Warframe Tau Prologue Guide – Unlock

Warframe’s Tau Prologue delivers a unique narrative step where players transition from simply controlling their Warframe to experiencing the story from the Lotus’s perspective and piloting the powerful Vessel. This story-driven quest matters because it deepens the lore and introduces fresh gameplay mechanics, offering a different angle on the ongoing conflict. It’s a memorable moment that players want to explore fully without technical hiccups.

The Warframe Tau Prologue is a short story quest where you play as the Lotus and then control your own Vessel for the first time. Here is how to unlock the Tau Prologue, finish both chapters step by step, and fix the bugs players are hitting.

How to Unlock the Tau Prologue in Warframe

To access the Tau Prologue, you first need to complete two pivotal quests: The Hex and The Old Peace. Once these are officially marked as finished, jump into the game, open your Orbiter’s Codex, and look for the Prologue to Tau entry.

Sometimes the quest won’t appear right away. Double-check that both prerequisite quests show as completed in your Codex. Next, make sure your game is fully updated since the prologue was added in Hotfix 44.1.2. If it still doesn’t show up, try logging out and back in; relaunching often triggers new quest entries to load properly.

Tau Prologue Lua Quest Walkthrough

The first chapter, called Lua, unfolds mostly like a cinematic experience—it’s brief but pivotal for the story. You start by checking your inbox for a message from Loid alerting you that the Lotus is about to enter the Dark Refractory.

Check your inbox. Loid tells you the Lotus is about to enter the Dark Refractory.

Your next stop is the Sanctum Anatomica on Deimos. From there, head directly to the Dark Refractory room and prepare for a unique gameplay segment.

Use Transference to take control of your Operator, then enter the pool marking the start of the memory sequence. This is where you embody the Lotus for the first time in this quest.

The Lotus here is unarmed and limited to two key abilities: Might of the Lotus (which fires a projectile) and Voice of the Lotus (sending out a shockwave). Using just these, roll through attacks and face the Sentients on Lua, pushing forward until you confront the Void Pendula and trigger a cutscene that closes this chapter.

Fight the Sentients on Lua until you reach the Void Pendula. A cutscene ends the chapter, and the Vessel quest follows right away.

If the game crashes around this point—particularly during step 3—there’s a known fix available, outlined later in this article.

Tau Prologue Vessel Quest Walkthrough

Next up is the Vessel quest. Travel to the Kronia Relay above Saturn, then make your way to the Dry Dock where Necramechs will deliver your Vessel to you.

You’ll be prompted to customize your Vessel, choosing between Arturos or Zioa and picking a color scheme. Take your time here; early reports suggest customization options might not be available later on in the Dry Dock, so lock in your preferences now.

Head over to the Dermacrust node on Eris by opening Navigation, where the action continues as you pilot the Vessel itself.

While controlling the Vessel, your Warframe floats alongside but can’t die or dodge. The Vessel delivers damage by stomping on enemies and using its powerful attacks: a fist melee, Stomp (1), and the deadly Vessel Gaze laser (2).

Fight your way toward the largest Infested hotspot and take down the massive creature perched atop the mountain. Once defeated, the Vessel offers the creature to Praghasa, marking the conclusion of the prologue.

Though the Tau Prologue is concise and cinematic, it leaves a strong impression on players. Many appreciate stepping into the Lotus’s shoes and commanding the Vessel’s raw power, though some wish the Vessel battle had been a longer, more involved fight.

How to Fix Tau Prologue Not Working

Players have encountered issues with this quest, but only some have been resolved so far.

Crash or heavy lag in the Dark Refractory: fixed

Crashes and severe lag plagued many at launch, especially during the Dark Refractory sequence. Digital Extremes attributed this to overloaded instances and fixed the problem in Hotfix 44.1.2 + 2.1 released October 15. Always update your game first to avoid this issue.

Vessel quest not unlocking after Lua: not fixed

Some players report that after completing Lua, the Vessel chapter never appears, or worse, that they get kicked back to the login screen. Digital Extremes is investigating these problems, but no official fix is available yet. If you experience this, report it on the official bug thread and monitor upcoming updates.

Another reported hiccup is heavy slowdown when using the Lotus’s second ability. There’s currently no confirmed solution for this lag, so keep an eye out for future fixes.

Is Tau Prologue a Limited-Time Quest?

The Tau Prologue is a permanent addition to Warframe’s main story. You can replay it any time from your Codex without restrictions.

What’s limited is the Epoch Operation: Taubound, a separate, one-time event running from October 15 to November 17, 2026. Taubound requires only the quest Vor’s Prize, while the Tau Prologue demands completion of The Hex and The Old Peace. Both quests can be completed independently in any order.

Warframe

Release Date

March 25, 2013

Developer(s)

Digital Extremes

Publisher(s)

Digital Extremes

Warframe Tau Prologue gameplay scenes showing Lotus and Vessel combat sequences
Warframe tags highlighting action-adventure and role-playing elements