Being the backbone of the Suikoden World that allows the existence of the universe, True Runes are the Gods of the suikoden world. Wholly sentient with its own will, each True Rune holds immeasurable power and has been the cause of many wars in the past. True Runes are often sought by those in power due to its power of granting agelessness to its bearer. All bearers of True Runes stop aging and become immune to disease and all other natural causes of death, although they could still die from physical causes, such as accidents or murder.
No one knows for certain where True Runes came from, but legend tells that the 27 True Runes were created when the brothers, "Sword" and "Shield" fought against each other, shattering itself into 27 pieces.
All True Runes represent a certain power, and bring both benefits and curses to its bearer, such as agelessness, which could be a great benefit and a great curse. Furthermore, a True Rune's sentience, or ego, could often overwhelm novice bearers who do not know how to dominate True Runes. This often results in the reversal of the "master-servant" relationship, reducing a True Rune's bearer into a mere vessel that the True Rune controls to achieve its own purposes.
All True Runes hold a purpose, and this purpose tends to be pursued with no moral consideration due to the fact that True Runes are forces of nature. True Runes may cause its bearer to save lives, but also may force its bearer to kill thousands of people against the bearer's will if it serves the rune's purpose.
True Runes could be quite fickle, and could abandon its bearer in favor of another, and when its bearer dies, it tends to vanish and remain hidden (within the earth or at the bottom of the ocean) until it feels like reappearing. One person can not bear more than one True Rune, but it is said that a secret exists that allows one person to bear more than one True Rune.