A new guide from Destructoid breaks down the rune system in DragonSword: Awakening, a gacha RPG, explaining what each of the five rune types does and how players can unlock and equip them to strengthen their heroes. The guide addresses a gap in the game's own tutorials, which do not clearly explain rune effects before players start collecting them, helping newcomers avoid wasted resources when building their characters.

Runes are earned as raid rewards and come in five rarities (Damaged, Intact, Refined, Radiant and Perfect), with random variation affecting their power regardless of rarity. The five types are Resolve (attack), Guardian (defence), Vitality (max HP), Concentration (critical hit chance) and Amplification (critical damage), with Resolve and Amplification generally considered the strongest choices. Runes can only be equipped on 4-star or better gear after unlocking a slot using an Anonymous Artisan's Crafting Tool, obtainable through raids, story progress, specific dungeons or the Exchange shop for 100 Adventurer's Emblems; runes can also be swapped or removed for 10,000 gold without being destroyed.