Void Cascade Guide

LINK TO GUIDE (Google Doc): https://docs.google.com/document/d/1HiI9m0snsYnymzDFdwssv2Ov8wiT5MDyvkzuSP8d-as/edit?usp=sharing

The guide contains a lot of information, but it keeps wordcount to a minimum and I've done my best to present it in an easily digestible way.

The aim of the guide is to describe the strategies and tactics that work best, and why they work best, rather than just saying to equip X, Y, and Z mods. It's mostly aimed at inexperienced to intermediate players of the game mode, but there might be things in it that even experienced players weren't aware of. Likewise if you read this guide and think of something I've missed or something I've got wrong, please let me know. I aim to always keep it up to date.

Why play Void Cascade?

Have you reached a point where you're geared to the teeth, and you don't feel like enemies or missions provide much challenge? Are you yearning for some difficulty? End game?

Void Cascade is one of the fastest scaling missions in the game, so you can test yourself against very high level enemies without having to spend half the day sitting at your computer/console. An organised team can reach level 1000 in ~30 mins, and level 9999 in ~1hr. A solo player can reach level 1000 in ~1hr, and level 9999 in ~1hr 30 mins.

The mission is very fast paced. It's not just about killing enemies - objective management is extremely important, which means moving around and never camping in a corner.

It demands a lot of the player - fully geared weapons, Warframe, and Operator/Drifter. You get to stress test a full loadout.

Thrax drop Zariman Arcanes, which are a staple in many modern builds and help to broaden options beyond expensive Eidolon Arcanes. Steel Path doubles the drop chance, and a Mod Drop Chance Booster will double it again.

It's one of the few missions in the game that directly benefits from organised teamwork - it's a great mission to play with friends, and to form new friendships in.

You do not have to play until level cap - enemy levels hit 1000 at 65 Exolizers, which is where you enter the territory of health/armour and damage reduction builds hitting the mathematical wall of impossibility (even 1% of the damage enemies deal is enough to kill you). For maximum loadout variety, there's nothing wrong with aiming for 64 Exolizers (four C rotations) and extracting to reset.

Differences between Void Cascade and Disruption

Void Cascade and Disruption are similar in that you have mission objective points on the map (Exolizers/Conduits), and tough boss units to kill (Thrax/Demolishers). Otherwise the missions can be very different.

The easiest way to explain it is that Disruption is a mission that you make happen - you choose when to put in Conduit keys, and you control the pace. Void Cascade is a mission that happens to you, and it's up to you to react to the situation and manage the objective. A minimum level of speed is expected from the player in Cascade.

Both missions benefit from players splitting up to progress the mission objective more quickly and effectively. Void Cascade on average scales twice as fast as Disruption (~1hr vs ~2hrs to level cap in a team, ~1.5hrs vs ~3hrs solo)

Disruption gear-checks you in your ability to kill Demolishers. They can be Crowd Controlled with Cold procs, Magus Lockdown, and Warframe abilities between nullifier pulses. They have innate damage reduction. Some are immune to Viral and some aren't. You can use Faction mods for the Demolishers' factions.

Void Cascade also gear-checks you in your ability to kill Thrax - not only their Physical form but also their Spectral form. Their physical form has Overguard, so they cannot be Crowd Controlled until it's broken, and your damage will not benefit from Viral until it's broken. There are currently no Faction mods for them. Only Operator/Drifter Amp damage will kill their Spectral form.

Disruption teaches you methods of killing single target boss units effectively, and the majority of Demolisher-killing builds will transfer to Thrax with varied success. However, the bread and butter staples of Disruption - Epitaph and Vazarin - are detrimental to your ability to kill Thrax in Void Cascade. The playstyles of the two game modes are transferable in some ways, and not in others.

Overall, Void Cascade is a less forgiving mission that asks more of the player in order to succeed - hence the guide. In my subjective opinion, it's also way more fun.