Citrine vs Lavos
Same Support / Healer fantasy — which support kit fits your squad and mission rota?
TL;DR — Quick Pick
Pick Citrine if…
- You're sold on Citrine's fantasy (Gaze upon the Crystal Bastion) more than another Support / Healer option.
- Lavos's pitch (“The serpents of Lavos encourage him as he transmutes the battlefield”) isn't what you're missing — Prismatic Gem is.
- You value Citrine's orb-efficiency passive for longer ability spam on dense holds.
Pick Lavos if…
- You want the squad gap filled by Lavos's vibe — The serpents of Lavos encourage him as he transmutes the battlefield.
- Citrine's pitch (“Gaze upon the Crystal Bastion”) isn't what you're missing — Transmutation Probe is.
- You value Lavos's orb-efficiency passive for longer ability spam on dense holds.
Verdict
Both fill the Support / Healer lane. Lean Citrine for orb economy and Prismatic Gem; lean Lavos for orb economy and Transmutation Probe. Mission Usefulness is a wash — decide on kit feel and passive, not the rating table.
At a Glance
Citrine
Stat
Lavos
Support / Healer
Role
Support / Healer
NaramonAura
NaramonMatch the priority to your main ability
Mod Priority
Match the priority to your main ability
Fractured Blast
Kit Opener
Ophidian Bite
Mission Usefulness
Mission
Citrine
Lavos
Steel Path Survival / Defense / Disruption
Mobile Defense / Excavation
Exterminate / Capture Speed Runs
Spy / Rescue / Nightmare
Open World / Bounties
Long-Range Gunplay / Eidolon-Style Content
When Each Shines
Citrine
- Prismatic Gem carries mid-mission casts; Crystallize is the density payoff.
- Long holds where energy comfort matters — Citrine's loop stays online without babysitting orbs.
- Missions that reward committing to Citrine's full ability loop instead of dabbling.
Lavos
- Transmutation Probe carries mid-mission casts; Catalyze is the density payoff.
- Long holds where energy comfort matters — Lavos's loop stays online without babysitting orbs.
- Missions that reward committing to Lavos's full ability loop instead of dabbling.
Mod Scaling Focus
Citrine
Match the priority to your main ability — Strength or Duration first for most kits, then Efficiency, then Range.
- STR
- Raises damage and effect potency across Citrine’s Strength-scaling abilities.
- DUR
- Extends channeled / timed effects — often comfort on Citrine if the kit leans on buffs or zones.
- RNG
- Helps radius / targeting tools. Dump it if Citrine is mostly self-buff or exalted weapons.
- EFF
- Keeps ability uptime comfortable, especially on longer Steel Path missions.
Lavos
Match the priority to your main ability — Strength or Duration first for most kits, then Efficiency, then Range.
- STR
- Raises damage and effect potency across Lavos’s Strength-scaling abilities.
- DUR
- Extends channeled / timed effects — often comfort on Lavos if the kit leans on buffs or zones.
- RNG
- Helps radius / targeting tools. Dump it if Lavos is mostly self-buff or exalted weapons.
- EFF
- Keeps ability uptime comfortable, especially on longer Steel Path missions.
Who Should You Pull?
- Energy / health orb rooms are common in your rota and Citrine gets more mileage out of every pickup.
- You'd rather specialize hard into orb economy than stay generic in the Support lane.
- Skipping Lavos frees a craft slot — you'd rather finish Citrine properly.
- Open-world and bounty pacing still feel good on Citrine, not only endless survival tiles.
- Inventory space / foundry queue: Citrine jumps the line over another Lavos craft.
- Energy / health orb rooms are common in your rota and Lavos gets more mileage out of every pickup.
- Squad comps where someone has to own tile clear alone — Lavos is the frame you trust for that job.
- Citrine can stay on the shelf; Lavos is the one you'll actually Forma twice.
- Even after Helminth, Vial Rush and later abilities are still the reason Lavos earned potato.
- Your endgame loadout screen should show Lavos before it shows another same-role experiment.