Runes that are single can be dropped anywhere in Diablo 2: Resurrected, starting with Normal difficulty, and progressing the Hell difficulty D2R Ladder Items. Runes are items that can be socketed the same as gems. That means you can put them into socketed gear to receive their effects. However, the real value of the rune is when you combine them in a particular order within an item. Runewords, as they're called are among the most powerful items that you can find in the game right between specific items and rares. The full list can be found in the next section.

Runes can also be used in specific Horadric Cube recipes. For instance, you could combine Ral Ral rune with a damaged piece of equipment to fix it. This is an effective method whenever you're low on gold and cannot afford repairs through a vendor.

Runes can also be joined into the Horadric Cube; this is colloquially called "cubing in" and it is an effective method to climb to the next rune with no needing to hunt for this in nature. If, for instance, you possess three El runes and need some Eld runs, you can put the three El runes in the Cube and then press the transmute button. In will pop out one Eld rune. This recipe for upgrading is found on the rune chart in the following.

The quest of Hellforge found within Act 4 will always drop some runes. It often serves as a form of payment to speed up the scene. The Countess's abode, which can be found in the end of the Forgotten Tower in Act 1's Black Marsh, is another excellent source for runes.Because the runes are a set level of rarity that ranges from commonly used (El) through to the most rare (Zod) and are frequently utilized to make up the economy in Diablo 2. El to Lem are generally considered to be low runes. Pul through Gul are typically considered to be mid runes Buy D2R Ladder Items, and Vex from Zod are generally considered high runes. If you spot high or mid runes on your travels, ensure to not part with them quickly!