One of the ways you’ll be able to customize the eponymous heroine in Valkyrie Elysium is through the use of Runes. These items serve as collectible stat modifiers and can make your life a lot easier as the game progresses, providing you know where to find them all. That’s where this guide comes in.
You’ll start gathering Runes pretty much from the start, but they can only be equipped to weapons that are Level 5 or higher. This is done by turning the gems dropped by enemies in at a save point. At weapon Level 10, you’ll get a second Rune slot, too.
At normal difficulty, it’s recommended to focus on damage output: during my run through the campaign, there were more than enough gemstones dropped by the hordes and hordes of enemies to keep the defensive branch of the skill tree sufficiently leveled. This should be plenty adequate to keep you in the fight – and let’s face it, shredding through crowds of lost souls is much more exciting than taking an extra hit.
A good synergy on your two equipped weapons, once they’re both at Level 10, is to have one that’s centered on physical boost and one centered on magic boost. If you pair a physical boost Rune with a soul gauge boost, you can lean on your Einherjar a little more to get your elemental damage going. Conversely, pair a magic boost with an arts gauge boost to keep spamming spells. Keep switching up between the two, and you’ll tear through basically anything the game throws at you.
With that said, here’s how to find all of Valkyrie Elysium’s Runes.
All Rune Locations
Attack Boost Runes
- Physical Attack Boost I
- Modifier: Increases physical attack by 30.
- Location: Chapter 3. On the critical path. You won’t miss it.
- Physical Attack Boost II
- Modifier: Increases physical attack by 50.
- Location: Chapter 7. When you pick up the Palace Key, turn around and drop down the hole in the floor to your right.
- Physical Attack Boost III
- Modifier: Increases physical attack by 100.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “Midgardian Studies (3).”
- Magic Attack Boost I
- Modifier: Increases magic attack by 15.
- Location: Replay Chapter 1 after recruiting Eygon, and use him to break the wall at the top of the circular room full of chains.
- Magic Attack Boost II
- Modifier: Increases magic attack by 25.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “O’ Mine Beloved Land.”
- Magic Attack Boost III
- Modifier: Increases magic attack by 50.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “Advice for Cypher.”
Damage Reduction Runes
- Physical Damage Reduction I
- Modifier: Reduces physical damage received by 2%.
- Location: Chapter 3. In the auditorium at the northernmost point on the map.
- Physical Damage Reduction II
- Modifier: Reduces physical damage received by 4%.
- Location: Chapter 6. Up a flight of wooden stairs amongst some broken buildings near the westernmost save point.
- Physical Damage Reduction III
- Modifier: Reduces physical damage received by 6%.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “Midgardian Studies (1).”
- Magic Damage Reduction I
- Modifier: Reduces magic damage received by 4%.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “My Hometown.”
- Magic Damage Reduction II
- Modifier: Reduces magic damage received by 8%.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “The Unfinished Masterpiece.”
- Magic Damage Reduction III
- Modifier: Reduces magic damage received by 12%.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “Training Duel with Eygon.”
Restoration Runes
- Soul Gauge Restoration Boost I
- Modifier: Increases soul gauge restoration rate by 10%.
- Location: Chapter 5. Along the eastern wall in the central building, in the middle of the circular section of the map.
- Soul Gauge Restoration Boost II
- Modifier: Increases soul gauge restoration rate by 15%.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “Village Request (2).”
- Soul Gauge Restoration Boost III
- Modifier: Increases soul gauge restoration rate by 20%.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “A Bout with Kristoffer.”
- Arts Gauge Restoration Boost I
- Modifier: Increases arts gauge restoration rate by 3%.
- Location: Chapter 4. After taking the wooden elevator down, go down a further two floors until you find a room full of enemies guarding a chest.
- Arts Gauge Restoration Boost II
- Modifier: Increases arts gauge restoration rate by 4%.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “Village Request (1).”
- Arts Gauge Restoration Boost III
- Modifier: Increases arts gauge restoration rate by 5%.
- Location: Completion reward for subquest “Combat Training for Taika.”
Now that you know where to find all of the runes in Valkyrie Elysium, you’ll be able to take on anything the game throws at you. For more, head over to our VE guides hub.
