Knowledge Center · Beginner Warframes

Best Beginner Warframes

Your starter frame isn't a life sentence — every Warframe is farmable for free. Here's which of the three starters to pick, why Rhino is the first frame worth grinding, and exactly which boss drops the other easy early frames.

← Knowledge Center9 min readUpdated Jul 2026

starter frames offered

Rhino

farm this one first

0 plat

to farm any frame

parts + a blueprint each

Your starter isn't a life sentence

After the opening tutorial you pick one of three starter Warframes: Excalibur, Volt, or Mag. All three are genuinely good and stay useful all the way into the endgame — this is not a trap choice. You'll collect dozens more frames as you play, and you can farm or buy the two starters you *didn't* pick later, so choose the one whose playstyle sounds the most fun.

Starters offered

Excalibur, Volt, or Mag

Can you get the others later?

Yes — farm or buy them, nothing is locked

Cost to farm any non-quest frame

0 platinum (just credits + resources + time)

What every frame needs

1 Warframe slot to claim it (you start with two)

NOTEFrames come from bosses — Almost every non-quest Warframe follows one recipe: a blueprint bought from the in-game Market with credits, plus three parts (Neuroptics, Chassis, Systems) that drop from a specific boss. Most star-chart bosses drop the parts for one particular frame.

Which starter should you pick?

They're balanced against each other, so this comes down to how you like to play. Melee-and-mobility, gun-and-buff, or ability-combos — here's the honest breakdown.

Frame	Role	Playstyle	New-player fit
Excalibur	All-round melee	Exalted Blade sword, Radial Blind stealth-stun, Slash Dash gap-closer	Easiest — forgiving and strong at every level
Volt	Speed & electricity	Speed buff for the squad, Electric Shield to boost gunfire, Discharge crowd-control	Great — flexible caster/gunner hybrid
Mag	Magnetic caster	Pull enemies into a pile, Magnetize damage bubbles, strips Corpus shields	Slightly trickier — rewards aim and ability combos

Abilities and numbers get tuned over time — check a current build video or the wiki for exact stats.

If you're unsure, pick Excalibur. He's the most forgiving, his sword scales into the endgame, and Radial Blind covers for missing mods. Choose Volt if you love speed and guns, or Mag if you enjoy setting up ability combos and don't mind a short learning curve. Still torn? The tier list guide and the videos below walk through all three.

Farm Rhino first — here's why

Ask r/Warframe what to farm first and the answer has been the same for years: Rhino. Iron Skin (his 2) wraps you in a big damage-absorbing shield that makes early missions almost stress-free; Roar (3) buffs your whole squad's damage; and Rhino Stomp (4) freezes an entire room of enemies. He's tanky enough to cover for un-optimized mods, and he stays viable all the way into Steel Path.

Buy the blueprint
Grab the Rhino blueprint from the in-game Market for credits — it's cheap.
Farm three parts from Jackal
Rhino's Neuroptics, Chassis, and Systems drop from Jackal, the boss on Venus (the Fossa node). Replay the fight until all three drop.
Build in the Foundry
Craft each part, then use them plus the blueprint to build the frame. Claim it into a free Warframe slot when it finishes.

RINO HAVE IRON SKIN. BULLET BECOME FOOD. WHEN RINO CONFUSE, HE STOMP FOOT — EVERYBODY STOP UNTIL HE FIGURE IT OUT. FEED RINO MODS.— r/Warframe's legendary 'caveman Rhino' copypasta

How Warframe farming actually works

Once you understand the loop, every farmable frame is the same shopping list: one blueprint from the Market (credits) and three parts from a boss. Kill the boss, collect the drops, build the parts in the Foundry, then assemble the finished frame from the blueprint.

NOTEBuild times and slots — Each part takes several hours to build in the Foundry (around 12h apiece) and the finished frame takes about three days (72h) — or you can rush with platinum. You need a free Warframe slot to claim a frame; you start with two, and extra slots cost a little platinum each. Earning even a small amount of platinum early pays for slots so you never have to delete a frame to make room.

⚠ HEADS UPA frame is only as good as its mods — Even the best beginner frame feels weak unranked and un-modded. Prioritize survivability mods — Vitality (health), Redirection (shields), Steel Fiber (armor) — plus Intensify (ability strength) and Streamline (efficiency). See the mods guide.

Easy early frames and where their parts drop

These frames are all reachable as you work through the early-to-mid star chart and are beginner-friendly to build and pilot. Farm a couple of these alongside Rhino and you'll have a squad for almost any early mission.

Frame	Role	Where its parts drop
Rhino	Tank + squad damage buff	Jackal — Venus
Excalibur	All-round melee	Lieutenant Lech Kril — Mars
Mag	Shield-strip caster	The Sergeant — Phobos
Volt	Speed + electric damage	Buy all three parts in the Market for credits
Frost	Defense / crowd control (Snow Globe)	Lieutenant Lech Kril (with Vor) — Ceres
Ember	Fire AoE clear	General Sargas Ruk — Saturn
Loki	Invisibility + utility	Hyena Pack — Neptune
Trinity	Healer / support	Ambulas — Pluto

Exact node names and drop chances shift with updates — confirm the current source on the wiki or the drop map before you grind.

Drop-location mapSee exactly which node drops what→3D star chartInteractive drop map→

Great next targets once you're tanky

After Rhino and an early-frame or two, these are excellent mid-star-chart pickups. Don't rush them — grab them as you naturally reach their planets:

Nekros (Lephantis, on Deimos) — his Desecrate ability forces extra loot drops from enemies, making him a farming staple.
Valkyr (Alad V, Jupiter) — a near-unkillable melee frame thanks to Hysteria.
Nova (the Raptors, Europa) — Molecular Prime slows a whole room of enemies and ramps up the damage they take.
Saryn (Kela De Thaym, Sedna) — one of the best area-of-effect map-clearers in the game.

TIPYou'll unlock several strong frames just by playing the story — quest-reward frames arrive on their own. Focus your farming time on the boss-drop frames above and let the quests hand you the rest.

Frames to avoid chasing first

⚠ HEADS UPDon't grind these early — None of these are bad — they're just poor *first* farms because they need gear, mods, or systems you won't have yet.

Heavy-RNG frames whose parts come from Spy vaults or one specific enemy type — the grind is rough without good stealth or clear speed.
Prime Warframes — upgraded versions farmed through Void Relics. They're worth it *later*; learn the relic system first with the relics guide and check payouts on Relic Value.
Frames you'd buy with platinum on a whim — farm the free ones first and figure out what you actually enjoy before spending plat.
Frames locked deep behind quests you haven't reached — you'll get them in due course as the story opens up.

NOTESave early platinum for Warframe and weapon slots and mod-capacity boosters (Reactors/Catalysts) — those quality-of-life buys help far more than buying a frame you could farm for free.

Tier lists, keeping frames, and where to go next

TIPDon't sell a frame just to free a slot — Some Warframes are a pain to re-farm, and players regret deleting them constantly. If you're out of room, buy a cheap slot instead of scrapping a frame you worked for.

⚠ HEADS UPRead tier lists with a grain of salt — Community tier lists are handy for direction, but some ranking sites use lifetime voting, so frames that *used* to be strong (or weak) can sit at outdated positions. Cross-check with a recent video or the wiki. The tier list guide and community tools directory point you to trustworthy, up-to-date sources.

New here? Start with the new-player guide and the progression roadmap. Once you've got a tanky frame and basic mods, dip into the Helminth system later to make any frame do almost anything.

Watch: video guides

Hand-picked, verified guides from trusted Warframe creators.

Frequently asked

What is the best starter Warframe in Warframe?

Excalibur, Volt, and Mag are all strong and endgame-viable, so it comes down to playstyle. Excalibur is the most forgiving pick for new players thanks to his sword and Radial Blind. It's not permanent either — you can farm or buy the other two later, so pick the one that sounds fun.

What Warframe should I farm first?

Rhino, near-unanimously. Iron Skin makes you tanky, Roar buffs your squad's damage, and Rhino Stomp freezes rooms of enemies — and he stays good into the endgame. Farm his three parts from Jackal, the boss on Venus.

How do I get more Warframes?

Buy the frame's blueprint from the in-game Market with credits, then farm three parts (Neuroptics, Chassis, Systems) from a specific planet's boss. Build the parts in the Foundry, then assemble the finished frame. Use the star chart map to see which boss drops what.

Can I get Excalibur, Volt, and Mag if I only pick one starter?

Yes — nothing is locked by your starter choice. Excalibur parts drop from Lech Kril on Mars, Mag parts from The Sergeant on Phobos, and Volt's parts are buyable in the Market for credits. Whichever you pick first, you can add the others later.

Should I buy Warframes with platinum as a beginner?

Usually no. Save early platinum for Warframe slots, weapon slots, and mod-capacity boosters (Reactors and Catalysts). Farm the free frames first and only buy one if you can't reach its drop yet or you genuinely love it. See the platinum guide.

Are Prime Warframes better, and should I chase them early?

Primes are upgraded versions with better stats, farmed through Void Relics. They're worth it later, but learn the relic system first. Read the relics guide and estimate what your relics are worth with Relic Value.

Is the Overframe tier list reliable?

It's a fine starting point, but some rankings use lifetime voting, so older frames can sit at outdated positions relative to how they play today. Cross-check with a recent tier-list video or the wiki before committing hours to a farm. See the tier list guide.

What mods should I put on my first Warframe?

Prioritize staying alive and casting often: Vitality (health), Redirection (shields), and Steel Fiber (armor), plus Intensify (ability strength) and Streamline (efficiency). A frame is only as strong as its mods — the mods guide has the full starter loadout.