TL;DR: You get Citrine in Warframe from Mirror Defense on Tyana Pass, Mars. Her main blueprint (8.62%) and Neuroptics, Chassis and Systems blueprints (5.65% each) all drop from Rotation C, according to DE's drop tables. You need the Heart of Deimos quest and Mastery Rank 3 to get in. If RNG won't cooperate, Otak in the Necralisk sells every blueprint for the Belric and Rania Crystal Fragments you earn on every run. Current for Update 44.1 (Iceblade of Narin: The Icebind), Hotfix 44.1.3.
Citrine is back in the spotlight. Citrine Prime arrived with Update 44 on September 23, 2026, and a thread on r/Warframe this week asking for her Crystallize growths to count as weak points got replies like "its one of those abilities that would benefit the most from it." Most players still start with the regular frame, though, and her farm works differently from most.
This guide covers the unlock, the Rotation C drop rates, the Otak fragment shop that acts as a safety net, every crafting resource, and the Citrine Prime relics. Every drop rate comes from DE's official drop tables, last updated October 22, 2026.
How do you unlock Citrine's farm in Warframe?
Citrine was released on February 15, 2023 in Update 32.3, Citrine's Last Wish, as the 52nd Warframe. Her farm node is Tyana Pass on Mars, and it's a Mirror Defense mission. According to the WARFRAME Wiki's Mirror Defense page, you need two things before you can play it:
- The Heart of Deimos quest completed. That quest needs the Earth-to-Mars Junction cleared first.
- Mastery Rank 3.
Building her also needs Rank 2 (Acquaintance) with the Entrati on Deimos to buy the Stellated Necrathene blueprint her Chassis uses. Tyana Pass doesn't give Entrati Standing, so earn it separately: the wiki notes that two to three Tier 5 Cambion Drift bounties from Mother give enough Mother Tokens to hit the daily Entrati Standing cap. More on that in the resources section.
Where does Citrine drop?
Everything comes from Rotation C of Tyana Pass. Mirror Defense uses an AABC rotation pattern, so you see one Rotation C reward for every four rotations you complete. Here's DE's table:
| Blueprint | Source | Drop chance (DE) | Average Rotation C rewards |
|---|---|---|---|
| Citrine Blueprint (main) | Tyana Pass, Rotation C | 8.62% | ~12 |
| Citrine Neuroptics Blueprint | Tyana Pass, Rotation C | 5.65% | ~18 |
| Citrine Chassis Blueprint | Tyana Pass, Rotation C | 5.65% | ~18 |
| Citrine Systems Blueprint | Tyana Pass, Rotation C | 5.65% | ~18 |
The last column is 1 ÷ drop chance, the average wait for that single piece. The full set is a different question, because you can't choose which part rolls. We ran 200,000 simulated farms using DE's four blueprint rates, counting Rotation C rewards until all four had dropped. The result: about 34 Rotation C rewards on average, around 30 on a typical run of luck, and close to 60 if you're unlucky (the 90th percentile).
A squad makes the crystals much easier to hold, and Citrine's Remnants (below) are shared across the whole squad.
The rest of Rotation C is eight Axi relics at 7.32% each, plus Secondary Encumber, Arcane Double Back and Arcane Steadfast at 5.28% each. You don't leave empty-handed.
Why are Citrine's drop rates better than they used to be?
DE buffed this table soon after launch. In Hotfix 32.3.6, DE wrote:
"We have made the following changes to Mirror Defense's drop table to make each rotation feel more rewarding by increasing your chance of earning Citrine, Corufell, Steflos, and the new Arcanes."
They cut Axi relic odds in Rotation C and raised Citrine's blueprint odds. That's why older guides quoting lower numbers are out of date.
How does Mirror Defense work on Tyana Pass?
Mirror Defense isn't normal Defense. You protect two objectives: Rania's Crystal on Mars against Grineer, then Belric's Crystal on Venus against Corpus. A Void tunnel links the two. According to the wiki:
- Each objective is held for 2 minutes 30 seconds, with a 30-second run through the Void tunnel in between.
- A rotation finishes once both crystals are defended, or about every 6 minutes (5.5 for the first one).
- With the AABC pattern, that works out to one Rotation C roughly every 24 minutes.
Two rules catch new players out:
- You can't heal the crystals with abilities. No Trinity, no Oberon. DE built the mode so healing comes from Citrine's Remnants instead.
- Remnants are the whole game. These little crystal teardrops drop as enemies die and pile up most during the Void tunnel run. Collecting 50 (shared across the squad) heals the active crystal by 3,500 plus 15% of its max health, gives it Overshields, and spawns a Prismatic Ward turret above it.
Remnants ignore Vacuum and Fetch and can't be picked up by Mag's Pull or from inside Limbo's Rift Plane. A fast flyer like Titania or Jade makes collection easier. Slowing enemies is fine here too. The mission runs on a timer, so it won't drag the rotation out like it does in standard Defense.
Can you buy Citrine's blueprints from Otak?
Yes, and this is the most useful part of the farm. Otak, on the far eastern side of the Necralisk on Deimos (where you land), sells every Citrine blueprint for two currencies you earn just by playing Tyana Pass: Belric Crystal Fragments and Rania Crystal Fragments.
| Blueprint | Belric Fragments | Rania Fragments |
|---|---|---|
| Citrine Blueprint | 500 | 500 |
| Citrine Neuroptics | 350 | 350 |
| Citrine Chassis | 350 | 350 |
| Citrine Systems | 300 | 350 |
| Full set | 1,500 | 1,550 |
How you earn fragments, per the Tyana Pass wiki page:
- Every completed rotation: 10 of each type (15 on The Steel Path).
- Every 50 Remnants collected: 5 fragments (7 on Steel Path), alternating between Belric and Rania.
Fragments are not boosted by Resource Boosters or Smeeta Kavat's Charm.
Is the fragment route faster than RNG?
On The Steel Path, usually yes. Rotation rewards alone cover the whole set in about 104 rotations (1,550 ÷ 15). On average luck, 34 Rotation C rewards means about 136 rotations. Normal mode needs about 155 rotations from rotation rewards alone, though Remnant bonuses bring that down.
The best plan uses both:
- Farm Rotation C for drops.
- Keep the fragments.
- Once you're down to one missing part, stop gambling and buy it from Otak: 350 of each fragment for Neuroptics or Chassis, 300 Belric + 350 Rania for Systems, or 500 of each for the main blueprint.
That turns the worst case of a 5.65% drop into a guaranteed one. If you haven't unlocked Steel Path yet, our Steel Path guide covers it.
Otak also sells Citrine's signature weapons (Steflos and Corufell), the Tyana Pass arcanes, and two things you can only get from him: the Citrine Prex card and the Citrine's Last Wish Factory Captura scene (1,000 of each fragment).
What resources do you need to build Citrine?
Here's the full recipe from the wiki's blueprint data:
| Part | Credits | Resources | Build time |
|---|---|---|---|
| Neuroptics | 15,000 | 1,000 Rubedo · 1,500 Salvage · 15 Faceted Tiametrite · 2 Argon Crystal | 12 hours |
| Chassis | 15,000 | 1,200 Cryotic · 3,000 Alloy Plate · 6 Stellated Necrathene · 2,000 Nano Spores | 12 hours |
| Systems | 15,000 | 1,500 Circuits · 1,500 Polymer Bundle · 3 Gallium · 2 Morphics | 12 hours |
| Citrine (final) | 30,000 | Neuroptics · Chassis · Systems · 3 Orokin Cell | 3 days |
Total: 75,000 Credits plus refining costs, and 84 hours of Foundry time if you build all three parts at once.
The two refined resources trip people up:
- Stellated Necrathene: the reusable blueprint costs 4,000 Entrati Standing from Otak and needs Rank 2 (Acquaintance). One build turns 6 Necrathene (mined from teal veins in the Cambion Drift) into 6 Stellated Necrathene, which is exactly what the Chassis needs.
- Faceted Tiametrite: the blueprint costs 1,000 Standing at Rank 0. Each build turns 10 Tiametrite into 10 Faceted. The Neuroptics need 15, so you'll build it twice (20 Tiametrite). Tiametrite comes from mining teal gem veins in the Cambion Drift, Isolation Vault bonus containers, and Sagiant Entrati Caskets.
The Argon Crystals decay daily, so build the Neuroptics soon after you farm them. Our Argon Crystal guide covers the best nodes, and the Orokin Cell guide covers the 3 cells for the final build.
Can you just buy Citrine with Platinum?
Yes. Per the wiki, the built frame is listed at 325 Platinum in the in-game Market, and you can rush each part for 25 Platinum or the final build for 50. If you have Platinum from trading in-game, that's a legitimate shortcut. Only buy Platinum from DE or its authorised retailers. DE's support site calls third-party Platinum sellers "not legitimate," and trading for items outside the game breaks the EULA.
How do you get Citrine Prime?
Citrine Prime launched on September 23, 2026 with Update 44 and is currently in Prime Access on warframe.com, alongside Steflos Prime and Corufell Prime. You can also farm her from Void Relics. DE's drop tables list four:
| Part | Relic | Chance: Intact → Radiant (DE) |
|---|---|---|
| Citrine Prime Blueprint | Meso C11 | 2% → 10% |
| Citrine Prime Neuroptics | Axi C12 | 2% → 10% |
| Citrine Prime Systems | Lith S19 | 11% → 20% |
| Citrine Prime Chassis | Neo C11 | 25.33% → 16.67% |
Here's the bit most guides miss: Tyana Pass drops two of those relics. Neo C11 drops from Rotation A (6.25%) and Rotation B (5.80%), and Axi C12 drops from Rotation C (7.32%). So farming regular Citrine also builds up relics for her Prime. Refining relics with Void Traces is the main way to improve the 2% Blueprint and Neuroptics odds. Our Prime parts farming guide covers fissure squads.
What the Prime changes, per the wiki: 325 armor (vs 265), 150/200 energy (vs 130/180), 75 starting energy (vs 50), and an extra Naramon polarity. The kit is the same.
Prime blueprints can be traded to other players through the in-game trade window (you need MR2 and 2FA enabled), so spare Citrine Prime parts and relics are a real way to earn Platinum. Crafted parts can't be traded. Prices change daily, so check current listings before you sell.
Is Citrine worth farming?
For support and status builds, yes. Her kit, per the wiki:
- Passive: Health Orbs give your squad Geoluminescence, boosting health restored per second.
- Fractured Blast: crystal shards that raise Health and Energy Orb drop chances on kill.
- Preserving Shell: damage reduction for you and allies that gets stronger with kills. Since Update 44 it also covers Companions.
- Prismatic Gem: a placed gem that boosts Status Chance and Duration and beams Heat, Cold, Toxin and Electricity status onto enemies.
- Crystallize: locks enemies in crystal growths that take extra Critical Chance.
Her Helminth ability is Fractured Blast, not Prismatic Gem, and the subsumed version is weaker (lower damage, 25% Health Orb and 10% Energy Orb chance). If you were planning to feed her for her gem, you can't. See our best Helminth abilities guide.
What do players get wrong about the Citrine farm?
- "Leave after Rotation C." You can, but every extra rotation also gives fragments. Staying for several C rotations is the efficient play.
- "Smeeta and boosters help." Not for fragments. The wiki says they don't affect Belric or Rania Crystal Fragments.
- "Trinity can keep the crystal alive." Ability healing doesn't work on Mirror Defense objectives. Remnants do.
- "Her Helminth ability is the gem." It's Fractured Blast.
FAQ
How do you get Citrine in Warframe? Play Mirror Defense on Tyana Pass, Mars. All four blueprints drop from Rotation C, according to DE's drop tables (October 22, 2026). Or buy them from Otak in the Necralisk for 1,500 Belric and 1,550 Rania Crystal Fragments in total. You need Heart of Deimos and MR3 first.
What is Citrine's drop rate? 8.62% for the main blueprint and 5.65% each for Neuroptics, Chassis and Systems, all from Rotation C of Tyana Pass. On average you need about 34 Rotation C rewards to get the whole set.
Where is Otak in Warframe? On the far eastern side of the Necralisk on Deimos, near where you land. He's the Entrati vendor who sells Citrine's blueprints, Steflos, Corufell and the Tyana Pass arcanes for Crystal Fragments.
Do you need a quest for Citrine? Yes. The Heart of Deimos quest unlocks Tyana Pass, and the node also needs Mastery Rank 3. To build her Chassis, you'll need Rank 2 with the Entrati for the Stellated Necrathene blueprint.
Can you farm Citrine on the Steel Path? Yes. Steel Path gives 15 of each fragment per rotation instead of 10, and 7 per 50 Remnants instead of 5. That makes the Otak route roughly a third faster.
How do you get Citrine Prime? Through Prime Access, or by cracking Meso C11 (Blueprint), Axi C12 (Neuroptics), Lith S19 (Systems) and Neo C11 (Chassis) relics. Tyana Pass drops Neo C11 and Axi C12, so you can farm both frames at once.
Want more Warframe farming and economy guides? Browse our full Warframe guide library, or compare this with how to get Narin. This article is current as of Update 44.1 (Iceblade of Narin: The Icebind, Hotfix 44.1.3), checked October 25, 2026. Drop rates come from DE's official drop tables; costs, recipes and mission rules come from the official WARFRAME Wiki pages for Citrine, Mirror Defense, Otak and Citrine Prime.
