The open-world free-to-play shooter has Steam players reeling to reload and start taking the Plains of Eidolon by Prime-storm. The game’s much-acclaimed 22nd update gives gamers something superb to look forward to, and early in the game to boot. Anyone who downloads the Steam client, and gets the free game from the Store page will be able to login and play a few basic levels to get the hang of Warframe.
After you complete mission-nodes on planet Earth – which has been remastered recently to provide a richer environment – you can access Cetus right there and leap into Eidolon (more on this later, promise).
There is, therefore, no obsessive-compulsive need for you to complete every single node on every single planet before starting off in Warframe’s grandest ‘new galactic zone on the block.’
It is highly recommended that you complete the initial main storyline quests ‘The Second Dream’ and ‘War Within’, because your character (called Prime) will need the resources from missions other than the ones in Eidolon. That said, the newbie gear-geek in you will find the main questline more satisfying than the rewards and goodies in Cetus. In other words, don't rush. When you finally make it, go ahead and enjoy the breathtaking design and feel of the Eidolon Plains, but don’t forget to leap back on your space-cruiser and check out the other nodes and planets as well.
You can't become a powerful end-game player by restricting your activities to Cetus.
What to confidently expect in the new update
- New upgrades, systems, activities, resources (crucial to making the new blueprints for the new Prime)
- New monster-hunts, fishing spots, mining areas
Whatever basics you are about to learn may not be as cut-and-dry as other games.
"Warframe" is a complex FPS (first-person shooter) and rich with futurism, the evolution of technology, space travel, and inter-galactic warfare (which is leagues more practical than millions of clones missing their shots in distinct StarWars-style gameplay).
Taking Flight – Baby Steps
Most online multiplayers have guilds and communities that you can join to play together or share resources.
In Warframe, such groups are called ‘Clans,’ and they also come designed to perform ‘Research’ on varied things to help clan members gain an edge. In the new update, the ‘Archwing Launcher Segment’ is a crucial inclusion, so make sure either you research it on your own or that your clan already has.
This is one other reason why it is recommended that you complete the main missions up to Earth, including the Mars junction nodes, before exploring Eidolon. Those quests will unlock the use of an Archwing – and Archwing-based quests – for your character. No unlock, no wings, no flight over the intimidating but gorgeous Plains of Eidolon.
Flight capability isn’t an absolute must-have, to be honest, just that you’ll need it to fly around the Plains because it’s obviously much faster than legging it.
The developers weren’t kidding when they labeled the game ‘open-world.’ The jetpack is called Archwing in the game, and you can (after researching it) summon it to help you soar over the Plains – over heavy enemy zones and tough-to-tackle terrain. There are missions dedicated solely to the use of the Archwing system; these are exceptionally fun.
Don’t get too excited, because you need to work (or ‘grind’ as MMO-terms go) to gather the resources needed to make your pair of winged excellence in your space-cruiser's ‘Tenno lab.’ Once you practice playing your Prime (.i.e, you, your character in-game), you will learn about blueprints, synthesizing them, completion times, and more, which sounds complex now to your fresh beginner-mind but your Warframe-heart will set you straight in no time.
That said, your Archwing will take 72 hours for blueprint synthesis and 12 more hours to be crafted and ready for use. It’s worth the effort; the sweets outweigh the sweat. The time spent making your mecha-wings will save even more time on the Plains.
Mark your maps, Tenno – Delving into what Eidolon has in store
As promised earlier, here's a quick guide on the update and how you can get to the Plains – the solar system can be a confusing place for newbies. When you are ready to fly over to Cetus on Earth, you will arrive at a ramshackle market town/village. This is where you will find all your upgrade blueprints, pets, items, and more on sale. The currency in Warframe spans the spectrum from credits and ducats to platinum and standing.
The lattermost option, Standing, is your single most important one in Eidolon.
- The town itself is designed to serve as an instance, and it can easily host up to fifty players at a time.
- Konzu is the NPC (non-player character) who initiates you into Eidolon and sends you out into the Plains to complete various tasks and gain Ostron Standing (we will explore this in crisp detail soon) with the people of Cetus. It’s quite simple, really. Konzu puts up bounties, you go into the Plains to fulfil said kills, and return to collect your reward (i.e., Ostron Standing).
- Squads are comprised of four players each who auto-group via the Warframe’s matchmaking feature and head out to complete objectives that come over the intercom. The robot-woman who will guide you is called ‘Oracle.’ She knows what she’s talking about, so listen carefully and get to it.
- Day/Night cycles are highly relevant to Eidolon. In keeping with the gaming spirit where too much of something can be bad, days on the Plains last 100 minutes while nights are only half that. This better helps you plan your ventures because sunset heralds the coming of the Eidolon Teralysts – you need to be a properly geared end-game player if you want to take these monsters on. There are outside sources to help you track time in-game, else you can simply get a feel for things and wing it; no Archwing-pun intended.
- Once you come back to the town proper and turn in your bounty to Konzu, you will open up the quest ‘Saya’s Vigil.’ This is an amazing beginner-friendly quest-chain because its basically a tour guide of all things Eidolon. From important locations shared via witty commentary to ore-suffused cave systems and the mighty Eidolon monsters themselves, you will get a sufficiently detailed feel for the game's latest update via the Saya quest.
- As a beginner with a few hours on your game-time, you might have discovered that ‘Prime’ is not a one-size-fits-all character in Warframe. It is the name of the space-suit or ‘warframe’ that you wear 24-7 to do anything at all in the game. You can choose to build an array of Primes– find components, synthesize blueprints, manufacture Primes, use them, and upgrade them with mods. In the Plains of Eidolon update, the ‘Saya’s Vigil’ quest gives you the chance to work toward building the latest Prime design in-game, namely Gara.
Fishing and Mining are two superb ways for you to gather resources that are crucial to making and/or purchasing Eidolon-based designs.
Get busy, complete bounties for Konzu, and when you have earned 1000 Ostron Standing you will be ready to unlock better gear for fishing and mining forays. Warframe’s weapons are beauties in their own right, giving new players that much more incentive to collect the best firearms and level/upgrade them to make them serve your Prime to deadly excellence.
In Part-II of this article, we will explore more about Ostron Stranding, Mining, Fishing, and Crafting in "Warframe: Plains of Eidolon."
