Eternity Runeword Rework: Season 16 Stats and Best Bases
Patch 3.4 gives Eternity +300-390% ED, +30% IAS and up to +297 max damage, and lets it go in bows and crossbows. Here is the per-hit math against Grief on real bases, where it still loses, and what the Ber and Sur bill looks like.
Eternity (Amn Ber Ist Sol Sur) becomes a 5-socket melee or missile runeword in Patch 3.4, with +300-390% ED, +30% IAS and up to +297 max damage. On paper it out-hits Grief only on big bases, and it costs far more to build, so call it worth testing, not a new default.
This is Reign of the Warlock on Online Ladder and Offline. Online Non-Ladder, Classic and Lord of Destruction keep the old Eternity. Season 16 hasn't launched, so everything below is arithmetic and prediction, not results from play. Blizzard's wording is in the Season 16 announcement, and the rest of the patch is in our Patch 3.4 notes breakdown.
What Changed in the Eternity Runeword
Eternity needs character level 63. The patch changes five things:
- Bases: 5-socket melee weapons → 5-socket melee and missile weapons
- +260-310% ED → +300-390% ED
- Added +30% IAS
- Added +3-297 to Maximum Damage, based on character level (3 per level)
- Level 8 Revive with 88 charges → +5 to Revive as an O skill
The rest of the line list is untouched, including Indestructible, +9 minimum damage, 7% life steal, 20% Crushing Blow, Hit Blinds Target, Slows Target by 33%, Cannot Be Frozen and 30% magic find.
Eternity vs Grief: The Damage Math
The formula is base average, times 1.5 if the base is ethereal, times (1 + ED%), plus flat damage added after ED. Max damage only lifts the top of the range, so it counts for half: Eternity's +297 adds 148.5 to the average at level 99, and +9 minimum adds 4.5.
Our assumptions: character level 99, ED at the 345% midpoint of 300-390, Grief's Damage +340-400 at its 370 midpoint, base damage as listed on each base's item page, and ethereal bases for the +50% base damage (Indestructible means Eternity never wears out, so ethereal costs nothing). Strength bonuses and skill ED multiply both sides, so we left them out, along with Grief's 5-30 fire damage and Venom proc.
Worked example on an ethereal Phase Blade: 33 × 1.5 = 49.5. Eternity is 49.5 × 4.45 = 220.3, plus 4.5, plus 148.5, which is 373. Grief is 49.5 + 370 = 419.5.
| Base (damage, max sockets) | Eternity | Eternity, ethereal | Grief, ethereal |
|---|
| Phase Blade (31-35, 6) | 300 | 373 | 420 |
| Silver-edged Axe (62-110, 5) | 536 | 727 | 499 |
| Colossus Crossbow (32-91, 6) | 427 | 564 | none |
| Hydra Bow (10-68, 6) | 327 | 413 | none |
| Grand Matron Bow (14-72, 5) | 344 | 440 | none |
Grief only fits swords and axes, so the bow rows have nothing to beat.
Here is where Eternity still loses. On the Phase Blade, Eternity trails by about 11%, and even a perfect 390% roll averages about 396, under an average Grief. Grief also carries 20% Deadly Strike, which adds roughly a fifth to average damage if you count doubled hits, taking that Grief to about 503. Add Ignore Target's Defense and you can see why Grief stays the default on a one-hander.
Eternity wins when the base is big enough for ED to work. The ethereal Silver-edged Axe lands 46% ahead of Grief on the same base, or 21% after Deadly Strike. An ethereal Thresher works out to about 664, and Grief can't go in a polearm at all. At character level 85 every Eternity figure drops by about 21.
These are per-hit numbers. The Phase Blade has a speed modifier of -30 against 0 for the axe, so a faster base closes some of the gap per second.
Best Bases and the Five-Socket Problem
Eternity needs exactly five sockets. Bases that top out at five are the simplest: Silver-edged Axe (166 Str), Thresher (152 Str), Grand Matron Bow (108 Str, Amazon only) and Demon Crossbow (141 Str, speed modifier -60, as fast as crossbows get). The Hydra Bow (134 Str) and Colossus Crossbow (163 Str) list a six-socket maximum, so you'd be hunting a drop with exactly five.
For an Amazon, the Colossus Crossbow has the biggest per-hit number of the missile bases. The Hydra Bow comes out roughly 12 to 15% above Windforce on the same base under these assumptions, counting Windforce's per-level max damage line. That is a modest edge for a Ber and a Sur. We'd test the Grand Matron Bow first because its Strength requirement is the easiest to meet.
Revive, Rogue Mercs and the Ber Plus Sur Bill
Revive went from level 8 with 88 charges to a level 5 O skill that never runs out. A Necromancer's own Revive stacks with it, but on any other class it stays at level 5, since +All Skills doesn't raise an O skill. Treat it as a bonus, not a reason to build.
If you want to test an Eternity bow without rebuilding a character around it, a Rogue mercenary is the lowest-commitment experiment. It is untested, and we don't know how a mercenary handles the per-level max damage line, so treat that as an open question. The rune bill is the same either way.
That bill is the real issue. Sur and Ber are runes 29 and 30 of 33, while Grief's top rune is Lo at 28. Ber is already a chokepoint rune for Enigma and Infinity, so expect Eternity to compete with them. Our rune values guide covers how to price a build like this, and the old rule from our best runeword bases post holds: don't pay up for a base on day one.
FAQ
Can you make Eternity in a bow or crossbow?
Yes, from Patch 3.4, on Reign of the Warlock Online Ladder and Offline. The base needs exactly five sockets. Online Non-Ladder still limits Eternity to melee weapons.
Is Eternity better than Grief in Season 16?
On paper, yes on large two-handed bases, where ED has more to multiply, and Grief can't go in a crossbow at all. On a Phase Blade, Grief out-hits it per swing and costs fewer high runes. We won't know until people play it.
Does Eternity change on Online Non-Ladder?
No. Non-Ladder keeps the old version with +260-310% ED, no Maximum Damage line, melee bases only and the level 8 Revive with 88 charges.
Pool the Runes With a Team
Eight people farming find a Ber and a Sur sooner than one does. Create an account, fill in your Ladder Setup, and browse the teams recruiting for a group that will share the rune hunt. The drop calculator helps plan the farming runs.