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Warframe New Player Checklist: What To Do First, In Order (2026)
What to do first, in order
Last Updated on September 10, 2026
Warframe gates its content in a fixed order, so the fastest way through the early game is to do things in the sequence below. Each box is one step; the Requires line tells you what unlocks it, and the linked progression map explains why the order matters.
Table of Contents
Step 1: Your first hour
Pick a starter frame, clear the mandatory tutorial quest, and avoid the two traps that waste new-account resources.
This decides your first several hours of play. It is not a permanent lock, you can own all three eventually, so pick whichever playstyle sounds fun.
Excalibur is a simple melee and slash kit and the easiest to learn. Mag is a group and burst control kit that scales well into the mid game. Volt is a speed and shield kit with strong utility. All three stay viable into late game content.
This is the mandatory opening quest. It auto-triggers on a new account and walks you through your first missions while repairing your Orbiter.
Follow the Lotus's waypoints across the small set of Earth missions until you defeat Captain Vor.
Requires: Awakening (auto)
Your starting Platinum grant is one of the few free amounts of premium currency you ever get. Warframe and weapon slots are a permanent account upgrade, cosmetics are not.
Open Market, buy a few extra Warframe Slots and Weapon Slots first. Buy blueprints with credits instead of rushing builds with plat.
Build your free starter weapons
You need a primary, secondary, and melee to run most nodes, and the MK1 starter weapons build for credits only, no rare resources.
Open the Foundry from your Orbiter, queue the MK1-Braton, MK1-Kunai or Lato, and your starter melee.
Learn the mission type icons before you launch
Exterminate, Capture, Defense, Survival, Spy, and Rescue cover most of the early star chart, and knowing the icon saves confused runs.
Read the mission briefing screen before you press launch, it names the mission type and the objective.
Step 2: MR 0 to 3: the basics
Unlock the mod system properly, get your core damage and survivability mods, and claim your first companion.
Complete Once Awake
It unlocks automatically once you clear Vor's Prize and open the early Junctions, and it introduces Defense and Spy missions plus a Heat Sword blueprint reward.
Accept it from the Codex or quest log as soon as it lights up, then follow the markers.
Requires: Mercury Junction completed
Complete The Teacher quest for your core mod kit
This is the current mod-system tutorial, run by Teshin. Finishing it hands you Pressure Point, Fury, Serration, Hornet Strike, Heated Charge, Continuity, and Equilibrium in one Inbox reward, plus 500 Endo and 30,000 Credits. That covers most of the classic must-have starter mod list in a single quest.
It becomes available from the Codex after Vor's Prize and is the first task of the Venus Junction. Run it as soon as it unlocks.
Requires: Vor's Prize
Pick up Vitality and Redirection
Vitality (Warframe health) and Redirection (Warframe shields) round out the survivability side that The Teacher's reward list does not fully cover on its own, low health and shields are the number one reason new players die once enemies scale up.
Both are common early drops from Grineer and Corpus enemies on Earth and Venus, or buy them outright from the Market for credits.
These five mods are the baseline damage and survivability floor. Without them, early weapons feel weak and frames feel paper thin.
Arsenal, select a weapon or frame, open the Mods tab, slot each one, then rank them up with Endo and credits as you collect more copies.
Claim Taxon, your first companion
Taxon is a Sentinel whose blueprint is awarded for completing the Earth to Venus Junction. Companions give a passive stat boost, extra loot, or combat utility on every mission.
Finish the Venus Junction requirements, then build Taxon from the Foundry using the free blueprint.
Push the Mars Junction
Buying a MK1 weapon from the Market to satisfy the Mars Junction task rewards an unranked Streamline mod (Warframe ability efficiency), and clearing the Junction opens The Archwing quest.
Check the Junction panel on the Mars node for its exact task list and complete each one before fighting the Junction Specter.
Requires: Once Awake completed; mission with Boltor equipped; purchase MK1 weapon
Step 3: MR 3 to 6: unlock the systems
Join a Syndicate, start Nightwave, place your first Reactor and Catalyst, and build your second frame.
Join one Syndicate
You can pledge to a Faction Syndicate starting at MR3. Standing unlocks augment mods, weapons, and Void Relic packs, but New Loka and Arbiters of Hexis oppose Red Veil, and Cephalon Suda and Perrin Sequence oppose Steel Meridian, so raising one side's standing can send armed death squads after you.
Open the Syndicates menu, read the faction blurbs and their opposed factions, and pledge to the one whose rewards and lore you want.
Nightwave is a free battle pass style track of daily, weekly, and permanent challenges that pays out Endo, Orokin Catalysts, Orokin Reactors, Forma, and cosmetics through Nightwave Standing and Cred.
Open the Nightwave icon in the bottom corner of the star chart screen and start clearing its listed Acts.
Rhino is the classic second frame: tanky, simple to build around, and buildable the moment you beat Jackal, which makes him the first frame most players farm and craft themselves rather than start with.
Run the Venus boss node (Fossa) repeatedly until Jackal drops all three Rhino component blueprints, then build in the Foundry.
Place your first Orokin Catalyst
A Catalyst doubles a weapon's mod capacity. Community advice is consistent: use it on a weapon you actually plan to keep using, not a throwaway MK1 gun, and wait until your mods are ranked enough to fill the extra capacity.
Earn or buy one, then apply it from the weapon's screen in Arsenal or straight from your inventory.
Place your first Orokin Reactor
A Reactor doubles a Warframe's mod capacity the same way a Catalyst does for weapons, and it is consumed permanently once applied, so put it on a frame you intend to keep running.
Earn or buy one, then apply it to the chosen frame from Arsenal or inventory.
Complete The Archwing and Stolen Dreams quests
The Archwing quest is unlocked through the Mars Junction and grants the Odonata Archwing plus two Archwing weapons. Completing it in turn unlocks Stolen Dreams via the Mars to Phobos Junction, which leads into The New Strange.
Accept each from the Codex as it becomes available and follow the mission markers.
Requires: Phobos Junction completed; The Archwing completed
Run your first Void Fissure mission
Void Fissures are how you crack Void Relics for Prime parts, the principal way to get your first Prime Warframe or weapon.
Equip a relic from Equipment, launch a matching Fissure mission, kill corrupted (glowing) enemies for Reactant until you hit 10, then pick a reward at extraction.
Step 4: MR 6 to 10: push the star chart
Round out your mod kit with crit and multishot mods, then clear the quest chain up through The War Within.
Farm Point Strike and a multishot mod for your primary
Point Strike adds primary weapon critical chance, and multishot mods like Split Chamber still function as a core damage multiplier alongside the newer Acuity mods introduced in Update 38 and refined in Update 41.
Both drop from mid-tier Spy missions and Void Fissure rewards, check current sources on the in-game Codex or a drop-table site before farming.
Your MK1 gear caps out fast. The Lex secondary (50,000 Credits from the Market) is a straight upgrade over the Lato or MK1-Kunai with solid base damage and crit stats.
Buy the blueprint from the Market with credits, build it in the Foundry, then mod it with your core kit.
Complete The New Strange
It unlocks after Stolen Dreams and is awarded through the Jupiter to Europa Junction, continuing the main quest chain toward Second Dream.
Accept from the Codex once unlocked and run the marked missions.
Requires: Stolen Dreams completed; Europa Junction completed
Complete Natah
Natah bridges you into The Second Dream. On current accounts it unlocks automatically after The Archwing, though some older guides still describe the pre-rework method of scanning Oculysts on Uranus.
Check your Codex for it once The Archwing is done, or scan Oculyst drones on Uranus (MR2+) if it has not appeared.
Requires: The Archwing completed; play Uranus missions until Oculysts/strange drones appear
Complete The Second Dream
This is the story's first major turning point. It unlocks after the Uranus to Neptune Junction and gates the rest of the cinematic quest line, plus Railjack access later.
Accept it once the Neptune Junction is cleared and play it through in one sitting, it is not replayable.
Requires: Natah completed; Neptune Junction completed
Finishing The Second Dream awards a Focus Lens and forces a choice of one of five Focus Schools, unlocking that school's two passive Ways immediately.
Read each school's kit at the end of the quest and pick based on your playstyle, you can grind Focus points to unlock the other schools later.
Complete The War Within
It continues directly from Second Dream and is required before Chains of Harrow and the rest of the late quest chain.
Accept it from the Codex as soon as it appears and follow the story missions.
Requires: The Second Dream completed; Pluto Junction completed
Step 5: Finish the regular star chart
Clear the remaining cinematic quests, unlock Railjack, and open every planet up to Pluto and Sedna.
Complete Chains of Harrow
It is the next quest after The War Within and is required before Apostasy Prologue and The Sacrifice.
Accept from the Codex and complete it in one sitting.
Requires: The War Within completed; visit Onkko in Cetus
Complete Apostasy Prologue
This short bridge quest is required to unlock The Sacrifice. It needs your Personal Quarters segment built and your matchmaking set to Solo.
Build and install the Personal Quarters segment, set matchmaking to Solo, then interact with the glowing orb in your quarters to start it.
Requires: Chains of Harrow completed; Personal Quarters built (unlocked by The War Within)
Build Rising Tide and your Railjack
Rising Tide unlocks after The Second Dream and is the quest that gives you a personal Railjack, which is required gear for The New War later.
Accept Rising Tide from the Codex, gather the listed resources, and build the Railjack components in your Dry Dock.
Requires: The War Within completed
The Sacrifice is unlocked by finishing Apostasy Prologue and is a required step before Chimera Prologue and The New War.
Accept from the Codex once Apostasy Prologue is done and run it through, it is not replayable.
Requires: Apostasy Prologue completed
Complete Heart of Deimos and Chimera Prologue
Heart of Deimos introduces the Necramech and the Cambion Drift, and Chimera Prologue unlocks after The Sacrifice, both of which gate The New War.
Travel to the Deimos landing craft from your Star Chart for Heart of Deimos, then accept Chimera Prologue from the Codex once available.
Requires: The Sacrifice completed
Complete The New War
This is the current capstone cinematic quest. It requires the prior chain finished, a built Railjack, and cannot be started on a fresh account, it is the last mandatory story gate before endgame systems open up.
Accept from the Codex once all prerequisites show complete, and set aside a long single sitting to play it through.
Requires: The Maker completed (Prelude to War finished); own a Railjack (loaner offered if none owned); own a Necramech (loaner offered if none owned)
This finishes unlocking the entire original star chart, giving you access to every non-open-world node.
Work outward planet by planet, clearing each Junction's task list and Specter fight as you reach it.
Step 6: Prepare for endgame
Gear up your frame and weapons for Steel Path and the repeatable endgame activity loop.
Higher MR unlocks better weapons, higher trade limits, and faster Void Trader and market access, and most endgame modes have no hard MR gate but assume a broad arsenal.
Level new weapons and frames to 30 rather than only your favorites, then take the MR test when it becomes available.
Archon Shards socket directly into a Warframe for permanent stat boosts and are a core part of an endgame frame build.
Complete Archon Hunts weekly for shard drops, then install and Tauforge them through the Shards screen.
Requires: Archon Hunts (or Netracells/Deep Archimedea) completed for shard drops; Helminth Archon Shard Segment installed (granted by completing Veilbreaker)
Helminth lets you feed one Warframe to subsume an ability onto others, letting you patch a weak ability slot on your favorite frame.
Complete the requirements to access the Helminth segment on your Orbiter, then feed a frame you are not using to unlock its ability.
Requires: Heart of Deimos completed; Entrati syndicate Rank 3 (Associate) to buy the Helminth Segment from Son; Helminth Segment built (Mastery Rank 8)
Steel Path enemies hit dramatically harder and have far more health than the regular star chart, star chart mods alone will not carry you.
Compare your current loadout against a current best Steel Path weapons list before queueing in.
Requires: All Star Chart nodes accessible before The New War completed, including quest-locked ones (Tyana Pass, Ropalolyst, Saya's Visions, all Lua and Kuva Fortress nodes); Speak to Teshin at any Relay and choose 'Steel Path?'; For the Duviri Steel Path node specifically: The Duviri Paradox plus its three base nodes cleared in normal mode
Not every frame handles Steel Path enemy levels equally well early on, picking a proven pick smooths the transition.
Check a current tier ranking for Steel Path and build toward one of the top picks with your available gear.
Requires: All Star Chart nodes accessible before The New War completed, including quest-locked ones (Tyana Pass, Ropalolyst, Saya's Visions, all Lua and Kuva Fortress nodes); Speak to Teshin at any Relay and choose 'Steel Path?'; For the Duviri Steel Path node specifically: The Duviri Paradox plus its three base nodes cleared in normal mode
Archon Hunts are a weekly three-mission chain against an Archon boss and are the main source of Archon Shards.
Open World State Window or the Star Chart to find the weekly Archon Hunt node once The New War is done.
Requires: Completed The New War; Completed Veilbreaker; Rank 30 Warframe or MR30 polarized player
Eidolon hunts are a core source of Arcanes and a major credit and resource farm once you can run them efficiently.
Wait for night on the Plains of Eidolon, bring Operator amp gear, and target the Teralyst first before attempting tougher Eidolons.
Profit-Taker is the Orb Vallis boss fight and a major source of Toroids, Arcanes, and standing with Solaris United.
Rank up Solaris United standing to unlock the bounty, then bring a strong Warframe and Archwing weapon loadout for the shield phases.
Mistakes almost every new player makes
- Spending Platinum on items that have a Blueprint option: most Market listings that cost Platinum also have a Blueprint you can buy with credits, spend plat on slots instead.
- Selling Prime parts for credits instead of trading or turning them into Ducats through Baro Ki'Teer, Prime parts are worth far more on the trade market or as Ducats.
- Forma-ing a weapon or frame before the build is finalized, Forma resets the item to rank 0, so lock in the polarity plan first.
- Picking a Syndicate at random without checking opposed factions, raising standing with one side can send armed death squads after you in missions tied to the rival factions.
- Ignoring Nightwave, its Acts hand out free Catalysts, Reactors, Forma, and Endo at no cost, skipping it wastes resources you would otherwise have to farm or buy.
- Jumping into Steel Path, Archon Hunts, or other endgame bounties before finishing the regular star chart's mods and gear, enemy levels and damage there scale far beyond what starter mods handle.
- Treating starter or MK1 weapons as permanently disposable, a cheap weapon reslotted with the mods from The Teacher quest plus crit and multishot mods can carry much further into the star chart than its base stats suggest.
- Waiting to join a Syndicate until much later, standing gates useful augment mods and some Void Relic packs, and it only requires reaching MR3.