The full rune upgrade chart
Every rune from El to Zod can be upgraded in the Horadric Cube. The recipe pattern changes three times: plain 3-of-a-kind through Thul, then 3 runes plus a gem from Amn to Pul, then 2 runes plus a gem from Um to Zod. This is the complete, current list for D2R (verified against Patch 3.0):
| You get | Runes | Gem |
|---|---|---|
| Eld | 3× El | — |
| Tir | 3× Eld | — |
| Nef | 3× Tir | — |
| Eth | 3× Nef | — |
| Ith | 3× Eth | — |
| Tal | 3× Ith | — |
| Ral | 3× Tal | — |
| Ort | 3× Ral | — |
| Thul | 3× Ort | — |
| Amn | 3× Thul | 1× Chipped Topaz |
| Sol | 3× Amn | 1× Chipped Amethyst |
| Shael | 3× Sol | 1× Chipped Sapphire |
| Dol | 3× Shael | 1× Chipped Ruby |
| Hel | 3× Dol | 1× Chipped Emerald |
| Io | 3× Hel | 1× Chipped Diamond |
| Lum | 3× Io | 1× Flawed Topaz |
| Ko | 3× Lum | 1× Flawed Amethyst |
| Fal | 3× Ko | 1× Flawed Sapphire |
| Lem | 3× Fal | 1× Flawed Ruby |
| Pul | 3× Lem | 1× Flawed Emerald |
| Um | 2× Pul | 1× Flawed Diamond |
| Mal | 2× Um | 1× Topaz |
| Ist | 2× Mal | 1× Amethyst |
| Gul | 2× Ist | 1× Sapphire |
| Vex | 2× Gul | 1× Ruby |
| Ohm | 2× Vex | 1× Emerald |
| Lo | 2× Ohm | 1× Diamond |
| Sur | 2× Lo | 1× Flawless Topaz |
| Ber | 2× Sur | 1× Flawless Amethyst |
| Jah | 2× Ber | 1× Flawless Sapphire |
| Cham | 2× Jah | 1× Flawless Ruby |
| Zod | 2× Cham | 1× Flawless Emerald |
El itself cannot be created — it only drops. There is also no recipe to downgrade a rune, so think before you cube: the trade is one-way.
How cubing runes works
You get the Horadric Cube in Act 2 (Halls of the Dead, Dry Hills) — or from the Act 3 council if you missed it. Put the ingredients inside, press Transmute, and the upgraded rune appears. A few rules that trip people up:
- The gem quality must be exact. Thul to Amn needs a Chipped Topaz — a Flawed or normal Topaz will not work. The required quality steps up through the chart: Chipped (Amn–Io), Flawed (Lum–Um), normal (Mal–Lo), Flawless (Sur–Zod). Perfect gems are never used for rune upgrades.
- Order inside the cube does not matter. Runes and gem can sit in any slots.
- Works everywhere: ladder, non-ladder, online and offline single-player all share the same recipes.
- Don't confuse this with unsocketing. Hel Rune + Scroll of Town Portal + socketed item destroys the gems/runes inside and empties the sockets — that is a different recipe, covered in our Horadric Cube recipe database.
Which runes are actually worth upgrading
Cubing is lossless in rune count but not in trade value. Upgrading is worth it when you are filling a specific gap — the runes for a runeword you are about to make, a crafting recipe, or a Hel for unsocketing. The sweet spot is the mid tier: Ral, Ort, Amn, Thul, Sol, Shael and Hel are cheap to cube up and constantly in demand for runewords like Spirit (Tal Thul Ort Amn) and Insight (Ral Tir Tal Sol), crafting recipes, and socket chores.
Be careful at the top end. Two Bers cube into one Jah, but high runes trade individually at rates that rarely match the 2:1 recipe — you can easily burn value by cubing instead of trading. If you need a Jah or a Ber, check what your spare runes are worth first (our trading sites guide lists where to check prices), then cube only when the math favors it.
One more habit worth building: pick up every Chipped and Flawed gem. They are vendor trash on their own, but they are the fuel for the entire Amn-to-Um ladder — and for gem reroll recipes covered in the Cube database.
Where to get more runes
If you are short on inputs, farm them instead of waiting for luck: the Countess guarantees bonus runes every kill (up to Ist in Hell), and Lower Kurast superchests can drop up to Ber. The full route is in our High Rune Farming guide, and per-rune stats, level requirements and drop sources are in the Runes database. Once you have the runes, Runewords by Level shows what to build at each stage of the game.