Runes are both the money and the experience points of Elden Ring. You spend them to level up at a Site of Grace and to buy from merchants, and you lose them all when you die, with exactly one chance to go back and pick them up.
How you get runes
Every enemy you defeat gives you runes, and bosses give a lot. You will also find runes as items: the Golden Runes, which you can use for a fixed amount or sell to merchants for the same amount. They come in many sizes, from Golden Rune [1] up through the Numen’s Rune, the Hero’s Runes and finally the Lord’s Rune, the largest of them. Remembrances can also be consumed for a large sum.
Dying and getting your runes back
When you die, every rune you are carrying drops where you fell. The spot is marked on your compass and map. Reach it and touch the glowing marker to get everything back. Die again on the way and that first pile is gone for good, replaced by whatever you were carrying the second time.
A few habits keep losses low:
- Keep Golden Runes as items until you actually need to spend them. Golden Runes and other rune items are not lost on death, only the runes in your counter.
- Equip a Sacrificial Twig before a risky fight. If you die, the twig breaks instead and you keep your runes.
- Evergaols are safe places to practice: if you die inside one, your runes wait at the evergaol entrance, so the walk back is short.
- Stakes of Marika let you respawn close to where you died, which makes recovering runes much easier.
Earning more runes
Several items raise how many runes you get from kills. The Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot is a consumable boost, the Golden Horn Tender works the same way, and the Gold Scarab talisman gives a permanent bonus while equipped. In multiplayer there is also a bonus multiplier when someone with the same password defeats a shardbearer or becomes Elden Lord.
Big rune rewards from bosses
Bosses scale hugely through the game. Here are some of the larger rewards in the base game on a first playthrough.
| Boss | Runes (NG) | Runes (NG+) |
|---|---|---|
| Margit, the Fell Omen | 12,000 | 60,000 |
| Godrick the Grafted | 15,000 | 80,000 |
| Rennala, Queen of the Full Moon | 40,000 | 120,000 |
| Starscourge Radahn | 70,000 | 210,000 |
| Morgott, the Omen King | 120,000 | 360,000 |
| Rykard, Lord of Blasphemy | 130,000 | – |
| Godskin Duo | 170,000 | 340,000 |
| Fire Giant | 180,000 | – |
| Maliketh, the Black Blade | 220,000 | 484,000 |
| Dragonlord Placidusax | 280,000 | 560,000 |
| Godfrey, First Elden Lord | 300,000 | 600,000 |
| Mohg, Lord of Blood | 420,000 | 840,000 |
| Malenia, Blade of Miquella | 480,000 | 960,000 |
| Elden Beast | 500,000 | 1,000,000 |
Early on, smaller fights add up too. The Soldier of Godrick gives 400, the Tree Sentinel 3,200 and Flying Dragon Agheel 5,000.
Runes go straight into your character’s power, so it is worth reading the Stats section before deciding where to put them.