There are three Rune Tablets that you will be able to find at different locations in Lords of the Fallen. You can hand over each of these to an NPC blacksmith called Gerlinde. Your first interaction with her will be at the prison cell near the Ballroom Vestige.
You need to free her from the prison cell. After this, she will change her location, and you will find her in the Skyrest Area. There, she will offer her services as a Blacksmith to upgrade your weapons, shields, etc.
Keep in mind that with each Rune Tablet you discover, you can visit Gerlinde and hand it over to her. This will unlock the first rune slot, and you will be able to socket runes to your weapons.
Giving her the second Rune Tablet will unlock the second rune slot of upgraded items for your character as well. Lastly, the third Rune Tablet will also earn you a valuable reward if you give it to Gerlinde.
Finding the Rune Tablets in Lords of the Fallen is not easy, as it will involve a lot of exploration. Lucky for you, I have addressed the locations of all three Rune Tablets in this LOTF guide. Once you acquire all the tablets, you can stick around to see which choice will be more beneficial for you.
Cracked Rune Tablet location
In order to find it, you will need to travel directly to the Vestige of the Pale Butcher. Once you reach that vestige, you can head left from there and move onwards until you get to a cave.
Enter it and then follow the tunnel. Once you reach an opening, you can continue forward and run past the enemy hounds. You will reach Fitzroy’s Gorge area, so keep heading down that pathway in LOTF. This way, you will come across a small steel gate.
You can proceed to use the Umbral Lamp to cross this gate. Then, you can continue down the tunnel and avoid fighting enemies along the way.
You will also come across another gate, so use your umbral lamp to get past it as well. Then, you can take a right and find a body with Fitzroy’s Sword.
Go to the left side and then enter the Umbral realm in Lords of the Fallen. Here, dodge the enemy attacks and then take a right turn towards the tunnel. You can then drop down to the lower levels, and near the ledge, you will find the Cracked Rune Tablet.
Chipped Rune Tablet location
To get the Chipped Rune tablet in Lords of the Fallen, you must start from the Vestige of Doln. You can go right from this vestige and follow the path to the end. Turn left from the end and head straight.
Once you reach the ledge near the broken pillars, you can proceed to jump down from that point. Then, you can run past the big tree and dodge the enemies present in that area. There is also a saintly quintessence in the umbrella next to that big tree, so it shouldn’t be too hard to spot in Lords of the Fallen.
You can then take a right and drop towards the door, which will be closed in the beginning. Now, you can open it and move forward. Go down the stairs, and you will see a large fireplace, and in that fireplace will be the Chipped Rune Tablet. You can walk to it and collect this tablet in Lords of the Fallen.
After you acquire the Chipped Rune Tablet, you can benefit from this item as well. All you need to do is to bring it to an NPC blacksmith called Gerlinda. Once you give her this rune tablet, you will be able to unlock the second rune slot of upgraded items.
Rune Tablet location in LOTF
For the final Rune Tablet, you will have to fast-travel to the Vestige of Rosamund and go to the Abbey of the Hallowed Sisters. You will have to go down the main supply pathway and make your way to the Tower of Penance. There will be a boss fight with the Blessed Carrion Knight Sanisho in LOFT.
After that, you can go around to the back side of the tower and access the elevator there. It will take you to the upper levels, so you can enter Umbral and then carefully jump towards the other side. Then, you can climb down the ladder and jump down to reach the lower levels.
You will need to do this multiple times, and after reaching the lowest level, you can go around that place towards the right side, and at the end, you will discover a chest. Open that large chest, and the Rune Tablet will be yours.
Who should you give the last Rune tablet in Lords of the Fallen?
Once you have all three tablets in your possession, you will also have the choice to give the Rune Tablet (the last one) to Gerlinde or Sparky. Here, you must be confused about whom to choose. But worry not as I will tell you about the rewards each of them offers so can decide easily.
Hand over the Last Rune Tablet to Gerlinde
If you give the Rune Tablet to Gerlinde in LOTF, then you will get the Crafters’s Essence Rune. The benefits of equipping this particular Rune will be associated more with the weight and requirements of your weapons or shield as it will decrease that aspect to zero.
In short, you will be able to socket the Rune into a weapon, and that particular weapon won’t have weight or any stat requirement, which is pretty massive for you.
The Crafter’s Essence Rune is shaped like a diamond, so it needs to be socketed into certain items only in Lords of the Fallen. This can include weapons and shields such as Rosamund’s Sword, Bell Staff, Trinity Shield, etc.
You will also need to reach Tier 2 and Level 3 upgrades on these items if you want to socket the Crafter’s Essence Rune to your preferred item.
Moreover, Gerlinde will be pleased over this action so that you can leave, rest at a vestige, and then come back to meet her. This time, you will observe that Sparky, who was present on the right side, has disappeared in Lords of the Fallen.
Give Rune Tablet to Sparky
You will also have the option to hand over the (last) Rune Tablet to another NPC called Sparky. However, things won’t go too smoothly for you if you do this deed in Lords of the Fallen. Sparky desires the last Rune in exchange for his freedom, so it would be a good thing to hand it over to him. This way, you will be able to upgrade your weapons and socket runes from any vestige in LOTF.
On the other hand, this won’t sit well with Gerlinda, and she will not be pleased with your action as you didn’t follow her quest. Sparky will disappear, and if you’re going to purchase something from Gerlinda, you will notice that all the items in her inventory will have double the price.
Keep in mind that the choice you make here will not affect your main game story in Lords of the Fallen. Sparky will disappear in both cases if you hand him the Rune Tablet of Not.
That being said, in my opinion, you should hand over the last (Rune) Tablet to Gerlinde. This way, you will have access to more unique items and benefits and one of the runes that you get from Gerlinda is extremely good. Lastly, you will also get slightly discounted prices at her store in Lords of the Fallen.
