Rune Arc in Elden Ring explained: How to farm, locations, more

Joaquín Frere
Rune Arc in Elden Ring.

Elden Ring is full of different items with different effects, so with so many roaming around your inventory, things can definitely get confusing. Rune Arc is an item that can’t be looked over, and here’s why.

The Lands Between in Elden Ring is a vast map, and every nook and cranny contains an item to be picked up. Some of these, like the Rune Arc item, won’t make sense at first, but they become one of the most useful items in the late game.

To start using the Rune Arc item, you need to defeat your first major boss, but even if you obtain one before, here’s all you need to know about them in Elden Ring.

Contents

What is Rune Arc in Elden Ring?

The Rune Arc item in Elden Ring is a consumable item that activates the effect of the equipped Great Rune. If you die in battle, you will lose the Rune Arc bonus and will need to consume one again.

Players can only use Rune Arcs offline or if they are the host of a multiplayer session. You can’t craft these, but players can obtain them in the open world and buy them from certain merchants.

Rune Arc item in Elden Ring's inventory.
The Rune Arc item in Elden Ring is used to grant the player the blessing of the equipped Great Rune.

The dormant power of the Elden Ring Bosses lies within the Great Runes, and once activated using the Rune Arc item, they grant different powers and bonuses to the Tarnished.

Rune Arc in Elden Ring locations

Rune Arcs can be found all along The Lands Between and its dungeons, but these two methods are the easiest ones to get one:

  • You will obtain a Rune Arc as a reward once you complete a multiplayer coop objective, such as killing a boss.
  • Giant Rats drop them, but it’s drop-rate is fairly low.

Besides that, here are some locations where you can obtain the Rune Arc item early:

  • Academy Crystal Cave: Enter the room protected by a Great Sage and open the chest to find the Rune Arc.
  • Unsightly Catacombs: Turn left from where you pull the lever to unlock the door, where a Rune Arc can be found on a corpse in the corridor.
  • Village of the Albinaurics: After fighting Omenkiller, turn right and you will find a Rune Arc at the end of the path.
  • Road’s End Catacombs: In the room with the boss’ door lever, drop down one level and hit the wall under the arch in the back. Move closer to the stairs to reveal a hidden corridor, and the Rune Arc is found on a corpse on the right.
  • Altus Tunnel: In the first cavern past the Site of Grace, head through the door on the right to find the Run Arc in a chest.
  • Caria Manor: The Rune Arc is found on a corpse in the upper walkways of the gardens, to the east.
  • Liurnia of the Lakes: The first one is found on a body, past the Nomadic Merchant, and some big stones near the edge of the cliff. The second is on a corpse inside a large enemy outpost, west of The Four Belfries, and the last is behind the Slumbering Wolf’s Shack.
  • Fort Gael: The Rune Arc is on the corpse in the courtyard with the Lion Guardian.
  • Sealed Tunnel: On a dead body at the bottom level of the chamber with an Abductor Virgin enemy.
  • Spiritcaller’s Cave: In one of the set of three corpses inside a small cave opening.
  • Castle Sol: The Rune Arc is located on a corpse by a campfire atop the building south of the courtyard.
  • Castle Morne: Defeat and loot the Giant Rat.
  • Leyndell Royal Capital: Climb the dragon’s “wing” and once on top, jump to the room below, where the Rune Arc is located.
  • Leyndell Royal Capital: Inside the Fortified Manor, at the table with the swords on top.
  • Consecrated Snowfield: Rune Arc is found on a chest by a cliff next to Albinauric Rise.

These are not the only locations where Rune Arcs can be found, as they appear across multiple places along The Lands Between, but since some of them are fixed, we listed the ones you will find by following Elden Ring’s main quest.

Here’s where you can buy Rune Arcs in Elden Ring:

  • Nomadic Merchant in northern Liurnia of the Lakes
  • Twin Maiden Husks at the Roundtable Hold
  • Hermit Merchants located in eastern Mountaintops of the Giant
  • Hermit Merchant’s Shack
  • Imprisoned Merchant inside the Mohgwyn Dynasty Mausoleum

How to farm Rune Arc in Elden Ring: Best locations

To farm the Rune Arc item in Elden Ring, players must defeat Giant Rats in certain locations that are near a Site of Grace, where you can reset those spawns easily.

The best locations to farm Rune Arcs in Elden Ring are:

  • Earthbore Cave: You will find seven small and one large Giant Rat here, where you can kill them in under a minute and reset at the nearest Site of Grace.
  • The Rampart Gaol (Castle Morne): In here, players will find 4 Giant Rats that can be farmed in under a minute as well, resetting their spawns in the nearest Site of Grace.

You can only hold 99 Rune Arcs at the same time, but store up to 600 in the game’s Storage, so keep this in mind when farming.

And that was all you need to know about the Rune Arc item in Elden Ring! For more on From Software’s latest Soulslike, check out the rest of our content:

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