Best Runic Attacks in God of War Ragnarok

As you progress through God of War Ragnarok’s story, you’ll pick up an arsenal of light and heavy runic attacks to supplement your combat encounters. These differ greatly from one another with a host of different attacks and status effects, which can make choosing the right one a little tricky. Spoiled for choice as it goes. In this guide, we’ll share what we consider to be the best runic attacks for all weapons in God of War Ragnarok.

Spoiler Warning: this guide covers a weapon that’s only available once you completed the Forging Destiny main path mission about halfway through the game. If you’ve yet to reach that point, be warned there are spoilers below.

READ MORE: Best Shield in God of War Ragnarok

Leviathan Axe – Best Runic Attacks

Best Leviathan Axe Light Runic Attack – Wrath of the Frost Ancient

• Cooldown – 111 seconds

Kratos’ axe emits a sustained beam of frost that absolutely tears through enemies. It produces the highest DPS of any axe runic attack in God of War Ragnarok, along with massive frost status and by holding R1 you can extend the beam duration further. Wrath of the Frost Ancient does have one of the longest light runic attack cooldowns – 111 seconds.

Best Leviathan Axe Heavy Runic Attack – Breath of Thamur

• Cooldown – 241 seconds

An AOE attack that whips up a massive spiral of darting ice particles, Breath of Thamur is another high DPS runic attack. Maxed out, it offers the highest damage of any heavy runic attacks alongside respectable frost status. The attack’s range all provides much-needed breathing space if you’re overwhelmed by several enemies or a boss by preventing them from attacking for the duration of the attack. However, it does have a pretty hefty cooldown of 241 seconds.

Blades of Chaos – Best Runic Attacks

Best Blades of Chaos Light Runic Attack – Rampage of the Furies

• Cooldown – 74 seconds

Rampage of the Furies unleashes a flurry of cross-slash attacks that damages all enemies in its vicinity. The damage output is the highest of any light runic attack for the Blades and comes sided by solid burn damage. With a relatively short 74 second cooldown, Rampage of the Furies is available fairly regularly, and holding R1 during the attack extends the barrage of cross-slash attacks.

Best Blades of Chaos Heavy Runic Attack – Meteoric Slam

• Cooldown – 186 seconds

Meteoric Slam is a powerful slam attack that rains down fire in a wide arc. It also inflicts burn damage and even stun when fully upgrade, making it a versatile heavy runic attack for most situations. Meteoric Slam also has the added benefit of rendering enemies momentarily harmless when hit by its arc. A steep 186 second cooldown is the only downside.

Draupnir Spear – Best Runic Attacks

Best Draupnir Spear Light Runic Attack – Thrust of a Thousand Soldiers

• Cooldown – 74

Thrust of a Thousand Soldiers dishes out a series of high damage stabs that lodge spears into enemies. When the attack is over, you can tap Triangle to detonate the embedded spears to cause even more damage. After upgrading the Thrust of a Thousand Soldiers, you can also perform further stabs by tapping R1, increasing damage even further. It also has a minor force and stun status effect. With the shortest cooldown – 74 seconds – of any Draupnir Spear light runic attack, it’s one you can rely on regularly in any fight.

Best Draupnir Spear Heavy Runic Attack – The Finger of Ruin

• Cooldown – 241

The Finger of Ruin summons a swirling tornado that sweeps up enemies in its path, causing the most DPS of any heavy runic attack for the spear along with excellent force and stun status effect. Upgrading the attack boosts the damage and duration of the tornado, while also expanding its radius to affect a wider area. With a 241 second cooldown, The Finger of Ruin is one to use sparingly, but is sure pivot the odds in your favor in most fights.

That about wraps up our guide to the best runic attacks in God of War Ragnarok. For more help with your journey across the Nine Realms, check out our dedicated guides hub for walkthroughs, realm 100% completion guides, collectibles, ravens, armor sets, and more.