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Tips For Teachers

Author: /u/lostguru
Informal Tips for Teachers:
  • Let your buddy set the pace - Your job isn't to do the killing for your allies nor is it just to make it easier for your allies to do the killing. It's to let them have a great new player experience without any frustrating hiccups or confusing misunderstandings about how mechanics work. Play alongside them and let them control the flow of the mission. Pretend you're a cephalon.
  • Lower your damage output - Equipping an Extinguished Dragon Key for its flat 75% damage output reduction can help, but you'll usually have to go a little further than that. Good rule of thumb with or without Extinguished (depending on the weapon of course) is to unequip any mods that directly affect base damage, namely Serration, Heavy Caliber, [Primed] Point Blank, Hornet Strike, Magnum Force, [Primed] Pressure Point, and Spoiled Strike. On the flip side, you can also slot ONLY those base damage mods in instead. Do to same to your sentinel weapons (if you leave their attack precepts on) and/or companions (Maul).
  • Lower your potency - Your abilities should not be overpowered either. Purposefully lower the strength, range, and duration of applicable warframe abilities so that using them does not immediately turn your and your allies into walking natural disasters. Use corrupted mods to gimp yourself on purpose (e.g. Overextended to gimp Power Strength, Narrow Minded to gimp Power Range, & Fleeting Expertise/Transient Fortitude to gimp Power Duration). You can use the rest of your open spaces to slot those nifty survivability and utility mods that you almost never get to use normally.
  • Avoid AoE attacks - This includes nuking abilities on warframes and weapons with an AoE explosion (e.g. [Synoid] Simulor, Kulstar, weapons with Concealed Explosives/Thunderbolt), chaining beam (e.g. Amprex & Atomos), syndicate proc (whether from the weapon itself or from a weapon mod augment), or large hitbox (e.g. Telos Boltace & weapons with Primed Reach).
  • Status is great - Soften up tough targets or lower their threat level. Puncture, Impact, Corrosive, Magnetic, and Viral are great to have to either make them more vulnerable or have them deal less damage to allies. Radiation and Blast are great too, but they have a chance of affecting the new player experience adversely if you cause too many of those procs occur.
  • Keep a stockpile of Team Restores ready for use in your gear wheel - The major ones are Health and Ammo Restores obviously, but ideally you should have all 4 ready. Hotkey them too if convenient for easy access. Remember not to spam them. Other useful gear items include Air Support Charges, Tenno Specters, and Ciphers, all of which you can use to salvage runs gone awry.
  • Avoid using Focus abilities - This is mostly for allies who haven't completed The Second Dream questline to avoid showing them spoilers. Feel free to use it offscreen however (though you should generally be staying close to them). Vazarin is the natural choice for the bankable instant revives. If they've already completed the quest however or don't care for spoilers, then Vazarin's active cast is nice for some minute healing. Naramon's and Zenurik's active casts are also nice CC abilities.
Loadout Selection & Modding:
As long as you remember to gimp yourself, you really can't go wrong. If you don't have any ideas on what you might want to use, have a look at the list below. Remember that these are just suggestions. Choose whatever you want, nerf it to hell, and HAVE FUN. Don't forget you can always try and match the loadout of your ally to help show them how it's done!
AURAS
  • Enemy Radar - Give them an extra heads-up at incoming mobs and teach them to pay attention to their minimap.
  • Loot Detector - Help point out items of interest to explorers and treasure hunters.
  • Speed Holster - Faster weapon swap speed is great and encourages allies to use their full loadout more.
  • Sprint Boost - Always nice to have until they get used to moving with the parkour system.
  • Corrosive Projection - If your ally's damage output isn't up to par for the content you're doing for some reason, this can help out.
  • Dead Eye - If your ally's damage output isn't up to par for the content you're doing for some reason, this can help out.
  • Rifle Amp - If your ally's damage output isn't up to par for the content you're doing for some reason, this can help out.
  • Shield Disruption - If your ally's damage output isn't up to par for the content you're doing for some reason, this can help out.
  • EMP Aura - Can help survivability slightly, but there are better ways to improve that.
  • Infested Impedance - Can help survivability slightly, but there are better ways to improve that.
  • Physique - Can help survivability slightly, but there are better ways to improve that.
  • Rejuvenation - Can help survivability slightly, but there are better ways to improve that. Can also lead to those "Lemme hide here for an eternity while my health refills before moving on!" moments if you're not careful. Just use a Team Health Restore.
  • Energy Siphon - Nice to encourage ability use, but can also lead to those "Lemme hide here for an eternity until I get enough energy!" moments if you're not careful. Just use a Team Energy Restore.
WARFRAMES
Remember that you shouldn't be constantly buffing your allies and CCing/debuffing your enemies. Only buff and debuff when you see that your buddy needs a helping hand, or has just been downed and needs to recover and recollect themselves. Let them direct the flow of the game.
  • Banshee - Sonar is a better Enemy Radar; Resonance makes it even better but it also tends to make Sonar a bit too powerful, so be careful using it. Silence helps make learning stealth runs easier if they fudge up a kill. Sonic Fracture can be used for cheap armor removal as long as it doesn't kill.
  • Ember - Both Fireball Frenzy and Flash Accelerant help boost ally damage output. Fire Fright is a nice panic button as long as it doesn't kill.
  • Equinox - Great jack-of-all-trades. Use night-form Rest to sleep targets and day-form Rage to enrage enemies and buff damage output, adding Calm & Frenzy if desired. Use night-form Pacify to reduce incoming damage and day-form Provoke to buff ability damage, adding Peaceful Provocation if desired. Use night-form Mend to heal allies, but avoid day-form Maim even though it CCs due to its capability for ludicrous damage.
  • Frost - Freeze Force boosts ally damage output. Ice Wave Impedance is a great CC ability as long as it doesn't kill. Snow Globe/Chilling Globe is an A+ defensive tool, just don't use it liberally and remember to erase each one with Freeze afterwards to prevent building camping habits.
  • Hydroid - Tidal Impunity both cleanses allies of status ailments and also grants them status proc immunity that scales off of Power Duration. Curative Undertow heals allies that stand in it. Pilfering Swarm can be used (not spammed) to increase resource drops.
  • Mag - Starter frame; it's comforting to learn from a partner with the same gear as you! Magnetize enemies to help players with crappy aim. Polarize to recharge shields and debuff enemies as long as it doesn't kill.
  • Mirage - Total Eclipse is a strong buffing skill no matter what its effect since you'll always be fighting near your ally. Don't prioritize one buff over the other and just let the buff apply itself passively. Prism is great CC when instantly-detonated. Avoid Hall of Mirrors since it can sometimes make yourself too powerful and cause confusion for new players in close quarters.
  • Nezha - Firewalker can be used to cleanse allies of status ailments and is also a great trailmarker you can use to show allies different paths through an area or help them find you if they're lost. Blazing Chakram can be used to heal allies that are near the affected enemy. Safeguard is a nice protective augment for when things go south (just make sure your Power Strength isn't bonkers). Divine Spears is decent CC as long as it doesn't kill.
  • Oberon - Smite Infusion boosts ally damage output. Hallowed Ground cleanses allies of status ailments (but make sure it isn't so powerful that it kills enemies that walk onto it). Renewal/Phoenix Renewal grants allies a heal-over-time and cleanse if topped off while also slowing bleedout speed.
  • Rhino - Rhino Charge and Rhino Stomp are nice CC abilities as long as they don't kill. Roar/Piercing Roar is a great no-nonsense ally damage buff (and enemy debuffer with augment).
  • Saryn - Venom Dose boosts ally damage output. Molt/Regenerative Molt can be used to draw fire and describe positions and locations to allies. Spores give Viral procs to everything in the room.
  • Titania - Spellbind allies to make them immune to status ailments. Use Tribute to buff allies. Lantern is decent CC.
  • Trinity - Energy Vampire/Vampire Leech to provide energy (and overshields with the augment) and Blessing for a flat heal and damage reduction. Just tone down your Power Strength first and make sure you're not constantly casting both abilities (if you are, you should go somewhere lower level).
  • Vauban - Minelayer mines are great to setup and have fun with as long as they don't kill (and don't annoy your allies with Bounce spam). Bastille/Repelling Bastille is great for players that struggle with aiming.
  • Volt - Starter frame; it's comforting to learn from a partner with the same gear as you! Shock Trooper boosts ally damage output. Speed/Shocking Speed is a fun movement and melee attack speed buff as long as the latter doesn't instantly kill enemies. Electric Shield is very useful offensive cover, just don't use it liberally.
  • Ash - Smoke Shadow is a great for granting temporarily stealth for Spy mission introductions, and Seeking Shruiken can be used for cheap armor removal as long as it doesn't kill.
  • Atlas - Tectonics provides portable cover, but at the danger of turning the game into a chest-high wall simulator if you use it too liberally. Petrify is a decent on-command slow and CC tool.
  • Chroma - Everlasting Ward is a great ally buff; tailor your element to your ally's skill.
  • Excalibur - Starter frame; it's comforting to learn from a partner with the same gear as you! Only synergistic skill is Radial Blind/Radiant Finish however.
  • Inaros - Devour and Scarab Swarm can heal allies, though the former requires awareness and active communication between both players and the latter can easily kill low level targets. Sandstorm is decent CC.
  • Ivara - Quiver arrow repetoire is very handy for learning stealth runs, and Prowl helps you get a little extra loot while doing so.
  • Limbo - Haven can be used to quickly take an ally out of a bad spot and give them some breathing room. Otherwise, the whole ability roster will probably make things confusing and frustrating for a new player (make sure they know how to roll to unbanish themselves). Avoid until the rework possibly fixes these issues.
  • Loki - Decoy can be used to draw fire and describe positions and locations to allies. Switch Teleport/Safeguard Switch can take allies out of a bad spot at the cost of some slight disorientation (or just wait until they die and invisibly revive them or switch teleport their corpse away from the danger zone). Radial Disarm/Irradiating Disarm takes a huge amount of heat off of allies, but sometimes too much if your Power Range is bonkers.
  • Mesa - Shooting Gallery/Muzzle Flash is a nice ally protection tool.
  • Nekros - Soul Survivor is a great instant revive if you don't have Vazarin. Terrify/Creeping Terrify is a great CC tool and debuff if you have the augment. Desecrate is great for more resource drops and creating plentiful health orbs (but make sure they don't get used to it). Avoid Shadows of the Dead, since it makes firefights super confusing even for veterans.
  • Nova - Worm Hole is convenient when convenient. Molecular Prime is both a great CC and buffing tool, but is still very overpowered if you don't keep your Power Range low since the chain explosions will wipe low level enemies off the map.
  • Nyx - Pacifying Bolts and Chaos/Chaos Sphere are good CC. Absorb/Assimilate is nice for some breathing room.
  • Valkyr - Warcry is a fun armor and melee attack speed buff and good enemy slow debuff. Paralysis/Prolonged Paralysis is decent CC.
  • Wukong - With a visible energy color, Cloud Walker can be used to show players traversal paths or serve as a pseudo-beacon waypoint for points of interest.
  • Zephyr - Turbluence/Jet Stream is a strong defensive skill somewhere between Frost's Snow Globe and Nyx's Absorb. Tornado is decent CC.
PRIMARIES
  • Charge Weapons (e.g. Opticor & drawstring bow-type weapons), Semi-Automatics (e.g. Latron [Prime/Wraith] & Stradavar), & Sniper Rifles (e.g. Lanka, Rubico, Vectis [Prime]) - Pick off priority targets and save the day! Avoid syndicate procs such as Lasting Purity on the Vulkar [Wraith] and be careful with the AoE generated by weapons like the Opticor upon impact.
  • Boar Prime & Strun Wraith - 100% status shotguns. Avoid the Tigris Prime due to its high Slash bias and since its base damage is already so damn high.
  • Glaxion - Pure-elemental beam weapon with very high status per second.
  • Paracyst - Pure-elemental projectile weapon with built-in 50m harpoon. You can use it to CC priority targets.
  • Phage - Pure-elemental beam shotgun that can modded for both Viral and Corrosive.
  • Quanta Vandal - Pure-elemental beam weapon with decent status per second.
  • Harpak - Burst-fire projectile weapon with built-in 50m harpoon. You can use it to CC priority targets. Stabilizer highly recommended.
  • Ignis - Pure-elemental beam weapon with decent status per second. Does a lot of damage at low levels since its buff, so be careful with its huge AoE, keep Vile Precision equipped, and only use this in later starchart missions.
  • Torid - Great CC & status launcher, just avoid modding for damage and don't concentrate your mines in one area due to its AoE DoT nature.
SECONDARIES
  • Semi-Automatics (e.g. Lex [Prime] & Akmagnus) & Thrown Weapons (e.g. Spira [Prime] & Despair) - Pick off priority targets and save the day! Avoid syndicate procs such as the Vaykor Marelok and be sure Concealed Explosives is unslotted if you use it.
  • Castanas & Talons - Guaranteed Electric or Blast proc respectively upon manual detonation. Watch out for the self-damage, though if you toned down the damage it shouldn't be too bad.
  • Nukor & Staticor - Pure-elemental projectile weapons with decent status chances that can be modded for both Radiation and Corrosive.
  • Akbronco Prime - 100% status shotgun secondary. No damage falloff but large spread, which ends up working in our favor.
  • Akstiletto Prime - 100% status automatic secondary. Can quickly afflict crowds with status procs.
  • Tysis - Pure-elemental projectile weapon. With just Jolt and Pistol Pestilence you get a pure Corrosive elemental weapon with 100% status chance that you can use to strip armor off priority targets. Two shots with Barrel Diffusion & Lethal Torrent strips ~80% of a mob's armor, so you can quickly fire a few shots at a mob and move on. A nice no-forma build is Barrel Diffusion, Lethal Torrent, Jolt, Pistol Pestilence, Convulsion, & Pathogen Rounds; it'll take about one magazine of body-shots to down a Lvl. 35 Corrupted Heavy Gunner (her armor will also be stripped to negligible amounts less than halfway through).
  • Pox - Great CC & 100% status projectile weapon, just avoid modding for damage and don't concentrate your mines in one area due to its AoE DoT nature.
  • Sonicor - Ragdoll enemies for CC, though for some players it can make aiming at enemies frustrating.
  • Twin Grakatas - Clem cosplay. Make sure you run out of ammo before you kill anything, because these things hit like a truck.
MELEE
For all selections, if you have the space, stick on Finishing Touch/Covert Lethality so that your gimped damage doesn't bite you in the ass during stealth kill prompts or frontal finishers.
  • Lacera, Ninkondi, & Twin Basolk - Pure-elemental melee weapons with 100% status chance. Great for quickly applying desired status procs to priority targets or crowds of enemies.
  • Ack & Brunt - Electromagnetic Shielding is a nice mod that you can use to help take a little heat off of allies during stationary missions like defense or mobile defense (it also teaches them to stay near the damn objective).
  • Halikar - Hold down Quick Melee to throw the thing and RNG-disarm priority targets for some CC. Disarm chance is tied to status chance, so all 4 dual-status mods brings disarm chance up to 51%. Slot in Whirlwind and [Primed] Fury as usual, and consider using Rebound in the last slot for a better chance at disarming mobs (though be careful if the weapon is doing too much damage) or Quick Return for more single-target control. Avoid Power Throw if you choose Quick Return. Pray while you're using it that the homing RNG doesn't screw you over.
  • Kestrel - Hold down Quick Melee to throw the thing and ragdoll priority targets for some CC. Equip Whirlwind and Entropy Flight for ludicrous flight speed along with [Primed] Fury for faster throws and either Rebound or Quick Return depending on your preferences. Avoid Power Throw if you choose Quick Return. If you choose to use Entropy Flight, be careful when main-handing (if you ever choose to do so) the weapon not to let its syndicate proc do too much work.
  • Sancti Magistar - Charged attack lets off an AoE heal that affects both allies and mission objectives. Capped at 200 for yourself, but not for your friends and companions.
  • Vaykor Sydon - Decent weapon with fun blocking mechanic that you arguably wouldn't be able to get any use out of otherwise. Encourages you to play more passively as a teacher.
  • Dark Split-Sword - Pure-elemental melee weapon with high status chance (in Heavy Blade stance) that can be modded for both Radiation and Corrosive.
  • [Secura] Lecta - Pure-elemental melee weapon with high status chance.
  • Serro - Pure-elemental melee weapon with high status chance.
Additional Notes:
  • Waypoint as needed (G by default) to help guide allies around and point out objects or places of interest.
  • The Extinguished Dragon Key does not reduce flat damage modifiers, such as those provided by Concealed Explosives, Thunderbolt, or Acid Shells. It's usually best to just remove these mods entirely.
  • Kavat companions can also serve as RNG buffers. Just make sure to explain the buffs to your allies so they know what's going on.
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