Review: Stradavar Prime (U24.7.1)

The Stradavar Prime is an MR12 rifle, released alongside Equinox and Tipedo Primes in U24.5.8. With two solid firing modes - Full-Auto and Semi-Auto - it is quite versatile and can adequately handle most content in the game.

Acquisition

As standard for a Prime weapon, the Stradavar Prime's blueprint and parts are found in certain Void Relics. As a new Prime, the Relics containing its parts are currently available. It is due to be Vaulted (and thus made unavailable) alongside Equinox and Tipedo Primes, which isn't due to happen for a long time.

Stats

The two firing modes have quite different stat distributions. Full-Auto, as above, has solid crit but low Status Chance. A large Magazine and fairly short Reload Time give the Stradavar Prime's Full-Auto a very good Reload Ratio of 4.5, despite its fairly high RoF.

On the other hand, Semi-Auto is even heavier on the crit, with massively increased Status Chance as well. Its base Damage is also greatly increased and re-distributed for majority Slash damage. Notably, it even has 1m innate Punch Through. These come at the cost of a much lower RoF, while also consuming two rounds per shot. With its lower RoF and doubled ammo consumption, Semi-Auto retains an excellent Reload Ratio of 6.76.

Augments

None.

Builds

0-Forma Punch Through:

With 3 native V polarities, the Stradavar Prime can fit rather solid builds without any Forma. This first build has all the standard essentials, and still has enough space for Shred as a seventh mod. I've gone with Viral for the example builds, as the Full-Auto has relatively low Status Chance, and though the Semi-Auto has good Status Chance, it is slow firing and has high Slash bias. The choice of 90% or 60/60 for your elementals is primarily up to the enemy you're facing, which firing mode you're using, and what mods you have available. In Full-Auto, 90% mods are probably preferable since it has unimpressive base Status Chance. In Semi-Auto, 60/60s are probably more effective up against armoured enemies (for Slash procs), and 90% mods otherwise.

Shred is arguably less necessary on the Stradavar Prime than other rifles, primarily because Semi-Auto has 1m innate Punch Through. However, I like having the Punch Through on Full-Auto, and the RoF boost makes Semi-Auto feel a lot better to me.

0-Forma Hunter Munitions:

Since both firing modes have good crit, Hunter Munitions is a great option against armoured enemies. Both firing modes back up solid firepower with frequent Slash procs, though Semi-Auto's higher Crit Chance and natural Slash proc ability likes it more.

If Shred isn't your thing and Hunter Munitions isn't necessary, Vigilante Armaments is a solid alternative that offers a no-drawback damage boost. I've discussed a few other alternatives further below as well.

Against most armoured enemies, you really want Hunter Munitions to maximise Slash proc output. Full-Auto has too low a Status Chance for Corrosive procs, and Semi-Auto is quite slow at Corrosive armour stripping, being much more efficient with Slash procs. Viral complements HM quite nicely, to minimise the health that the Slash procs need to eat through. Semi-Auto is much more effective against armoured enemies due to its natural Slash proc abilities.

For Infested, Corrosive is the go-to as always. Unarmoured Corpus are hit hardest by either Viral or Toxin, depending whether you want to punch through Shields then deal massive damage to Health, or bypass Shields entirely. For armoured Corpus, who almost exclusively use Alloy armour, Radiation is your best bet.

Generally speaking, Full-Auto is best used against groups, where its high RoF is most useful. Semi-Auto deals a little more direct damage, so is more effective against heavier targets. With a Hunter Munitions build, Semi-Auto is far more effective especially against armoured enemies, due to its higher Crit Chance, natural Slash procs, and slightly higher overall DPS.

Recommended Setups: Viral + HM vs Grineer, Corrupted, Corrosive vs Infested, Viral/Toxin vs unarmoured Corpus, Radiation vs armoured Corpus

1-Forma Hunter Munitions:

One added V polarity lets you fit in an eighth mod comfortably, provided your elementals are both 60/60s. In this example build, the two extra mods I've slotted in are Shred and Hunter Munitions, though of course both can be swapped for other mods as desired. As mentioned previously, Vigilante Armaments is a no-fuss option that increases overall damage output. Bladed Rounds and Argon Scope benefit both firing modes significantly provided you can maintain their trigger conditions. Heavy Caliber is another damage boosting option that sacrifices accuracy. You could even slot in another element for things like Corrosive + Heat or Viral + Electric.

Recommended Setups: see above. Also consider: Corrosive + Heat vs Infested, Viral + Electric vs unarmoured Corpus
Recommended Firing Modes: see above.

My Builds:

I needed to install the extra Forma to switch in Amalgam Serration and Primed Shred. This build is a standard Viral + HM, good for general use and the best against most armoured enemies.

The Corrosive and Radiation builds are most effective against Infested and armoured Corpus respectively.

Combat Use and Summary

With Full-Auto and Semi-Auto firing modes, the Stradavar Prime can handle most content thrown at it. As mentioned previously, Full-Auto is very well suited to groups, comfortably killing most weak enemies quickly, and being able to engage large quantities of them thanks to its decent RoF and very good Reload Ratio. Semi-Auto deals more direct damage, and has much better status capability, so is more effective against heavier enemies. Both firing modes deal decent, but not exceptional DPS, so can handle unarmoured heavies without too much trouble.

Notably, Semi-Auto also handles fairly well against armoured enemies, even without Hunter Munitions. With decently high Status Chance and very good Slash bias, it inflicts Slash procs with reasonable frequency, far more so with HM. Combined with solid raw DPS, this allows it to eat through the health of most armoured enemies quite efficiently.

Both firing modes are quite accurate, with quite low recoil. Semi-Auto consumes 2 rounds per shot, however this is hardly an issue considering the Stradavar Prime's mag is still effectively 45 rounds, which is very large by Semi-Auto rifle standards. Its innate Punch Through is quite helpful against crowds if additional Punch Through is not installed, though I still find Full-Auto to be more effective against groups, even without Punch Through.

Overall, the Stradavar Prime is a fairly well rounded and decently powerful rifle. It can handle most threats adequately, and is not especially weak in any one area. Its Semi-Auto mode is largely superior, but Full-Auto is very effective against crowds. Neither firing mode is exceptional in its category, but both are decent, and it is this adaptability that makes Stradavar Prime relatively special. If you're after a versatile, crit-focused rifle, the Stradavar Prime is a pretty good one to pursue.

Scores

Vs Trash Mobs: 4/5 - Full-Auto is very effective against groups, with high RoF, solid DPS, and a very good Reload Ratio. Added Punch Through makes it even more efficient against groups.
Vs Unarmoured Heavies: 3.5/5 - Both firing modes have solid, but not exceptional, DPS. As such, though both are decently effective against unarmoured enemies, they fall behind a number of other rifles in this category.
Vs Armoured Heavies without Hunter Munitions: 3.5/5 - Semi-Auto's solid Status Chance and fairly high Slash bias allow it to inflict Slash procs with reasonable frequency, steadily eating through heavily armoured enemies. Its relatively low RoF makes it a little inconsistent however,
Vs Armoured Heavies with Hunter Munitions: 4.5/5 - As both firing modes are crit-focused, both make extremely good use of Hunter Munitions. With HM, the Stradavar Prime can inflict Slash procs rapidly with either firing mode, quickly tearing through armoured enemies. Semi-Auto is better for this due to its superior crit and natural Slash proc tendencies, but Full-Auto still does solid work as well.

Vs Variants

The MR12 Stradavar Prime is an almost universal upgrade over the MR8 Stradavar. Its Full-Auto is strictly far superior, and its Semi-Auto is also much better, barring a drop in RoF and consuming two rounds per shot. The many other stat boosts easily compensate for this however.

Competitors

There are several Select-Fire rifles in Warframe (more than there are pure Semi-Auto rifles), including the Argonak, Hind and Tiberon Prime. Of them, only the Tiberon Prime and Zenith are really comparable power wise.

The Tiberon Prime's Full-Auto is comparable in DPS to the Stradavar Prime, with far superior Status Chance. Its Burst and Semi-Auto are both well ahead of the StradavarP's Semi-Auto in DPS. The StradavarP Semi-Auto however has high Status Chance and Slash bias, and the StradavarP has a larger magazine (though only barely in Semi-Auto, which consumes two rounds per shot). Overall, the Tiberon Prime is more effective against fewer targets with its superior raw killing power, while the Stradavar Prime is better against large crowds thanks to its larger Mag Capacity.

The Zenith's Full-Auto is Status focused, so falls behind for raw DPS, but of course has far superior Status proc capabilities. Conversely, its Semi-Auto is extremely Crit-heavy and consumes 5 rounds per shot, dealing much superior DPS to the Stradavar Prime, but with barely any Status Chance. The two weapons are quite different, and as such, suit very different purposes/roles.

The Tenora is also worth a mention, as though it is not a Select-Fire rifle, it is still quite similar. Its primary is a spool-up Full-Auto that is Crit-focused and a little weaker than the Stradavar Prime's Full-Auto, but more Status capable. The Tenora's Secondary Fire is a Crit-focused Charge-Fire that consumes 10 rounds per shot, but deals insane damage-per-shot. With Hunter Munitions, the Stradavar Prime's Full-Auto is very close to the Tenora's, while its Semi-Auto and the Tenora's Secondary Fire are very different.


Looking more generally at Semi-Auto rifles, the Prisma Grinlok is pretty much the only comparable one. It has a much slower RoF, but deals far more damage-per-shot, and has even higher Slash proc chances. The PGrinlok does win out slightly for raw DPS, though the difference is quite small. The Deadly Sequence Augment is a major factor here, as without it, the PGrinlok would be a fair bit less impressive.

Looking more generally at Full-Auto rifles, there are a heap to look at, and many of them beat the Stradavar Prime's Full-Auto. Things like Tenora, Prisma Gorgon, Prisma Grakata, Supra Vandal, the list goes on. The Stradavar is notable not because of any one firing mode, but rather because it can utilise both quite effectively to combat most enemies.

Rivens 

The Stradavar family has a relatively high 4/5 (1.15) Riven Disposition, which was dropped with the release of Equinox Prime. Given the overall power and versatility of Stradavar Prime, I think is a little high, and would be more appropriate at perhaps a lower 3/5 Disposition.

Naturally, Damage/Multishot/Crit Chance/Crit Damage are all great stats to have. An element (like +Toxin) can save a mod slot, which is always handy. Personally, I like +Fire Rate for Semi-Auto, though (Primed) Shred more than covers that for me. +Punch Through can be a great help against crowds if you don't want to slot in (Primed) Shred.

-Impact/Puncture are both decent negatives, not significantly reducing Damage, while significantly boosting the Riven's other stats. They are especially good for Semi-Auto, since it increases Slash bias. -Faction Damage can be alright, depending on faction (-Infested is generally considered good, as they're pretty squishy). -Ammo Max can be tolerable, especially if you use primarily Semi-Auto, and/or run Carrier. -Flight Speed has no effect. +Recoil can be good if you are having no issues with recoil. -Zoom can be good if you intend to engage primarily in close quarters.