I am afraid to use my runes, plz help? [no end game spoilers atm plz thx]

Me too. You don't need to use them all though. Just put them on weapons for your go-to team and leave the rest for later. Depending on where you are at in the game, you can give each person a different type so more kinds of damage adders are available. I prefer either spirit or corrupting runes, since they do extra damage to just about everything, unless facing RTs, where I use cleansing runes instead if I have them.

I,too, tend to hoard runes (and fade touched mats), but as has been said, that's pointless. Start using the weaker runes first, if you're worried, and keep the best runes for when you can craft tier 4 stuff.

It seems a waste not to use them on anything if you have them or the materials to make them. You can always craft a new rune later for higher level weapons/armour. It's never bothered me that they weren't trasnferable, they never were in DA2 either.

Hoarding runes is pointless. I wouldn't plunk them on every piece of crap I get, but holding on to them is just hobbling yourself.

But flaming weapons look cool!

I always kept a few runes, the essence of perfection is neat for late game armour. If they have good buffs I save them, they are quite rare. Saying that I have used many and there isn't a huge blast in how combat differs. I'm confused by the sigils too. They are like 'glass cannon' builds or some shit. I got a sigil of the 'something' that was +50 mana/stamina and also +100% cooldowntimes. I haven't used it yet. I'm thinking what? This can't be...

Use the runes late in game when your team have decent weapons, although save the master or superb runes for end game missions. Much bling. Many wow holy shit moments.

Just me?

Careful.  I noticed glitch.  With sigils it is always plus first and minus second.  Sometimes it is a misprint in game.  Want to be sure double check the wiki.  Example below -

Game Reads:


Wiki Reads:

So confusing, for no good reason. This all could have been make perfectly clear by following a few simple notational rules.

There are three ways to apply a modifier:

1. A straight addition to the base value
2. A straight multiplication to the base value
3. A multiplication of the value of the modifier into the base value, and then the base value added to the result

An example of each.

Straight addition: a rune that does +20 damage vs. living. That's a straight addition of 20 damage points to the effective damage of a hit.

Straight multiplication: an ability that does 300% weapon damage. If your weapon damage is 60, this ability does 180 (60 x 3.00).

Multiply/add: an accessory that gives 150% bonus damage. If your weapon damage is 60, (60 x 1.50) is 90, added to 60 is 150.

The problem is that the written stats for these various modifiers don't distinguish which method of application is supposed to be used!

So let's apply each to the Sigil of the Giant and see what we come up with.

+50% stamina/mana cost, +100% cooldown

Straight addition: Never makes sense for percentages (EDIT: unless the base value is also a percentage), only damage points or health points or whatever, so it can't be this.

Straight multiplication: Stamina/mana cost is halved, clearly a buff, while cooldown remains the same. It can't be this, makes no sense.

Multiply/add: Stamina/mana cost is larger, e.g., a cost of 24 becomes (24 x 0.50) + 24 = 36! Cooldown is larger, though, which is what we expect was intended, e.g., a cooldown of 12 becomes (12 x 1.00) + 12 = 24. The buff is wrong, but the debuff is right.

The only thing that makes sense is that the first modifier, the buff, is supposed to be applied as a straight multiplication, while the second part, the debuff, is supposed to be applied as a multiply/add.

There is a way all this could have been made very clear and consistent, however. All they had to do was follow this simple notational rule:

• For a straight addition, write the modifier without using a % (percent sign).
• For a straight multiplication, write the modifier with a % (percent sign) but no +/-.
• For a multiply/add, write the modifier with a % (percent sign) and +/-.

If they had just done that, everything would make much more sense.

Sure it makes sense. Saying +100% of something is the same as doubling it, or adding the number to itself. So if the cooldown for a skill is, say, 30 seconds...then +100% means 30 seconds + 30 seconds = 60 seconds.

For the first part, the sigil adds stamina/mana regeneration (not cost). So if stamina/mana normally regenerates at, say, 1 per second (which I'm completely pulling out of my ass)...then +50% means adding half again the amount of mana/stamina, so it regenerates at 1 + 0.5 = 1.5 per second. 

The math is exactly the same in both cases. That's just how percents work.

I think it depends on what you are using as the base: a constant or a %. In your critical chance example, % + % = higher %. If my CC is 50% and I add a ring of +10% CC, my CC is then 60% (at least according to the game stats). For a flat number, +100% becomes 2x that number. It is being multiplied, not added. So, if cooldown time is 10 seconds, +100% cooldown = 2x 10 seconds = 20 seconds. If you multiply 10 x 100% you get 10, which would mean no effect, which is nonsense.

I agree also. melbella is right, the assumption makes more sense if you consider the base value. If it's % to %, then straight addition. If it's units to %, it's either straight multiplication (Ability damage) or multiply and add (bonus damage).

That's a bit more consistent, but doesn't help as much with Sigils, since they modify all kinds of things, sometimes units, sometimes percents, sometimes both in the same Sigil. You can have something like Sigil of the Nug, which is +25% Healing Bonus, -25% Attack, where the first one is probably multiply/add ("bonus" is a pretty strong clue) while -25% Attack is applied to a %, so probably straight addition. Though again, that could result in negative damage, so what does that mean? The enemy heals every time you hit them??