Looking for advice and info on Chroma.

[Lijka]

Chroma is one of the warframes that seem complicated to me, even though it seems that most builds I've found focuses on keeping Elemental Ward and Vex Armour up at all times. I've read the Wiki and I know the theory but I would like to ask some questions to people who play Chroma often.

The most popular build that I've found is by far Ice Chroma, due to the additional armour. However upon reading the Wiki, my understanding is that even with a different element, Chroma's armour can reach 3000, with maxed Steel Fiber and Intensify only. Is that correct info? If so, then using Ice Chroma for even more armour seems, not to say pointless, but a bit over the top? I understand it's a matter of choice and I'm in no way saying it's wrong, I am simply wondering if it's really needed/makes a big difference?

Personally I am interested in Toxic Chroma but I wonder if there is practical aspect (except fun of course) to using it if I'm using weapons that do not need a buff for reload speed? Damage of most abilities falls off pretty quickly, still it can be useful in mid-tier. I am curious wether Chroma's toxic procs are decent/good or not worth bothering with?

From what I've found, very few people run Fire and Electric Chroma, I'd like to know why that is? Is the H/S boost is really not worth it or worth less than additional armour from ice? Assuming info on Wiki is correct, one can very easily reach 3k armour without ice, therefore it would make sense to use something other than ice for additional benefit except the armour, no? Especially since I understand Fire Chroma's EW can be used as a heal, which in theory should be enough, considering high armour bonuses from Vex Armour. Am I correct?

How reliable/useful is Electric Chroma's cc from EW? Wiki states it's 25% status chance, but I'd like to know what are your experiences in practice.

Considering all of this, it seems that there's no reason not to have different loadouts for Chroma, simply with different energy colours, since all of the builds would look more-or-less the same with maxed duration and then strenght? How important the range is, considering the focus remains on 2nd and 3rd ability? Please, share your builds :)

I know I need to test a lot of it myself and I am going to but I would really appreciate input from those already experienced with the frame.

Thanks!

[rage4198]

i dont know if this is the best way to do it but http://warframe-builder.com/Warframes/Builder/Chroma/t_30_4204220420_2-7-10-3-8-5-6-2-5-12-4-10-19-3-10-47-6-5-49-0-10-411-5-10-479-1-10-615-9-5_49-8-479-7-6-11-19-7-12-8-411-8-47-11-2-6-3-18-615-9_0/en/1-0-34

you can get up to 1 min of vex armor with a max 1000% armor increase

use concealed explosives on hikou prime if you have it to insta max the effect or a glaive

[Lijka]

Hmm, you're talking about self-damage? I appreciate the tip, but I'd much rather avoid it :)

The build you've shown results in 45% efficiency... Oo

Steel Charge is personal preference or...? I mean, I would assume you want every bit of energy you can get with this build so why not Siphon?

If you get so much armour is the Vitality really needed? I understand Vigor is there to be able to max out Scorn without shields having to recharge.

[rage4198]

ok so first to reach vex armor max armor effect you need 400 shields or more

i didnt use energy siphon on the build just to keep the formas low( i actually have it on my chroma ingame)

to fix the effi problem you can either remove a mod and add primed flow or just use a syndicte weapon from suda to proc energy regen or use coaction drift with energy siphon instead of power drift to increase the regen

i personally use vitality because the slash procs are a pain

and self damage is basically a poorly modded hikou prime (or anything with concealed explosives) that doesnt do much damage to begin with

you can also take the kubrow that recharges shields with link armor and hp mods maxed so he never dies

Edited April 18, 2016 by rage4198

[DeadlyPeanutt]

i enjoy playing chroma but i'm not an expert.

i play mostly red chroma in infested missions and ice tank chroma, which are the most common uses for the frame. Mostly in mid level missions, up to level 30-40.  chroma is super fun in heircon pluto and I often get high damage/kills there, even when playing with more advanced players. 

chroma is energy hungry, so i use energy siphon and the focus energy siphon passive.  I use a generalized build that focuses on energy efficiency (3 or 4 forma).  he's tanky enough to survive almost anything at those levels and with rush/armored agility mods and his 20% speed boost with effigy, he's really quick and very fun to play. 

i've found the downsides of chroma are the high energy cost of effigy (half the energy per second would be about right) and his #1 power is useless. these are common observations.   

i haven't gotten around to playing his blue or green powers, but green chroma could be useful in a squad with saryn.  blue chroma should work well in any corpus map. 

Edited April 18, 2016 by DeadlyPeanutt

[rage4198]

also take a look at this video

 

[yetanotherunoriginalname]

Basically when you`re playing chroma you want a build that focuses on max power strength and duration..that`s just how he works. The only exception to this I saw on credit farms when he was moded to utilize effigy as much as possible.

That info on chromas armor (Intensify + Steel fiber) should be correct because the bonus from Vex armor is applied last in the armor calculation.

The question about different flavors of Chromas Elemental Ward is difficult to answer because its highly subjective. So here are some of my observations.

The Ice chroma is the most durable version. Not only does it have the highest armor rating but its aura can freeze its opponents that are shooting at you thus further increasing survivability. It also reflects hitscan and non hitscan projectiles. So an Ice Chroma is always a good choice(It can face any faction most optimally)

Funnily enough, I am one of those crazy people who actually run the electricity build. And it is also good because what it lacks in the armor department it makes up with its status procs. It procs as much as the other versions but the difference is that the electricity procs chain to multiple enemies and stuns them( And,of course,they can`t shoot you while they`re under the effects of it). You need to have a lot of power strength to make it work because elemental wards proc chance is determined by it. It also increases your base shields( so you don`t need a Vigor mod to get to 400 shields (the amount a chroma must loose to attain maximum armor stacks)) and it discharges the damage you take onto a single enemy.

The Heat Chroma relies on his high health rating to tank and its heat procs causes the enemy to panic reducing incoming damage..it`s decent(I think I`d rate it better than the electricity version)

The toxin Chroma is my least favorite of the bunch. I use him only when leveling up weapons with a slow reload rate. Other than the boost to holster/reload speed he inflicts a special poison proc on his enemies(It deals a percentage of their maximum health as Damage over time..but its too slow to be of use,and the toxin proc doesn`t stop them from shooting at you)

The Ice build is probably the best in my opinion since its simple to use and most durable so if you`re just looking for a simple chroma build that will work with minimal effort consider grabbing it.

Keep in mind when playing chroma its generally best to have as much power strength as possible(especially if you`re not running an ice chroma ). I found he will perform just fine at 200% and he`ll be able to take on most enemies regardless of the type of EW you`re running. But stacking more will make it easier for you to survive of course and is necessary if you intend on going to 100+ level maps) Armor in this game features diminishing values so the more you stack the less efective it becomes(every next point will give less than the previous) and at high power strength levels its just messing with a couple of percent of extra damage reduction.The correct amount of power strength is something you`ll have to figure out for yourself though(since I don`t know what you intend to do with your chroma). Chroma is an energy hungry warframe so it`s best to pair him with the Zenurik energy restore passive,or an energy siphon. You`ll also need a way to replenish lost health so a melee weapon with Life strike is highly suggested( The Redeemer can even leach health at a distance and its shotgun blasts on a damaged chroma will melt anything with a point blank shot)

Once your Vex armor/Elemental ward run out its RUN to cover so you can regenerate your shields(to stack more armor in the next cycle). You can alleviate this by bringing a Kubrow(the ones that recharge shields)..but give it a high Health and Armor link(it will obtain its armor from a chroma thus becoming near-indestructible). The electricity chroma with a high power strength gets a shield restore from his EW so he can quickly jump into combat again.

Edited April 18, 2016 by yetanotherunoriginalname
Hope it helps a bit. Edited for clarity.

[Raniu]

1 hour ago, Lijka said:

my understanding is that even with a different element, Chroma's armour can reach 3000, with maxed Steel Fiber and Intensify only. Is that correct info? If so, then using Ice Chroma for even more armour seems, not to say pointless, but a bit over the top?

Yes, picking cold Chroma for that extra armour is overkill. You basically sacrifice like 1-2% damage reduction for additional 50% health and the ability to heal yoursef going same build fire Chroma!

 

1 hour ago, Lijka said:

I understand Fire Chroma's EW can be used as a heal, which in theory should be enough, considering high armour bonuses from Vex Armour. Am I correct?

Yes!

 

Regarding toxic Chroma... I use it only with weapons that need that faster reload speed, say Rubico.

I hear electric Chroma is not bad but you rather play it for fun (the electric zaps!) than for benefits.

[Lijka]

I appreciate the feedback :)

I was hoping more Chroma users would decide to share their knowledge :(

Anyways, based on what you guys suggested I am currently testing a Fire Chroma with 200% Strenght and Duration, 100% Efficiency and 91% Range. So far so good :)