Runestones are gear items in The Witcher 3 that can provide various buffs to your swords to give you a slight edge in combat. Every little bit helps you fight monsters so runestones combined with weapon enhancements like weapon oils will help you easily slay monsters in The Witcher 3 Wild Hunt.
If you trying to figure out how runestones work in TW3 and where you can find all the crafting diagrams to make higher quality runestones, let us help you out.
How runestones work
In The Witcher 3, Runestones can be socketed to Silver or Steel Sword to acquire increased weapon damage or a permanent enchantment. However, one thing to remember before infusing a Runestone into a sword is that you cannot remove it once it’s infused. You have to destroy the weapon to remove it.
Runestones have three tiers in the Witcher 3.
- Lesser: The first and lowest tier of runestone is the Lesser tier. The lowest tier of the runestones only increases the effect by 2%.
- Basic: After that, the second-tier runestones have is Basic. Basic is the mid-tier of runestones which increases the effectiveness of a weapon by 3%.
- Greater: The last and the highest tier of the runestones is Greater. The greater runestones will increase the effectiveness of a weapon by 5% in TW3.
Where to get runestone diagrams in The Witcher 3
Like the three tiers, there are three ways to get Runestones in the Witcher 3, and we will discuss them separately.
Purchasing from blacksmith
The first and easiest way of getting runestones in The Witcher 3 is to find different armorers, and blacksmiths in the game and pay them to get the runestone. Going to other merchants in the game is not worth it, so just head to the blacksmiths and armorers to purchase the runestones.
If you want to save yourself some time and have ample gold to spend, buying runestone diagrams is the quickest and easiest way to upgrade runestones in The Witcher 3.
Treasure chests and quests
You will find different treasure hunt quests and chests as you progress through the game. There is a high probability of finding some runestones in them if you explore the surrounding areas.
Crafting runestones using diagrams
The last method you can use to get some runestones in TW3 Wild Hunt is crafting them using the diagrams. Crafting runestones in The Witcher 3 is quite similar to weapon crafting.
All you have to do is get its diagram, head to the blacksmith, and get a runestone crafted. The only difference you will find is the diagrams for the runestones are not available at different places, and you have to buy them from various merchants.
Crafting always starts from the lesser variant of the runestones. If you want a basic runestone, you will need two lesser runestones to craft it. After that, for crafting the highest tier greater runestone, you will need two basic runestones.
Now that you know complete details about runestones in The Witcher 3, let’s talk about all the runestones, their recipes, their effect, and the merchants who sell them.
How to use runestones
As you know, sockets on your weapon allow you to infuse the runestones to buff different effects in The Witcher 3. The best way to use the runestones is by determining the use of the sword. You must shortlist the enemies you will use the blade against before socketing the runestones to get the most out of the weapon.
In this way, you can deal more damage to the enemies. For example, if you are fighting enemies that are weak against fire, then using the greater Dazhog runestone is the best option you have in TW3. Just like that, shortlist the runestones by looking at their effect and the enemies you face.
Runestones diagram locations and effects
| Runestone | Effect | Recipe | Merchant |
| Lesser Dazhbog Runestone | +2% Burning | 1x Runestone lesser + 1x Amber dust | Keira Metz and Quartermaster at the Nilfgaardian Camp |
| Greater Dazhbog Runestone | 5% Chance to cause burning | 3x Rune dazhbog lesser | Eibhear Hatori and Keira Metz |
| Lesser Chernobog Runestone | +2% Damage Reflection | 1x Runestone lesser + 1x Monstrous essence | Keira Metz and Quartermaster at the Nilfgaardian Camp |
| Greater Chernobog Runestone | +5% Damage Reflection | 3x Rune elemental lesser | Eibhear Hatori and Keira Metz |
| Lesser Stribog Runestone | +2% Stagger | 1x Runestone lesser + 1x Amethyst dust | Keira Metz and Quartermaster at the Nilfgaardian Camp |
| Greater Stribog Runestone | +5% Stagger | 3x Rune stribog lesser | Eibhear Hatori and Keira Metz |
| Lesser Svarog Runestone | +10 Armor Reduction | 1x Runestone lesser + 1x Monstrous saliva | Keira Metz and Quartermaster at the Nilfgaardian Camp |
| Greater Svarog Runestone | +30 Armor Reduction | 3x Rune svarog lesser | Eibhear Hatori and Keira Metz |
| Lesser Triglav Runestone | +2% Confuse | 1x Runestone lesser + 1x Diamond dust | Keira Metz and Quartermaster at the Nilfgaardian Camp |
| Greater Triglav Runestone | +5% Confuse | 3x Rune triglav lesser | Eibhear Hatori and Keira Metz |
| Lesser Perun Runestone | +2% Adrenaline Gain | 1x Runestone lesser + 1x Monstrous brain | Keira Metz and Quartermaster at the Nilfgaardian Camp |
| Greater Perun Runestone | +5% Adrenaline Gain | 3x Rune perun lesser | Eibhear Hatori and Keira Metz |
| Lesser Veles Runestone | +2% Spell Power | 1x Runestone lesser + 1x Monstrous dust | Keira Metz and Quartermaster at the Nilfgaardian Camp |
| Greater Veles Runestone | +2% Spell Power | 3x Rune veles lesser | Eibhear Hatori and Keira Metz |
| Lesser Morana Runestone | +2% Poison | 1x Runestone lesser + 1x Emerald dust | Keira Metz and Quartermaster at the Nilfgaardian Camp |
| Greater Morana Runestone | +5% Chance to cause poison | 3x Rune morana lesser | Eibhear Hatori and Keira Metz |
| Lesser Zoria Runestone | +2% Freeze | 1x Runestone lesser + 1x Sapphire dust | Keira Metz and Quartermaster at the Nilfgaardian Camp |
| Greater Zoria Runestone | +5% Freeze | 3x Rune zoria lesser | Eibhear Hatori and Keira Metz |
| Lesser Devana Runestone | +2% Bleed | 1x Runestone lesser + 1x Ruby dust | Keira Metz and Quartermaster at the Nilfgaardian Camp |
| Greater Devana Runestone | +5% Bleed | 3x Rune devana lesser | Eibhear Hatori and Keira Metz |
| Pyerog Runestone | No effect just used in the crafting of “Dumplings runeword” | N/A | N/A |
| Tvarog Runestone | No effect just used in the crafting of “Dumplings runeword” | N/A | N/A |
