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The New War Quest Walkthrough (2026): Every Chapter, What to Bring and Every Choice

Sixteen chapters as Kahl, Veso, Teshin, the Drifter and yourself; the Archons; Ballas

Last Updated on September 12, 2026

The short answer

The New War is the four to six hour solo epic that ends the Sentient arc. You need Prelude to War, a Railjack and an Amp; a Necramech is loaned if you do not own one. Once you start, Navigation is locked until the credits, so set your loadout first. Sixteen chapters as Kahl, Veso, Teshin, the Drifter and finally your Warframe against two Archons and Ballas. It pays the Nataruk, the Sirocco amp and the Rumblejack, and it opens Narmer bounties, Caliban and the Archon Hunts.

Reviewed September 12, 2026, current through Update 43.5. Stage names and order checked against the official wiki; this page is re-checked after every major patch.

Quest facts
Needs	Prelude to War; A Railjack; An Amp; Necramech
Start	Initiate the quest from the Codex.
Time	4 to 6 hours, locked in once started
Squad	Solo, and you cannot leave until it is over
Pays	Nataruk; Sirocco; Rumblejack; 3 day Affinity and Credit boosters
Opens	Narmer bounties on the Plains and the Vallis; Caliban and the Archon weapons (Korumm, Nepheri, Verdilac); Veilbreaker and Archon Hunts
Line	Main story

What you need first

Requirement	Why
Prelude to War	Chimera Prologue, Erra and The Maker all complete.
A Railjack	Rising Tide, or the 400 Platinum one; you fly it twice.
An Amp	Any built Amp counts; a 1-2-3 or better from the Quills makes the Archon fights far shorter.
Necramech	Not required any more: a Voidrig is loaned in the quest if you have none.

Bring

Decently equipped Railjack (Sigma MK I Components and Crew Engineer recommended)
Well-equipped Arsenal (Warframe, weapons, mods)
Paracesis (if you want to use your own modded version)

Stage by stage

For My Brothers: Play as Kahl-175, a Grineer soldier, to destroy a Condrix on the Plains of Eidolon. Watch: Kahl has different movement and abilities than a Tenno; dying resets progress to the current objective's start.
Veso-R: Play as Veso, a Corpus tech, to disable command overrides on a Corpus ship under Sentient attack. Watch: Veso's Breacher MOA is key for bypassing obstacles; the Shield Drone can protect it from hazards.
Railjack: Pilot your Railjack to clear Orphix fields and allow Teshin to board the Sentient mothership. Watch: Ensure your Railjack is decently equipped for survivability.
Teshin: Play as Teshin to destroy Orphix fields within the Sentient mothership. Watch: Sentient enemies have elemental shields requiring specific elemental attacks from Teshin's abilities.
The Rise of Narmer: Play as the Drifter to infiltrate a Narmer Outpost and escape an Archon. Watch: Security Links require a new hacking type; optional Ostron rescues provide no bonus.
Drifter's Camp: Return to the Drifter's camp and prepare to travel to Fortuna.
Stolen Plates: Infiltrate Fortuna's Spaceport as the Drifter, using a Narmer Veil to bypass security, and destroy the Veil factory. Watch: Avoid Narmer Deacons as they can remotely detonate the veil; a quick-time event removes the mask.
Enemy of Enemies: Travel to Uranus, meet Hunhow, and receive the Nataruk bow. Watch: Hunhow tests your skill with the Nataruk; releasing before full charge fires a more powerful shot.
Temporal Axioms: Experience a memory of the Zariman Ten Zero and answer quiz questions about Temporal Axioms. Watch: Wrong answers are not penalized.
The Wild Hunt: Defeat two of the three Archons (Boreal, Amar, Nira) to gather their power. Watch: Archons have unique attack patterns and weaknesses; the Stalker revives you on the first down.
The Aftermath: Witness the consequences of the Archon battles and make a choice between Drifter and Operator. Watch: The choice between Drifter and Operator is cosmetic for the remainder of the quest.
She Gives, We Live: Equip the Paracesis, rescue Ostrons in Cetus, scale the Unum Tower, and board the Murex. Watch: You must equip the Paracesis; avoid Deacons while rescuing Ostrons; use Void damage on Reactive Crystals.
Approach Praghasa: Pilot the Railjack through the sun's intensity and then deploy your Necramech onto the Sentient Mothership. Watch: Use Murex wreckage for cover from heat waves; no Railjack Crew is present.
On Praghasa: Disable Orphix generators as the Drifter/Operator, then summon your Warframe to defeat the final Archon.
The Final Showdown: Defeat Ballas and reclaim the Lotus. Watch: Redirect Lotus's attacks onto Narmer lenses; lure Ballas's beam to lenses to create openings.
Conclusion: Return the Lotus to Lua and make a final choice about her identity. Watch: The Lotus's chosen name is permanent, but her appearance can be changed later.

Choices and what they change

Drifter or Operator for the last chapters: cosmetic, and you can swap later in the Orbiter.
Natah, Lotus or Margulis for her name: permanent name, changeable look.

Rewards

Reward	From	Note
Nataruk	Enemy of Enemies	Hunhow's bow; release at the perfect charge for a stronger shot
Sirocco	Drifter chapters	The Drifter's pistol amp
Rumblejack	Drifter chapters	Melee
3 day Affinity and Credit boosters	Completion	Use them on Narmer bounties
Decorations and Captura	Completion	A Lost Time, Ballas' staff, the Drifter's Camp scene

Frames in this quest

Excalibur UmbraBring

RevenantBring

Frame	Role	Why
Excalibur Umbra	Bring	Fights on his own while you are the Operator; the Archon chapters love that.
Revenant	Bring	Mesmer Skin ignores Archon burst if you want the safe pick.

Weapons in this quest

NatarukReward

ParacesisBring

Weapon	Why
Nataruk	Given mid-quest, kept after.
Paracesis	The quest equips it for She Gives, We Live; a Forma'd one hits harder.

Tips that save runs

Mod your Railjack before you start; Sigma parts and an Engineer crew member are enough, and no crew flies with you on Praghasa.
Kahl and Veso die easily; dying resets to the current objective, not the chapter.
Archons: Boreal, Amar or Nira, you fight two. Strip the Sentient shield elements with whatever damage type they are not adapted to.
Reactive Crystals on the Murex want Void damage: Operator, Amp, or the Paracesis.

Mistakes that waste runs

Starting with an unranked Amp and a stock Railjack.
Starting on a night you cannot finish; you can quit and resume at the chapter, but nothing else in the game is available meanwhile.

What it unlocks

Narmer bounties on the Plains and the Vallis
Caliban and the Archon weapons (Korumm, Nepheri, Verdilac)
Veilbreaker and Archon Hunts
Angels of the Zariman, Jade Shadows, Whispers in the Walls
The Drifter and Drifter cosmetics

Where it sits

Before it: Rising Tide. After it: Angels of the Zariman. The full order is on the quest hub.

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