Rune Prisons are unique encounters within Last Epoch's gameplay experience, serving as optional boss fights that players may encounter while progressing through the game's campaign or engaging in endgame content. These prisons represent gilded tombs housing powerful adversaries from ancient times, now long-forgotten but still formidable.
When exploring various tilesets throughout the game, there is a chance for a Rune Prison to spawn. Upon discovery, players have the option to activate the prison, triggering a challenging boss fight against the exile contained within. One notable example of such a foe is the Exile Mage, renowned for their resilience and array of area-of-effect attacks. Players must exercise caution, especially when facing these bosses in the demanding environments of endgame Monoliths.
Rune Prisons can manifest as early as the initial chapters of the campaign, presenting an early opportunity for players to test their skills against formidable adversaries. Moreover, these encounters continue to pose a challenge throughout late-game Monolith runs, ensuring that virtually all players will encounter Rune Prisons at some point during their journey through Last Epoch.
When venturing through Last Epoch, Rune Prisons present themselves as sporadic encounters, meaning they won't consistently appear in every instance you explore. To identify their presence, keep a vigilant watch on your minimap for the distinctive prison icon. Upon spotting one, approach the Rune Prison and interact with it by clicking on it to initiate the ensuing boss battle.
Upon activation, the Rune Prison's magical confines will yield, unveiling the formidable Exile Mage, the central antagonist of this encounter. This boss unit unleashes a barrage of area-of-effect (AoE) assaults, creating a visually stunning but perilous spectacle on your screen. Expect the Exile Mage to maneuver across the battlefield through teleportation, channel variations of the Mage's Disintegrate skill, and deploy an assortment of cold and lightning AoE attacks throughout the confrontation.
To navigate this challenging encounter successfully, employ movement skills to evade the Mage's devastating AoE onslaughts, and strategically kite around the boss whenever possible to maintain a safe distance. Upon vanquishing the Exile Mage, your efforts will be rewarded with the spoils of victory.
Defeating the Exile Mage within a Rune Prison yields valuable rewards for your endeavors. Chief among them is the acquisition of an Experimental Item. These items are distinguished by their inclusion of an experimental affix, a hybrid modification that boasts two exceptionally potent properties. Notably, these experimental affixes can also manifest on Exalted items, presenting the rare opportunity for Legendary items to feature these formidable modifiers, albeit requiring a stroke of extreme luck.
Additionally, Exile Mages at or above Level 70 have the chance to drop a coveted Rune of Research. This prized crafting material serves a crucial role in the enhancement of gear, as it effectively locks the experimental affix into its own dedicated slot. This action liberates an affix for the introduction of a new modifier. Moreover, employing a Rune of Research carries a slight chance of bestowing upon you a Glyph of Insight. This glyph possesses the remarkable ability to convert an existing affix into an experimental one, further augmenting the potential of your gear. With a sprinkle of luck, these crafting materials empower players to forge some of the most formidable equipment available within the realms of Last Epoch.