Ash
Ash builds
Wrathful Clones — Steel Path
Steel Path3–4 FormaAdvancedMedium confidenceStar ChartSteel PathShards optional

Ash — Wrathful Clones

Steel Path build. Shadow Clones are a real melee now. Wrathful Advance dumps flat crit onto them until rooms vanish. This is the peak you can run the day Steel Path unlocks — galvanized / arcanes, no Helminth.

Codex Checked · Compared against current game data for this update. · Update 43.5 · 5 Sept 2026 · PC · Current

Steel Path Star Chart, Circuit, first Archon. Helminth is the next card.

Wrong drop or mechanic?

Why this build?

Steel Path for Steel Path Star Chart, Circuit, first Archon. Helminth is the next card.

Health: Not yet — Helminth, Steel Path, or Archon Hunts still closed. Play the Starter.

Play this in Star ChartPlay this in Steel PathPlay this in CircuitPlay this in ArbitrationsPlay this in Archon Hunts
  • Blade Storm was reworked into an exalted melee. If the clone grid is empty, this loadout does nothing.
  • Wrathful Advance is the 2025–2026 Ash identity. Seeking Shuriken is worse once clones ignore armor with slash/finishers.
  • Crepuscular plus Smoke Screen is free damage. Do not skip invisibility to 'see better.'

Don’t use this for: Star Chart only · loadouts that need Helminth · open combat endurance · open-world / Eidolons · frames played as a gun platform only

Stronger mods, Arcanes, real synergy

You don’t need the shards to run the loop. They are a later ceiling, not a gate.

Bring: Shadow Clones (exalted melee) — Open Blade Storm's own melee grid. Blood Rush, Gladiator Might, Organ Shatter, Primed Fever Strike, Weeping Wounds, Condition Overload. This grid is the build.

Alternative if…

Instead: Smoke and SteelInstead: Smoke and Steel — Star ChartInstead: Wrathful Clones — OptimisedInstead: Wrathful Clones — Endgame

My test

Did this still work for you?

Your note, in this browser. Separate from Codex verification — the stamp on the card is editorial, this is yours.

Readiness

Inventory unknown

Not checked — add your collection. You have not failed a test.

  • Required mods 0/18 · required — 0/18 named
  • Forma 0/4 · required — 4 on the card. Codex does not track installed Forma.
  • Helminth · optional — Not required
  • Arcanes · recommended — 0/2 recommended
  • Shards · optional — Optional unless the card says a breakpoint

Investment: 4 Forma · Reactor · 1 shard · 4 specialised mods. Typical farm ~4–6 hours. Trade if a route is vaulted.

Codex Checked · Compared against current game data for this update. · Update 43.5 · 5 Sept 2026 · PC · Current

Medium confidence. A solid recommendation with more situational dependencies. Confidence is not verification. Verification is separate: Codex Checked against Update 43.5.

Your next step

Next: Wrathful Clones — Optimised

Unlock Helminth, Steel Path, or Archon Hunts before this upgrade is honest.

Wrathful Clones — Optimised

Plan

Today → next → later

Inventory unknown — mark “I own this” on a few mods. Until then this is a plan, not a score of zero.

  1. NextGet Steel ChargeInvasion / Nightwave
  2. After that3–4 FormaOne slot at a time. Rank 30 after each polarize.
  3. LaterCrimson · StrengthHelminth and shards are the last rungs. They are not the Starter.
  4. FinalWrathful Clones — Steel PathSteel Path · Advanced · 3–4 Forma

Upgrade from here

Wrathful Clones — Optimised

Locked behind Helminth, Steel Path, or Archon Hunts. Tick those on Progress first.

Open Wrathful Clones — Optimised

Helminth & shards

What to put on the body

  • 1 Crimson · Strength — Wrathful crit scales 1:1 with Strength.Archon locked

Tonight

What is actually up

30 minutes, one hour, or two — matched to this loadout, not a dump of the Origin System.

  1. 30 minutes

    Farm Steel Charge

    One named gap. Invasion / Nightwave

  2. 60 minutes

    Steel Charge, then Forma

    Finish the missing named card, then spend a Forma if a polarity is still fighting you.

  3. 120 minutes

    One Archon Hunt

    If you are logging off after this, stop at the named component. Do not start a second Forma session tired.

Who this is for

Play this build from zero

You forma'd the clone melee and want Steel Path rooms to disappear.

Time to a playable copy
After The Sacrifice (Umbral Intensify) and a Wrathful Advance subsume from Kullervo.
First mission to practice in
A Steel Path Exterminate. You want clumps.

4 button drills · 21 parts · tick the lists as you go

Before you start

0 of 3 done

Put it on the Warframe

0 of 5 done

Keep this up

Clone loop

Pocket card. Stick this on a second screen; the long version is the mission below.

  1. 1Smoke Screen (2). Crepuscular turns on.
  2. 2Wrathful Advance (1) for the crit window, then Blade Storm (4) the pack. Clones teleport in and delete.
  3. 3Teleport (3) onto stragglers or to refresh invulnerability.
  4. 4Recast Smoke before it dies. You are a glass ninja without it.

First mission — press these buttons

  1. 1

    Smoke Screen

    2

    Crepuscular on. You are a crit stick.

  2. 2

    Wrathful Advance

    1

    Tap 1. Flat crit chance equal to your Strength is now on melee and clones.

  3. 3

    Mark the room

    4

    Press 4, look around, confirm marks. Clones spawn and red-crit.

    You will know it worked when: Shadow figures stabbing. Big numbers if the grid is real.

  4. 4

    Teleport stragglers

    3

    3 onto anything still standing.

Common mistakes

  • Empty clone grid

    The rework made 4 a melee. Unmodded clones tickle level-cap.

  • Letting Smoke drop mid-room

    Crepuscular and your health bar both leave.

When this feels easy

  1. 1Tau Strength shardsWrathful scales 1:1. Three Tau Crimson is a different Warframe.
  2. 2Molt AugmentedKills add Strength. Recast Wrathful after it stacks.

Parts checklist

0 of 21 owned. Tap How on anything you still need.

Dependencies

24 dependencies

Frame → mods → unlocks. Tick Collection and Progress. This is a decision graph, not a wiki tree.

  1. 1●ashframe
  2. 2○Steel Chargemod
  3. 3○Power Driftmod
  4. 4○Blind Ragemod
  5. 5○Transient Fortitudemod
  6. 6○Intensifymod
  7. 7○Primed Continuitymod
  8. 8○Primed Flowmod
  9. 9○Equilibriummod
  10. 10○Rolling Guardmod
  11. 11○Ash's Blade Storm stancemod
  12. 12○Blood Rushmod
  13. 13○Gladiator Mightmod
  14. 14○Organ Shattermod
  15. 15○Condition Overloadmod
  16. 16○Weeping Woundsmod
  17. 17○Primed Fever Strikemod
  18. 18○Sacrificial Pressuremod
  19. 19○Primed Reachmod
  20. 20○Arcane Crepusculararcane
  21. 21○Molt Augmentedarcane
  22. 22○Crimson · Strengthshard
  23. 23○Steel Pathunlock
  24. 24○Archon Hunts (shards optional)unlock

Depends on

What this loadout needs

Required is a gate. Recommended is a ceiling. Optional is a later farm — don’t stall the card for it.

Required

Recommended

  • Arcane Crepuscular

    missing · Duviri / trade

    Damage and crit while invisible. Smoke Screen is the on-switch. Rank 0 is legal. Rank 3 is the Steel Path version.

  • Molt Augmented

    missing · Unlock the Zariman

    Strength stacks as you kill. Feeds Wrathful's flat crit. Rank 0 is legal. Rank 3 is the Steel Path version.

Optional

  • Crimson · Strength

    missing · Netracells / Archon Hunt / Bird 3

    Wrathful crit scales 1:1 with Strength.

Strength

~280–320% (Blind Rage, Transient Fortitude, Umbral Intensify, shards)

Duration

127–155% for Smoke Screen

Range

145%

Clones scale with melee mods and Wrathful's flat crit, not with Shuriken.

From the mods

Live power

Additive from max-rank Codex mods. Efficiency clamped 15–175%. Umbral set is +11% Strength per extra piece.

Strength
299%
Duration
128%
Range
100%
Efficiency
45%
Energy
+275%
Capacity
54 / 69

Open slots

Weapon HUD

Arsenal numbers

Base × damage mods × crit expectation × fire rate × multishot. No faction, no quantization. Galvanized kill stacks are a slider, not assumed.

Damage
35
Crit
17% × 5.00
Status
36%
Fire rate
9.58
Multishot
1.00
Avg hit
59
Arsenal DPS
561

Toggle common mods

Ash mods

  • AuraSteel ChargeCapacity plus clone damageInvasion / Nightwave
  • ExilusPower DriftOrokin Vaults / Lua
  • 1Blind RageOrokin Vaults
  • 2Transient FortitudeOrokin Vaults
  • 3IntensifyMercury / Venus
  • 4Primed ContinuityBaro Ki'Teer
  • 5Primed FlowBaro Ki'Teer / relics
  • 6EquilibriumThe New Strange / drops
  • 7Rolling GuardStatus cleanse when Smoke dropsArbitrations

Shadow Clones (exalted melee)

  • StanceAsh's Blade Storm stance (innate)Exalted
  • 1Blood RushRed Veil / Steel Meridian
  • 2Gladiator MightArena / Arbitration
  • 3Organ ShatterEnemy drops
  • 4Condition OverloadOrokin Derelict / trade
  • 5Weeping WoundsThe Index
  • 6Primed Fever StrikeBaro Ki'Teer
  • 7Sacrificial PressureThe Sacrifice
  • 8Primed ReachBaro Ki'Teer

Arcanes

Arcane Crepuscular

Damage and crit while invisible. Smoke Screen is the on-switch. Rank 0 is legal. Rank 3 is the Steel Path version.

Duviri / trade

Molt Augmented

Strength stacks as you kill. Feeds Wrathful's flat crit. Rank 0 is legal. Rank 3 is the Steel Path version.

Zariman bounties

Archon shards

  • 1Crimson · StrengthWrathful crit scales 1:1 with Strength.1 · Netracells / EDA
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