Elden Ring Rune Farming Guide: Leveling Made Easy

Whether you are trying to level up, saving up to buy or upgrade a weapon, or you’re tired of making ammunition and just want to buy a ton of it, you’re going to need runes and lots of them. Even though every enemy drops runes, getting enough runes to level up can be exhausting especially at higher levels. Fortunately, there are some tricks to making rune farming easy. In this guide, I will be walking you through the best items to increase rune drops, some great locations for gathering runes at each stage of the game, and even how weather can make a difference in rune drops.

Farming Equipment

A couple of pieces of equipment can make a big difference in the number of runes you are getting for your efforts. Equipment slots in Elden Ring are limited, and this gear isn’t useful outside of gathering runes. But, if all you are doing is farming or you are in a lower-level area and want to make it worth your while, this gear can come in handy.

Suggested Gear

  • Golden Scarab Talisman
    • Found in the Abandoned Cave in Caelid
      • Increases rune drops by 20%
  • Gold-pickled Fowl Foot
    • Found in several locations or crafted
      • Increases rune drops by 30%

The Golden Scarab Talisman

Elden Ring Rune Farming Scarab Talisman
Image from Aaron Van-Dyck

The Golden Scarab Talisman is easily the most important piece of rune-farming equipment in Elden Ring. When equipped in a talisman slot, the Golden Scarab increases the number of runes you gather by a whopping 20%.

Finding the Scarab

Elden Ring Rune Farming Scarab Talisman Locations
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To get your hands on this priceless talisman, you will need to travel to Caelid and complete a dungeon called the Abandoned Cave. This might sound like a walk in the park, but the Abandoned Cave isn’t as abandoned as you might have hoped.

Elden Ring Rune Farming Scarab Talisman Locations Abandoned Cave
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To reach the entrance of the cave, head west from the Smoldering Wall site of grace and across a bridge of roots. Be aware that this area is well-guarded. The bridge is protected by an abductor virgin, which can make it difficult to cross the narrow pass if it notices you and you cannot get out of range in time. You will have to jump across a small gap at the end of the roots to reach the cave.

Elden Ring Rune Farming Scarab Talisman Locations Abandoned Cave
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I won’t be doing a complete walkthrough of the Abandoned Cave here, but I will give you some warnings and a quick rundown. I recommend equipping talismans and armor that increase your immunity stat because you will be dealing with Scarlet Rot right from the start. The first chamber of the dungeon is a one-way drop down into a pool of scarlet rot pocked with geysers just to keep things interesting. As you make your way through, you will be facing off against enemies with mixed-ranged attacks, including rotten Miranda Blossoms and Servants of Rot.

There are a few other items of interest within the cave, but you don’t need to worry about accidentally overlooking the golden scarab. At the end of the dungeon, you will face off against a pair of Cleanrot Knights, and upon defeating them, you will be rewarded with a shiny new Golden Scarab Talisman.

Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot

Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot
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A mouthful to say, the Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot is a consumable item that increases rune acquisition by around 30% for a limited time. Chomping down on one of these while wearing the Golden Scarab Talisman can net you a hefty 50% extra runes, making farming much more efficient. Keep in mind that the bonus from the fowl foot does not disappear upon resting at a side of grace but does disappear upon fast traveling between sites of grace.

These fancy chicken legs can be either found in the world or crafted.

Crafting

Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot cookbook Murkwater Cave
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If you are planning to craft your own fowl feet, you will first need the Missionary’s Cookbook (2). This recipe book will allow you to make Scriptstones, Grace Mimics, and of course the Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot. You can purchase the cookbook from Patches in Murkwater Cave after he has set up shop there. If Patches got on your nerves and you squashed him instead, fear not, you can still buy the book from the Twin Maiden Husks at the Roundtable hold after handing over Patches’ bell bearing.

Crafting the Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot will require Rowa Fruit, Four-toed Fowl Feet, and Golden Fireflies.

Looting

While not as simple as producing the fowl feet yourself, there are some locations in the world where you can grab some free feet if you are in the area.

Locations

  • The southern edge of a stretch of beach in Limgrave, near a waterfall
  • A balcony in Stormveil Castle
  • Right at the bottom of a crucifix in West Limgrave
  • At the base of a waterfall in the Siofra River Well

You can also purchase Gold-Pickled Fowl Feet from Patches or the Twin Maiden Husks after presenting them with Patches’ bell bearing.  

Farming Locations

Now that you are all geared up, it is time to pick out a farming location. Several locations lend themselves well to rune farming, and different players will often pick their favorite based on personal preference and character build. While I don’t have time to run through every possible farming location, I will be offering up one location for players at each stage of the game, as well as my favorite farming spot.

Moghwhyn’s Palace Step (My Favorite Location)

Palace Approach Ledge-Road Elden Ring Rune Farming
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This location is easily the best spot to start farming runes. The enemies are vulnerable, you can move at your own pace, and you can easily net yourself around 40k runes each time you run through it, not including the extra runes you get from your equipment. This route begins at a site of grace on the island attached to Moghwhyn’s Palace called the Palace Approach Ledge-Road site of grace.

Getting There

If you haven’t already unlocked any of the sites of grace on the underground island of Mogh’s palace, there are two ways you can get there. The first method is to complete White Mask Varre’s questline at the Rose Church in Liurnia and teleport here using the Pureblood Knight’s Medal. If you need a walkthrough of how to complete Varre’s quest, check out the Elden Ring Rose Church Guide for all the details. I highly recommend you use this first method, as the second is much more difficult and won’t be available to you until late in the game.

Mogh's Palace Elden Ring Rune Farming
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If for whatever reason, you cannot get your hands on the Pureblood Knight’s Medal, there is another way to reach Mogh’s Palace. First, you will need access to the Consecrated Snowfield, a late-game region full of extremely deadly enemies. Once there, head northwest of the Yelough Anix site of grace and look for a face of sheer cliffs near the edge of the map.

Mogh's Palace Elden Ring Rune Farming
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The path you will need to take is guarded by mad trolls and everyone’s favorite Runebears. Once you find a way down the slope, look for a blood-soaked waygate watched over by a single Albinauric. This waygate will take you directly to Mogh’s Palace.

Farming Time

Once you make it to the Palace Approach Ledge-Road site of grace, it is time to start farming. Before you start running through the albinaurics, look to the left of the path and you should see a massive lake of blood off in the distance.

Palace Approach Ledge-Road Blood Lake Elden Ring Rune Farming
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From the cliff you are standing on, you can fire a ranged weapon or spell to strike one of the giant ravens stalking around over there. This will entice the bird to try and attack you, usually resulting in the monster walking right off the cliff and netting you a hefty sum of runes without endangering yourself.

giant ravens stalking Elden Ring Rune Farming
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Now on to the main course, the sleeping beauties. The path down from the site of grace is dotted with around twenty sleeping albinaurics and four active guards. If you are lower-level, take care to sneak up on the albinaurics one by one and backstab them for maximum damage. If you are higher-level, you should have no problem cutting them down as a group.

The only real threat to this whole operation is the guards. Fortunately, they aren’t that strong and it is pretty easy to avoid their attacks. In fact, half the time when they come cartwheeling they will end up rolling directly off the edge of the cliff. Just watch out if you see one suddenly covered in spikes. This means they are about to shoot quills like a red porcupine or roll into you like a blue hedgehog. As amusing as it sounds, getting caught in the path of the rolling attack can be deadly, even for high-level characters.

Each of these albinaurics is worth 2000 runes without any bonuses, and there are more down at the bottom of the ramp if you are daring or bored with the sleeping ones. Once they are all dead, simply head back to the site of grace and rest to reset. The beauty of this farming location is that it is so close to a site of grace that even if you are killed, you are almost guaranteed to get your runes back.

Stormveil Trolls (Low Level)

Warmaster's Shack Elden Ring Rune Farming
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If you are a little less experienced or looking for a more accessible farming route, then head up the hill past Stormveil Castle’s gate to a place called the Warmaster’s Shack. Head southeast to a broad plain inhabited by numerous trolls. They might be scary and hit hard, but trolls are slow, predictable, and distinctly allergic to getting shot in the face.

If you have a ranged weapon, this is a great place to use it. The area is ringed by a hilly shelf that provides an excellent vantage point to pick on trolls without giving them the chance to squash you. Just don’t get too comfortable, as the trolls still have a ranged shouting attack. This attack does not do much damage, but it will knock you over if it hits you, so pay attention to where you are standing.

Stormveil Trolls Elden Ring Rune Farming
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Each time a troll is hit in the head with a ranged attack, they will become stunned for several seconds. If you’re a good shot, you can do this while riding around their feet on Torrent and give yourself an escape window each time a troll gets too close for comfort. It is also worth noting that trolls are susceptible to bleeding effects, so bloodbone arrows or kukri are great options to cut through their health.

If you die and need to retrieve your runes, just stay on horseback as you move through the area and the trolls shouldn’t be able to catch you unless you ride too close to one. When you’re ready to reset, head back up to the Warmaster’s Shack site of grace and start again. Each troll you slay will earn you 1000 runes.

Impassable Greatbridge (Mid Level)

Impassable Greatbridge Elden Ring Rune Farming
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Another great farming site where you don’t have to risk your neck is right outside Redmane Castle’s front gate in Caelid. From the Impassable Greatbridge site of grace, head up the hill overlooking the path into the castle. Here you should see a heated battle between Redmane Castle’s valiant soldiers and Caelid’s hungry giant dogs. From your vantage point, you can watch the carnage and rake in the runes as the two sides duke it out. Any runes dropped by enemies as they die will be collected by you even if you are not involved. Do note that the crossbowmen in the siege tower can sometimes spot you here, but they aren’t the best shots and are easy to pick off.

Redmane Castle Elden Ring Rune Farming
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The distinct danger of this farming location is reaching it, as the path to the adjacent site of grace is blocked by the battle. There are a few tricks to getting through to the bridge, however. You can, of course, wait for the battle to conclude and then face off with whoever survives. This makes breaking through the line much easier than trying to become a third party in an already dangerous battle. Secondly, you can rush through on Torrent, using the chaos to your advantage, and bee-line for the site of grace. Lastly, you can reach the area through the portal inside Redmane Castle.

Impassable Greatbridge Elden Ring Rune Farming
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The portal you are looking for is halfway up a set of stairs on the eastern side of the castle, leading to a barricade with mounted flamethrowers. Using this portal will put you behind the battle lines and a few meters away from the Impassable Greatbridge site of grace.

Keep in mind that if you are killed trying to wipe out the survivors of the battle, your runes will likely fall right in the middle of the battleground, so be careful not to get pulled too far into the fray.

Dominula (Mid-High Level)

Windmill Village Dominula Elden Ring Rune Farming
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The windmill village of Dominula sits along a hilly path winding up the northern edge of the Altus Plateau. Here you will find an entire village of creepy old ladies dancing around a bunch of flowery crucifixes. Start at the Windmill Village site of grace and work your way up the hill. Most of the women in the village won’t attack until you do, except for a few waiting to ambush you, which makes it easy to recover your runes if you perish. Also, angering one group usually does not anger another.

The celebrants will pull out weapons and fight back once you draw blood, so be careful not to put yourself in the middle of too many at once. The women wearing the blue-colored headcloths are slightly tougher, deal more damage, and have a wider array of attacks. If you plan to open your assault with a backstab, I recommend picking one of these blue celebrants as your target.

Godskin Apostle Elden Ring Rune Farming
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The village also has several rooftop locations only accessible by leaping, which puts you out of reach of melee combat and lets you pick off celebrants at range if that’s your style. Look for buildings near cliffsides as you head up the hill, and it should be clear which roofs I am referring to, as most of them also have a corpse with something shiny in its pocket.

The two locations you need to be cautious of are the sides of the path and the top of the hill. The sides of the path are covered in bushes that conceal celebrants waiting to ambush you and a few stray dogs, which can be annoying opponents in a group. At the very top of the hill, right as you approach the crumbling windmill, there is a Godskin Apostle boss fight. Godskin Apostles can be difficult foes, so make sure you are prepared for a tough fight before you ascend to the very top.

Random Events

There are a couple of random events which can help you gather runes more efficiently once you are aware of them.

Falling Leaves

Very occasionally, and only at night, a rare weather event can occur in which golden leaves begin to fall from the Erdtree and float across the screen. These leaves provide you with a bonus to rune acquisition for as long as they are falling. It’s not certain exactly how large of a bonus this provides, but it can help out if you’re working on gathering runes.

Golden Eyes

If you see an enemy with glowing golden eyes while you are out hunting for runes, target them first. These enemies have the same stats as a normal monster of their type but will drop significantly more runes when they are slain.

Glowing Skulls

Sometimes, the numerous skulls alongside roads will spawn with glowing eyes. Breaking them open by dodging into them or running them over with Torrent will drop a golden rune, which can be consumed to give runes to your character.

Time to Grind

Now that you know the secrets of getting rich quickly, the honest way, AFK farming can become a thing of the past. If you found this guide helpful or are looking for more information, check out our other guides on Elden Ring. Get out there and grind!

FAQ

Question: Do the bonuses from the Golden Scarab Talisman and the Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot stack?

Answer: Yes. The bonuses together add up to around a 50% boost to acquired runes.

Question: Can you craft Gold-Pickled Fowl Feet?

Answer: Yes. You need first need to purchase the Missionary’s Cookbook (2) from Patches or the Twin Maiden Husks after offering them Patches’ bell bearing.

Question: Do the bonuses from the Golden Scarab Talisman and Gold-Pickled Fowl Foot affect golden runes?

Answer: No. Golden runes always produce their set amount of runes.

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