Zephyr — First Gust
Starter build. Turbulence is a projectile umbrella. Tail Wind is a hover and a dive. Tornado is later. Stay airborne — passive crit wants it.
Codex Checked · Compared against current game data for this update. · Update 43.5 · 5 Sept 2026 · PC · Current
Star Chart, first Zephyr, learning to hover
Wrong drop or mechanic?
Why this build?
Starter for Star Chart, first Zephyr, learning to hover
Health: Inventory unknown — Mark what you own. Until then this is a recommendation, not a test you failed.
- Turbulence is Zephyr. 105 armor does not matter if bullets miss.
- Passive crit while airborne is free. Hover is not a meme.
- Do not Helminth 3.
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: Any gun — Shoot from hover. Passive adds weapon crit while airborne. Turbulence means most bullets never arrive.
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 Gust — Star Chart
The next rung on this frame is unlocked. Mark I run this, then step up.
First Gust — 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 Corrosive ProjectionOpen 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 GustStarter · Starter · 0–2 Forma
Upgrade from here
First Gust — Star Chart
Turbulence is a projectile umbrella. Tail Wind is a hover and a dive. Tornado is later. Stay airborne — passive crit wants it. Primed Continuity and Primed Flow are the first real upgrade — not Blind Rage.
Open First Gust — Star ChartHelminth & shards
What to put on the body
- 1 Amber · Casting Speed — Dive, hover, recast 3.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 Corrosive Projection
One named gap. Open Nightwave
60 minutes
Corrosive Projection, 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 Corrosive Projection
Open Nightwave
Who this is for
Play this build from zero
You just walked out of the Tenno Lab and have never hovered on purpose.
- Time to a playable copy
- Same day. Intensify, Continuity, Stretch, Streamline, Flow.
- First mission to practice in
- An open Exterminate (Earth plains-adjacent or a Grineer galleon with vertical space).
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 4 done
Keep this up
Gust loop
Pocket card. Stick this on a second screen; the long version is the mission below.
- 1Turbulence (3) the second the mission starts. Projectiles bend around you.
- 2Jump, hold Tail Wind (1) to hover. Shoot. Passive crit is on.
- 3Tap 1 in the air to dash, aim down to dive-bomb.
- 4Airburst (2) and Tornado (4) later. Starter is hover plus umbrella.
First mission — press these buttons
- 1
Turbulence immediately
33. Bullets should curve around you.
You will know it worked when: A wind bubble. Tracers bending.
- 2
Jump and hold 1
1You hover. Shoot. Passive crit is on because your feet are off the floor.
Common mistakes
Landing to reload
Reload in the air. Landing is how melee finds you and how crit turns off.
When this feels easy
- 1Jet StreamUmbrella becomes a speed buff too.
- 2Funnel CloudsWeather 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●zephyrframe
- 2○Corrosive Projectionmod
- 3○Power Driftmod
- 4○Intensifymod
- 5○Continuitymod
- 6○Stretchmod
- 7○Streamlinemod
- 8○Flowmod
- 9○Redirectionmod
- 10○Vitalitymod
- 11○Arcane Energizearcane
- 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
Corrosive Projectionmissing · Open 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
Strength
~145%
Duration
155%
Range
145%
Duration is Turbulence uptime. Range is Tornado / Airburst later. Strength is damage. Hover with hold-1 in the air.
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
Zephyr mods
- AuraCorrosive ProjectionNightwave
- ExilusPower DriftOrokin Vaults / Lua
- 1IntensifyMercury / Venus
- 2ContinuityEnemy drops
- 3StretchEnemy drops
- 4StreamlineEnemy drops
- 5FlowEnemy drops
- 6Redirection455 shields. Turbulence is the real DR.Enemy drops
- 7VitalityEarth / drops
| Slot | Mod | Source | How |
|---|---|---|---|
| Aura | Corrosive Projection | Nightwave | |
| 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 455 shields. Turbulence is the real DR. | Enemy drops | |
| 7 | Vitality | Earth / drops |
Any gun
Shoot from hover. Passive adds weapon crit while airborne. Turbulence means most bullets never arrive.
Arcanes
Arcane Energize
Optional. Turbulence is a lump recast.
Eidolon / trade
Archon shards
- 1
Amber · Casting SpeedDive, hover, recast 3.1 · Archon Hunt
| # | Shard | Qty | Source | How |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Amber · Casting Speed Dive, hover, recast 3. | 1 | Archon Hunt |