The Tenno are the most powerful faction in Warframe, having access to powerful characters called Warframes and weapons that can destroy entire vessels in a single shot.
Most of these powerful weapons and Warframes players can acquire have a Prime variant, granting additional benefits that the normal counterpart lacks. These bonuses can range from extra damage to granting a secondary, ethereal weapon on a triple kill. Players can either earn them in-game through unlocking relics or by purchasing a Prime Access package. Regardless of how you obtain them, Prime weapons are invaluable for doing Warframe's hardest content. Here are the ten best Prime weapons you can use in Warframe.
Updated December 23rd, 2021 by Charles Burgar: New Primes have entered the sandbox since the last time we updated this list, some of which have proven to be the best of their kind. We've updated this list to include the Knell Prime and replaced some of our more niche entries with better alternatives. You'll have a hard time finding better primaries, secondaries, and melees than these.
10 Rubico Prime
Sniper Rifles might not be your first choice of primary in Warframe, although it's good to have a hard-hitting weapon in your arsenal for certain bosses. For those instances, you won't find a better weapon than the Rubico Prime.
As with most snipers, the Rubico Prime features high base damage and critical stats, but it also benefits from sniper hit bonuses. If you can land multiple shots on a target without missing, this weapon gains a drastic boost to its critical multiplier. Scaling your combo just a little is enough for the Rubico to one-shot Eidolon limbs or phase the Profit Taker Orb. If you need to kill a boss quickly, you won't find a better gun.
9 Cornith Prime
Don't let the weapon category fool you; the Corinth Prime is a grenade launcher that's disguised as a shotgun. This weapon's alternate fire mode fires explosive grenades that deal 2,200 damage in a 9.8-meter radius. For comparison, the standard Corinth only does 404 damage with its explosive alt-fire.
That alone makes this gun incredible. Digital Extremes took it a step further and buffed the weapon's magazine size and fire rate. It does use a magazine now, meaning it reloads the whole 20-round magazine at once instead of one shell at a time. That is hardly a negative considering just how much firepower this weapon packs and how long it can fire. Even if you aren't a fan of the explosive shots, this weapon still doubles as an excellent close-range primary. And with the buff to primaries in the Sisters of Parvos update, the Corinth Prime has never been in a better spot.
8 Orthos Prime
Despite the Guando Prime having better critical and range stats, the Orthos Prime still slightly edges out over Nezha Prime's favored melee weapon due to its evergreen status—meaning this weapon will never be vaulted.
Builds that focus on hybrid stats and range can expect a weapon that can hit targets from six meters, can easily land orange crits, and apply an absurd amount of status effects in a single combo. Pair this weapon with the Twirling Spiral stance to gain two absurdly strong Slash procs with your combo opener.
7 Knell Prime
Have you ever wanted a Vectis Prime that was fully automatic and had infinite ammo? That's effectively what the Knell Prime is. This secondary pistol has a unique feature where headshots grant the Knell infinite ammo, more status chance, and a higher critical multiplier for two seconds. This effect can stack up to three times.
The base stats ensure that each shot hits like a truck, featuring a 40% critical chance, 2x multiplier, and 180 base damage. When modded properly, the Knell Prime will out damage most single-target secondaries if you can maintain that headshot buff. If it wasn't for bugs and inconsistent headshot hitboxes in Warframe, we'd rank the Knell Prime higher on this list. As it stands, anyone looking for a good single target DPS secondary can't go wrong with this weapon.
6 Reaper Prime
Reap the souls of your foes with the Reaper Prime, arguably the best scythe in Warframe. This weapon features one of the best stat packages out of any melee weapon. A base critical chance of 35%, a 2.5x multiplier, 25% status chance, and 200 base damage (most of which is Slash) should be more than enough reason to pick this weapon up.
But it gets even better. Reaping Spiral is a fantastic stance on scythes, featuring combos with sweeping attacks, tons of momentum, and forced Slash procs. The Reaper Prime also dishes out some immense damage when build for its Heavy Attack, one-shotting just about every enemy in the game when modded for. Keep an eye out for this scythe whenever it gets unvaulted.
5 Redeemer Prime
While slightly weaker than the Stropha, the Redeemer Prime stands as one of the best weapons in Warframe. It serves as a pocket shotgun with infinite ammo that just so happens to also be a great melee weapon.
Incredible base damage, critical stats, and high status chance are all you need to make the Redeemer Prime a good melee weapon. Yet this weapon's true strength lies in its projectile attacks. Firing a barrage of buckshot that deals 3,200 base damage is going to kill most enemies when modded properly. As far as melee weapons are concerned, the Redeemer Prime has it all.
4 Pyrana Prime
Very few secondary weapons in Warframe pack as much of a punch as the Pyrana Prime. It has a solid stat package that's tuned towards dishing out as many critical hits as possible. This weapon is terrible for applying status effects, but that's fine; the Pyrana Prime can bypass an enemy's damage reduction through sheer damage.
When a triple kill is achieved within two seconds, a second, ethereal Pyrana spawns in your other hand. This lets you dual wield the Pyrana Prime, granting double fire rate and magazine size. If you can find a way to mitigate reloading on the Pyrana Prime—such as with Arcane PIstoleer—you can unleash whole magazines of shotgun pellets into a target in the span of a second. Very few enemies can survive that level of punishment.
3 Nikana Prime
In a game about ninjas, it would make sense for there to be throwing knives and katanas. The nikana series of weapons are effectively katanas, combining rapid strikes with brutal combos.
They are incredibly easy to use and have great critical stats and base damage. The Nikana Prime still manages to be a top-tier weapon thanks to its excellent 28% critical and status chance supported by a 2.4x critical multiplier. Building up a high combo is fairly easy on the Nikana Prime when using the Blind Justice Stance, allowing you to throw out rapid Heavy Attacks that deal cataclysmic damage. Coupled with the weapon's high Slash damage, the Nikana Prime can carve through flesh and armor like butter.
2 Glaive Prime
The Glaive Prime is less of a melee weapon and more of an explosive disc you throw at enemies. You can attack enemies with a flurry of light attacks, but that's not the Glaive's strong suit. Instead, charge the weapon and throw. Heavy Attack when it gets near a group of enemies, then watch every enemy drop dead. If they somehow survive, they'll suffer from a devastating Slash proc.
Incredible AoE damage, forced Slash procs, and good critical stats are enough to make the Glaive Prime an S-tier weapon, yet it gets even stronger once you consider dual-wielding. Glaives can be paired with one-handed Secondaries to allow for dual usage. You can run a status-heavy weapon, such as the Kuva Nukor or Zakti, to inflict dozens of status procs on a target. This pairs exceptionally well with Condition Overload, allowing this golden disc to one-shot virtually every enemy in the game.
1 Kronen Prime
If you're an avid Warframe player, this shouldn't come as a surprise. The Kronen Prime has everything you'd want from a melee weapon:
-
High base damage
- Mostly Slash
- Excellent critical stats
- High-status chance
-
An excellent Stance (Sovereign Outcast)
- Many forced Slash procs and damage multipliers
- Multi-attack combos
- Vertical slices that can damage floating enemies
- 10% increased Parkour Velocity while in use
The Kronen Prime is easy to use, deals absurd damage, makes you move faster, and can inflict dozens of Slash procs with little issue. Fodder, armored targets, and most bosses don't stand a chance against the Kronen Prime. If you're looking for the best melee weapon in Warframe, look no further.