I was ecstatic when I first heard we were getting a devil frame in Warframe, and from his aesthetic to his gameplay, Uriel does not disappoint. In terms of build-crafting, Uriel requires very little investment to excel, so you can afford to have a little fun when building him by utilizing mods you might otherwise not for more demanding frames. There are certainly more meta-focused builds you could go for, but this one focuses on optimizing enjoyment.
Uriel Build Guide
In this guide, I’ll show you how to build Uriel to maximize his airborne potential, raining unholy fire down upon unsuspecting foes as you flit about the sky. Base Uriel can already remain airborne pretty much indefinitely thanks to Infernalis, but there are certain mods we can slot to make things effortless. This build has been stress-tested in both Arbitrations and Steel Path, and clears them with ease. You’ll need four forma to follow this build to the letter.
What To Mod For
This build revolves around your aura and exilus mod slots, with Aerodynamic providing increased aim glide duration and Aero Vantage decreasing your gravity so that you can aim glide without drifting downwards. This provides bonus stability while aiming midair and gives you ample time to recast Infernalis as needed, letting you maintain your aerial superiority with little risk of ever touching down. Aerodynamic also has the added benefit of reducing damage taken while airborne, and if you’d like to double dip on damage reduction you could put Boreal’s Anguish in the exilus slot instead of Aero Vantage. Just note that Boreal’s Anguish caps at -75% gravity while aim gliding, so you won’t be able to float around as effortlessly as with Aero Vantage.
That’s just the fun stuff, though. For the rest of your mods, you’ll want to focus on power strength, range, and a little bit of survivability. Since Uriel’s abilities revolve around heat damage, Archon Vitality is crucial here, doubling every heat status your abilities apply with the added benefit of boosting your health. Given that you’ll probably be spending a lot of time airborne, Stretch and Overextended help your abilities close the gap to the ground, and with over 200% range you’ll be nuking entire rooms once your Brimstone ability is charged. Little matter that you have to touch down to cast it, since everyone around you will be gone the second after. The strength loss from Overextended always hurts, but Blind Rage and Transient Fortitude will still boost your strength over the 200% mark, while Primed Flow and Primed Continuity help counteract the negative efficiency and duration those mods apply.
Beyond The Mods
While utilizing two yellow archon shards for parkour velocity is tempting, and the image of Uriel zooming around the sky uncontrollably does make me chuckle, he benefits more from increased casting speed in order to make the most of the 10 seconds of aim glide duration (20 if you double jump) you’ll have before you need to dodge to reactivate Infernalis’s flight. A single purple shard with the equilibrium effect helps keep this rather energy-hungry build satiated, and the final two slots are best saved for red shards to further supplement your ability strength.
Concerning arcanes, Molt Augmented completely offsets the -60% strength penalty from overextended once you reach 250 kills, and Arcane Energize helps you bring your energy back to full when you inevitably hit a deficit. There are other ways to improve Uriel’s energy economy, such as running the Zenurik focus school on your Operator and casting wellspring whenever you touch down, but running Xata’s invocation on the Grimoire is my preferred method. Uriel is the Heretic of Xata, after all, and the stacking 1 energy-per-second-per-enemy-hit (capping at 10) from the Grimoire’s alt-fire provides ample regeneration to maintain your aerial bombardment.
The Gameplay Loop
Uriel is pretty straightforward to play, but it really comes down to how you play him. You could just stick to the ground, but that goes against the heart of this build (and why give Jade all the fun?). You’ll want to cast Infernalis pretty much right away, and recast it whenever it expires, since it creates a steady sphere of heat damage around you and lets the devil take flight. Once airborne, switch to aim-gliding and cast Demonium towards the most dense group of enemies you can find, providing fire support with whatever weapon you prefer while your demons harass the enemies below. I prefer the Phantasma as my primary, since the beam can be built for insane range, but Uriel’s signature Vinquibus is also great if you’re confident in your ability to snipe mid-air. The grimoire is a great secondary for Uriel—beyond just its energy restoration—since its primary fire is great for AoE bombardment and its alt-fire is a good crowd-clearer whenever you touch down. By then, you’ll ideally have fully charged Brimstone to unleash a cataclysm of flames around you, before taking to the sky again.
Just coming back to Warframe? Check out our guide on the Shadowgrapher update! Interested in more of my build-crafting? Give Nokko a try! We encourage you to comment below with any questions regarding the mods, arcanes, or various tips in this guide. Keep checking GameObserver for more Warframe guides and news!
