Skip to content

🍺 Best Runes combinations in the game

Best Runes Combinations
Dwarfs Warhammer TOW

Want to know the best loadouts for your Dwarf commanders in Warhammer: The Old World?
The Old World Dwarf army book is packed with incredibly powerful runes. But there are so many of them that making the right choice becomes complicated. Each character has a fixed rune point limit, which multiplies the number of possible combinations… and the confusion.

So, to save you time and mistakes, here’s the cream of the rune arsenal for your The Old World Dwarf list.

Dwarf King: pure resilience and controlled punch

The Dwarf King, although not a rune himself, should always be taken with a shieldbearer. For 60 points, he gets three extra wounds. That’s 20 points per wound, which is less than what a wound would cost through runes. And the best part? Those 60 points don’t count toward the rune point limit.

Taking him on shieldbearers is a huge advantage.

Optimal combination for the Dwarf King

If you’re fielding a Dwarf King with a lot of rune points, the best setup is one that maximizes his resilience and allows him to face big threats through attrition.

  • Great weapon
  • Rune of Preservation
  • Master Rune of Smiting
  • Two Rune of Stone (not necessary, but at 5 points they’re sometimes worth it)
  • Rune of Striking

With this, you get a Dwarf who is:

  • Immune to Killing Blow and Multiple Wounds (a steal for just 25 points!)
  • Weapon Skill 8, which means he hits top enemy characters (WS7: Elves, Chaos…) on 3+
  • Deals D6 wounds per unsaved wound
  • Rerolls 1s on armour saves (As any good Dwarf would: if something fails, you reroll until it behaves)

This setup combines perfectly with the next character: the Thane.

Thanes: pure versatility

Thanes can take a lot of rune points and adapt to whatever your army needs. Here are two powerful builds.

Cheap Battle Standard Thane

Very obvious, but extremely effective: Battle Standard Bearer with the Rune of Grungni. Pairs beautifully with the Dwarf King above because it gives him a 5+ ward he doesn’t naturally have, freeing up rune points for more offensive or defensive utility.

Make sure the BSB is in the same unit as the Dwarf King.

Thane to win combat against enemy dragons

Another brutal option: a Thane with the +1 Combat Resolution Rune, on top of the Rune of Grungni, combined with the same rune on the unit’s standard.

This lets you win even against a dragon.
A dragon can get at most +7 (kills the champion, has close order, and +5 overkill).
But you’ll have:

  • Close Order
  • Unit Standard
  • Your Battle Standard
  • Battle Rune on your BSB
  • Battle Rune on the unit standard
  • Two ranks bonus

And a musician, so you win by 1 — because enemy dragons don’t carry tambourines or goblin drummers.

Thane de disparo: precisión qShooting Thane: surgical precision

This Thane, for just 138 points, is one of the best shooters in your army — right up there with the Irondrakes.

He’s equipped with:

  • Handgun
  • Master Rune of Bursting Flame
  • Rune of Accuracy
  • Rune of Rapid Fire

He shoots twice with no modifiers: hits on 3+ even against skirmishers or units in cover. Each hit deals 2D3 hits, so this guy can potentially unload 12 handgun shots in a single turn. A true Dwarfen machine gun.

Anti-magic combinations in Warhammer TOW

This is a big enough topic that it deserved its own post, so I’ve written one just for that. You’ll find the link at the end.

Daemon Slayer: destiny, blood, and glory

The crown jewel. I love this guy with the following rune combo — absolute destruction. Any other setup?

Nope.

None other:

  • Rune of the Dishonoured
  • Rune of Fury
  • Rune of Hatred
  • Rune of Striking

The result: for just 300 points, you’ve got a guy who hits like a drunken ogre on a bad day. And when he dies, your opponent doesn’t get the points. He’s effective against cavalry, monsters, and heavy infantry. Basically, anything that costs over 200 points and gives most players nightmares.

  • Hits top characters on 3+
  • rerolls to hit rolls thanks to Hatred
  • Loads of attacks that wound on 4+ or better
  • Ignores armour saves

The risk? Getting bogged down by light infantry (like goblins or similar) and spending the entire game slaughtering them without dying, while the enemy uses that time to pull everything else out of his reach.

With these rune combinations, you’re not just running a solid Dwarf list — you’ve got one that makes opponents sweat during deployment. Now you know how to get the absolute most out of every Dwarf character in Warhammer The Old World. What’s next? Try it on the table and watch your opponent check the time by turn two.

If you think there’s an error in the post, feel free to reach out at theoldwarrior@theoldwarrior.com, and I’ll review it. Hope you enjoy ToW!


privacy policy            cookies policy

Cookies