Viral Damage

Viral Damage
Icon

Created by combining  Cold and  Toxin damage. Highly effective against Grineer Cloned Flesh and Corpus Flesh.
Viral Status Effect increases damage to health up to 325% with multiple stacks for a short duration.

—In-game Description

 Viral Damage is one of the six secondary elemental damage types, composed of  Cold and  Toxin elements. It deals increased damage against  Grineer and  Corpus bodies, but reduced damage to most light  Infested foes with some heavy units being outright immune.

Status Effect

General

The status effect of  Viral damage is Virus. It amplifies damage to the health of the afflicted target by 100% for 6 seconds. Subsequent procs add 25% increased damage to health up to 325% in total after 10 stacks, with each stack having their own duration. Any stacks applied after the 10th will replace the oldest stack. This effect will work even when the health is protected by armor ("yellow health"). Only the shield is not affected.

${ \begin{aligned} \text{Resultant Damage to Health} &= \text{Modded Damage} \times [2 + (0.25 \times (\text{Number of Viral Stacks} - 1) ) ] \end{aligned} }$

Calculating resultant damage if at least one Viral proc is on target. Damage Vulnerability provided by Viral procs are multiplicative with other damage bonuses.

For status effects that apply damage over time (e.g.  Slash,  Toxin,  Heat,  Gas), the damage dealt by the proc throughout its duration is calculated based on whether or not a  Viral proc is active when the DoT tick deals damage. For example, a weapon with 100 damage that applies a  Slash proc, if the target has 1  Viral proc, will deal 200 damage, then 70 damage per second from  Slash's Bleed until the  Viral effect ends, when it will go down to 35 per second. If the target does not have a  Viral proc initially, the Bleed damage will be 35 per second until the target takes a  Viral proc, which will then multiply the DoT accordingly to 70 per second. This means that the multiplier is not applied twice to DoTs, unlike faction damage multipliers.

Enemies afflicted by a  Viral proc are coated in a flowing, leaking miasma of the Energy color of the weapon that inflicted it.

Railjack

 Viral does not have a Railjack space counterpart and is thus not able to proc any status effect nor is it included in calculations for status proc weighting.

Type Effectiveness

Grineer Health	Viral Modifier	Corpus Health	Viral Modifier	Infested Health	Viral Modifier	The Murmur Health	Viral Modifier
Cloned Flesh	—	Flesh	—	Infested	—	Indifferent Facade	—
Ferrite Armor	—	Shield	—	Infested Flesh	—	Machinery	—
Alloy Armor	—	Proto Shield	—	Fossilized	—	Ferrite Armor	—
Machinery	—	Robotic	—	Infested Sinew	—

“It's taking longer than I calculated.”

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• The following enemies are immune to  Viral status:
  • Ambulas
  • Deimos Carnis
  • Deimos Carnis Rex
  • Deimos Genetrix
  • Deimos Jugulus
  • Deimos Leaping Thrasher
  • Deimos Therid
  • Deimos Saxum
  • Deimos Saxum Rex
  • Demolisher Boiler
  • Demolisher Thrasher
  • Tusk Bolkor
  • Tusk Firbolg
• The following enemies are completely immune to  Viral:
  • Demolisher Charger
  • Demolisher Juggernaut

Viral Sources

Main article: Category:Viral Damage

Weapons

Main article: Category:Viral Damage Weapons

Weapons with Viral damage

Name	Slot	Class	Attack Name	Viral	Majority
Hema	Primary	Rifle	Normal Attack	47	100.00%  Viral
Keratinos	Melee	Claws	Normal Attack	33	35.66%  Slash
Kompressa	Secondary	Pistol	Explosion	42	100.00%  Viral
Pathocyst	Melee	Glaive	Charged Throw Recall Explosion	1572	100.00%  Viral
Phage	Primary	Shotgun	Normal Attack	5	100.00%  Viral
Plague Keewar	Melee	Zaw Scythe / Staff	Plague Keewar Strike	70	29.74%  Slash
Plague Kripath	Melee	Zaw Rapier / Polearm	Plague Kripath Strike	64	32.86%  Puncture
Proboscis Cernos	Primary	Bow	Charged Shot Explosion	1003	100.00%  Viral
Pulmonars	Melee	Nunchaku	Normal Attack	97	66.55%  Impact
Pupacyst	Melee	Polearm	Normal Attack	145	51.06%  Viral

 Bubonico
(Alternate Fire)

 Komorex
(2nd Zoom Explosion)

 Rakta Cernos
(Blight Effect)

 Rakta Ballistica
(Blight Effect)

Plague Keewar
(Zaw Strike)

Plague Kripath
(Zaw Strike)

Mods

 Damzav-Vati

 Eroding Blight

 Gleaming Blight

 Stockpiled Blight

 Toxic Blight

 Viral Quills

Abilities

• Dagath
• Grendel
• Saryn

• Wyrd Scythes
• Doom
• Rakhali's Cavalry

	1 25	Wyrd Scythes Wyrd Scythes surround Dagath and seek out nearby enemies. Those struck are slowed and suffer Viral Damage with a guaranteed Status Effect. The scythes also spread Doom and extend its duration. Introduced in Update 34.0 (2023-10-18)	Strength:20 / 25 / 30 / 35 % slow 350 / 400 / 450 / 500  Viral damage during spin 700 / 800 / 900 / 1,000  Viral damage on throw
			Duration:2 / 3 / 4 / 5 s slow time
			Range:10 / 12 / 13 / 15 m Doom spread range
			Misc: 7 number of sickles 1-5 m spin radius  Viral status per sickle 95% slow cap 1 s spin time and recast cooldown 0.5 s sickle throw delay Infinite Punch Through 40 m auto-target radius
			Subsumable to Helminth

• Info

Info

• Dagath expends 25 Energy to whirl a macabre disc of 7 spectral sickles that rapidly expand from a radius of 1 to 5 meters around her, inflicting 350 / 400 / 450 / 500  Viral damage and Status Effect per sickle. Sliced enemies are  Slowed by 20% / 25% / 30% / 35% reduced action speed for a duration of 2 / 3 / 4 / 5 seconds.
  • Slow is capped to 95% achievable with 272% Ability Strength.
  • Sickles rotate around Dagath at high speed to strike enemies multiple times. Since each sickle inflicts  Viral status, subsequent damage from other sickles against enemy Health is increased per status stack applied.
  • Spinning Wyrd Scythes damage and break destructible Objects such as crates and resource caches.
• After Wyrd Scythes spin for 1 second, Dagath throws the sickles outward as 7 fast homing projectiles after a 0.5 second throw delay, striking nearby enemies to inflict 700 / 800 / 900 / 1,000  Viral damage, status, and slow, with infinite Punch Through to slice other foes behind the target while the sickles fly off into the distance.
  • Sickle projectiles will auto-target enemies within line-of-sight and a radius of 40 meters around Dagath. Otherwise, Dagath will launch them all toward her aiming reticle.
  • Spin time is shown on Wyrd Scythe's ability icon as a recast cooldown timer.
• Ability Synergy:
  • Strike Doomed foes with Wyrd Scythes to trigger Phantom Wrath, while refreshing  Doom on the targets hit and spreading the curse to other enemies within a 10 / 12 / 13 / 15 meter radius around the Doomed foes.
• Cannot be recast during spin phase. Flying spectral sickle projectiles are not launched if recast during the throw delay.
• Subsuming Dagath to the Helminth will offer Wyrd Scythes and its augments to be used by other Warframes.
  • However, Subsumed Wyrd Scythe's slow is reduced to 15 / 18 / 22 / 26%.
  • Slow is capped to 71% achievable with 272% Ability Strength.

	2 50	Doom Condemn nearby enemies to their doom. A portion of the damage Dagath deals is revisited upon them by a Wyrd Scythe. They also suffer Viral damage. Introduced in Update 34.0 (2023-10-18)	Strength:350 / 400 / 450 / 500  Viral damage 35% Phantom Wrath damage stored per damage instance
			Duration:7 / 10 / 12 / 15 s
			Range:10 / 12 / 13 / 15 m cone range
			Misc: 40° cone angle  Stagger inside cone 100% damage redirection per damage instance cap 2 s Phantom Wrath damage storage time limit 1 s recast cooldown

• Info
• Bugs

Info

• Dagath lets loose a morbid scream, expending 50 Energy to conjure a 40 degree cone of cursed energy spanning 10 / 12 / 13 / 15 meters from her faceless head, inflicting 350 / 400 / 450 / 500  Viral damage and  Stagger to all enemies within the cone and line-of-sight. Doomed foes remain cursed for 7 / 10 / 12 / 15 seconds.
  • Doomed foes are visually death-marked by two large crosses of eerie light.
• Inflict damage to a Doomed foe with Dagath's weapons and abilities to trigger Phantom Wrath, which summons a floating spectral sickle above that individual target and stores 35% of every damage instance dealt by Dagath herself within a time limit of 2 seconds. After the time limit elapses, or when the stored damage amount becomes lethal to its target, the spectral sickle strikes its victim to inflict the stored damage as  True damage. Phantom Wrath can be triggered again repeatedly on Doomed foes.
  • Damage redirection per damage instance is capped at 100%, achievable with 286% Ability Strength.
  • Stored damage is based on damage dealt after all sources of enemy Damage Reduction are applied.
  • Phantom Wrath is also applied on Doom's initial cast to store a percentage of the ability's  Viral damage.
  • Each Doomed foe may only have one sickle floating above them at a time.
  • Phantom Wrath's stored damage is not shared between Doomed enemies, only to the single individual enemy.
  • Lethal damage is calculated including  Virus status effect but not damage bonuses such as  Roar, damage vulnerability debuffs such as  Sentient Wrath or damage reductions, despite being affected by them.
• Ability Synergy:
  • Strike Doomed foes with  Wyrd Scythes to trigger Phantom Wrath, while refreshing Doom on the targets hit and spreading the curse to other enemies within a 10 / 12 / 13 / 15 meter radius around the Doomed foes.
  • Strike Doomed foes while  Grave Spirit is active to inflict 70% / 80% / 90% / 100% weapon critical damage bonus and double the damage stored by Phantom Wrath.
  • Stampede Doomed foes with  Rakhali's Cavalry to trigger Phantom Wrath, and induce 20% / 25% / 30% / 35% permanent Armor and Shield reduction. Defense reduction on Doomed foes occurs on every  Viral damage instance from individual Kaithes.
    • Defenses are fully removed at 286% Ability Strength from a single hit. However, because the Cavalry deals multiple instances of damage, far less Strength is necessary, with 143% Ability Strength fully removing defenses after two hits.
• Can be recast after a 1 second cooldown. Recast on Doomed enemies to renew duration and trigger Phantom Wrath.
  • Recast cooldown is shown on Doom's ability icon.
• Doom can steal kills from Dagath's weapons, impeding the activation of weapon arcanes and galvanized mods.
  • This also will prevent companions from making use of Contagious Bond.

Bugs

Lethal damage calculation applies viral's multiplier to shields, resulting in very rapid triggers with toxin procs against viral afflicted targets with very low health and shields.

	4 100	Rakhali's Cavalry Phantom Kaithes charge forth, inflicting Viral Damage upon all in their path. Their attack strips the defenses of Doomed enemies. Introduced in Update 34.0 (2023-10-18)	Strength:15,000 / 20,000 / 25,000 / 30,000  Viral damage per interval per Kaithe 20 / 25 / 30 / 35 % Doom defense reduction per interval per Kaithe
			Duration:2 / 2 / 3 / 3 s charge duration
			Range:N/A
			Misc: 5 number of Kaithes 5 m summon radius 1.5 s invulnerable time  Stagger on contact 0.15 s damage interval

• Info

Info

• Dagath expends 100 Energy to summon 5 spectral remnants of Rakhali's soul in a cavalry charge formation 5 meters away. During the casting time of 1.5 seconds, Dagath becomes Invulnerable then commands the cavalry of phantom Kaithes to continuously charge forward for 2 / 2 / 3 / 3 seconds. Each spectral Kaithe inflicts 15,000 / 20,000 / 25,000 / 30,000  Viral damage and  Stagger per 0.15 seconds to all enemies in its path; damage is dealt in full on each interval and continues for as long as enemies remain in physical contact with the phantom Kaithes.
  • All effects apply to enemies in contact with Kaithes during the summoning animation.
    • Enemies touched by Kaithes emit a burst of ghostly light on every hit.
  • Phantom Kaithes charge in a V formation, with the leading Kaithe in the center. Each Kaithe has a sizable hitbox to strike multiple enemies, aided by the stagger effect.
    • When cast while Dagath is on the ground, phantom Kaithes' formation is aligned with the leading Kaithe summoned on the nearest available horizontal surface, regardless of Dagath's own elevation.
    • When cast from the air, the Kaithes align toward the exact direction of Dagath's aiming reticle and can fly through the air. If they touch the ground, they charge forward wherever their head is facing and run along the surface, adhering to any changes in the terrain.
    • Phantom Kaithes will phase through vertical terrain and obstacles as they travel, by visually passing through a ghostly portal aligned with the wall.
  • Phantom Kaithes damage and break destructible Objects such as crates and resource caches.
• Ability Synergy:
  • Stampede  Doomed foes with Rakhali's Cavalry to trigger Phantom Wrath, and induce 20% / 25% / 30% / 35% permanent Shields and Armor reduction. Defense reduction on Doomed foes occurs on every  Viral damage instance from individual Kaithes.
    • Defenses are fully removed at 286% Ability Strength from a single hit. However, because the Cavalry deals multiple instances of damage, far less Strength is necessary, with 143% Ability Strength fully removing defenses after two hits.
• Can be recast while active to summon all Kaithes toward a new direction. Previous cavalry charge is removed on recast.

• Nourish

	2 50	Nourish Regenerate health as Grendel absorbs nourishment from enemies in his gut. While he digests, enemies that attack or are attacked by Grendel suffer Viral Damage and energy sources provide more energy. These buffs extend to squad mates. Introduced in Update 26.0 (2019-10-31)	Strength:20% (damage on digestion) 600 / 700 / 800 / 1000 (self heal on cast) 1.5 / 1.65 / 1.8 / 2 x (energy multiplier) 100 / 150 / 200 / 250 ( Viral damage on hit) +40% / +50% / +60% / +75% ( Viral damage buff)
			Duration:10 / 15 / 20 / 25 s (buff duration)
			Range:10 / 15 / 20 / 25 m (buff radius) 12 m (splash radius)
			Misc: 10 ( Viral status stacks) 2 s (explosion cooldown)
			Subsumable to Helminth

• Info
• Augment

Info

• Grendel expends 50 energy to damage to the first digested victim equal to 20% of their total shield and health points, heal 600 / 700 / 800 / 1000 Health, and receive a buff that affects all allies within 10 / 15 / 20 / 25 meters for 10 / 15 / 20 / 25 seconds. This buff has three separate effects:
  • All energy sources provide 1.5x / 1.65x / 1.8x / 2.0x more energy.
  • Taking damage causes an explosion with a 12 meter radius that deals 100 / 150 / 200 / 250  Viral damage with 10  Viral stacks and  Stagger to enemies within line of sight. This explosion has a 2 seconds cooldown.
  • Adds +40% / +50% / +60% / +75%  Viral damage to all weapons.
• Retaliation waves damage and break destructible Objects such as crates and resource caches.
• Ability Synergy: Nourish requires at least 1 enemy swallowed by  Feast to be alive in Grendel's gut to cast.
• Can be recast while active, inflicting damage to the eaten enemy, healing Grendel, buffing new allies in range, and refreshing the buff's duration.
• Subsuming Grendel to the Helminth will offer Nourish and its augments to be used by other Warframes.
  • Other Warframes are omitted from the swallowed enemy requirement, due to their inability to cast  Feast.
  • However, Subsumed Nourish does not provide healing, the explosion only applies 1  Viral stack, the energy multiplier is reduced to 1.3 / 1.39 / 1.48 / 1.6x, and  Viral weapon bonus damage is reduced to +24% / +30% / +36% / +45%.

Augment

Main article: Hearty Nourishment

Hearty Nourishment is a Warframe Augment Mod for  Grendel that allows  Nourish to remove Status Effects and give him immunity based on the number of enemies in his stomach.

Hearty Nourishment

• Miasma

	4 75	Miasma Releases a poisonous miasma that deals Viral damage to enemies in range. Foes afflicted by spores are more susceptible to the mist. Introduced in Update 7.0 (2013-03-18)	Strength:110 / 125 / 135 / 150 ( Viral damage)
			Duration:6 s
			Range:10 / 12 / 16 / 20 m
			Misc: 100% ( Viral status chance) 4.0x (Spores damage multiplier)

• Info
• Tips & Tricks
• Bugs

Info

• Saryn expends 75 energy to pollutes the environment with a viral mist, briefly  Stunning enemies within 10 / 12 / 16 / 20 meters and sickening them for 6 seconds, dealing 110 / 125 / 135 / 150  Viral damage per second, with 100%  Viral status chance on cast.
  • Cast animation of ~1.5 seconds is affected by Casting Speed.
    • Saryn is immune to crowd control during the cast animation.
  • Miasma cannot stun enemies again if they are still being affected by a previous cast, but will refresh the sickness' duration.
• Ability Synergy: Miasma deals 400% damage to enemies affected by  Spores, and Spored enemies that die while sickened by Miasma will spread Spores.
• Casting Miasma can be done while sliding and in mid-air, but will interrupt any other action and will force Saryn in place for the entire animation.
  • Cannot be used while on a zipline.

Tips & Tricks

• Use  Spores first to start shredding armor (if any), then attack with  Toxic Lash to inflict  Toxin procs on enemies, and follow up with Miasma to deal quadruple damage and a guaranteed  Viral Status Effect proc to increase damage dealt to enemies' health, so  Toxin damage can eat their health up quicker.
• When using  Miasma, be careful to not get knocked down during the cast animation, as once up again, Saryn will automatically repeat the cast animation, during this repeat animation she will take damage as normal, leaving you extremely vulnerable.
• Miasma will not interrupt aim glide. Left/right directional input will be stopped, but the aim glide itself will continue straight as normal.

Bugs

• Casting Miasma immediately after casting either Spores or Toxic Lash will cause Miasma's casting animation to bug, causing the player to be able to move while casting and rapidly cast Miasma.
• Being knocked down during the casting animation causes Saryn to repeat the animation upon standing up.

Enemies

Powerfist can perform  Viral uppercut with  Furax

The destruction of Infested Gas Hives

Amalgam Heqet armed with a Komorex

Trivia

• The status effect of Viral damage can mitigate the reduction of damage to Infested foes after a proc is applied, making it effective especially in combination with  Heat,  Electricity, or  Gas damage over time effects.

Media

An enemy affected by viral procs

Viral visuals on a melee weapon

Patch History

Update 33.0 (2023-04-26)

• Fixed exposing an enemy to a Viral Status Effect just as the last Viral Status Effect on the enemy is about to expire, and while there is a Heat Status Effect on the enemy, can lead to the enemy becoming invincible.

Update 31.6 (2022-06-09)

• Fixed Overguard counting as Health and taking damage from Viral Status Effect.
  • Overguard situates itself in a new category of “protection”. It differs from Shields, Armor, and Health. That said, Viral Status Effects affecting Overguard was unintentional and has been changed to not only fit the original design for Viral damage, but also Overguard.
    • We originally mentioned in the Eximus Reborn Dev Workshop that the only Status Effect that would work on Eximus while Overguard is present is Cold Status Effects (up to 4 stacks!).

Update 27.2 (2020-03-05)

• New Status Effect entirely: enhanced Damage! First Viral Status Effect deals 100% additional Health damage, subsequent Viral Status add +25% for a total of 325% (capped).
  • Note: Before Viral would halve a target’s health pool and simply refresh the duration. Now it deals 2x Damage to Health, and can scale up to 4.5x Damage on repeat Status Effects.

Update 11.0 (2013-11-20)

• Introduced.

See Also

• Blight