Ancient's Pledge: Shield Rune Word - Diablo 2
Ancient's Pledge is the lowest level Shield Rune Word in the game and it is the only Rune Word that is technically given to you as a quest reward. Act 5 Quest 2: Rescue on Mount Arreat rewards the player with Ral, Ort and Tal Runes which are all used to create this Rune Word.
This Rune Word offers very good protection for its level in the form of both Resistances and defensive bonuses. It also returns 10% Damage Taken As Mana which is an extremely useful benefit for anyone who is a front line fighter. This Rune Word can be Socketed into the class specific Necromancer Shrunken Heads as well as into any Paladin Shields.
Keep in mind that all Rune Words you create will retain any pre-existing bonuses found on the item. If you find a 'Superior' piece of armor with +Enhanced Defense, a Superior Weapon with +Enhanced Damage or a Helm/Weapon that has +Skill bonuses for a certain class, all of these will remain on the final Rune Word that is created. It's also possible to 'ebug' a piece of Ethereal Armor that you find which will increase the Defense bonuses by 50%, check out my Ebugging Guide for more information.
Farming High Runes: Out of all locations in the game one stands above the rest for farming specifically High Runes, the Countess during Act 1. The Countess has a guaranteed chance to always drop a High Rune and can even drop more than one. Check out my The Countess Farming Guide for more information.
Required Runes:
Level Req: 21
Other Req: N/A
Slots: Shield
+50% Enhanced Defense
Cold Resist +43%
Lightning Resist +48%
Fire Resist +48%
Poison Resist +48%
10% Damage Taken Goes to Mana
Ancient's Pledge in Ebugged Monarch Shield.