Summary
Assassin’s Creed Valhallafeatures many exciting mechanics that allow players to refine their combat builds and stick to their preferred weapon types or skills. What’s great about weapons inValhallais that everything can be upgraded in different ways, whether it is directly leveling up gear stats with resources such as iron ore or titanium, enhancing a weapon’s quality with rare resources such asNickel or Tungsteningots, orsocketing up to three runes in every weapon. Runes are obtainable by exploring and looting, buying from merchants, earning as rewards from quests, or taking down important targets.
There areplenty of runes with different bonusesinAssassin’s Creed Valhalla, ranging from minor to great, allowing players to pick combat traits for their preferred playstyle. What’s more, players can put runes into weapons, or take them out, at any point in the game without any trouble. Finally, there are two different rune types in the game: round runes (more common, granting number boosts to stats) and diamond runes (more rare, granting special perks). Note that this list doesn’t include special Odin runesfrom theDawn of Ragnarökexpansion.While extremely powerful, the runes from that DLC are focused on unique powers and skills that are only available in the expansion, and won’t have any effect on the rest ofAssassin’s Creed Valhalla, so there’s little reason to include them here.
Updated July 20, 2025 by Vlad Mazanko:Following the delay ofAssassin’s Creed Shadows, fans of the series might want to revisit older entries like Assassin’s Creed Valhalla as they await the next major chapter in the franchise.
Years after its release, Valhalla remains one of the most expansive open-world action RPGs in the series, offering depth in both character development and gear progression. The latest update has expanded the list of valuable weapon runes, which can be particularly useful in different combat scenarios.
1Critical Spark Rune
Ignite Player Weapon After Critical Hits
TheCritical Spark Runeis one of the greatest diamond runes inAssassin’s Creed Valhallafor two-handed heavy weapons,such as Excaliburor Moonlight. After delivering critical hits, this rune will set the weapon on fire for some time, allowing Eivor to deal additional fire damage to enemies and ignite them for maximum chaos.
Naturally, players want to keep an eye on their critical hit chance stat for this rune to be the most effective. Runes of Finesse might be a great way to complement such pyromancer builds inAssassin’s Creed Valhalla, resulting in significant fire damage bonuses after the first weapon swings in every battle.
2Chained Blunt Rune
Increase Stun After Each Hit Up To Ten Times
TheChained Blunt Runeis a great diamond rune for players who prefer blunt weapons like hammers and maces inAssassin’s Creed Valhalla, such as Thor’s Hammer,the legendary Mjölnir.What’s great about blunt weapons is that they can stun enemies, allowing players to perform finishers and deal massive damage, often killing the target outright.
The Chained Blunt rune increases stun after each successful hit, which stacks up to ten times, allowing Eivor to perform finishers more often. With additional skills and extra bonuses like Great Blunt runes (+5.0 Stun) socketed into their weapons, players can potentially stun most enemies in just a couple of hits to quickly put them down effortlessly.
3Critical Knockdown Rune
Heavy Critical Hits Knock Enemies To The Ground
TheCritical Knockdown Runeis one of the most fun diamond runes to use, especially if players prefer huge two-handed weapons inAssassin’s Creed Valhalla. With every heavy critical hit, the weapon with this rune equipped will knock enemies down, allowing players to deal additional damage, stomp them, or even instantly execute them. This works with most human enemies in the game, and it is really fun to just throw everyone aroundlike a true Viking, making them helpless and harmless, lying around and waiting for Eivor to finish them off.
The Critical Knockdown rune could greatly benefit from Great Finesse runes, which increase the player’s critical hit chance. Additionally, some passive skills can further enhance its potential.
4Great Rune Of Finesse
+10.0 Critical Chance
TheGreat Rune of Finesseis a common round rune that is highly recommended for a wide range of builds inAssassin’s Creed Valhalla. Many combat skills, abilities, and perks greatly benefit from a high critical chance, so there is no reason not to want this stat as high as possible, regardless of the weapon players prefer in the game.
If they’re lucky enough to find more than one, players can socket up to two Great Runes of Finesse into one weapon, delivering extra damage on almost every swing and taking advantage of rune effects like Critical Knockdown or Critical Spark.
5Great Headhunter Rune
+2.3 Headshot Damage
TheGreat Headhunter Runeis a common round rune that is probably best to use on bows inAssassin’s Creed Valhalla. Headshots are already powerful enough in the game, but combining the Great Headhunter Rune with predator bows like Petra’s Arc, Needler, or Bullseye for maximum damage could be lethal for almost every enemy that players might want to eliminate from afar.
Using the Great Headhunter Rune is invaluable for clearing Assassination Contracts without alerting unwanted enemies. Just find the target, deliver a swift and deadly headshot without even entering the camp, or keep shooting until every enemy is down.
6Great Rune Of Tactics
+7.0 Ability Damage
TheGreat Rune of Tacticsis another common round rune that is extremely versatile and can complement almost any combat build inAssassin’s Creed Valhalla. Dealing additional damage with Eivor’s various abilities is something that every player can benefit from, especially since they can socket up to two such runes in one weapon for some impressive damage numbers.
Compatible with every weapon, even bows, the Great Rune of Tactics ensures abilities are fine-tuned to their maximum potential. Players can quickly deal serious damage to some of the game’s most dangerous bosses, like the Daughters of Lerion witches.
7Rune Of Haste And Finesse
+1.3 Speed, + 6.0 Critical Chance
TheRune of Haste and Finesseis a hybrid round rune available only to players who haveThe Siege of Parisexpansion installed. In Francia, players can obtain various hybrid runes that grant multiple bonuses from the base round runes. This rune, in particular, is one of the most useful of its type, not only granting increased critical hit chance but also speeding up Eivor’s attacks regardless of the weapon used.
While it is arguably more useful to stick to the Runes of Finesse for better critical chance, some players might prefer to socket as many bonuses as possible into their gear, which is also a valid approach to combat inAssassin’s Creed Valhalla.
8Shadow And Assassin Rune
+5.6 Stealth, +2.0 Assassination Damage
WhileAssassin’s Creed Valhallaisn’t as stealth-focused as some of the earlier titles, players still have the option to pursue a true assassin playthrough. For those interested in staying in the shadows, theShadow and Assassin Runeis a must-have. This hybrid rune boosts two of the most important stats for stealth-focused players, allowing Eivor to remain undetected while dealing increased damage from stealth.
Since it’s a hybrid rune, the Shadow and Assassin Rune requiresThe Siege of ParisDLC to access. Its rarity makes it especially valuable, as players won’t find many hybrid runes throughout the game. However, nothing stops players from using individual Shadow and Assassin runes, equipping them in multiple armor slots to achieve a similar boost in stealth and assassination effectiveness. This strategy allows for more flexibility when customizing builds for a stealth-oriented Viking warrior.
9Curative Perfection Rune
Restore A Low Amount Of Health For Each Critical Hit
Another powerful and fun rune inAssassin’s Creed Valhallais theCurative Perfection Rune, which can turn Eivor into a battle-thirsty berserker. With every critical hit in combat, a small amount of health is restored, allowing players to stay in the heat of battle longer without needing to use Rations for healing. This makes it particularly effective during long or intense encounters.
For the best results, players should focus on boosting their critical hit chance. The Great Runes of Finesse are especially handy when paired with the Curative Perfection Rune, as they increase the likelihood of landing critical hits. Additionally, passive abilities that further enhance critical hit chances can open up exciting possibilities for character builds, allowing players to activate multiple special abilities from various weapon runes.
10Expert Range Rune
Increase Attack The Further Players Are From An Enemy
On the ranged side, theExpert Range Runeis invaluable for players who rely on ranged attacks, particularly with predator bows — the most effective bows for long-distance sniping. This rune increases damage the farther Eivor is from an enemy, enabling deadly shots from a distance, perfect for clearing out enemy guards in watchtowers or taking down enemies without getting too close.
To maximize its effectiveness, players should pair the Expert Range Rune with Great Headhunter Runes, level up their ranged passive skills, and equip the predator bow with the highest damage output available. With this setup, most enemies can be taken out in a single shot, and even elite bosses can have their health significantly reduced with a well-placed headshot.
