Octavia is a music-themed Warframe, originally released in U20.0. Octavia Prime was released later on in U29.9. A Warframe with a wide variety of potent abilities, she is quite versatile and scales quite well against very high level enemies. Octavia is often considered among the most powerful Frames in the game, though her unusual playstyle means that she is not for everyone.
Acquisition
The Chassis Blueprint is a reward for completing the "Music Puzzle Room" also on Lua, being found in a container at the top of the puzzle when solved. This room can spawn on most, if not all, Lua nodes. I've had the most success spawning it in the Crossfire Exterminate (Plato).
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| This image is of course missing the Neuroptics Blueprint |
Octavia Prime's acquisition is as standard for a Prime Frame, main Blueprint and Component Blueprints are available from Void Relics.
Stats
Octavia Prime has increased Energy Pool and Shields, the former of which is very useful.
Abilities
Passive
Octavia has two Passive abilities, though one is not really an ability.
When Octavia casts an ability, she and allies within 15 metres receive the Inspiration buff, which restores 1 Energy per second for 30 seconds. Casting more abilities will refresh the buff timer.
Inspiration is an incredible Passive, among the best in the game. Earlier in the game, Energy can be very hard to restore consistently without relying on consumables, so a consistent and reliable Energy source is greatly appreciated.
The second part of Octavia's Passive is her Mandachord. The Mandachord directs Octavia's music, which dictates the frequency her abilities trigger at. A higher frequency will result in weaker effect per music note. Most importantly, the Mandachord is player-customisable.
As seen from the above image, the three sections of the Mandachord correspond to different abilities - the top "Percussion" section affects Mallet (1) damage intervals, the middle "Bass" affects Resonator (2) damage intervals, and the bottom "Melody" section affects Metronome (3) notes.
1: Mallet
Octavia throws down a Mallet, which absorbs fire from enemies, multiplying it by 2x (+Str) and dealing it back to enemies within line-of-sight as Blast damage within a 10 metre range (+Ran). It lasts for 20 seconds (+Dur), with stored damage decaying over time. The stored damage is reset if Mallet expires or is recast. Only one Mallet can be active at a time.
Mallet is an extremely strong scaling damage ability that also functions as a decent CC. As Mallet's damage output is directly proportional to enemy damage output, it is one of very few damage abilities that scales well at very high enemy levels, and also is not very concerned with Strength. It is readily capable of killing enemies on Steel Path (less so armoured enemies partly due to dealing Blast damage). Since it also acts as a target for enemies, Mallet can be used to draw fire away from Objectives, and is an exceptional tool for holding down choke points.
The main weakness of Mallet, besides needing to absorb enemy damage, is that it requires line-of-sight to deal damage. As such, smart placement of it is crucial for maximum effect. Note also that unlike several other similar abilities, Mallet does not have increased target priority compared to Players.
2: Resonator
Octavia deploys an invulnerable Resonator which moves about on its own. It will actively seek out enemies to pacify. Resonator has a 6m pacification range (+Ran), within which affected enemies will not attack, and will simply follow it around. This range increases with each pacified enemy, to a maximum of 15m (+Ran). There can only be one Resonator active at a time, lasting 20 seconds (+Dur).
Additionally, if there is a Mallet active, Resonator will seek it out and pick it up. This will override Resonator's pacification, encouraging enemies to shoot at the carried Mallet. Additionally, Mallet's Threat level will be increased, making enemies more likely to attack it than other targets.
Resonator is a useful CC ability. Though its starting range is not great, with sufficient enemies entranced and increased Range it can cover a massive area. Additionally, it actively seeks out enemies who are not currently pacified, allowing it to effectively cover much more area. However, this does mean that the Resonator may not be in the place you want it, at the time you want it.
Resonator's interaction with Mallet is both a blessing and a curse. It does of course actively seek enemies to kill, which is useful, however it means that the Mallet does not remain in one place, preventing it from locking down a choke point reliably. Additionally, the moving target also makes it much more likely that you/an objective will be hit by a stray round/rocket, which is generally much easier to avoid when the Mallet is stationary.
3: Metronome
Octavia activates her Metronome, which grants buffs to herself and nearby allies who perform specific actions in time with the Metronome notes. These actions must be done a sufficient number of times in sync with the notes to activate. Metronome is active for 20 seconds (+Dur), with an effective radius of 12m (+Ran), while its separate effects all have 15 second duration (+Dur). Additionally, it automatically grants 35% bonus Armour (+Str) to all nearby allies while active, independent of the other separate buffs.
Jumping in time with the notes gives the player 30% increased Movement Speed (+Str). Crouching in time with the notes gives the player invisibility. Shooting in time with the notes grants +30% Multishot (+Str). Finally, melee attacking in time with the notes grants +30% Melee Damage (+Str), which is additive to +Damage mods like (Primed) Pressure Point.
Metronome is a weird mix of buffs with an unusual activation condition, but it is undeniably quite strong when it does work. The Armour buff is relatively small and only notably useful on Frames with decent base Armour. The Melee Damage bonus is also not particularly large, and is practically negligible for a Condition Overload Melee given how the mod works. Increased Movement Speed is very often useful in Warframe, given that mobility and movement is a huge part of what makes Warframe unique. The Multishot bonus is not enormous, however it is still useful addition as it is just more damage for ranged weapons. Notably, it is the only ability in the entire game that boosts Multishot.
Last but certainly not least, Metronome's ability to grant invisibility to any player in the squad is very rare and very powerful. There are a select few other abilities capable of granting teammates invisibility - Ash's Smoke Screen (2) with Smoke Shadow Augment, Wukong's Cloud Walker (2) with Enveloping Cloud Augment, and Ivara's Quiver (1) with her Invisibility arrow. In Warframe, invisibility essentially turns off enemy AI after a few seconds, turning the vast majority of enemies into total non-threats. Invisibility is often cited as one of the best forms of survivability, as the vast majority of enemies cannot detect an invisible target. Being able to grant that to the entire team is a massive strength.
By far the most frustrating part of Metronome is actually triggering the different buffs, and it delivers one of Octavia's biggest flaws. Performing actions in time with Metronome's notes can be very difficult in Warframe's extremely chaotic and fast-paced gameplay. As such, the easiest way to have Metronome reliably usable is to fill the Melody section of the Mandachord with notes, maximising the chance that any given action occurs in time with a note.
There are two trade-offs with this approach. Firstly, more notes means that each action provides less synchronisation, and thus more actions must be performed to active the buffs. Secondly, it completely neuters one of Octavia's key features, the customisability of her music. One can either fill the Mandachord with notes for ease-of-use, resulting in a poor sounding song, or actually customise it to their liking but have a harder time getting Metronome to work. In a game like Warframe where customisation is everything, this is a massive flaw in Octavia's design.
4: Amp
Octavia places an Amp, which boosts nearby weapon damage based on the amount of "noise" in the area. At a minimum, it gives +25% Damage, to a maximum of +200% (+Str). This damage bonus is additive to +Damage mods like Serration for non-Shotgun Primaries and Hornet Strike for Secondaries. Amp lasts for 30 seconds (+Dur), with an effective radius of 14m (+Ran). Only one Amp can be active at a time.
There are many sources of "noise" that contribute to Amp's damage buff, including footsteps and attacking with weapons.
Additionally, any Mallet in Amp's range will have its own range and damage doubled.
In stark contrast to Metronome, Amp is a pretty simple but still undeniably effective ability, boosting weapon damage in its area-of-effect. Though technically conditional, in practice it is quite consistent due to the leniency of its "noise" requirement. Attacking with a ranged weapon will quickly max out Amp's damage bonus, even if the weapon is silent. Melee attacking will not quite max it, but will still reach roughly 90% of the full bonus. Of course, enemy attacks also contribute. Additionally, Amp's base Duration and Range are fairly generous.
The synergy with Mallet is extremely strong, as it drastically increases Mallet's overall capabilities. With high +Range, an Amp-boosted Mallet can cover an enormous area and deal great damage.
Augments
Octavia currently only has 2 Augments.
1: Partitioned Mallet
Partitioned Mallet allows you to place two Mallets, with each Mallet having half range.
Partitioned Mallet improves Octavia's overall CC ability. Since Mallet draws enemy attention very well, being able to cast two of them allows you to lock down two choke points instead of just one. The reduced range can be compensated for with smart Mallet placement.
The main drawback of this Augment is that it reduces Mallet's area nuking ability, since its range is halved, and enemies will be attacking two separate Mallets rather than a single one. This can be mitigated with smart placement in choke points and use of Amp (4).
2: Conductor
Normally, Resonator will go off on its own, targeting enemies with no player input. As such, sometimes it will not go after the most important threat at the right time. This mod can be useful for quickly subduing a targeted group of enemies if the Resonator AI refuses to do so, or forcing it to hold down a specific area.
Notably, Conductor is an Exilus mod so faces less mod slot competition.
Builds
Octavia likes all four Ability stats. Strength is primarily useful for increasing the strength of Amp's (4) damage boost. While Mallet (1) technically scales with Strength, it does not need it to deal good damage due to its damage absorption mechanic. Many of Metronome's (3) buffs also appreciate Strength, though its best buff, invisibility, does not use it at all. Range is very useful for every ability. It increases Mallet's radius which is a significant capability boost, as well as improving the area-of-effect of both Metronome and Amp's buffs. Finally it also significantly improves Resonator's (2) area of pacification. Duration makes every ability last longer, which is great for Energy economy and convenience. It also allows Mallet's damage to scale higher, as its damage is reset when it expires/is recast. Naturally, Efficiency is also good for Energy economy.
In my opinion, Duration is the most important stat, followed by Range and then Strength. It doesn't matter how strong Octavia's abilities are if they don't last long enough to make an impact. Similarly, Mallet and Resonator are practically useless with low Range. Metronome and Amp are still useful on yourself, but provide limited team support. Conversely, Metronome and Resonator remain useful even with low Strength, and though Amp's damage buff will be small, it still greatly improves Mallet.
Both Augments are niche, but useful for certain setups. Partitioned Mallet (1) allows you to hold down an additional choke point, which can be very helpful in certain tilesets. Conductor (2) gives you more control over Resonator's movement, which is useful in CC-focused builds.
Thanks to Metronome's invisibility, Octavia does not need any mods for survivability. So long as you have Energy for Metronome, you should be able to stay out-of-sight, and thus out-of-danger. If you are worried about taking a stray shot or two, there are a couple of options that scale just as well as Octavia does. Rolling Guard gives you a 3-second invulnerability period, long enough to recast Metronome and re-activate your invisibility. Alternatively, Brief Respite or Augur set mods coupled with a Decaying Dragon Key allows you to reset your Shield Gate from casting a few abilities, granting you 1.3 seconds of invulnerability that has no cooldown provided you have Energy. Of course, these all rely on meeting different criteria - whether it is an excess of Energy or equipment that is not available until much later on.
In terms of Arcanes, Energize is an obvious choice for ensuring you always have Energy. I am a fan of Guardian for a semi-reliable fall-back at mid-level. It remains useful to around level 60-70 (depending on exact enemy), allowing you to take an extra hit to Health that you normally wouldn't otherwise. Building for Health lets it work to a higher level, but still not scale especially high. Thanks to the Shield Gate mechanics, Aegis is a nice survivability option combined with Brief Respite/Augur mods, as when it triggers, it grants you effectively 12 seconds of invulnerability. If you are worried about Magnetic or Toxin procs, Nullifier and Resistance respectively could be worth considering, as those two can be extremely troublesome. Otherwise, the usual bunch of weapon-buffing Arcanes (e.g. Fury, Precision) are always nice options.
Octavia has two innate - polarities, while the Prime has an additional D polarity. Both have a - polarity in the Aura slot. Most notable of the - polarities is Corrosive Projection. Mallet's Blast damage is not effective against either common Armour type, so any reduction of it is a significant improvement in damage output. If you do not have much in the way of Energy restoration, Energy Siphon is worth considering. It and Inspiration combine to give Octavia excellent innate Energy economy, far better than most Frames have in early-game. Otherwise, there are several other solid Auras suited to different preferences and roles, such as Sprint Boost, Loot/Enemy Radar and Growing Power.
Basic 0-Forma:
For a newer player, the starting build point is often to just throw in all of the basic Ability mods and Vitality/Redirection. Thankfully for Octavia, this is a perfectly decent early starting point, with plenty of room for improvement once you have more mods. Every one of her abilities is decent even without any investment, so increasing each stat a little is a universal benefit for all of them.
Despite what I said above about Octavia's survivability, I've included Vitality in here as a safety net. If you're still early enough in the game that Energy is a problem, surviving on just Metronome's invisibility and Shield Gating may not be practical, and the health buffer could be very useful.
Primed Basic 1-Forma:
This build simply upgrades two mods to their Primed versions, requiring an added V polarity to do so. There is a little space for customisation, including upgrading Intensify to its Umbral version, Transient Fortitude or Blind Rage for more Strength. If you are unsure how you want to build your Octavia, this is in my opinion the best starting point. From here it is very easy to experiment with different mods to find your own optimal setups.
Range and Duration 1-Forma:
This build forgoes significant Strength to instead have high Range and Duration. While its buffs are not particularly strong, Mallet and Resonator have very large ranges and last for a long time, making them solid DPS and CC abilities respectively. Even with low Strength, Amp jacks up Mallet's capabilities massively, and the two combined can wipe entire rooms with ease with line-of-sight. Alternatively, for missions that do not require killing (e.g. Mobile Defence, Interception), Resonator can be used to pacify a significant number of enemies simultaneously with minimal effort.
High Strength 2-Forma:
My Builds
Roles
Octavia fills several roles very well. She offers a number of strong team buffs, making her a good Support. Inspiration (Passive) grants Energy for the entire team, which is quite rare and very useful. Metronome (3) offers a plethora of buffs, notably including refreshable,
team-wide invisibility. Invisbility is often cited as among the best
forms of survivability, so being able to grant it to the entire team is
incredibly strong. Invisibility is also important to ensure that enemies will target the Mallet instead for maximum damage output. Amp (4) offers a solid weapon damage buff in a generous area.
Octavia is a potent passive DPS. Mallet (1) offers powerful AoE damage that directly scales with enemy strength - a very rare and highly valuable trait. Amp doubles Mallet's damage and range. This is less impressive at lower levels where many other Frames are more efficient, but really shines at extremely high levels.
Octavia can also act as a decent CC. Mallet actively draws enemy attention away from players and objectives. Resonator (2) is a solid CC ability that actively hunts down enemies to subdue (or kill if Mallet is active), and with a decent number of enemies enthralled, has quite a large radius of effect.
Combat Use and Summary
If you want to make the "most" out of Octavia, her playstyle is actually quite passive. Setting up a Mallet (1) or Resonator (2) will take care of enemies on their own (the former by killing, the latter by subduing), with no input from the player. Killing enemies yourself ends up being a hindrance to Mallet's damage output, since it wants maximum enemies shooting at it instead. You will generally want to use either Mallet or Resonator, but not both at the same time.
Amp (4) is a very good buff, but it and Mallet are both stationary (barring Resonator picking up Mallet), encouraging a defensive, campy playstyle. Resonator will try to follow Octavia, but this can make its pacification effect unreliable. Metronome (3) is a wacky mix of buffs, most notably granting invisibility from well-timed crouches, but it can also be troublesome at times to trigger correctly.
Octavia is among the best scaling Warframes in the game. Mallet + Amp is an infinitely scaling damage combo with fantastic range, while Metronome grants refreshable invisibility that lets you go completely ignored and untouched. Even without Mallet + Amp, invisbility allows you to progress any mission at your leisure, with minimal threat from enemies (as very few can detect an invisible enemy).
This all leads into Octavia's other biggest flaw. Though Octavia is objectively extremely powerful, besides triggering Metronome she is not a very active Warframe. With her abilities she can essentially play the game for you with just a basic macro (don't do this - macros that play the game for you are a bannable offence). To some players (including myself), her playstyle is quite static and boring. Octavia is absolutely a very useful Frame to have around - if you can handle her relatively passive playstyle.
Weapon Combinations
Octavia (Prime) confers bonuses to her signature weapons, Tenora and Pandero (and their Prime versions), but otherwise does not perform uniquely well with any specific weapons.
When wielded by Octavia (Prime), the Tenora (Prime) has a 20% chance to instantly reload upon a headshot kill with Alternate Fire. Similarly, headshot kills with Pandero (Prime)'s Altnerate Fire will increase its Reload Speed by 20%. Neither effect is particularly notable.
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