There exists several categories of runes the most basic of which are simple runes.
Simple runes take very simple shapes diamonds, lines building off lines, very often straight and to the point. These runes are a form of language used in days of old as some way of communicating. Learning simple runes is a fairly trivial matter and helps with many historical relics and artifacts. In addition it provides a great deal of beginner insight into how the other levels of runes work.