All Empowered Runes and their effects in Wrath Classic’s Titan Rune Dungeons — with Phase 4’s new runes now live!

Wrath Classic Phase 2 added Titan Rune Dungeons to the game, an optional difficulty modifier for endgame dungeons — and another difficulty was added when Wrath Classic Phase 4 launched on October 10. When all five players in a dungeon interact with the Mysterious Titanic Relic, they can currently enable Defense Protocol Alpha, Beta, or Gamma — with Gamma being the latest edition with patch 3.4.3. Doing this causes an Empowered Rune effect to appear, making enemies deal more damage and giving them a larger health pool — but they’ll also to cause a random additional damage effect (based on the dungeon) which increases in difficulty depending on the Defense Protocol chosen. Defense Protocol Gamma will add a new level of difficulty (and loot) for Wrath Classic Phase 4.

Each Defense Protocol  is tied to a loot pool for certain Wrath Classic raids, giving players another quasi-focused way of obtaining normal mode raid gear from previous Wrath Classic phases. Right now, it seems the pattern is a new set of Empowered Runes and new Defense Protocol level is released in each Wrath Classic phase, with each new Protocol containing raid gear from the previous phase.

Here are all of the Defense Protocols in Wrath Classic so far, with the new Gamma runes listed at the bottom.

Defense Protocol Alpha

Defense Protocol Alpha went live in Phase 2 and rewards 10-player normal mode gear from the phase 1 raids Eye of Eternity, Naxxramas, and Obsidian Sanctum. Each bosses also drops 1 Emblem of Valor while the final boss of each dungeon drops 1 Emblem of Conquest. These are the dungeons you can activate Defense Protocol Alpha in and which Dungeons they’re tied to.

• Utgarde Keep and Utgarde Pinnacle
  • Empowered: Frost Rune — Damage increased by 30%, health increased by 100%, and melee attacks have a chance to Glaciate a random target.
• Azjol-Nerub, Ank’khanet: The Old Kingdom
  • Empowered: Shadow Rune — Damage increased by 30%, health increased by 100%, and attacks have a chance to Web Wrap a victim.
• Drak’Tharon Keep and Gundrak
  • Empowered: Blood Rune — Damage increased by 30%, health increased by 100%, and 100% Lifesteal when standing in Blood of the Loa.
• The Nexus, The Oculus, and The Violet Hold
  • Empowered: Arcane Rune — Damage increased by 30%, health increased by 100%, and attacks have a chance summon Mirror Images of the caster.
• Culling of Stratholme
  • Empowered: Plague Rune — Damage increased by 30%, health increased by 100%, and damaging attacks can infect victims with You’re Infected!.
• Halls of Stone and Halls of Lightning
  • Empowered: Titan Rune — Damage increased by 5%, health increased by 190%, and pulsing Saronite-Corrupted Titan energy that increases enemy damage done by 1% and damage taken by 2% per stack for 12 sec.

Defense Protocol Beta

Introduced in Phase 3, Defense Protocol Beta is an additional Defense Protocol level designed to be more challenging than Alpha and as such, each of the Empowered Runes has been buffed to make them more lethal. Completing dungeon bosses under the effect of Defense Protocol Beta will reward 10-player normal mode Ulduar raid gear while the final boss will drop Sidereal Essence, a new currency used to purchase 10-player hard mode Ulduar gear from the Animated Constellation vendor in Dalaran. As of patch 3.4.3, trinkets, rings, necklaces, and cloaks from 25-player hard mode Ulduar are sold by Korralin Hoperender (Alliance) or Kolara Dreamsmasher (Horde) in Dalaran for Defiler’s Scourgestones.

• Trial of the Champion
  • Beta Empowered: Gladiator Rune — Damage increased by 40%, health increased by 140%, and spectators look to be more fired up than usual.
• Utgarde Keep and Utgarde Pinnacle
  • Beta Empowered: Frost Rune — Damage increased by 40%, health increased by 140%, and melee attacks have a chance to Glaciate and Fire Blast a random target.
• Azjol-Nerub and Ank’khanet: The Old Kingdom
  • Beta Empowered: Shadow Rune — Damage increased by 40%, health increased by 140%, and attacks have a chance to Web Wrap a victim.
• Drak’Tharon Keep and Gundrak
  • Beta Empowered: Blood Rune — Damage increased by 40%, health increased by 200%, and 100% Lifesteal when standing in Blood of the Loa.
• The Nexus, The Oculus, and The Violet Hold
  • Beta Empowered: Arcane Rune — Damage increased by 40%, health increased by 140% and attacks have a chance summon Mirror Images of the caster
• Culling of Stratholme
  • Beta Empowered: Plague Rune — Damage increased by 40%, health increased by 140%, and damaging attacks can infect victims with the Zombie Plague.
• Halls of Stone and Halls of Lightning
  • Beta Empowered: Titan Rune — Damage increased by 40%, health increased by 600%, and pulsing Purified Titan energy that increases player damage done by 1% per stack for 12 sec. Perhaps enough energy will grant assistance from the Keepers themselves.

Defense Protocol Gamma 

Defense Protocol Gamma brings a new set of Empowered Runes to Wrath Classic in Phase 4. These runes follow the previous Defense Protocol structure, buffing enemy health and damage wile giving unique abilities to the enemies in Wrath Classic dungeons, and it will be available as an additional option with Alpha and Beta. Defender Protocol Gamma is getting a new, faction-specific mechanic  — upon entering a dungeon with Defense Protocol Gamma active, Alliance players can use the Signet of the Silver Covenant to summon a Warden of the Silver Covenant and Horde players can use a Signet of the Sunreaver to summon a Warden of the Sunreaver. These Wardens offer players a selections of beneficial buffs to use in their current dungeon.

Bosses defeated under the effect of Defense Protocol Gamma will reward 10-player normal mode gear for Trial of the Crusader and a Defiler’s Scourgestone which is used to purchase 25-player mode Trial of the Crusader gear from Korralin Hoperender (Alliance) or from Kolara Dreamsmasher (Horde) in Dalaran. There’s also a new meta achievement, Defense Protocol Gamma: Terminated, that can be earn by completing every dungeon under Defense Protocol Gamma and it rewards a Wrath Classic-exclusive pet, Arfus!

Phase 4 adds three new dungeons: The Forge of Souls, Pit of Saron, and Halls of Reflection. Right now, these dungeons do not have any additional mechanics or difficulties under Defense Protocol Gamma, rather, the loot rewarded from Defense Protocol Gamma will instead be earned by completing the dungeon’s standard heroic mode. Gamma Empowered runes are available for the rest of the Wrath Classic dungeons.

• Trial of the Champion
  • Gamma Empowered: Gladiator Rune — Damage increased by 70%, health increased by 215%, and spectators look to be more fired up than usual.
• Utgarde Keep and Utgarde Pinnacle
  • Gamma Empowered: Frost Rune — Damage increased by 70%, health increased by 215%, and melee attacks have a chance to Glaciate and Fire Blast a random target.
• Azjol-Nerub and Ank’khanet: The Old Kingdom
  • Gamma Empowered: Shadow Rune — Damage increased by 70%, health increased by 260%, and attacks have a chance to Web Wrap a victim.
• Drak’Tharon Keep and Gundrak
  • Gamma Empowered: Blood Rune — Damage increased by 70%. Health increased by 305%. 100% Lifesteal when standing in Blood of the Loa.
• The Nexus, The Oculus, and The Violet Hold
  • Gamma Empowered: Arcane Rune — Damage increased by 70%, health increased by 215% and attacks have a chance summon Mirror Images of the caster.
• Culling of Statholme
  • Gamma Empowered: Plague Rune — Damage increased by 70%, health increased by 215%, and damaging attacks can infect victims with the Zombie Plague.
• Halls of Stone and Halls of Lightning
  • Gamma Empowered: Titan Rune — Damage increased by 70%, health increased by 880%, and pulsing Purified Titan energy that increases player damage done by 1% per stack for 12 sec. Perhaps enough energy will grant assistance from the Keepers themselves.

The ongoing investment and development put in to Titan Rune Dungeons make them an an interesting aspect for the remaining Wrath Classic phase releases and I am looking forward to see how Blizzard continues to create and tune runes and the reward systems to fit with previous raid releases. At the very least, they provide a way to keep content fresh as well as another activity to keep players interested in!

Originally published May 5, 2023. Updated October 12, 2023.