Theorylytics
Gauss Prime

Gauss Prime

Tank / Defense

Quicksilver takes form. Gauss Prime brooks no talk of defeat.

Role
Tank / Defense
Aura
NaramonNaramon
Polarities
MaduraiMaduraiNaramonNaramonVazarinVazarin
Mastery
0
Introduced
Hotfix 35.0.9 (2024-01-17)

Stats

Type
Warframe
Category
Warframes
Mastery
0
Health
270
Shield
550
Armor
185
Energy
175
Sprint Speed
1.5
Build Cost
25,000 Credits
Build Time
72h 0m
Rush
50 Platinum

Warframe dossier

Verified 2026-07-22

Playstyle

Gauss Prime is the primed variant of Gauss — same kit fantasy with Prime stats and polarities. Take charge with the Saint of Altra. Built around Mach Rush, Kinetic Plating, Thermal Sunder.

Passive

Moving generates an electrical current that fills Gauss' battery. Shields recharge up to a percentage faster while the Recharge Delay is up to a delay% shorter, based on the battery level.

When to Pick

  • You want Gauss’s kit with Prime polarities / stats.
  • You want a tank / defense toolkit and Gauss’s fantasy matches the mission.
  • Your squad is missing what Gauss brings — especially Mach Rush.

Kit Overview

  • Ability kit matches Gauss — open the base ability pages for deep dives.
  • Mach Rush (Ability 1): Burst into a hyper-sprint bowling over enemies and charging the battery.
  • Kinetic Plating (Ability 2): Generate armor plating that converts a portion of absorbed Kinetic Damage (Physical, Heat, Cold, and Blast) into Energy.
  • Thermal Sunder (Ability 3): Siphon kinetic energy from the area, charging the battery and inflicting Cold Status on nearby enemies.

Abilities & Augments

  • 1
    Mach Rush

    Energy 25

    Burst into a hyper-sprint bowling over enemies and charging the battery. Crashing into solid objects generates a powerful shockwave. Hold to rush continuously.

  • 2
    Kinetic Plating

    Energy 25

    Generate armor plating that converts a portion of absorbed Kinetic Damage (Physical, Heat, Cold, and Blast) into Energy. Also protects Gauss from being staggered or knocked down. Damage Resistance is relative to the battery level.

    No augment

  • 3
    Thermal Sunder

    Energy 25

    Siphon kinetic energy from the area, charging the battery and inflicting Cold Status on nearby enemies. Hold reverses the process, draining the battery and inflicting Heat Status on nearby enemies.

  • 4
    Redline

    Energy 25

    Push Gauss' battery beyond the redline, supercharging his Abilities and setting Fire Rate, Attack Speed, Reload Speed, and Casting Speed into overdrive. When past the redline, bolts of arcing electricity dance periodically from Gauss, exploding en masse when the ability is deactivated.

    No augment

Ability Priority

  1. 1
    Kinetic Plating

    Generate armor plating that converts a portion of absorbed Kinetic Damage (Physical, Heat, Cold, and Blast) into Energy.

  2. 2
    Mach Rush

    Burst into a hyper-sprint bowling over enemies and charging the battery.

  3. 3
    Thermal Sunder

    Siphon kinetic energy from the area, charging the battery and inflicting Cold Status on nearby enemies.

  4. 4
    Redline

    Push Gauss' battery beyond the redline, supercharging his Abilities and setting Fire Rate, Attack Speed, Reload Speed, and Casting Speed into overdrive.

Helminth / Subsume

  • Mach Rush is often the Helminth sacrifice if your build never needs Ability 1 and you’d rather import a strip, buff, or survival tool.
  • Keep Kinetic Plating and later abilities when they define Gauss’s identity.
  • Never subsume the ability that enables the rest of the kit’s energy or survival loop.

Mod Scaling

Strength

Raises damage and effect potency across Gauss’s Strength-scaling abilities.

Duration

Extends channeled / timed effects — often comfort on Gauss if the kit leans on buffs or zones.

Range

Helps radius / targeting tools. Dump it if Gauss is mostly self-buff or exalted weapons.

Efficiency

Keeps ability uptime comfortable, especially on longer Steel Path missions.

Priority

Match the priority to your main ability — Strength or Duration first for most kits, then Efficiency, then Range.

Mission Usefulness

Mission / ContextRatingWhy
Steel Path Survival / Defense / DisruptionExcellentOn Steel Path density, Gauss Prime leans on Mach Rush to keep rooms deleting while the squad rotates. Burst into a hyper-sprint bowling over enemies and charging the battery. Take charge with the Saint of Altra.
Mobile Defense / ExcavationExcellentCryopods and excavators are Gauss Prime’s home turf — Mach Rush locks or deletes the wave on the point. Burst into a hyper-sprint bowling over enemies and charging the battery. Take charge with the Saint of Altra.
Exterminate / Capture Speed RunsExcellentExterminate / Capture is a sprint for Gauss Prime: Mach Rush cuts tile time instead of setting up a base. Burst into a hyper-sprint bowling over enemies and charging the battery. Take charge with the Saint of Altra.
Spy / Rescue / NightmareWeakLoud kit. Leave Spy / Rescue to invis or silence frames; Mach Rush doesn’t make Gauss Prime quiet. Burst into a hyper-sprint bowling over enemies and charging the battery. Take charge with the Saint of Altra.
Open World / BountiesStrongStrong on packed bounty camps; Gauss Prime still leans on Operator / Archwing for the empty travel stretches while Mach Rush handles fights. Burst into a hyper-sprint bowling over enemies and charging the battery.
Long-Range Gunplay / Eidolon-Style ContentWeakGauss Prime wants pack clear or finishers, not pure long-range; Mach Rush won’t save an Eidolon-style loadout. Burst into a hyper-sprint bowling over enemies and charging the battery. Take charge with the Saint of Altra.

Crafting

Alternatives to Gauss Prime

Not sure Gauss Prime is right for you? Compare against other frames to find your best pull.

Gauss
GaussTank / DefenseNaramon

Your Forma budget is better spent on weapons / another role until Gauss Prime is built.

Read Comparison