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How to get Primary and Secondary Arcanes in Warframe

The ultimate accessory.
This article is over 3 years old and may contain outdated information

Arcanes are extremely powerful items in Warframe, and are now available for Primary and Secondary Weapons. Similar to Warframe, Kitgun, and Melee Arcanes, they can now be found for Primary and Secondary weapons as well, bringing an extra burst of power to these weapons.

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Primary and Secondary Arcanes can be found on the Steel Path, the more difficult version of the Star Chart that becomes available after players have clear the Star Chart. The Arcanes themselves drop from enemies called Acolytes that can spawn in Steel Path missions.

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The Acolytes have a 100% chance to drop one of the six available Primary or Secondary Arcanes, and you will need 21 copies of an Arcane in total to reach Rank 5 and get the full benefits from the Arcane.

Primary Arcanes

All stats are shown at Rank 5.

  • Primary Deadhead – +60% Damage for 24s on Headshot kill. Stacks up to 3x. +30% to Headshot Multiplier-50% Weapon Recoil
  • Primary Dexterity – +60% Damage for 20s on kill. Stacks up to 6xMust be a melee kill. +7.5s Combo Duration+60% Holster Speed
  • Primary Merciless – +30% Damage for 4s on Melee kill. Stacks up to 12x. +30% Reload Speed+100% Ammo Maximum

Secondary Arcanes

All stats are shown at Rank 5.

  • Secondary Deadhead – +60% Damage for 24s on Headshot kill. Stacks up to 3x. +30% to Headshot Multiplier-50% Weapon Recoil
  • Secondary Dexterity – +60% Damage for 20s on Melee kill. Stacks up to 6xMust be a melee kill. +7.5s Combo Duration+60% Holster Speed
  • Secondary Merciless – +30% Damage for 4s on kill. Stacks up to 12x. +30% Reload Speed+100% Ammo Maximum

How to use Primary and Secondary Arcanes

To use these new Arcanes, players will need to install an Arcane Adapter that can be purchased in either Primary or Secondary form, depending on the Arcane you wish to use. These can be purchased from Teshin on any Relay in the Conclave room. They will cost 15 Steel Essence each.

Steel Essence can be earned in several ways, and we will update this guide with more sources for Steel Essence as we discover them.

  • Full clear all nodes on a planet on The Steel Path – 2 Steel Essence
  • Defeat an Eidolon in the new Steel Path level Eidolon hunts – 1 Steel Essence
  • Can potentially drop from Eximus enemies in Steel Path mission, at a low drop chance.
  • There have been reports that a Steel Essence can drop from enemy Syndicate troops that come after you, but we have not confirmed this yet.

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Author
Image of Aidan O'Brien
Aidan O'Brien
Aidan O'Brien has been playing games for over three decades and has been writing about them for five years. When not getting stomped on by the creations of Hidetaka Miyazaki, he enjoys spending too much time in Warframe, Destiny 2 and any other ARPG with a solid grind. When not writing, he is doing inexplicable behind-the-scenes magic for GAMURS Group.