Tennocon 2023 has been a big event for Warframe fans, with DE announcing two whole expansions simultaneously. Warframe’s upcoming content update, Whispers in the Walls, is just around the corner, and Tenno worldwide are waiting with bated breath. Many cool new things are coming with this update, like a new weapon type, Warframe, tileset, and even a QoL system that players have been anticipating ever since Warframe’s launch into consoles. This and much more will be discussed in this article as a summary of the last Devstream for the year.
Rap, Tap, Tap…The Man in the Wall
A new threat to the Origin System has finally arrived. Teased since the Chains of Harrow update, The Man in the Wall has been an ever-present figure in the story of Warframe, and with recent developments, it is now unleashed into the system in part due to Albrecht Entrati, a central character to the discovery of The Void and the subsequent use of its energies. Whispers in the Walls will have the Tenno enter Albrecht Entrati’s laboratory as the brand-new tileset and enact the Kalymos Sequence, facing off against the Murmur, Void creatures under the command of the Man in the Wall, and the Necramech security constructs defending the labs. Working with the Tenno is the new Syndicate, Cavia, who will be responsible for handing out bounties and rewards within Whispers in the Walls.
How To Access Whispers in the Walls
Players will need to complete the following quests to start Whispers in the Walls:
- Awakening
- Vor’s Prize
- Once Awake
- The Archwing
- Stolen Dreams
- The New Strange
- Natah
- The Second Dream
- The War Within
- Chains of Harrow
- Apostasy Prologue
- The Sacrifice
- Chimaera Prologue
- Rising Tide
- The New War
- Angels of the Zariman
Previously, main story quests were tied to your Master Rank and were time-gated, as players can only rank up once a day. Digital Extreme has since promised a QoL feature of removing the rank requirement for all main quests, as well as pruning irrelevant quests to make way for more beginner-friendly quests leading up to the New War. Players will soon have unrestricted and quick access to all the major story beats that Warframe has to offer.
New Missions: Alchemy, Assassination and Netracells
Players will gather elemental energy from within Albrecht Entrati’s lab and transmute them in the Crucible while holding back against the endless hordes of Murmur. Found within the labs as well are the Netracells, which, much like the Corrupted Vaults, require Keyglyphs to open them and retrieve their contents. Keyglyphs are similar to Dragon Keys as they both debuff the player when held. This update will also include a new Assassination target with the Fragmented One. In Digital Extreme’s own words, players must “juice the Murmur eye and find The Fragmented One” so expect a couple of boss mechanics to deal with.
Tennokai
Tennokai is a heavy attack augment system, which functions as an Arcane and Exilus mod slot for melee weapons. When a player has the Tennokai status and uses a heavy melee attack, it will not expend the combo counter and will be given a faster animation. Tennokai mods will be found within the Whisper in the Walls content bracket. The melee weapon category will also be receiving around 9 Arcanes on launch.
New Weapon: Grimoire
The Tenno can wield Albrecht Entrati’s personal journal as a lethal weapon by channeling bolts of Electric damage to enemies or releasing an orb of electricity that shocks enemies near it. This weapon is also the first of its own archetype, with Digital Extremes planning to release more Tome-type weapons in the future and receive its own set of Tome mods.
Qorvex, the Brutalist Golem
With enough Syndicate reputation from Cavia, players can purchase the Qorvex Warframe blueprints and craft them in the Foundry. Qorvex was constructed by Albrecht Entrati as a weapon against the Murmur and, with this update, will soon be wielded by the Tenno.
This Warframe utilizes Radiation damage in its abilities, with its theme being a walking nuclear reactor core. Qorvex’s passive gives all equipped weapons with Radiation damage, encouraging players to spread as many status effects as possible. His first ability, Chyrinka Pillar, has Qorvex slam a pillar of Radiation into the ground. The pillar releases energy pulses in an area, dealing Radiation damage per pulse and slowing down enemies within its radius. If Qorvex’s other abilities hit the pillars, they will pulse faster, The second ability, Containment Wall, materializes two walls in front of Qorvex. The walls will then collide, sandwiching enemies between them, dealing damage, and staggering enemies. His 3rd ability, Isometric Guard, is a buff for Qorvex and the team. The ability provides charges that grant immunity to all status effects like Slash, Magnetic, Stun, etc. His fourth ability, Crucible Blast, unleashes a beam of radiation from Qorvex’s chest, first dealing damage directly to an enemy, then dealing chain damage to that enemy after the beam stops based on the number of Radiation stacks inflicted on the target.
With all these abilities, Qorvex is built to be a crowd-control and utility-focused Warframe, manipulating the battlefield with his pillars and sowing chaos on enemy ranks with Radiation procs. He will also arrive with his signature weapon, the archgun Mandonel, which fires buckshot of radioactive damage or a held beam that leaves a lingering radioactive zone.
Cross-Save Functionality
Warframe has received many console ports, from 4th and 5th gen consoles to the Switch, Steamdeck, and even a planned mobile port in the future. As such, many players stick to one console or PC to build up their Warframe accounts. Many have requested for the option to transfer their saves to other consoles, and this feature has been absent for a long time. Digital Extremes has finally answered our pleas by releasing the Cross-Save feature, allowing players to easily transition from console to PC and vice-versa. Now Warframe can finally be enjoyed both on the go and at home. Gone are the days of creating an alternate account and starting all over again.
Account merging is also an option for players with multiple accounts, converting them into a single massive Cross Save account. Players using this feature must designate one Primary account for Quest progress and the rest for resources, currencies, items, and customizations. Players can also trade across different platforms with other players who have both cross-play and cross-save enabled.
Archon Shard Fusion
Archon Shards provide a substantial power boost to your Warframes when imprinted. For Whispers in the Walls, one of the members of the Cavia Syndicate will provide a service for fusing either Red, Blue, or Yellow Archon Shards into a new color, combining two stat bonuses into one shard and adding a proc effect to keep things interesting.
Arcane Dissolution
Arcanes are a rare reward for players, and some of them have bonuses that many consider to be meta-defining, but there are many more Arcanes that have fallen out of favor. Players can now dismantle Arcanes into a currency with The Cavia Syndicate’s Arcane Dissolution service, which can be exchanged for a pack of new Arcanes. Much like the Mod Fusion and Relic Pack system, players can still value their time receiving unwanted Arcanes to have them exchanged for a more specific Arcane.
Other QoL Changes
Archguns will see a blanket buff to their overall damage to enhance the power fantasy of wielding a heavy weapon while also granting an Overguard upon deployment to prevent getting killed while mid-animation and offsetting the mobility penalty when wielding one. Meanwhile, enemy Necramech will now be easier to kill as DE changed them to be damageable regardless of whether their arms are being destroyed or not. Solo players running Iso Vaults will appreciate this change and can farm for Necramech parts and Arcanes faster.
The Future of Warframe
Digital Extremes has also teased another expansion to come after Whisper in the Walls. Harkening back to their previous game, Dark Sector, Warframe 1999 will take a radically different aesthetic as the trailer for the expansion shows a more modern-day setting with familiar places. We even get a sneak peek of the character Arthur, wearing the Excalibur Warframe as a suit while wielding an AK-styled weapon. Warframe 1999 will be tied to the story of Whisper in the Walls, whether as a sequel, prequel, or happening simultaneously with Whispers.
