Chroma
Chroma builds
Frosted Pelt
Steel Path4 FormaAdvancedMedium confidenceLevel capProfit-TakerShards optional

Chroma — Frosted Pelt

Steel Path build. Cold Ward plus ice weapons. Armor coat, reflected bullets, freeze guns that actually enjoy the color.

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

Cold Incarnons, Glacier-style weapons, people who hate Heat tilesets

Wrong drop or mechanic?

Why this build?

Steel Path for Cold Incarnons, Glacier-style weapons, people who hate Heat tilesets

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

Play this in Level capPlay this in Profit-Taker
  • Heat is the inherit meta. Cold is the 'I want to be unkillable and also freeze people' config.
  • Everlasting Ward lets the squad keep the armor coat in a Profit-Taker pit.
  • If you only ever play Heat, skip this config. If you own a Cold Incarnon, this is why you crafted the dragon.

Don’t use this for: ability-nuke as the damage

Stronger mods, Arcanes, real synergy

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

Bring: Cold primary / melee — Frostbite-leaning Incarnons, a Cold Epitaph, or a melee that wants Cold status. Ward's Cold armor is the survive layer.

Alternative if…

Instead: First ScalesInstead: First Scales — Star ChartInstead: Everlasting Hide — Steel PathInstead: Everlasting Hide — Optimised

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 0/9 · required — 0/9 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 · 2 shards · 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: Everlasting Hide — Optimised

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

Everlasting Hide — 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 Corrosive ProjectionOpen Nightwave
  2. After that4 FormaOne slot at a time. Rank 30 after each polarize.
  3. LaterTauforged Azure · ArmorHelminth and shards are the last rungs. They are not the Starter.
  4. FinalFrosted PeltSteel Path · Advanced · 4 Forma

Upgrade from here

Everlasting Hide — Optimised

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

Open Everlasting Hide — Optimised

Farm the gap

  • Dragon augments — Guardian Armor · Everlasting Ward · Guided Effigy · Afterburn · Vexing Retaliation

Helminth & shards

What to put on the body

  • 2 Azure · Armor — Cold Ward plus Scorn is a real health bar.Archon locked
  • 2 Crimson · Strength — Vex caps.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 Corrosive Projection

    One named gap. Open Nightwave

  2. 60 minutes

    Corrosive Projection, 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 like ice guns and not dying.

Time to a playable copy
After Everlasting Ward and a Cold weapon you already like.
First mission to practice in
A Corpus tileset so you can see the reflect sparkles.

2 button drills · 13 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

Ice loop

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

  1. 1Hold 1 until the breath is Cold (blue). Cast Ward (2). You are ice.
  2. 2Vex (3). Melee or eat a shield hit for Scorn. Shoot for Fury.
  3. 3Dump Cold status. Freeze plus Fury is the kill plan.
  4. 4Effigy stays off. The pelt on your back is more armor than the sentry.

First mission — press these buttons

  1. 1

    Go blue

    1 2

    Hold 1 until Cold. Ward. You are ice.

  2. 2

    Vex and freeze

    3

    3, then dump Cold. Scorn plus Cold Ward is the health bar.

Common mistakes

  • Mixing Heat guns on a Cold Ward

    Pick a color and commit. Inherit wants matching elements.

When this feels easy

  1. 1Keep Heat on Config AThis is Config B. You will want both.

Parts checklist

0 of 13 owned. Tap How on anything you still need.

Dependencies

16 dependencies

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

  1. 1●chromaframe
  2. 2○Corrosive Projectionmod
  3. 3○Power Driftmod
  4. 4○Everlasting Wardaugment
  5. 5○Blind Ragemod
  6. 6○Umbral Fibermod
  7. 7○Primed Continuitymod
  8. 8○Stretchmod
  9. 9○Adaptationmod
  10. 10○Primed Flowmod
  11. 11○Arcane Icearcane
  12. 12○Molt Efficiencyarcane
  13. 13○Tauforged Azure · Armorshard
  14. 14○Crimson · Strengthshard
  15. 15○Steel Pathunlock
  16. 16○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 Ice

    missing · Earth / Venus / trade

    Cold damage on the gun. Optional meme that still works.

  • Molt Efficiency

    missing · Zariman

    Duration. Ward wants it.

Optional

Strength

~200–250%

Duration

180%+

Range

145%

Cold Ward adds a chunk of armor and reflects shots. Scorn multiplies the new seed.

From the mods

Live power

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

Strength
214%
Duration
155%
Range
145%
Efficiency
45%
Energy
+275%
Capacity
51 / 67

1 Umbral piece

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
12% × 2.00
Status
26%
Fire rate
9.58
Multishot
1.00
Avg hit
39
Arsenal DPS
376

Toggle common mods

Chroma mods

  • AuraCorrosive ProjectionNightwave
  • ExilusPower DriftOrokin Vaults / Lua
  • 1Everlasting WardCephalon Suda / Perrin · 25k
  • 2Blind RageOrokin Vaults
  • 3Umbral FiberThe Sacrifice
  • 4Primed ContinuityBaro Ki'Teer
  • 5StretchEnemy drops
  • 6AdaptationArbitration
  • 7Primed FlowBaro / relics

Cold primary / melee

Frostbite-leaning Incarnons, a Cold Epitaph, or a melee that wants Cold status. Ward's Cold armor is the survive layer.

Arcanes

Arcane Ice

Cold damage on the gun. Optional meme that still works.

Earth / Venus / trade

Molt Efficiency

Duration. Ward wants it.

Zariman

Archon shards

  • 1Azure · ArmorCold Ward plus Scorn is a real health bar.2 · Netracells
  • 2Crimson · StrengthVex caps.2 · Netracells
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