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{{Item navbox}}Finding [[runes]], especially higher level runes, is an obsession for many players. This can be a chore, since there's no way to use equipment to increase your odds of finding more runes, or higher level runes. [[Magic Find]] has no effect on rune drops, either quality or quantity; the way to find runes is to kill lots of monsters [[monster]]s in larger games, so more total items drop.

Rune hunting is somewhat simplified by the fact that Magic Find is of no benefit (or penalty) ==Monsters==The best way to rune finding. So find a character truly out to find lot of runes can suit up , or most anything else in all his/her best killing gearDiablo II, without giving is to get a thought to lot of item drops. Since item drops are best obtained from dead [[Magic Findmonster]]. This isn't highly recommendeds, and since magic find improves the odds of finding Unique and Set monsters drop more items that are useful or that can be traded (for runes, perhaps)in larger games, but purely from a rune hunting POV, magic very good way to find more runes is useless, and worse than useless to kill a lot of monsters in games with a lot of other players. (Use [[Player_Settings#The_Players_X_Command|the /players X command]] to simulate more players if using the MF equipment slows a characteryou's overall killing speedre going single player. )

Since Rune hunting is somewhat simplified by the goal fact that [[Magic Find]] is of most players is no benefit (or penalty) to rune finding. So a character truly out to find higher quality runescan suit up in all his/her best killing gear, the hunting is best done on the highest level monsters that your character can safely and quickly killwithout giving a thought to Magic Find. As with This isn't highly recommended, since magic find improves the odds of finding, a balance between killing speed [[Unique]] and monster level must [[Set]] items that are useful or that can be found. Struggling to kill very high level monster because they have traded (for runes, perhaps), but purely from a .000001% better chance of dropping a Chamrune hunting [[POV]], magic find is not useless, and worse than useless if using the [[MF]] equipment slows a wise expenditure of time or energycharacter's overall killing speed.

Since rune finding the goal of most players is largely a crap shootto find higher quality runes, it's the hunting is best to kill quickly where done on the highest level monsters that your character is most capable of killing can safely and quicklykill. Levels As with magic finding, a lot of monsters are best, simply balance between killing speed and monster level must be found. Struggling to increase the total item dropskill very high level monster because they have a . Places like the Secret Cow Level, the Flayer Jungle000001% better chance of dropping a [[Cham]], is not a wise expenditure of time or the surface areas of Act One (with their teeming Fallen camps) are popular killing zones due to the high density of fairly weak monstersenergy.

=Quests==Special Monsters===The only monster in the game with a substantially higher % chance to drop runes in [[The Countess]], found on level five of the [[Forgotten Tower]] in the [[Black Marsh]] level of [[Act I|Act One]]. Since [[v1.09]] she's had excellent odds to drop at least one rune every time, and in [[v1.10]] her odds were increased still higher. She can not drop the highest runes in the game, but hoping to see any runes above 24 or 25 drop is a fool's game. They do fall from time to time, but the odds are lottery-winning long. Better odds are to find lots of runes in the teens and low twenties, and to cube them up, as well as trading other item finds for mid-to-high level runes, and cubing those up as well.

Several quests grant A few monster types have higher odds of dropping runes as part because they can not drop [[armor]] or [[weapon]]s, and thus spit out more runes since they have fewer other possible drops. These include [[Wraith]]s, [[Finger Mage]]s, [[Vulture Demon]]s, [[Willowisp]]s, and the [[Swarm]]. These monsters are worth harvesting while rune hunting, but they spawn infrequently and in underwhelming numbers, so few players will find it worth the effort for the slight increase in the odds of their rewardfinding runes.

 ==Quests==Several [[quest]]s grant runes as part of their reward.   ===Forgotten Tower===[[Quests_Act_One#Quest_Four:_The_Forgotten_Tower|This quest]] does not have a [[Rune ]] as part of its reward (just a bunch of gold and minor items from a magical chest), but since v1.09 [[The Countess]], a SuperUnique [[Corrupt Rogue]] you must kill to accomplish the quest, has begun dropping a rune almost every time she's killed. Her rune drops were increased still further in v1.10, and she's now a very popular target for item running characters.

* Normal: [[El ]] (r01) - [[Ral ]] (r08).* Nightmare: [[El ]] (r01) - [[Io]]/[[Ko ]] (r18); above [[Io ]] (r16) is much rarer.* Hell: [[El ]] (r01) - [[Ist]]/[[Lo ]] (r28); above [[Ist ]] (r26) is much rarer. The Countess has better odds to drop a higher level rune the first time a player kills her on [[Nightmare ]] or [[Hell ]] difficulties, when they get credit for completing the quest. This is reflected in the different odds for [[Io]]/[[Ko ]] and [[Ist]]/[[Lo ]] listed above. Her odds of dropping her highest possible runes are always astronomical, but they are slightly better the first time than the other times.

She is capable of dropping up to six runes each death, and will often drop two or three. They're very unlikely to be higher than [[Tir ]] or [[Eth]], but reports of two [[Hels]], and a couple of other mid-level runes are not uncommon, so it's possible.

Unlike the runes from The Countess, or any other monster drops in the game, the lower level runes are '''not''' more common. The odds for [[Hel ]] or [[Gul ]] are identical on [[Hell]], 1/11 for each. Cross your fingers.

Be sure to complete this quest when you can get your rune drop, and do not finish it with other players in your party, if they have not finished the quest already. Four gems drop for every character completing the quest, whether they're near the [[Hellforge ]] or not, but only one rune will drop for the quest completion, whether one or eight characters are in the party/completing the quest.

===Rescue on Mount Arreats===This [[Quests_Act_Five#Quest_Two:_Rescue_on_Mt._Arreat|second quest in Act Five]] is easily accomplished, and your character will receive a [[Tal]] (r07), a [[Ral]] (r08), and an [[Ort]] (r09) rune as a reward for completing it. Not a huge reward, but for players who save all their runes to upgrade, every one helps.

==Chests==[[Chest]]s (this includes barrels, crates, hidden stashes, etc) are an excellent source of items, including runes.

* Act 1 [[Normal]]: No Runes [[Rune]]s from Chests[[Chest]]s* Act 2 Normal: [[El]]/[[Eld]]/[[Tir]]/[[Nef ]] (r01-r04)* Act 3 Normal: [[Eth]]/[[Ith]]/[[Tal]]/[[Ral ]] (r05-r08)* Act 4 Normal: [[Ort]]/[[Thul]]/[[Amn]]/[[Sol ]] (r09-r12)* Act 5 Normal: [[Shael]]/[[Dol ]] (r13-r14)* Act 1 [[Nightmare]]: [[Hel]]/[[Io ]] (r15-r16)* Act 2 Nightmare: [[Lum]]/[[Ko ]] (r17-r18)* Act 3 Nightmare: [[Fal]]/[[Lem ]] (r19-r20)* Act 4 Nightmare: [[Pul]]/[[Um ]] (r21-r22)* Act 5 Nightmare: [[Mal]]/[[Ist ]] (r23-r24)* Act 1 [[Hell]]: [[Gul]]/[[Vex ]] (r25-r26)* Act 2 Hell: [[Ohm]]/[[Lo ]] (r27-r28)* Act 3 Hell: [[Sur]]/[[Ber ]] (r29-r30)* Act 4 Hell: [[Jah]]/[[Cham ]] (r31-r32)* Act 5 Hell: [[Zod ]] (r33) 

==Upgrading==Prior to [[v1.10]], it was hit or miss obtaining runes above [[Ort]], since only the first nine runes could be upgraded in the [[Horadric Cube]]. This changed in v1.10, when [[RunesRune list|rune upgrade recipes]] were added that could turn Els [[El]]s into a [[Zod]]. That would take over 14 trillion Els, but it's now possible to upgrade to all levels of runes, which makes collecting and building towards the high level runes the biggest [[Runewords]] require a possibility for all patient players. Mathematically speaking however, expecting to save and transmute the lowest runes into the highest ones is virtually impossible. It would take exactly 3,486,784,401 El runes to make a [[Pul ]] rune, which is one of the first highly tradable runes and to create your own Zod from El runes you would need 14,281,868,906,496 El runes and countless gems. If you are looking to make some of the highest runes you are simply wasting your time collecting any of the lower runes.