Runes are special upgrades applicable to special slots in weapons in Dragon Age: Inquisition. For some runes, rune tier: Normal, Master, Superb, do not always appear in the same location. If you find your first lightning rune in a higher level area then backtrack to a lower level area and find another, the latter rune will be of higher tier. For this reason it's best to remember that if you're looking for superb you'll need to find all three locations in any order.
Demon-Slaying, Dragon-Slaying, Corrupting and Cleansing runes do not have a tier acquisition system and you will find precisely the tier listed at their respective locations. However, two of the runes (Superb Corrupting and Superb Dragon-Slaying) switch their respective position depending on which party of the mage-templar war was chosen.
The list below shows the location of the Schematics for each rune, not runes themselves found within the game. Once the Schematic has been acquired, one can produce Runes of that quality/type at will, providing you have the materials necessary. Runes can be crafted before even reaching Skyhold or meeting Dagna, but you must complete either "In Hushed Whispers" or "Champions of the Just" as this is required to spawn the first merchant (Havel) that sells blank rune stones.
All runes raise the basic attack power of a weapon for a specific amount, dependant on if it is an elemental or "slaying" rune and the rune's tier; elemental runes do not raise the attack power of a weapon as much as slayer runes, but allow preying on elemental weaknesses, and superb runes naturally have more power than lower tiers.
To see which materials are needed for each rune, please see the Rune Crafting Materials page.
Note: You CANNOT get Runes back once slotted, so do so wisely. Also, runes can be overwritten by other runes, if you decide later you wish to add a better or different rune.
Runes
Cleansing Runes
Cleansing Rune
Effect: Inflicts +20 bonus damage against Red Templars and Darkspawn on each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Corpse Heart
Restriction: None
Location: The Fallow Mire – In a chest inside a house in The Misty Grove.
Master Cleansing Rune
Effect: Inflicts +32 bonus damage against Red Templars and Darkspawn on each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Arcane Horror Heart
Restriction: None
Location: The Western Approach – The Still Ruins. Kill Lucanus, leader of the Venatori expedition in the ruins and loot it from his corpse, along with a key stone for the ruins.
Superb Cleansing Rune
Effect: Inflicts +50 bonus damage against Red Templars and Darkspawn on each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Revenant Heart
Restriction: None
Location: Emprise Du Lion – Sold by Suledin Keep Merchant
Corrupting Runes
Corrupting Rune
Effect: Inflicts +20 bonus damage against humanoids, beasts, and animals on each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Red Lyrium
Restriction: None
Location: Skyhold – Given to you by the Arcanist in the Undercroft of Skyhold after completing Acquire the Arcanist War Table Operation.
Master Corrupting Rune
Effect: Inflicts +32 bonus damage against humanoids, beasts, and animals on each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Intense Red Lyrium
Restriction: None
Location: The Western Approach – Echoback Fort (in a chest)
Superb Corrupting Rune
Effect: Inflicts +50 bonus damage against humanoids, beasts, and animals on each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Pure Red Lyrium
Restriction: None
Location: The Shrine of Dumat (nemesis quest Before The Dawn, sided with mages) – Maddox's Room. On the table at the side of where you find Maddox's lyrium-smithing tools, it can be found in a loot bag, together with another schematic and some cash.
Skyhold – Sold by Bonnie Simms (sided with templars). You must have completed the nemesis quest, Under Her Skin.
Demon-Slaying Runes
Demon-Slaying Rune
Effect: Inflicts +20 bonus damage against Demons and Undead for each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Dragon Blood
Restriction: None
Location: The Fallow Mire – Skyhold – Sold by Bonnie Simms
Master Demon-Slaying Rune
Effect: Inflicts +32 bonus damage against Demons and Undead for each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Intense Dragon Blood
Restriction: None
Location: Sold by Crestwood – Caer Bronach Merchant
Superb Demon-Slaying Rune
Effect: Inflicts +50 bonus damage against Demons and Undead for each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Pure Dragon Blood
Restriction: None
Location: The Hissing Wastes – Sold by Betyar's Canyon Market
Dragon-Slaying Runes
Dragon-Slaying Rune
Effect: Inflicts +20 bonus damage against Dragons on each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Giant Spider Glands
Restriction: None
Location: Skyhold – Sold by Bonnie Simms
Master Dragon-Slaying Rune
Effect: Inflicts +32 bonus damage against Dragons on each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Poison Spider Glands
Restriction: None
Location: Storm Coast – Dragon Island. Defeat the local lightning dragon, the Vinsomer.
Superb Dragon-Slaying Rune
Effect: Inflicts +50 bonus damage against Dragons on each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Wyvern Poison Glands
Restriction: None
Location: The Shrine of Dumat (nemesis quest Under Her Skin, sided with templars) – Lower Level. Found in a loot bag on a table.
Skyhold – Sold by Bonnie Simms (sided with mages). You must have completed the nemesis quest, Before The Dawn.
Fire Runes
Fire Rune
Effect: Adds 10 fire damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Fire Essence
Restriction: Non-staff only
Location: The Hinterlands – Dungeon (cave icon) directly East of Crossroads.
Master Fire Rune
Effect: Adds 16 fire damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Fire Essence
Restriction: Non-staff only
Location: The Western Approach – The Giant's Staircase. Astrarium cave (Underground Cavern) directly east of Craggy Ridge Camp (SE of Griffon Wing Keep). Requires completing Astrariums.
Superb Fire Rune
Effect: Adds 25 fire damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Pure Fire Essence
Restriction: Non-staff only
Location: The Hissing Wastes – Sunstop Mountains. Tomb directly east (up a hill) from Mountain Fortress Camp, first lower level.
Frost Runes
Frost Rune
Effect: Adds 10 cold damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Frost Essence
Restriction: Non-staff only
Location: The Hinterlands – Dungeon in the north-west corner.
Master Frost Rune
Effect: Adds 16 cold damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Intense Frost Essence
Restriction: Non-staff only
Location: Emprise du Lion – At the end of a long tunnel in Sahrnia Quarry. Grab the veil fire at the end and start running back down the tunnel, left side wall in a little alcove. There is no rune on the wall that is visible. (located directly behind the chest in the tunnel)
Superb Frost Rune
Effect: Adds 25 cold damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Pure Frost Essence
Restriction: Non-staff only
Location: The Western Approach – Echoback Fort. The veilfire is in an alcove in the back and the rune is to your left as you enter the cave leading to the astrarium.
Lightning Runes
Lightning Rune
Effect: Adds 10 electricity damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Lightning Essence
Restriction: Non-staff only
Location: The Storm Coast – Lyrium Falls. Get the Veilfire in at the waterfall, the glyph is in the cave leading into Lyrium Falls on the right as you're leaving.
Master Lightning Rune
Effect: Adds 16 electricity damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Intense Lightning Essence
Restriction: Non-staff only
Location: Crestwood – Southern-most cave at the top of the ridge overlooking the lake. Three Trout Farm Camp or Caer Bronach (fort) are the closest fast travel points. The cave entrance is almost directly between those two fast travel points, but very far south of them, near the ruins the Northern Hunter High Dragon calls her home.
Superb Lightning Rune
Effect: Adds 25 electricity damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Pure Lightning Essence
Restriction: Non-staff only
Location: Emerald Graves – Watcher's Canyon. Get the Veilfire in Watcher's Reach and head down the path south, will be on the right side wall.
Spirit Runes
Spirit Rune
Effect: Adds 10 spirit damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Spirit Essence
Restriction: Staff only
Location: The Western Approach – The Still Ruins. Straight through the keystone door, behind the altar
Master Spirit Rune
Effect: Adds 16 spirit damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Intense Spirit Essence
Restriction: Staff only
Location: The Western Approach – Coracavus, Holding Cells. Get the veilfire at the back, and return to the very first holding cell, in the corner behind the stairs. The rune is, for once, on the floor.
Superb Spirit Rune
Effect: Adds 25 spirit damage to each weapon strike.
Materials: 1 Blank Runestone, 6 Pure Spirit Essence
Restriction: Staff only
Location: Cradle of Sulevin – Starlit Chambers, Lower Level. Found behind a "deft hands, fine tools" door (needs Rogue) to the left and behind the altar in the Starlit Chambers.
AnonymousYou have the spirit rune and master spirit rune locations reversed.
- Anonymous
- Anonymous
To clarify the directions, the cave is in the absolute lower right corner of the map. Going by the directions, there is another cave to the northwest of the dragon location that might confuse people.
It is the regular frost rune that you get from the cave at Echoback Fort.
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