Loadouts and Configs: how do YOU use them?

I don't.

For weapons I don’t use configs at all since I’m a pretty forgetful person who would definitely forget to switch from anti-corpus to anti-grineer configs. For frames I only create a second config if the build is either something monumentally different or just dumb fun.

And I only create loadouts to use them on my warframe articulas.

I use loadouts are for a common theme, usually around a frame. For example I have an Ash loadout, one for Ivara, one for Hildryn, etc. This way I can swap with one click to for example my Maggots! loadout and immediately get Nidus, a Pathocyst, a Helminth Charger complete with Strain set for maximum maggots. And with matching colours too.

I don't do this for all frames, just a few I've had fun optimising with preferred weapon + companion + frame combinations. And fashionframe of course.

With loadouts I can easily swap to whatever combination I have made earlier, without having to search through my weapons, companions, frames, configs and colours to get back what I already made before.

When leveling new weapons I usually select them in a default loadout filled with whatever stuff I'm leveling at the moment.

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Configs are for when I have multiple uses of a weapon or frame. For example my heavy attack Zaw that I use in my Ash loadout is the same weapon I use for Ivara, but uses different mods and exodia.

Another use of configs is that I can try a new build or try a new helminth ability on a spare config of a frame or weapon without affecting other configs I have.

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If you want to use loadouts more effectively, rather than for fun themes around frames, you could create your loadouts for different purposes of things you regularly do: for example a defense loadout, an endless Grineer mission loadout, an Eidolon hunt Volt loadout, ESO focus farm loadout, Index credit farming loadout, etc.

I started that way, but eventually I replaced most of those loadouts because building around warframes is more fun to me!

I tried, but every time I went to load up the loadout I ended up switching something about it, like a mod or arcane or weapon or Warframe or whatever. It got to the point that I just found it easier to recreate the thing if I was so inclined to use it.

At some point I’m certain I’ll stumble across a loadout that absolutely can remain unchanged, but until then I just got the one and it’s mercurial

Like this; Grineer, Corpus, Infested (you can call these as Radiation, Magnetic, Gas if you prefer), Zoom-n-Boom, Spy-Stealth, Deimos, Eidolon, Voidstorm, Fast-Leveling and temporary configs depending on situation if above doesn't fit.

I made loadouts of my favorite frames for articulas, and favorited my Steel Path setup and default. I use configs to store builds I wasn't sure about deleting. I will link my builds in chat and move my active build to A so I never need to change it.

I theme all of mine and name them accordingly - Saryn is Boudica (the rogue queen who poisoned herself to avoid being held captive - a nod to her toxin abilities); Valkyr is Valkyrja, naturally, and gets the Venka Prime to go all-out on the claws; Zephyr is Eurus - god of wind - and has Telos Boltace to complement her feathers, allow her to soar even more with the augmented bullet jump, and give her a mini-Airburst pull with the slide attack; Mag is Magus, a wandering knight-mage with a claymore (Gram Prime), etc. I have lore for them all too, and have also labeled each loadout with the Focus icon corresponding to the school each one singularly uses.

I am at the point in the game where I really should be making loadouts to save time setting up for missions... but also at the point where I am constantly replacing and upgrading all my mods so any build I make has the potential to get broken in a week or so.

Got profit taker, eidolon all roles so i can switch easly, interception with max range rhino and miter, index rhino, index dps and many others.

Basicly if warframe has more than 1 viable build and i have use of them in specific content i make a loadout. Example is slow and speed nova that i would want to pick from navigation window and not have to go to arsenal.

I have different loadouts for all my most used frames because I run specific weapon/pet/focus school combos depending on the frame so it saves loads of time when changing for missions.

I also have a couple for articulas, one purely for blessings, and a couple of fashion related ones. I may or may not have 5 Ivara loadouts differing almost solely in fashion because reasons.

Configs I use for different functionalities, e.g. speedva/slowva. Occasionally for variations on my builds that are slightly more optimised for specific tasks, or I haven't committed to deleting yet.

I consider myself a fairly casual player, I don't really bother with minmaxing with faction mods and such, my general purpose builds are plenty effective for me, so I might have different configs for combo vs heavy attack or something like that.

I use loadouts for highly specialised content that I can't be bothered to rearrange my entire setup for. Ie I have an eidolon loadout, a profit taker loadout, a spy loadout and a nekros desecrate loadout.

Configs for weapons can be type oriented, like viral & heat verses magnetic etc, but I mostly use them to experiment with odd builds, and use weapons that bridge type when playing missions where type is important.

Frame configs are great though, and it would be awesome if we had better access to them in the loadout screen, you can use them to entirely change the focus of a frame, where as one would be better suited to slow defence type objectives; another might be useful for fast paced seek & destroy objectives, bringing more variety to any one given frame.

I use it surprisingly a lot tbh since I can pick whatever warframe loadout I have saved just before I pick a mission from the navigation screen. It can also be very beneficial on niche situations:

ex. A Spy Sortie mission appeared and I can just click on my Ivara loadout so I can just solo queue the mission in a relaxed manner.

I have them all set-up for different purposes, but then I basically don't use them since I often have at least one weapon leveling, so it's often easier to simply switch frames than it is to switch loadouts and then switch weapons.

The only loadouts I occasionally use are for things like Eidolons and Orb mother.

As for configs, it's just different helminth'd abilities.

I organize my loadouts based around the Warframe and my own laziness to keep swapping stuff.

For example, I like running Volt on ESO whenever I feel like farming Focus, so I have a loadout for him just for that. As I am becoming a Protea main (all praise the turret), she also have a separate loadout alongside the guns I enjoy using her the most. Another loadout for Ivara for spies and liches and the list goes on.

Oh, and I can't forget to mention the... ummm... piles of loadouts I keep just for the Warframe Articulas.

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I just have configs for the frames, so I can swap them out easily. For the weapons I'm always using either one of my faves and trusty ones

the main thing about loadouts is that they can be swaped in the navigation menu. It makes for quick change, even in between 2 sortie missions. It is incredible QoL to not have to constantly go back to arsenal. I have 2 types of loadouts:

my main frames, the ones I like the most, which I take depending on mission type. I know their strength and weaknesses and what they are capable of since I like them a lot lot. I try and find a use to what I like (protea as a defense frame, Lavos for corpus/infested survivals, etc...)

then on the contrary, I have also some task/mission specific loadouts, with specialized frames. Ivara spy, Saryn ESO, Nova PoE, Nezha capture/sabotage, etc...

in both case, every represented frame has specific weapons attached. Those weapons must complement the frame and/or have matching looks/themes (hystrix on Lavos, rakta dark dagger on Ivara, etc...). I'm making my own headcanon if you will

as for configs, secondary configs serve as experimental space. On weapons, that's where I'll save my rivenless configs, or frame specific configs. On frames, since modding is much harder it's still be mostly experiments, with different builds or subsumed abilities

so those configs are allrounders most of the time, and the rest of them are grineer specific. As a rule of thumb, if a loadout can kill grineers, it can kill everything. Grineers are that much tankier

I occasionally use them for weapon loadouts and special frame stuff.

My 8 forma/riven'd Fulmin has a Rad setup for Index, a corrosive setup for everything else, and a third one for unveiling new rifle rivens.

My Nova has a fast setup and a slow setup.

It's just QoL stuff. Change the names so you know what they are.

Loadouts are 1 per frame, with cool nicknames to accompany of course. Then I have a leveling loadout and a whatever loadout.

Configs are super rarely used. Normally only when I need a specific build for something like Eidolons.