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Warframe: Top 10 Arch-Guns, Ranked

Warframe features a wide range of weapons for players to wield. From radioactive beam pistols to giant melee weapons, the Tenno have more than enough weapons to tackle any threat in the Star Chart. One of the game's more underused weapon archetypes is Arch-Guns. These weapons are massive and are typically reserved to Archwing and Railjack missions, although you can use them in atmosphere missions if a Gravimag is installed on the Arch-Gun.

Related: Warframe: All Damage Types Explained

While the number of Arch-Guns is quite low, there are some that vastly overshadow the competition. We'll be looking at the ten strongest Arch-Guns in Warframe, mentioning their strengths, weaknesses, and how easy it is to obtain.

Cortege

Obtained from Deimos, the Cortege is an Entrati flamethrower with an alt-fire that fires three napalm grenades. The main fire is somewhat underwhelming, featuring subpar damage and critical stats when compared to other Arch-Guns. However, the Cortege's alt-fire grenades deal a solid amount of damage in atmosphere missions and can be used to lock down chokepoints. It's by no means the best Arch-Gun in Warframe, but if you are a big fan of flamethrowers, the Cortege is right up your alley.

Cyngas

If you love burst weapons and want a reliable new-player-friendly Arch-Gun, the Cyngas was made for you. This burst-fire Arch-Gun features excellent status chance and fire rate, equating to a rather high burst DPS value in most space content (Archwing and Railjack). It lacks any wide AoE coverage or alt-fire to assist its add-clear potential in atmosphere missions, although this weapon's fast fire rate and great damage output make it far from useless as a Heavy Weapon. Overall, if you're a newer player that needs an Arch-Gun but dislikes the Fluctus, get yourself the Cyngas.

Fluctus

Each shot from the Fluctus releases a horizontal wave of energy with infinite punch through and high critical chance. Most consider the Fluctus the best Arch-Gun for newer players. It handles exceptionally well in space missions, and it can even be used as a good add-clear weapon for atmosphere missions.

Is it as good as Kuva Arch-Guns? No. Will some players dislike its semi-auto nature? Sure. Yet the weapon's easy build requirements and high damage output make the Fluctus a solid weapon to have in your arsenal.

Morgha

The Morgha is a grenade-spewing Arch-Gun that builds charges towards a devastating motor blast with each kill. When we say devastating, we aren't exaggerating: the Morgha's alt-fire deals 3,600 base damage with a 40% crit chance and 3x multiplier. Nothing will survive the Morgha's alt-fire, not even Steel Path enemies.

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Unfortunately, the same can't be said for this weapon's primary fire mode. The grenade-spewing primary fire consumes two ammo with each trigger pull and deals less damage than you'd expect from an Arch-Gun. You'll need to land five kills with this mode to use the alt-fire, a somewhat big ask when in the Steel Path or high-level endurance missions.

Atmosphere missions also showcase just how ammo-hungry the Morgha is. It's not uncommon to run out of ammo completely after a minute of use. Those that can find a way to constantly use the Morgha's alt-fire are rewarded with one of the most powerful Arch-Guns in Warframe. For everyone else, this Mausolon is a better alternative.

Larkspur

Hildryn's signature Arch-Gun is an upscaled Kuva Nukor, firing a Radiation beam that chains between three enemies. With the Larkspur's absurdly high 50% status chance, this Arch-Gun is more than capable of taking down fighters and foot soldiers alike. But it gets even better.

The Larkspur's alt-fire charges an explosive grenade, dealing 800 damage over a 9.6-meter radius. This mode has high critical and status chance, making hybrid builds a viable option on the Larkspur. It doesn't have enough raw damage to melt bosses or Eidolons, but this weapon is more than capable of clearing out a horde of soldiers or fighters with little issue. If you need an add-clearing Arch-Gun, the Larkspur has you covered.

Kuva Grattler

Despite the Kuva Grattler's lackluster upgrades over its default counterpart, this weapon is nonetheless a fantastic add-clearing machine that is satisfying to use. This is effectively a flak gun, firing high-velocity rounds that explode when they reach a set distance. For whatever reason, this weapon has punch through, meaning the projectile won't explode if you directly hit an enemy too close to you.

Even with that strange negative, the Kuva Grattler can carve through virtually every enemy without much trouble. Great critical stats, large AoE coverage, solid fire rate, and solid status chance are all you need to take this Arch-Gun into Railjack, Archwing, and even ground missions. Is it worth farming Kuva Liches for a 60% version of this gun? Not really, but the Kuva Grattler a powerful Arch-Gun if you need a better weapon and can farm Liches.

Imperator Vandal

Tied to the Balor Fomorian Invasion event, the Imperator Vandal is a substantially better version of the standard Imperator players receive after making an Archwing. This gun features more base damage, better critical and status stats, and it gains a fire rate boost after firing for a short time. As far as bullet-hose Archguns go, the Imperator Vandal is easily one of the best.

So why isn't this weapon in the top spot? Two reasons:

  1. The parts only drop from Balor Fomorians, a limited-time event.
  2. It fires projectiles.

Purchasing an Imperator Vandal set can vary wildly in price depending on how long it's been since a Balor event took place. The second point seems strange on first glance, but the Imperator Vandal used to be a hit-scan weapon. This gun has no AoE effect whatsoever, and its projectiles are fairly slow. You're going to struggle fighting waves of fighters if you don't have a good build on this weapon. If you're willing to put in the investment, the Imperator Vandal is easily one of the best Arch-Guns in the game for all content. But if you want a weapon that kills everything remotely near your reticle, you might prefer the Kuva Ayanga.

Velocitus

The Velocitus is the Lanka's Arch-Gun relative. This weapon deals an immense amount of damage with each shot that'd make most Sniper Rifles blush. But this weapon can also charge each shot, ramping up its damage to a ludicrous level. Eidolon limbs break in one shot. Profit-Taker gets one-phased in a single gauss round. Not even Steel Path Acolytes will survive. If an enemy is on the receiving end of a Velocitus charged shot, they will cease to exist.

Related: Warframe: The Most Powerful Warframes, Ranked

All of this power comes with a large downside: the Veolcitus is a projectile weapon with no AoE explosion. The bullet's hitbox is surprisingly large when charged and has five meters of punch through on the surface, yet its lack of AoE makes it somewhat punishing to use if you can't land your shots. Thankfully, this weapon ricochets off hard surfaces in space and pairs exceptionally well with CC abilities on land, so it's not a major loss. Overall, the Velocitus is the quintessential Heavy Weapon. It's somewhat clunky, chews threw ammo in atmosphere missions, but it packs one hell of a punch.

Kuva Ayanga

As far as explosive weapons go, the Kuva Ayanga is one of the best. Only obtained from slain Kuva Liches, the Kuva Ayanga acts as a fully automatic Tonkor, featuring excellent stats across the board and a large blast radius. It outputs great damage in all game types, and its AoE coverage makes it excellent for ground missions—especially when wielded by a Necramech. Keep in mind that this weapon's grenades can bounce back towards you if you have Automatic Trigger installed, so be sure you have Primed Sure Footed installed to prevent self-staggers.

Mausolon

Building any Necramech will grant the Mausolon with a Gravimag pre-installed. That's rather convenient, as this is arguably the best Arch-Gun for both space and ground combat. This weapon features two fires modes: an automatic rifle and a grenade launcher. The former is great for killing fodder enemies. The latter is effectively a nuke, killing everything remotely near the blast radius.

Just like the Morgha, you'll need to land five kills to charge the alt-fire. Unlike the Morgha, the Mausolon's primary fire is more than capable of killing enemies. A hybrid build for this weapon is more than enough to tackle Steel Path content and the toughest Railjack missions. Creating a Necramech is a big ask, but this gun is so powerful that the Mausolon alone is worth the grind. Everyone should own this Arch-Gun.

Next: Everything You Need To Know About Warframe In 2021

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