Slaying demons in the Doom series is equally as fun as it can be frustrating. On higher difficulties, these games can prove to be a large challenge for players who haven’t mastered Doom’s intricate mechanics.

Doom Eternal is arguably the hardest entry in the series in this regard, completely overhauling the core combat rhythm with a newfound focus on ammo management and target priority. Fortunately, id Software has included dozens of upgrades for players to find and chose, one category being Runes. Returning from Doom 2016, Runes grant powerful passive bonuses that can change the tide of combat. Here are all of the Runes in Doom Eternal ranked from worst to best. This article contains light spoilers for Doom Eternal’s enemy roster.

9 Dazed And Confused

Glory Kills are a crucial part of Doom 2016 and Doom Eternal. Killing enemies this way provides precious health to stay alive, but you only have a certain window to act.

This window is large by itself, but those who struggle to Glory Kill demons can obtain Dazed And Confused. With this Rune, demons are stunned for twice as long, granting ample time to wrap up an engagement before getting a Glory Kill. Since Glory Kills make you invulnerable during their animation and they’re easy to pull off, this is easily the worst Rune in the game.

8 Seek And Destroy

Similar to Dazed And Confused, Seek And Destroy makes closing the gap to a stunned target easier. With Seek And Destroy, you can Glory Kill enemies from significantly further away.

The range bump is noticeable, but there are few moments where you are just shy of Glory Killing a target when you can’t simply get closer. This can be useful when Glory Killing Cacodemons from far away, but it sees little use past flying enemies.

7 Saving Throw

Doom Eternal’s extra life system hampers the true effectiveness of Saving Throw, a Rune than grants you a chance to recover from death. On Ultra-Nightmare playthroughs, that changes slightly.

Saving Throw can only trigger once per life. Extra lives do not trigger Saving Throw when your health reaches zero. Because of that, its main purpose is to give Ultra-Nightmare playthroughs a second chance when in the later levels of the game. It’s a must for those playthroughs, but Saving Throw can be easily skipped by most players.

6 Equipment Fiend

Equipment Fiend is a Rune that reduces the cooldown of your equipment when a demon dies from or under the influence of your equipment.

Grenade explosions, demons slain while frozen from Ice Bomb, or enemies killed while burning from Flame Belch all contribute to your cooldown reduction. The main issue with this Rune is how little it gives back, providing around 10-15% cooldown reduction per kill. This is great for the early game where weak enemies are plentiful, but this falls off in effectiveness as you obtain cooldown reduction from suit upgrades and Sentinel Crystals.

5 Blood Fueled

For a series so focused on speed, it makes perfect sense for there to be a Rune that enhances your movement. Blood Fueled grants the Doomslayer a movement speed increase for a short time after a Glory Kill.

If dodging attacks is your thing, this Rune is fantastic for repositioning. Blood Fueled is definitely a solid choice, but there are so many good Runes in Doom Eternal that is can be difficult justifying this over the likes of Equipment Fiend, Chrono Strike, or Punch And Weave. For those who want to be as aggressive as possible, though, Blood Fueled is a great pick.

4 Air Control

Do not sleep on Air Control. This Rune grants a massive increase to your movement while in the air. With how many monkey bars and open environments Doom Eternal houses, this Rune is much better than it sounds.

Moving in the air is as easy as moving on the ground, allowing you to change direction mid-air with little issue. Dodging projectiles becomes much easier with Air Control active, allowing you to fight Pain Elementals and certain bosses easier than most. Like Saving Throw, its main weakness is the limited amount of Rune slots available. If you frequently find yourself in the air, there are few choices better than this.

3 Punch And Weave

Blood Punches are a new mechanic in Doom Eternal that act as supercharged melee attacks. These attacks can instantly kill weaker demons while heavily weakening tougher enemies.

This upgrade turns the already powerful attack into a fantastic health-recovery mechanic. Every enemy that dies to a Blood Punch grants health while Punch And Weave is active. Killing a large pack of demons with a single Blood Punch can recover vast swaths of health. This can be combined with the Ice Bomb’s upgrade that grants health on kill to provide some insane health regeneration potential.

2 Chrono Strike

Slowing down time is cool in any game, but dodging projectiles mid-air in slow motion is especially fun in Doom Eternal. With this Rune, you can line up the perfect shot while under immense pressure.

Chrono Strike slows down time dramatically when you are in the air and holding your alternate fire button. This time can be used to blow off critical demon limbs like Arachnotron’s cannon, or it can be used to dodge an incoming projectile. It can only be used for so long before entering a long cooldown period, but it provides more than enough time to almost always be available during a mission.

1 Savagery

With how much ripping and tearing Doom Eternal has to offer, it’s shocking how long the Glory Kill animations are in this game. Compared to Doom 2016, Glory Kills can last an eternity against larger demons.

Savagery fixes this issue, dramatically increasing the speed of Glory Kill animations. Minor demons die in a flash with this active, and the larger demons become much more bearable to Glory Kill. Without this, Glory Killing the likes of the Arch-vile or Tyrant can take up to six seconds to finish! With this active, it takes around 2 or 3 seconds to complete, allowing you to get back into the fight with the crucial health and resources Glory Kills provide. This Rune pairs nicely with Blood Fueled, letting you charge across the battlefield and reapply the buff near-instantly. Savagery is a must-have.

NEXT: 10 Hidden Plotlines Everyone Missed In Doom Eternal