Death Knights have a truly unique resource system. We feel that this resource system is often improperly understood, and, as such, deserves a dedicated guide.

Death Knights use a dual resource, comprised of runes and runic power. Some abilities cost one or more runes to use, other abilities abilities cost runic power, while some have no cost at all.

Runes regenerate slowly over time. Runic power is generated by using runes, as well as through a variety of talents and abilities.

1. Runes↑top

Death Knights have 3 types of runes: Blood runes, Frost runes and Unholy runes. While these rune types are named after the three Death Knight talent specialisations, they are not related to these in any meaningful way. Each Death Knight has 6 runes: 2 Blood runes, 2 Frost runes and 2 Unholy runes.

1.1. Rune Costs

A large number of Death Knight abilities have runes as their resource cost. Current rune costs can be broken down as follows:

• 1 Blood rune;
• 1 Frost rune;
• 1 Unholy rune;
• 1 Blood rune and 1 Frost rune;
• 1 Unholy rune and 1 Frost rune;
• 1 Blood rune, 1 Frost rune and 1 Unholy rune.

1.2. Rune States

At any given time, a rune is in one of three states: available, depleted, or regenerating. Each of these states is detailed in the following sections.

1.2.1. Available

Available is the default state of the runes. When combat starts, all runes should be available (unless you have recently finished dealing with a pack of mobs).

Available runes are consumed by abilities that cost runes. For example, Blood Boil costs 1 Blood rune, therefore, using this ability causes 1 available Blood rune to be consumed.

To use an ability that costs runes, the required runes must be available. For instance, it is not possible to use an ability that costs 1 Blood rune and 1 Frost rune, if there is not at least 1 Blood rune available and at least 1 Frost rune available.

1.2.2. Depleted

A rune becomes depleted after being consumed by an ability.

When a rune becomes depleted, it immediately starts regenerating, unless there is one rune of the same type already regenerating, in which case the rune remains depleted and will only start regenerating right after the other rune has finished regenerating.

For example, if a first Frost rune is regenerating and a second Frost rune is consumed by an ability, then the second Frost rune will remain depleted until the first one finishes regenerating.

Note that you gain 10 runic power every time a rune becomes depleted.

1.2.3. Regenerating

By default, it takes exactly 10 seconds for a rune to regenerate. Haste influences this value, in a similar way as it influences spell cast times.

As soon as a rune finishes regenerating, it becomes, once again, available for abilities to consume it.

Rune generation is the same in combat and out of combat.

1.3. Runic Empowerment

Thanks to the Runic Empowerment passive ability (available to all Death Knights by default), you have a 45% chance, when casting Rune Strike, Frost Strike, or Death Coil to instantly regenerate a depleted rune.

The important thing to note here is that this passive ability can only regenerate a rune that is in the depleted state (i.e., a rune the regeneration of which is still suspended due to the regeneration of another rune of the same type), and not one that is already in the process of regenerating.

2. Death Runes↑top

Death runes are not exactly a fourth type of rune, but rather an alternate available state that runes can sometimes or always enter after regenerating, thanks to Blood Tap or specialisation proficiencies. In this alternate available state, a rune can be used as a Blood rune, a Frost rune, or an Unholy rune, regardless of its actual type. It indeed becomes a wildcard. In the remainder of this section, we will refer to this alternate available state by death rune state. We use the term Death rune to designate a rune in (or set to enter) a death rune state.

2.1. Death Runes Regeneration

Death rune regeneration can be misleading as regenerating runes that are going to enter a death rune state are already marked with the Death rune icon, even though they regenerate as they normally would. For example, a depleted Frost rune set to enter a death rune state cannot regenerate if another Frost rune is already regenerating. For the same reasons, a Frost rune and a Blood rune set to enter a death rune state can regenerate at the same time, if no other Frost rune and Blood rune are already regenerating.

2.2. Turning Normal Runes Into Death Runes

Runes can be turned into Death runes in the following ways:

• Blood Tap causes a Blood rune to become a Death rune for 20 seconds. Additionally, it instantly causes the rune to become available, if it was depleted or regenerating. Then, every time this Blood rune becomes available, it enters the death rune state, making it possible to use it as a Blood rune, a Frost rune, or an Unholy rune. When used, this rune regenerates like a Blood rune. After 20 seconds, this rune goes back to being a regular Blood rune.
• Blood Death Knights have the Blood Rites proficiency. This causes the Death Strike and Obliterate abilities to transform the runes they consume into Death runes. After regenerating, these runes enter the death rune state. When consumed again, these runes go back to being regular Frost and Unholy runes (unless they are consumed by Death Strike or Obliterate).
• Frost Death Knights have the Blood of the North proficiency. This causes Blood runes to always enter the death rune state, thus making them always usable as a Blood rune, a Frost rune, or an Unholy rune. Incidentally, this proficiency causes Blood Tap to only instantly activate a Blood rune (the other effect is useless since the rune is already a permanent Death rune).
• Unholy Death Knights have the Reaping proficiency. This proficiency works exactly like the Blood Rites proficiency for Blood Death Knights (see above), except that the abilities affected are Blood Strike, Pestilence, and Festering Strike.

2.3. Regular Runes Priority Over Death Runes

Regular Blood, Frost, or Unholy runes have priority over other runes marked as Death runes. For example, using an ability that costs 1 Frost rune will consume:

• the available Frost rune, if you have 1 Frost rune and 1 Death rune available;
• the available Death rune, if you only have 1 Death rune (and no other Frost runes) available.

2.4. Empower Rune Weapon

Empower Rune Weapon instantly makes all runes available and gives some runic power. This ability does not reset Death runes, it simply makes them available (as Death runes), like any other rune.

3. Rune Screenshots↑top

Default runes display with the standard User Interface:

Unholy rune regenerating:

1 Blood rune and 1 Frost rune as Death runes:

1 Death rune regenerating:

3 Death runes, including 2 regenerating:

4 Death runes, including 2 regenerating:

4. Runic Power↑top

The runic power bar has a maximum capacity of 100 and it is empty by default. 10 runic power is generated each time you spend one of your runes, as well as through a variety of talents and abilities. Death Knights have many abilities which cost varying amounts of runic power (between 20 and 60) to cast.

While in combat, runic power does not decay. Outside of combat, however, runic power decays quite rapidly.

5. Improving Rune and Runic Power Generation↑top

Various talents and abilities can increase rune or runic power generation.

5.1. Rune Improvements

In this section, we list the talents and abilities that speed up rune regeneration.

• Blood Specialisation:
  • Improved Blood Tap (can be taken by all Death Knights), reduces the cooldown of Blood Tap by 30 seconds;
  • Improved Blood Presence, increases rune regeneration by 20%;
  • Will of the Necropolis, under certain conditions, removes the Blood rune cost of Rune Tap;
  • Crimson Scourge, gives a chance that the next Blood Boil will consume no rune.
• Frost Specialisation:
  • Rime, gives a chance that Howling Blast or Icy Touch consume no rune.
• Unholy Specialisation:
  • Runic Corruption, makes Runic Empowerment provide a temporary rune regeneration increase instead of activating a rune;
  • Resilient Infection, activates runes when diseases are dispelled.

5.2. Runic Power Improvements

In this section, we list the talents and abilities that increase runic power generation.

• Blood Specialisation:
  • Butchery (can be taken by all Death Knights), grants 2 runic power every 5 seconds, additionally grants 20 runic power when killing an enemy;
  • Scent of Blood (can be taken by all Death Knights): grants a chance to have the next 3 melee hits generate 10 runic power each;
  • Sanguine Fortitude, no runic power cost for icebound fortitude.
• Frost Specialisation:
  • Frost Presence (spell available to all Death Knights): +10% runic power generation;
  • Runic Power Mastery (can be taken by all Death Knights), increases the total amount of runic power to 130;
  • Chill of the Grave, increases the runic power generation from Chains of Ice, Howling Blast, Icy Touch, and Obliterate;
  • Improved Frost Presence, gives +4% increased runic power generation in Blood Presence or Unholy Presence;
  • Might of the Frozen Wastes, auto-attacks have a 45% chance to generate 10 runic power.
• Unholy Specialisation:
  • Magic Suppression, makes Anti-Magic Shell grant you runic power when it absorbs damage.

6. Magic Runes Addon↑top

A useful addon for keeping better track of your runes (as they are not very obvious or easy to follow in Blizzard's standard interface) is Magic Runes. The addon provides a set of customisable bars that allow you to see the cooldown and the state of your runes.