Yareli — First Surf
Starter build. Merulina is a K-Drive you summon in missions. Ride it. Damage dumps into the board. Sea Snares hold still. Learn to steer before you press 4.
Codex Checked · Compared against current game data for this update. · Update 43.5 · 5 Sept 2026 · PC · Current
Star Chart, first Yareli, anyone who has never touched a K-Drive
Wrong drop or mechanic?
Why this build?
Starter for Star Chart, first Yareli, anyone who has never touched a K-Drive
Health: Inventory unknown — Mark what you own. Until then this is a recommendation, not a test you failed.
- Yareli is Merulina. If you refuse to ride, you are a squishy with 105 armor and a sad passive.
- The Waverider quest already taught you K-Drive. This is that, with guns.
- Do not Helminth 2.
Don’t use this for: Steel Path endurance · level-cap content
0 Forma, basic mods, no Helminth or shards required
You don’t need the shards to run the loop. They are a later ceiling, not a gate.
Bring: Secondary (Merulina likes pistols) — You can shoot while riding. A decent secondary is more important than a rifle on day one. Passive wants you moving for crit.
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 0/2 · required — 2 on the card. Codex does not track installed Forma.
- Helminth · optional — Not required
- Arcanes · recommended — 0/1 recommended
- Shards · optional — Optional unless the card says a breakpoint
Investment: 2 Forma · Reactor · 1 shard. 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
High confidence. How strongly the Codex recommends this for its stated purpose — not a test log. Verification is separate: Codex Checked against Update 43.5.
Your next step
Open First Surf — Star Chart
The next rung on this frame is unlocked. Mark I run this, then step up.
First Surf — Star ChartPlan
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 Pistol AmpThe Index / Nightwave
- After that0–2 FormaOne slot at a time. Rank 30 after each polarize.
- LaterAmber · Casting SpeedHelminth and shards are the last rungs. They are not the Starter.
- FinalFirst SurfStarter · Starter · 0–2 Forma
Upgrade from here
First Surf — Star Chart
Merulina is a K-Drive you summon in missions. Ride it. Damage dumps into the board. Sea Snares hold still. Learn to steer before you press 4. Primed Continuity and Primed Flow are the first real upgrade — not Blind Rage.
Open First Surf — Star ChartHelminth & shards
What to put on the body
- 1 Amber · Casting Speed — Snares, then board, then blades.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 Pistol Amp
One named gap. The Index / Nightwave
60 minutes
Pistol Amp, 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 Pistol Amp
The Index / Nightwave
Who this is for
Play this build from zero
You finished Waverider and now have a surfboard in the Arsenal.
- Time to a playable copy
- Same day. Intensify, Continuity, Stretch, Streamline, Flow, Redirection.
- First mission to practice in
- A flat Exterminate (Earth / Venus). You want to learn steering, not a tight Corpus ship yet.
2 button drills · 11 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
Surf loop
Pocket card. Stick this on a second screen; the long version is the mission below.
- 1Merulina (2). You are on a K-Drive. Incoming damage mostly hits the board, not you. Jump tricks still work.
- 2Sea Snares (1) a pack so they cannot walk off. They also take more damage.
- 3Aquablades (3) once you can recast without falling off. Orbiting blades.
- 4Riptide (4) later. Starter can live on 1-2-3. Keep moving — passive crit needs motion.
First mission — press these buttons
- 1
Press 2 and ride
2You are on Merulina. Damage should hit the board. Trick jumps still work. Shoot.
You will know it worked when: A water K-Drive. A health bar for the board.
- 2
Snare a pack, keep moving
11. They lock. Circle them — passive crit wants motion.
Common mistakes
Dismounting the second you get shot
The board is the health bar. Stay on it.
When this feels easy
- 1Merulina GuardianGun config.
- 2Surging BladesBlade config.
Parts checklist
0 of 11 owned. Tap How on anything you still need.
Dependencies
13 dependencies
Frame → mods → unlocks. Tick Collection and Progress. This is a decision graph, not a wiki tree.
- 1●yareliframe
- 2○Pistol Ampmod
- 3○Power Driftmod
- 4○Intensifymod
- 5○Continuitymod
- 6○Stretchmod
- 7○Streamlinemod
- 8○Flowmod
- 9○Redirectionmod
- 10○Vitalitymod
- 11○Arcane Accelerationarcane
- 12○Amber · Casting Speedshard
- 13○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
- Pistol Amp
missing · The Index / Nightwave
Power Driftmissing · Unlock Lua
Intensifymissing · Fight Lieutenant Lech Kril
Continuitymissing · Run low-level Defense or Survival
Stretchmissing · Enemy drops
Streamlinemissing · Enemy drops and early missions
Flowmissing · Enemy drops
Vitalitymissing · Jackal
Recommended
Optional
Watch it played
YouTube for this loadout
Yareli full guide
Older full kit if you want extra Merulina context.
Strength
~145%
Duration
155%
Range
145%
Duration is Merulina health-window and Snare lifetime. Strength is absorb and later blade / riptide damage. Keep moving for the crit passive.
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
- 130%
- Range
- 145%
- Efficiency
- 130%
- Energy
- +150%
- Capacity
- 42 / 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
Yareli mods
- AuraPistol AmpNightwave / Invasion
- ExilusPower DriftOrokin Vaults / Lua
- 1IntensifyMercury / Venus
- 2ContinuityEnemy drops
- 3StretchEnemy drops
- 4StreamlineEnemy drops
- 5FlowEnemy drops
- 6RedirectionYareli has 455 shields. Use them off-board too.Enemy drops
- 7VitalityEarth / drops
| Slot | Mod | Source | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aura | Pistol Amp | Nightwave / Invasion | |
| Exilus | Power Drift | Orokin Vaults / Lua | |
| 1 | Intensify | Mercury / Venus | |
| 2 | Continuity | Enemy drops | |
| 3 | Stretch | Enemy drops | |
| 4 | Streamline | Enemy drops | |
| 5 | Flow | Enemy drops | |
| 6 | Redirection Yareli has 455 shields. Use them off-board too. | Enemy drops | |
| 7 | Vitality | Earth / drops |
Secondary (Merulina likes pistols)
You can shoot while riding. A decent secondary is more important than a rifle on day one. Passive wants you moving for crit.
Arcanes
Arcane Acceleration
Secondary fire rate. Optional.
Grineer / trade
Archon shards
- 1
Amber · Casting SpeedSnares, then board, then blades.1 · Archon Hunt
| # | Shard | Qty | Source | How |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amber · Casting Speed Snares, then board, then blades. | 1 | Archon Hunt |