Protea — Universal Vending
Steel Path build. Dispensary prints empowered health, energy, and ammo. Repair Dispensary heals companions. You are the squad's Foundry.
Codex Checked · Compared against current game data for this update. · Update 43.5 · 5 Sept 2026 · PC · Current
Long missions, ammo-hungry weapons, companion builds, being the nice one
Wrong drop or mechanic?
Why this build?
Steel Path for Long missions, ammo-hungry weapons, companion builds, being the nice one
Health: Not yet — Helminth, Steel Path, or Archon Hunts still closed. Play the Starter.
- Some Proteas are turrets. This one is a vending machine that also has turrets.
- Duration is drop count. Strength is extra-pickup chance. Range barely matters.
- If your squad is always dry, this is the config you queue.
Don’t use this for: solo level-cap
Stronger mods, Arcanes, real synergy
You don’t need the shards to run the loop. They are a later ceiling, not a gate.
Bring: The pad is the build — Put it where Vacuum can reach but enemies cannot immediately stand on you. Equilibrium turns the health orbs into more energy.
Alternative if…
- Star Chart only → First Gadgets
- This is too much Forma / cost → First Gadgets — Star Chart
- You wanted the ability loop, not guns → Rewind Run
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 0/3 · required — 3 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: 3 Forma · Reactor · 1 shard · 2 specialised mods. Typical farm ~1–2 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: Siege Cannons — Optimised
Unlock Helminth, Steel Path, or Archon Hunts before this upgrade is honest.
Siege Cannons — OptimisedPlan
Today → next → later
Inventory unknown — mark “I own this” on a few mods. Until then this is a plan, not a score of zero.
- NextGet Energy SiphonNightwave / alerts
- After that3 FormaOne slot at a time. Rank 30 after each polarize.
- LaterCrimson · DurationHelminth and shards are the last rungs. They are not the Starter.
- FinalUniversal VendingSteel Path · Advanced · 3 Forma
Upgrade from here
Siege Cannons — Optimised
Locked behind Helminth, Steel Path, or Archon Hunts. Tick those on Progress first.
Open Siege Cannons — OptimisedFarm the gap
- Gadget augments — Temporal Artillery · Temporal Erosion · Repair Dispensary
Helminth & shards
What to put on the body
- 2 Crimson · Duration — More drops per pad.Archon locked
Tonight
What is actually up
30 minutes, one hour, or two — matched to this loadout, not a dump of the Origin System.
30 minutes
Farm Energy Siphon
One named gap. Nightwave / alerts
60 minutes
Energy Siphon, then Forma
Finish the missing named card, then spend a Forma if a polarity is still fighting you.
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.
- Farm Energy Siphon
Nightwave / alerts
Who this is for
Play this build from zero
Your squad is out of ammo and your beast is on the floor.
- Time to a playable copy
- After Repair Dispensary and Duration mods.
- First mission to practice in
- A long Survival. The pad never expires without a recast waiting.
2 button drills · 12 parts · tick the lists as you go
Before you start
0 of 3 done
Put it on the Warframe
0 of 4 done
Keep this up
Pad loop
Pocket card. Stick this on a second screen; the long version is the mission below.
- 1Dispensary (3) every time it dies. That is the rotation.
- 2Hold 1. Satellites.
- 3Artillery (2) so you are not AFK-useless.
- 4Companion sits on the pad. Repair Dispensary is why they do not die in Steel Path.
First mission — press these buttons
- 1
Pad down
33. Empowered orbs cycle. Vacuum helps.
- 2
Recast before it dies
Duration is drop count. Do not wait for empty.
Common mistakes
Putting the pad in the kill zone
You will die looting. Corner. Side room. Still in Vacuum range.
When this feels easy
- 1Duration shardsMore cycles per pad.
Parts checklist
0 of 12 owned. Tap How on anything you still need.
Dependencies
15 dependencies
Frame → mods → unlocks. Tick Collection and Progress. This is a decision graph, not a wiki tree.
- 1●proteaframe
- 2○Energy Siphonmod
- 3○Power Driftmod
- 4○Repair Dispensaryaugment
- 5○Primed Continuitymod
- 6○Narrow Mindedmod
- 7○Intensifymod
- 8○Equilibriummod
- 9○Primed Flowmod
- 10○Streamlinemod
- 11○Arcane Blessingarcane
- 12○Arcane Energizearcane
- 13○Crimson · Durationshard
- 14○Steel Pathunlock
- 15○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
- Energy Siphon
missing · Nightwave / alerts
Power Driftmissing · Unlock Lua
- Repair Dispensary
missing · Perrin Sequence / Cephalon Suda · 25,000
The pad heals companions. Beast and robotic pets stay in the fight.
Primed Continuitymissing · Wait for Baro Ki'Teer
- Narrow Minded
missing · Orokin Vaults
Intensifymissing · Fight Lieutenant Lech Kril
- Equilibrium
missing · The New Strange / drops
Primed Flowmissing · Baro Ki'Teer
Streamlinemissing · Enemy drops and early missions
Recommended
Optional
Watch it played
YouTube for this loadout
Burn, Rewind, Repeat with Protea! Full guide
Blaze Artillery, Dispensary, Temporal Anchor. The engineer kit.
The PERFECT Warframe got EVEN BETTER in 2026!
Blaze Artillery, Dispensary, Temporal Anchor. Beginner plus three Steel Path configs.
Strength
~180% (extra pickup chance)
Duration
200%+ more drops over the lifetime
Range
100–130%
Dispensary is also a Helminth you put on other frames. On Protea it is still worth keeping unless Sculptor solved energy.
From the mods
Live power
Additive from max-rank Codex mods. Efficiency clamped 15–175%. Umbral set is +11% Strength per extra piece.
- Strength
- 145%
- Duration
- 254%
- Range
- 34%
- Efficiency
- 130%
- Energy
- +281%
- Capacity
- 50 / 67
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
Protea mods
- AuraEnergy SiphonNightwave / drops
- ExilusPower DriftVaults / Lua
- 1Repair DispensaryThe pad heals companions. Beast and robotic pets stay in the fight.Perrin Sequence / Cephalon Suda · 25k
- 2Primed ContinuityBaro
- 3Narrow MindedOrokin Vaults
- 4IntensifyDrops
- 5EquilibriumThe New Strange
- 6Primed FlowBaro
- 7StreamlineDrops
| Slot | Mod | Source | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aura | Energy Siphon | Nightwave / drops | |
| Exilus | Power Drift | Vaults / Lua | |
| 1 | Repair Dispensary The pad heals companions. Beast and robotic pets stay in the fight. | Perrin Sequence / Cephalon Suda · 25k | |
| 2 | Primed Continuity | Baro | |
| 3 | Narrow Minded | Orokin Vaults | |
| 4 | Intensify | Drops | |
| 5 | Equilibrium | The New Strange | |
| 6 | Primed Flow | Baro | |
| 7 | Streamline | Drops |
The pad is the build
Put it where Vacuum can reach but enemies cannot immediately stand on you. Equilibrium turns the health orbs into more energy.
Arcanes
Arcane Blessing
Empowered health orbs stack max HP.
Cetus
Arcane Energize
The energy orbs are already good. This is greedy.
Eidolon
Archon shards
- 1
Crimson · DurationMore drops per pad.2 · Netracells
| # | Shard | Qty | Source | How |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Crimson · Duration More drops per pad. | 2 | Netracells |