How to Manage Pathfinder 2e Runes Without the Headache
Your party just found a +2 striking longsword. But your fighter already has a +1 greatsword. How do you transfer those runes? What does it cost? How long does it take?
Published December 16, 2024 • 8 min read
The Problem Every PF2e GM Faces
Pathfinder 2e's rune system is elegant in theory: fundamental runes (potency, striking, resilient) define the core power level, while property runes add special abilities. Players can transfer runes between items, upgrade them as they level, and build exactly the weapon they want.
In practice? You're pausing the game to look up rune pricing tables, calculating item levels, checking which runes are compatible with which items, and trying to remember if that +2 potency rune your cleric wants to transfer to their new staff actually came from the old mace or the found dagger.
Understanding the Rune System
Fundamental Runes
These are the core runes that define item power:
Weapon Runes
- Potency (+1, +2, +3): Attack and damage bonus. Each tier adds +1 to hit and +1 to damage.
- Striking (Striking, Greater Striking, Major Striking): Extra weapon damage dice. Striking adds 1 die, Greater adds 2, Major adds 3.
Armor Runes
- Potency (+1, +2, +3): AC bonus. Each tier adds +1 to AC.
- Resilient (Resilient, Greater Resilient, Major Resilient): Saving throw bonuses. Resilient adds +1 to saves, Greater adds +2, Major adds +3.
Property Runes
These add special abilities like flaming, frost, or ghost touch. Unlike fundamental runes, you can have multiple property runes on a single item (up to 4 on weapons, 3 on armor). The potency rune determines how many property rune slots you have:
- +1 potency = 1 property rune slot
- +2 potency = 2 property rune slots
- +3 potency = 3 property rune slots
- +4 potency (weapons only) = 4 property rune slots
The Manual Way (And Why It's Painful)
Here's what most GMs do when their party wants to transfer runes:
- 1. Look up the rune extraction rules in Core Rulebook page 580-581
- 2. Check the item level of the source item to determine if extraction is possible
- 3. Calculate the extraction cost (varies by rune type and tier)
- 4. Record the runestone in notes somewhere
- 5. When applying to new item: Look up application cost, check compatibility, calculate new item price
- 6. Update item values in your tracking spreadsheet
Reality check: This process takes 5-15 minutes per rune transfer. If your party loots 3 magic items and wants to optimize their loadout, you've just burned 45 minutes of session time on bookkeeping.
The Automated Way
This is where D20 Loot Tracker's rune system comes in. Instead of manual calculations and spreadsheet updates, here's the workflow:
Extracting Runes
- 1. Click "Extract Runes" on the item
- 2. See all available runes with automatic price calculations
- 3. Select which runes to extract (or "Extract All")
- 4. Runestones appear in party inventory with orange hexagon icons
The system automatically handles pricing, creates runestone items, and updates the source item's value.
Applying Runes
- 1. Edit the target item
- 2. Click "Apply Rune" in the rune section
- 3. See all available runestones filtered by compatibility (weapon runes for weapons, armor runes for armor)
- 4. Select the rune
- 5. Price and level update automatically
The system validates that you can't stack potency runes (only one allowed per item) and updates all pricing automatically.
Real Example: Upgrading a Fighter's Weapon
The Scenario
Your level 8 party defeats a tough enemy and finds a +2 striking flaming longsword. Your fighter currently uses a +1 greatsword. They want to transfer the +2 potency and striking runes to their greatsword.
Manual Process:
- Look up extraction cost for +2 potency rune
- Look up extraction cost for striking rune
- Calculate new longsword value (base + remaining runes)
- Look up application cost for both runes to greatsword
- Calculate new greatsword value (base + all runes)
- Update inventory tracking
- Time: 10-15 minutes
With D20 Loot Tracker:
- Click "Extract Runes" on the +2 striking flaming longsword
- Select "+2 Potency" and "Striking" runes (leave flaming on the sword)
- Two runestones appear in party inventory
- Edit the +1 greatsword, click "Apply Rune", select +2 potency runestone
- Click "Apply Rune" again, select striking runestone
- Time: 30 seconds
Common Rune Management Scenarios
Scenario: Found Item Has Better Runes Than Current Gear
Extract the runes from the found item, apply to your current gear, sell the now-mundane found item.
Why: Players are attached to their signature weapons. This lets them keep the weapon they love while upgrading its power.
Scenario: Upgrading During Downtime
Extract the +1 potency rune, purchase a +2 potency runestone, apply it to the same weapon.
Why: More cost-effective than buying a whole new magic weapon. Just pay for the rune upgrade.
Scenario: Property Rune Swapping
Heading into a fire dungeon? Extract that frost rune, apply a flaming rune instead.
Why: Property runes are situational. Smart players swap them based on upcoming challenges.
Try It Yourself
Experience automatic rune management in action. Extract runes, create runestones, and apply them to new items—all with automatic price calculations.
No credit card • Free forever • Full PF2e rune system support
FAQ
Can I have multiple potency runes on one weapon?
No. PF2e rules allow only one potency rune per item. D20 Loot Tracker validates this—if you try to apply a +1 potency rune to a weapon that already has +2 potency, you'll get an error. The higher rune stays.
What happens to property runes when I extract fundamental runes?
Property runes stay on the item by default. You can choose to extract specific runes (including property runes) or use "Extract All" to remove everything and turn the item back to its mundane base.
Do runestones take up inventory space?
In PF2e rules, runestones have negligible bulk (Light bulk). D20 Loot Tracker sets extracted runestones to 0 bulk automatically so they don't clutter your encumbrance calculations.
Can I transfer armor runes to weapons?
No. The system filters runestones by type—weapon runestones only show when applying to weapons, armor runestones only show for armor. This prevents invalid combinations.