
Runes are items found in dungeons that modify your equipment. Each rune type does something different.
To apply a rune, place it together with equipment at the Blacksmith.
Rune Variants
Runes come in different tiers. Tier affects the strength or odds of the rune's effect.
Item Level
Every piece of gear has an item level, shown on its tooltip.
Some modifiers need a minimum item level to be applied onto gear.
A rune from the Runescribe tops out at the item level of the item its modifier came from. Its lower end is the modifier's minimum.
A rune that shows "Compatible with" only fits the listed item types. For example, the fall damage reduction modifier only fits boots, and arrow damage only fits bows.
Stability
Every piece of equipment has stability. The tooltip shows how much is left out of the maximum. Each rune you bind wears it down.
Corruption
When an item's stability runs out, it becomes corrupted. It keeps its modifiers and still works as gear, but you can no longer runebind it or use it at the Runescribe.
Blank Rune
Has no effect on its own. Take it to the Runescribe to inscribe a modifier onto it. See the Runescribe section for details.
The inscribed rune keeps this rune's tier. The tier doesn't change the odds.
Chaos Rune
Rerolls all eligible modifiers into random new ones. Warded and unidentified modifiers are not affected.
If any modifiers are focused, only those are rerolled. All focus is consumed afterwards.
Higher tier improves your odds of rolling higher-rarity modifiers.
Cleansing Rune
Removes one random modifier from the item. Warded modifiers cannot be affected.
Worse runes are much more likely to be removed.
If any modifiers are focused, the rune will target one of them instead of picking randomly.
Focus Rune
Marks one random non-warded, non-focused modifier as focused. Cleansing, inscribed, chaos, and warding runes will target focused modifiers instead of picking randomly.
Multiple modifiers can be focused at once. Focus persists until a rune acts on the modifier.
Identification Rune
Some gear drops with occupied but hidden modifier slots. This rune reveals what is in them.
Higher tier improves your odds of revealing a good modifier.
Inscribed Rune
Replaces one modifier on the item with the inscribed modifier. If the item already has that modifier type, it is guaranteed to be the one replaced.
Warded modifiers cannot be replaced. If any modifiers are focused, the rune will target one of them instead of picking randomly.
The rune only binds to gear within the item level range shown on it. A rune with no range has no item level limit.
Seating Rune
Adds a new modifier slot with a random modifier. This is the only rune that increases the modifier count.
Stability Rune
Alters the item's remaining stability, raising or lowering it at random.
Over many alterations stability only ever trends down. Higher tiers will not reverse that, it just makes you less unlucky.
A bad roll on an already worn item can corrupt it. Still, a lucky alteration can grant the extra stability to bind an additional rune or two, enough to finish a build that would otherwise fall short.
Warding Rune
Permanently protects one modifier from all future rune effects. A warded modifier cannot be targeted by any rune.
If any modifiers are focused, the rune will target one of them instead of picking randomly.
Higher tier improves your odds of warding a higher-rarity modifier.