Ranks
A ranked rune shimmers, and its name and tooltip give its rank
What it is
Every rune you learn starts at rank I. A higher rank hits harder at the same mana cost, in every spell the rune is threaded in.
| Rank | Power | Mana |
|---|---|---|
| I | as crafted | as crafted |
| II | +25% | the same |
| III | +50% | the same |
Rank III is the top.
How to get it
At the Fusion Altar:
- Put three copies of the same rune, all at the same rank, in the three rune sockets.
- Leave the middle socket empty.
- The panel reads Upgrade. Press Fuse.
| To make | Put in | XP levels | Rank I copies in all |
|---|---|---|---|
| Rank II | 3 rank I runes | 2 | 3 |
| Rank III | 3 rank II runes | 5 | 9 |
From nothing to rank III takes 9 copies and 11 XP levels. You can’t mix ranks.
Where to get copies
- Craft them. See Rune Recipes.
- Buy them from a Runesmith, or earn them from daily contracts.
- Find them in chests and on monsters. Tier IV runes and runes of the world can only be found.
How to use it
Right-click a ranked rune to learn it.
- If you know the rune at a lower rank, it goes up, in every spell and passive it’s in, including Knots.
- If you don’t know it yet, you learn it at that rank.
- A rank never goes down. A copy at your rank or lower can’t be learned and isn’t used up, so keep it for fusing.
How ranks work:
- Power means damage, healing, force and blasts: the things Amplify strengthens.
- Ranks stack with Amplify, Heart Circles, enchantments, charging and gear.
- Effects measured in levels (like Swift’s Speed or Haste) and mining tiers only gain at rank III, by one level or one tier. Damage or healing from the same rune still gets the full bonus.
- Ranks belong to the caster. Whoever casts a spell uses their own ranks. Monsters always cast at rank I.
Which runes can rank
Only effects with power. Shapes, modifiers, links, Knots and innate runes can’t. If Amplify works on a rune, it has ranks.
Of the 55 fused runes, 49 can be ranked. The six that can’t are Glacier, Nullify, Second Wind, Soulbond, Timesteal and Warp.
Tips and counterplay
- Combining keeps the lower rank of the two runes. See Combining.
- The Runesmith only takes plain rank I runes for buybacks and rerolls.
- Heart Circle breakthroughs count runes you know, not ranks.
- A rank III Tier IV rune is a real prize: those can only be found.