If you’re the kind of Tarnished who rolls their eyes the moment someone says you need to grind for runes, hey, same. Elden Ring is an amazing game, but not everyone wants to spend an hour bonking the same mobs just to push a stat up by one point. The good news is that there are farming spots that feel chill, quick, and painless. This guide focuses on the one that most players agree is the smoothest way to build up your early and mid-game rune supply without losing your sanity.

Below, I'll break down the spot, how to unlock it fast, a few tricks to make the run even easier, and who this method works best for. I’ll also sprinkle in some personal tips from someone who fully admits to being allergic to grinding.

Why This Farm Works So Well

The ideal rune farm for low-patience players has to check three boxes: fast to reach, low danger, and steady rewards. There’s one place in Elden Ring that nails all three, and you’ve probably heard of it already: the early access path to Mohgwyn Palace via the friendly but suspicious white-masked NPC you meet in Limgrave.

You don’t have to be strong. You don’t need fancy gear. You don’t even need to be good. The whole method boils down to breezing into the palace area and using a bow or spell to deal with one enemy safely from a distance.

Honestly, it’s the closest you’ll get to a no-stress rune income early in the game.

Step One: Getting to the Palace Early

Varre sends you on a short quest that anyone can finish early on. Once you get invited to Mohgwyn Palace, you’ll spawn near a slope filled with enemies that look intimidating but can be ignored entirely. What we actually care about is the giant sleeping bird across the chasm.

This bird is the foundation of the classic low-effort rune farm. You tag it once with a ranged attack, it charges toward you, and then it falls straight into the abyss. You get thousands of runes. You reset at the site of grace. Repeat.

I know, it sounds almost too simple, but that’s exactly why it’s perfect for players who feel grinding is a chore.

How to Make the Method Even Easier

If you want to streamline it further, grab a basic bow from any merchant and stock a few arrows. You don’t need upgrades. You don’t need high stats. Even a barebones setup works fine because the bird doesn’t have to die from your damage; it does all the work by sprinting off the cliff.

At this point, some players like to maximize their rune intake with talismans or gold-pickled consumables, but honestly, you don’t have to. The farm is quick even without boosters. Still, if you ever feel like you're too short on runes to experiment with builds and don’t want to wait, some folks casually mention options like buy elden ring runes from external sources, though that's more of a convenience thing than a must.

A Smaller, Safer Backup Spot

If the palace area feels too spooky for your liking, there’s a gentler alternative in Caelid near the Dragonbarrow area. The trick is finding the sleeping trolls scattered around the cliffside paths. They’re slow, they don’t hit too hard if you slip, and they hand out a respectable chunk of runes for early-game players.

It’s not as fast as the palace farm, but it feels calmer, especially if you prefer quieter prep sessions. This is also where some PC players casually look up things like buy elden ring runes pc discussions when they’re trying to compare rune values and farming speed charts. Again, not required, but it shows how common the farming conversation is among new players.

Extra Tips to Keep the Grind From Feeling Like a Grind

Here are a few small ideas that make the whole routine feel less like work.

1. Put on some background noise.
Music, a podcast, whatever keeps your brain from going numb.

2. Stop once you reach your immediate goal.
Grinding becomes miserable when you overdo it. Get just enough runes for your next few stat points and go back to exploring.

3. Experiment as you go.
This farm gives consistent income, so use the chance to swap weapons, reset builds, or try out ashes of war. Whether you’re testing something you found through normal gameplay or reading about gear on sites like U4GM, having more runes simply makes experimenting more fun.

4. Don’t stress about perfect efficiency.
The whole point of this method is that it’s easy. Speed isn’t everything. Comfort matters more.

Who This Farm Helps the Most

Based on my own playthroughs and chatting with friends, this farm works best if you fit into any of these groups:

Players who want to try lots of weapons without committing
Players who restarted multiple saves and got tired of leveling the same stats
Players who struggle with early-game difficulty spikes
Players who prefer exploring over grinding

If that sounds like you, this bird method is probably your new best friend.

Elden Ring’s world is huge, exciting, and sometimes downright overwhelming, especially when your damage feels low or your build hasn’t come together yet. A stress-free rune farm lets you smooth out those rough patches without turning the game into a job.

You won’t break the game, and you won’t skip the fun parts. You’re just giving yourself the breathing room to enjoy the rest of the adventure without being stuck underleveled.

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