Practitioners of Runelore, namely members of the Shaman and Runewarden classes, possess the ability to sketch various runes on themselves, other people, the ground, totems, weapons, and armour. By doing so, a variety of desired beneficial or harmful effects can be achieved.
History
Legend states that Ayar Himself once stood upon a branch of the World Tree and etched the original twenty-nine runes of Runelore. Sometime later this branch was cut off, however, and the tree itself began to decay, causing five of the original runes to be lost.
The brothers Tithian and Phineus, House tutors to the Spirit Walkers and the Wardens of the Cerulean Spire respectively, found a way to hold the decay at bay with a seal. The seal was broken in two and held by the tutors until recent times, when a malevolent spirit attacked them both and stole the protective shards. The World Tree once again began to decay, along with it the various runic abilities within Runelore.
Using remnants of a lullaby sung to the brothers when they were children as clues, adventurers discovered a way to reforge the fallen branch and halt the decay of Yggdrasil. Through the collective efforts of Shamans and Runewardens, the names of the runes were painstakingly re-etched upon the tree, restoring power to all of the runes once again, including the five runes previously lost to mortalkind.
Rune List
The following is a list of all the runes currently accessible to users of Runelore:
| Rune | Effect | Appearance |
| Kena | inspires fear | nightmare |
| Uruz | heals allies | lightning bolt |
| Fehu | causes sleeping urges | closed eye |
| Pithakhan | attacks mental reserves | square box |
| Jera | increases vitality | oak |
| Inguz | paralyses enemies | stick man |
| Wunjo | returns an enemy’s sight | open eye |
| Lagul | increases the ability of a weapon to connect | dirk |
| Sowulu | damages the health of enemies | nail |
| Algiz | protects from damage | elk |
| Isaz | calls forth shockwaves | flurry of lightning bolts |
| Dagaz | heals afflictions at random | rising sun |
| Gebu | increases the blunt protection of armour | shield |
| Gebo | increases the cutting protection of armour | chain |
| Gular | raises a stone wall | |
| Raido | summons a spirit steed | horse |
| Thurisaz | calls forth a spout of molten lava | volcano |
| Lagua | increases a weapon’s damage | large hammer |
| Hugalaz | calls down a hailstorm | ball of ice |
| Nauthiz | sucks the nourishment from foes | leech |
| Mannaz | returns hearing | bell |
| Othala | besieges enemies with spouts of lava | mountain range |
| Sleizak | afflicts foes with voyria poison | viper |
| Tiwaz | removes the defences of enemies | upward-pointing arrow |
| Berkana | provides health regeneration | lion |
| Nairat | beguiles and transfixes enemies | butterfly |
| Eihwaz | dampens vibrations | |
| Laguz | makes a weapon magically faster | long slim blade |
| Loshre | afflicts enemies with anorexia | apple core |