Secondly, you know exactly what stats you will get as effects granted by runes and runewords are constant. Firstly, if you know where to look for them, you are guaranteed to get some runes (random ones, but the method we'll show you is very consistent).
You might think that it's equally RNG-heavy as just farming gear but's actually not.
Luckily, there is a way of improving your gear with stats and effects of your choice - It involves Diablo 2 Runes and forming Runewords out of them. If not, you might be gear-starved for a considerable part of the game and forced to rely on the basic equipment you get from vendors. The (little) problem is, you will not always get what you need because of the random nature of loot if you're lucky, you might be showered with magic, rare, and even unique items with affixes and suffixes needed for your build. Diablo 2 is no different in this aspect, and getting better and better gear is an inherent part of its progression system.
Getting solid equipment early is very important in a game that mainly consists of hacking and slashing through hordes of enemies.
