Prime basic crash-course in ‘Warframe: Plains of Eidolon’ – Part III

At last, you have arrived at the final part of this tri-guide to ‘Warframe: Plains of Eidolon.’ Part-I dealt with basic intros, the Archwing, and what else beginners can expect to find in the fresh new update. Part-II dealt with bounties, incursions, and materials galore, not to forget the elite faction called The Quills (a step-up from the Ostrons).

This veritable masterpiece in the gaming world has taking space-warfare to new heights; or rather, dimensions. Both PVE and PVP styles are available for players to enjoy and excel at. As beginners, take special care to build your character.

Gear them up, steadfastly gather materials, and make sure you complete more planetary nodes than simply exploring on Cetus.

Serious Warframers are sure to appreciate the magnificent complexity and multi-layered beauty of this game, most especially its latest update. Eidolon is no small calling, which is precisely why you have been recruited for it. Prime-Signs and Mecha-Divine favors aside, let us complete our final guide for the latest design addition to Warframe; it seems destined for greatness.

A-mining we shall go

This is a straightforward step, to be candid. You find mining nodes, and staying safe however you can start mining for gems that you can either sell or use as crafting material for Cetus-specific blueprints bought off Ostron vendors.

• Keep an eye out for rocky outcroppings as you traverse the Plains. These special geological protrusions will have gems glinting off them and/or display blue/red veins.Be prepared. Get the blueprint and craft a Nosam Cutter, the sole tool with which you can harvest the gems that you will need to make good gear great.
• An important NPC to keep an eye out for (in Cetus) is Old Man Suumbaat – he sells you your first cutter. Access the in-game map and look for the pickaxe icon in the Ostron settlement.
• You will have to pay ‘500 Standing’ to buy the cutter (which you most definitely need), so get started on those bounty missions post-haste.
• The Nosam Cutter is designed in grades and has in-built radars for ore detection.

Mining is a great way to improve not just your Ostron standing but also your personal collection of Cetus-specific crafting materials.

The in-built radar on your cutter will ping for your attention during Eidolon missions, so you can make the most of your itinerary. This is a prime (pun intended) way to save time as well as multitask.

The art of fishing

In keeping with the super-simple spirit of resource gathering so far, fishing too is a regular way for players to gather resources, fuel for their Archwings, and to generally spend their time in the Plains as beneficially as they can.

• Fishing’s most basic reward is Fish Oil, using which you will be crafting charges that will power your Archwing Launcher Segment. If you wish to save even more time and play like a proficient amateur, just know that flight supersedes running any day of the Prime-week. In other words, go fishing. In this case, you can confidently admit that Fish Oil gives you wings.
• Another important NPC to keep an eye out for (in Cetus) is Hai-Luk – he sells you your first spear. Access the in-game map and look for the fish icon in the Ostron settlement.
• When you find a water-body, equip the spear and do as instinct bids. There’s a rather realistic travel-time design-element to fishing in Eidolon, so aim properly, anticipate your fishy target’s trajectory, and spear them silly.

Granted, fishing is not as multitasking friendly as mining.

This is because the fish only spawn when you are near a water-body. But, hey, it’s as relaxing and fun as it sounds. It’s a great way to chill between incursions, bounty-hunts, and blueprint completion time-frames, or even as you wait for your clan members to show up from across the Solar System to help ‘carry’ your lazy behind on the Plains of Eidolon.

Crafting – The motherlode of resource management and application

To be perfectly honest, Warframe is – at its core – a game that lets you craft your way to the top of the leaderboards. To make the next most effective piece of gear, you grind and work – hard and smart – to get the edge on your opponents, be they humanoid enemies, actual players, or alien creatures of disparate shapes, sizes, and fatalities.

Loot equals greatness for your character. Don’t rush to make Gara, the newest Prime on the block – spend your time wisely and you will end up making it eventually.

• The blueprints in Eidolon demand three distinct types of materials – Zaws, Amps, and Arcanes – in order to begin the synthesizing process. Combine these with other basic and mid-tier materials found in Cetus missions, and you can make the item(s) that your character needs to get stronger.
• All warframes need attention if they are to see any improvement in rank, power, efficiency, and so on. That said, focus on your main character first, then branch out to fancier Primes. Beginners usually make and stick to Rhino Prime, a simpler warframe to wield aside from the starter-suit, Tenno.

Once you have brushed up on such basics of "Warframe" resource management you will better comprehend how to use the three main materials in the new update.

Zaws

As melee weapons go, this new class of them are splendid examples of Warframe design ingenuity.

• Strikes, Links, and Grips comprise the sub-components that you will need to assemble as you see fit to ensure that you make a weapon whose final attributes are worthy of your Prime.
• This essentially makes Zaws 'customised blade technology' that will determine your character’s special abilities, mobility, and damage output.
• In this regard, an important NPC to keep an eye out for (in Cetus) is Hok – he sells you Zaw blueprints. Access the in-game map and look for the hammer and anvil icon in the Ostron settlement. His best designs will need some Ostron-Standing grinding on your part, so don’t purchase anything from him just yet; no matter what he says.

The main reason you will need first-tier Zaws is to create your own custom-weapon or simply gain a decisive advantage over anything relatively average that you might have been tugging around Earth and Mars before arriving in Cetus.

Recommendation: Grind until you have enough Ostron Standing and faction-rank to make better gear; via blueprints. You can always come back to the low-tier choices simply to have them in your collection and open up design alternatives.

Amps

Remember ‘Operator Mode’ (OM) that was mentioned in Part-II of this article? That’s when you have gained enough influence to access quests from The Quills faction whose blue door can only be opened in Operator Mode.

• You use Amps (i.e., weapon gauntlets) in this mode.
• To use special abilities, your character relied on Void Energy up to this time. You can now access a distinct energy source to use your Void Beam attacks while in OM.
• Amp-making follows the same triple-stage technique as Zaws. Also, you can only make them inside The Quills’ secret-area (in Cetus).
• Amps are – beginners, brace yourself to frown – exclusive to enhancing late-game gear. This means only end-game players can aptly use and apply Amps to their warframe as compared to ‘fresh meat’ recruits who just came in on the latest train to Eidolon.

One of the biggest upsides to Amps is that they do not replace your character’s existing weapon but help enhance them.

This certainly leaves room for clever combos and nifty experiments.

Arcanes

Both Amps and Zaws benefit immensely from the permanent applicative properties of Arcane Enhancements.

• Recall those elite-player-recommended Eidolon Teralysts? When you are strong enough to bring one of them down with help from your squad, you will be eligible for loot drops that include Eidolon Shards – the core crafting component for Arcanes.
• They enhance Zaws by granting you space to augment customised attributes to complement your Zaw’s capabilities.
• They enhance Amps along more simplistic lines, namely stamping them with a passive upgrade; which is good nevertheless.

Arcanes are also, as you may have guessed, for end-game players.

So start grinding, Tenno, you have many a mile to go before you rule.

Final words – Ending on a Prime-positive note

Beginners, even if you have a way to go in Plains of Eidolon don’t lose heart.

• Grind Ostron Standing and spend them smartly on mining and fishing gear – to get crafting materials for future blueprints and fish oil to power your Archwing, respectively.
• Keep abreast of bounties and Oracle-on-call missions as you fight to survive on the brutal but breathtaking, and oftentimes horrifying, Eidolon Plains.
• Keep at it until you have earned the ability to access OM, Operator Mode. This is possible only after completing the quest-chains ‘The Second Dream’ and ‘The War Within.’
• Only after this time is it wise to spend your Ostron Standing on Zaws, Amps, and Arcanes to enhance your gear.
• Be super-careful – but not so cautious that you compete with chickens – when it comes to hunting Eidolon Teralysts.
• Solo at your own peril. This game is made for cooperative multiplayer matchmaking, so take excellent advantage of that system wherever you can. You are not obligated to speak to anyone in the group, just do your part and do it well.

You will certainly learn much more cunning tricks, tips, and techniques than the ones you may have found in this three-part guide.

By focusing your attention on the right targets at the right times, you will certainly gain an advantage over amateur players who simply like to run around trolling the sh** out of everything so they can make the next trending Warframe-meme; which is awesome, by the way, no judgment.

You are probably better prepared now to face the game’s latest, and brilliant, update. It’s a game-changer, pardon the pun. Due recognition goes out to PCGamer’s Steven Strom for inspiring the ‘inner mechanics’ of this three-part beginner-targeted guide article for Blasting News. Thank you, Steve, your article set a certain beginner on the right course and he has gone on to help others in turn.

Are you still sat there reading this?

Actions speak louder than words. If you beg to differ, try declaring your strength to your clan-members over a voice-channel and fire at the first Eidolon Teralyst you see. When you die, return to brush up on your basics, grin like you mean it (no one can see it behind your warframe anyway), and head back onto the Plains of Eidolon, only this time smarter and raring to win. Good luck and Mecha-speed, Tenno.