Warframe Prime Acquisition Guide: Your Roadmap to Farming Locations
Welcome, Tenno! The hunt for Prime Warframes is a core part of the Warframe experience. There's nothing quite like the feeling of assembling a powerful, Orokin-enhanced version of your favorite frame, gleaming with gold and sporting enhanced stats. However, navigating the labyrinth of Void Relics and drop tables can be daunting. This comprehensive guide is designed to be your one-stop resource, demystifying the entire process and showing you the most efficient farming locations to build your Prime arsenal.
Let's start with the fundamental concept: Void Relics. These are containers holding blueprints for Prime components (Chassis, Neuroptics, Systems, and the main Blueprint). Relics come in four tiers: Lith (lowest), Meso, Neo, and Axi (highest). Each tier contains specific Prime parts. Your first step in any Prime acquisition journey is to farm for the correct Relics that contain the parts you need.
Part 1: Farming the Right Relics
You can't get Prime parts without the right Relics. Here are the most efficient mission types for farming each tier:
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Lith Relic Farming Locations: The best spots are typically low-level Capture and Exterminate missions due to their speed.
- Earth, Gaia: A very fast Capture mission perfect for new players starting their Lith Relic collection.
- Olympus, Mars: Another excellent Capture mission with a straightforward layout.
- Tessera, Venus: A quick Sabotage mission that can be completed in under 5 minutes, offering a good relic reward chance.
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Meso Relic Farming Locations: As you progress, you'll need Meso Relics.
- Io, Jupiter: This Defense mission is a community favorite. Staying until Wave 10 and then extracting is a highly efficient way to farm Meso Relics while also getting a chance at Neo Relics.
- Helene, Saturn: Serves a dual purpose. It's a fantastic spot for farming Meso Relics and is one of the best locations in the game for leveling up your Warframes and weapons due to the Affinity bonus.
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Neo Relic Farming Locations: These require a bit more effort.
- Hydron, Sedna: While primarily known as the top-leveling spot, Hydron's rotation A (Waves 5 and 10) has a high chance of dropping Neo Relics. You kill two birds with one stone by leveling gear and farming.
- Xini, Eris: An Interception mission that is a goldmine for Neo and Axi Relics. By controlling all four points, you can earn a reward every round, with Neo Relics being common in the early rounds (A and B) and Axi Relics appearing later (C and D).
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Axi Relic Farming Locations: The highest tier of Relics often requires the most endurance.
- Apollo, Lua: This is the undisputed king of Axi Relic farming. The Disruption game mode rewards you based on how many conduits you defend each round. With high efficiency, you can earn an Axi Relic every other round, making it the fastest method in the game.
- Berehynia, Sedna: Another solid Interception mission. While slightly less efficient than Apollo for pure Axi farming, it's a reliable alternative, especially for players who prefer Interception over Disruption.
- Mithra, Void: A classic Interception mission that has been a reliable source of Axi Relics for years.
Pro-Tip: Use the official Warframe drop table website or community tools like the Warframe Wiki to check which specific Relics (e.g., Lith A5, Neo V7) contain the parts you need. This prevents you from farming unnecessary Relics.
Part 2: Cracking Open Your Relics - The Void Fissure System
Once you have your Relics, it's time to crack them open. This is done through the Void Fissure missions, accessible from the top-right of your Star Chart navigation. These are regular missions with a twist: you must collect 10 Reactant dropped by Corrupted enemies to "refine" your Relic and receive its reward.
- Refining Your Relics: You can refine your Relics at a Relic Segment in your Orbiter using Void Traces. Refining increases the chance of getting a rare part.
- Intact: 25% Uncommon, 2% Rare (Default)
- Exceptional: 33% Uncommon, 4% Rare (25 Traces)
- Flawless: 40% Uncommon, 6% Rare (50 Traces)
- Radiant: 50% Uncommon, 10% Rare (100 Traces)
For common parts, Intact is fine. For the elusive rare parts, always aim to run a Radiant Relic. The most efficient way to farm Void Traces is by simply running Void Fissure missions.
Part 3: Maximizing Your Rewards - The Power of Squads
This is the most crucial strategy for efficient Prime part farming. When you run a Void Fissure mission, every player in your squad gets to choose one reward from the four opened Relics. This means your chances of getting the rare part you want are quadrupled!
- Radsharing: This is a community-driven practice where a squad of four players all equip the same Radiant Relic. This gives the squad a 1 - (0.9)^4 = ~34% chance that at least one person gets the rare part, a massive increase from the 10% chance when running solo. You can organize Radshares in the Recruiting Chat by typing, for example, "H [Neo V7 Radiant] Radshare".
- Intactsharing: The same concept but with Intact Relics, useful for farming common parts quickly.
Part 4: The Alternative Path - Trading for Prime Warframes
Sometimes, RNG is not on your side. You might have three parts of a Warframe but be missing that one last, stubborn component. This is where trading comes in.
- Warframe Market: The premier external website for trading. It's user-friendly and allows you to list your items for sale or browse offers from other players.
- Maroo's Bazaar & Clan Dojo: In-game trading locations. Maroo's is a good place to browse, but the Warframe Market is generally more efficient for finding specific items.
You can sell your duplicate Prime parts, unwanted rare mods, or other valuable items for Platinum, the premium currency, and then use that Platinum to buy the exact part you need. This is often the fastest, though not the cheapest, method for obtaining Prime Warframes.
Putting It All Together: A Step-by-Step Prime Acquisition Plan
Let's use a hypothetical example: You want to build Nova Prime.
- Research: Check the wiki. You discover you need: Nova Prime Blueprint (Lith N6 Rare), Neuroptics (Meso D4 Common), Chassis (Neo N7 Common), Systems (Axi N5 Uncommon).
- Farm Relics:
- Lith N6: Run Earth (Gaia) or Mars (Olympus) Capture missions.
- Meso D4: Run Io, Jupiter, to Wave 10 repeatedly.
- Neo N7: Run Hydron, Sedna, to Wave 10 or Xini, Eris, for a few rounds.
- Axi N5: Run Apollo, Lua, Disruption with high efficiency.
- Refine and Recruit:
- Refine your Lith N6 to Radiant using Void Traces.
- Go to Recruiting Chat and form a "Lith N6 Radshare" squad.
- Execute:
- Run the corresponding Void Fissure mission with your squad. Collect 10 Reactant and hope for the best!
- For the common and uncommon parts (Neuroptics, Chassis, Systems), you can often run Intact Relics in public matches or form Intactshares for speed.
If, after many tries, the Nova Prime Blueprint still eludes you, you can farm other valuable Prime parts, sell them for Platinum, and then buy the blueprint from another player.
The path to a complete Prime Warframe is a journey of preparation, execution, and sometimes, a little bit of trading. By understanding the best farming locations for Void Relics, mastering the Void Fissure system, and leveraging the power of squad play through Radsharing, you will systematically dismantle the RNG and fill your Orbiter with the most powerful Warframes the Origin System has to offer. Happy hunting, Tenno
