Warframe Tennokai System Explained

With the Whispers in the Walls update, Warframe has added a new Tennokai system to further deepen melee attacks and how you use them. Here’s a full explanation on how the Tennokai system works in Warframe, and how you can make the best use of it.

What is the Tennokai System in Warframe?

The new Tennokai system in Warframe improves how heavy melee attacks work, further incentivizing them, provided that you have the correct mod. With a mod that enables Tennokai equipped, you have a 15% chance to see a small symbol on your reticle when using a normal melee attack. This symbol looks like a sword surrounded by electricity. If you press the Heavy Attack key when this symbol appears (done through clicking the middle mouse button or right analog stick), then your heavy melee attack will be much faster than normal and won’t cost you any of your combo multiplier.

The main point of using Tennokai is for builds that thrive off of a high combo. This involves deep knowledge of your melee weapon, so if you just use your melee weapon to clear the odd enemy or for Sorties that force it on you, you’re safe to ignore it. Otherwise, this further adds complexity for those who enjoy bringing their melee to its highest potential.

How Do You Enable Tennokai for Your Melee Weapon?

If you want to give Tennokai a go, you’ll need one of the six mods that enable Tennokai on a melee weapon. One of these mods, Mentor’s Legacy, is given for free upon completing the Whispers in the Walls quest, while the other five can be earned as a random drop when completing Rotation C of the new Alchemy mission type. While the quest reward simply enables Tennokai, the other mods add an extra effect, like guaranteeing a Tennokai proc every four hits instead of at random.

If you’re looking for help with other parts of the update, check out our guide on all tome mods and how to get them in Warframe.