Warframe The Veilbreaker update released a new endgame mechanic for players to sink their teeth into. Completing endgame Archon Hunts grants Archon Shards, a new upgrade resource that can be installed on your Warframes to increase additive stats.
Are there any Warframes you love that feel too squishy for Steel Path? You can use Archon Shards to fix that. Looking to minimize the ability strength of your current build? Archon Shards can help with that. This guide will cover what Archon Shards are, how to get them, what each Archon Shard does, and answer some common questions about this endgame upgrade system.
What are Archon Shards?
Archon Shards are an upgrade material that can be socketed into your Warframes, granting them defensive, offensive, or utility stats. Warframes can have up to five Archon Shards installed at a time, accessed through the Helminth system. You will unlock the ability to earn and socket Archon Shards by completing the “Veilbreaker” quest and crafting the next Helminth component.
As far as general utility goes, Archon Shards are an endgame progression system that allows you to max out your favorite Warframes by giving them stats that are otherwise hard to come by. For example, you can use Archon Shards to give your build more parkour speed, a flat bonus to your armor stat, or increase your build’s Ability Strength. This system gives you more options for experimentation and can free up mod space for some builds.
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How to Get Archon Shards
Archon Shards are obtained from Chipper and from the weekly Archon Hunt activity, which is unlocked by completing the “Veilbreaker” quest. You can access Archon Hunts from the Star Chart menu at the top right of the UI. Archon Hunts is functionally identical to Sorties, acting as a three-stage quest where players must defeat tougher enemies and various modifiers.
Archon Rotation
Archons and their associated shards rotate each week. Players will battle Boreal (Azure), Amar (Crimson), and Nira (Amber) in a weekly rotation. If you’re looking for a certain Archon shard, keep an eye out for which Archon is active that particular week.
Unlike raids, Archon Hunts always lead to an Archon Boss fight for the final mission, reusing the Archon Bosses seen in “The New War” mission. These enemies are incredibly tough, deal massive damage, and have two phases. Completing an Archon Hunt awards an Archon Shard. The shard that drops depends on the Archon you killed:
- Azure: Boreal
- Crimson: Love
- Amber: Nira
In addition to the weekly Archon Hunt, you can also purchase an Archon Fragment from Chipper, a vendor located at Drifter’s Camp. You can purchase the shard for Stock, a resource tied to Kahl’s weekly quests. Archon Shards cannot be traded.
Archon Shards Forged in Tau
Completing an Archon Hunt has a 20% chance to give you a Tauforged Archon Shard. This shard’s associated buffs are 50% stronger than its standard counterparts, providing a more noticeable stat boost when equipped on your Warframe. Tau-forged Archon Shards take up the same slot as standard Archon Shards. Tau-Forged Archon Shards cannot be traded or crafted.
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Archon Shard Installation
Setting up an Archon Shard requires a crafted Helminth Archon Shard segment. The blueprint for this component is given to you upon completion of the “Breaker of Veils” quest. It costs the following materials to craft:
| Helminth Archon Shard Segment | |
|---|---|
| 2 Entrati Lantern | 10 Namalon Devolved |
| 5 sporulate sac | 50 Plasma Thrax |
| Crafting cost: 50,000 Credits | Time of preparation: 24 hours |
You can find these components in Deimos or in the Zariman tile. When creating the segment, install it on your Helminth chair to unlock the Archon Shard system.
In the Helminth menu, click on the “Archon Shard” tab at the top left of the UI. This will display your Warframe’s current Archon Shard slots. Select one of the slots to install an Archon Shard. All the Archon Shards you own are visible at the top right of the menu.
Socketing an Archon Shard will display one of five options, each option tied to the color of the Archon Shard you are installing. Select one of the statistics to finish the installation. The Archon Shard’s bonus stats will thereafter affect all of your Warframe’s builds until it is uninstalled.
Archon Shards Uninstall
In the Archon Shard tab, select any Archon Shard that is installed on your Warframe. You will be able to uninstall the selected fragment for 50% of the bile resources of your helminth. The refunded shard can be used on any Warframe you want. You can do this as many times as you like, as long as there is enough bile stored in your helminth.
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Archon Shard Effects
Archon Shards grant additional bonuses to your Warframe; is it so No affected by mods or arcana.
Azure Archon Shard Stats
| Azure Archon Shard | ||
|---|---|---|
| Effect | standard magnification | Tauforged Augment |
| Health | +150 | +225 |
| shield capacity | +150 | +225 |
| maximum energy | +50 | +75 |
| Armor | +150 | +225 |
| health regeneration | +5/second | +7.5/second |
Crimson Archon Shard Stats
| Crimson Archon Shard | ||
|---|---|---|
| Effect | standard magnification | Tauforged Augment |
| * Melee Critical Damage | +25% | +37.5% |
| * Prime Status Chance | +25% | +37.5% |
| * Secondary Critical Chance | +25% | +37.5% |
| skill strength | +10% | +15% |
| skill duration | +10% | +15% |
*Currently it is unknown if these buffs are added to the weapon’s base stats or equipped mods. We will update this guide once Crimson Archon Shards are obtainable.
Amber Archon Shard Stats
| Amber Archon Shard | ||
|---|---|---|
| Effect | standard magnification | Tauforged Augment |
| Max energy fills on spawn | +30% | +45% |
| Effectiveness on health orbs | +100% | +150% |
| Energy Orb Efficiency | +50% | +75% |
| casting speed | +25% | +37.5% |
| parkour speed | +15% | +22.5% |
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Arcon Shard FAQ
Can you trade Archon shards?
Nopeyou cannot trade Archon Shards with other players.
Is there a limit to the number of Archon Shards I can install on my Warframe?
You can only have five Archon Shards installed on a Warframe at a time. All five shards can be Tauforged. If you reach the Archon Shard cap and want to make changes, you can uninstall Archon Shards from your Warframe for the cost of 50% Bile from your Helminth.
What are the best Archon Shard upgrades?
It dependsbut here are some safe options:
- Azure: +Armor or +Max Energy
- Crimson: +Skill Strength
- Amber: +Effectiveness of Energy Orb or +Parkour Speed
All of the Archon Shard options are viable, but these options tend to work for most Warframe builds. Feel free to experiment and find which upgrades best suit your build/play style.
Is there a level requirement to use Archon Shards?
Nope, there is no Helminth requirement to use Archon Shards, but technically there is a MR requirement. The only prerequisites are a Crafted Helminth Segment (which has an MR8 requirement) and completing the “Veil Breaker” quest. Your Helminth does not need any upgrades to install Archon Shards on your Warframes.
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