Ability Duration linearly affects the duration of many Warframe and Archwing abilities. Increased Ability Duration usually extends the length of time that an ability is active, but there are some unorthodox or otherwise counter-intuitive interactions the stat gives: for example, the maximum amount of charges for 
Tesla Nervos increases as a factor of added Ability Duration. There are some instances where negative Ability Duration is desirable, usually because it speeds up periodic effects like 
Trinity's 
Energy Vampire or 
Mesa's 
Shooting Gallery when augmented with 
Muzzle Flash.
All Warframes and Archwings have a base stat of 100% Ability Duration.
- Final Ability Duration = Base Ability Duration × Ability Duration bonus
The remaining duration of an ability is displayed on the ability's icon in the bottom right corner as a number with two places. Hence, if the remaining duration of an ability is greater than 10 seconds, it displays to the nearest second. If the duration is less than 10 seconds, it displays down to the nearest tenth of a second.
Energy Drain for Channeled Abilities
There are abilities like 
Gauss's 
Mach Rush or 
Chroma's 
Spectral Scream which last for an indefinite amount of time but drain energy with each passing tick until canceled or if no energy remains. As of Update 17.5 (2015-10-01), Ability Duration affects the energy drain for these abilities: if, for example, an ability normally has an energy drain of 1.0 energy per second, at 200% Ability Duration that ability would drain a point of energy every 2.0 seconds - resulting in a total of 0.5 energy per second drain.
Final Drain Rate = Drain Rate ÷ Ability Duration
- The Drain Rate is the amount of energy that gets drained per second.
- When energy drain is less than about 10 per second, energy will be drained once per tick, and the time between ticks will depend on the drain rate. For example, with an ability that drains 2.5 energy per second, the game will actually consume 1 energy every 0.4 seconds. It is unknown what the minimum time is between ticks (for especially high drain rates).
- This mechanism behaves essentially opposite of how Ability Efficiency affects the cost of abilities.
- Without any other mods to compensate for the reduced Duration, a "High Strength and High Efficiency" build - achieved by slotting a maxed Blind Rage (+99% Strength, -55% Efficiency), a maxed Fleeting Expertise (+60% Efficiency, -60% Duration), a maxed Transient Fortitude (+55% Strength, -27.5% Duration), and a maxed Streamline (+30% Efficiency) - will have a very high energy drain.
- The resulting Duration penalty is -87.5%, leaving a Duration stat of only 12.5%, which results in a penalty of 800% before calculating efficiency. At 135% efficiency, this results in a final 520% penalty.
- Final rate = Base rate × (100% - 35%) ÷ 0.125 = Base rate × 5.2
- If efficiency mods are not included in the build, then the resulting increase is even greater: a massive 762% (without Streamline), 1000% (without Fleeting Expertise), or 1240% (without either).
Because energy drain is also affected by Ability Efficiency, the chart to the right can be consulted to determine a Warframe ability's real energy drain per second. [1]
- Note that using Fleeting Expertise with Streamline adds up to 90% total Ability Efficiency. The maximum final efficiency is 75% - the extra 15% efficiency can be used to compensate for a low Ability Duration. At 90% efficiency, this means that using 40% Ability Duration will still reach the maximum 75% Ability Efficiency.
- Using the above combination alongside Boreal's Hatred or certain Arcane Helmets, it is possible to reach 100% or higher efficiency before factoring in Ability Duration. This will result in a 75% final efficiency, regardless of the value of Ability Duration.
Similar to Ability Strength, energy drain is calculated when the ability is first used. If something later changes the value of Ability Efficiency or Ability Duration, it will not affect energy drain unless the ability is re-cast.
Exception : A change in Ability Efficiency from Seismic Bond will update the energy drain of the ability without having to re-cast it.[2]
Cooldowns
Most abilities do not have a "cooldown" period, which is a mechanic in many similar games that disallow a player from recasting the same ability too frequently. However, abilities in WARFRAME can often instead prevent you from recasting while the first instance is still active. Hence, if you have an ability that lasts 5 seconds long, you can only cast it once every five seconds. If you extend its duration to 8 seconds, you will not be able to cast it more frequently than once every eight seconds. This increase in uptime can be undesirable for certain abilities, such as 
Silence, which can be used as an on-demand stun.
If a player casts an ability too frequently in Elite Sanctuary Onslaught, then the game will put an explicit cooldown by disabling abilities from 8-15 seconds, depending on the ability slot (i.e. second, third, or fourth abilities will experience a cooldown timer).
Abilities With Casting Cooldown
Abilities with casting cooldown timers:
Modifiers
Modifiers combine additively to the Ability Duration stat.
- Final Ability Duration = Ability Duration + Modifier 1 + Modifier 2 + Modifier 3 + ...
Mods
Continuity, Primed Continuity, Constitution, Narrow Minded, Augur Message, Nira's Hatred and Efficient Transferral can each be equipped to increase Ability Duration. Note that as a primed mod, Primed Continuity cannot be equipped simultaneously with Continuity on the same Warframe.
Fleeting Expertise and Transient Fortitude both reduce duration of abilities.
Arcanes
Molt Efficiency and 
Arcane Ice Storm are currently the only Arcane Enhancements that affect Ability Duration.
Molt Efficiency(+36% while Shields are active)
Arcane Helmets
Arcane Helmets can also reduce (or increase) Ability Durations. The following helmets affect Ability Duration:
Archon Shards
Archon Shards can also increase Ability Durations.
Crimson Archon Shard(+10%) each
Tauforged Crimson Archon Shard(+15%) each
Abilities
There are no Warframe abilities that increase or decrease ability duration.
The following Archwing ability increases ability duration:
|
 4  100
|
Vengeful Rush All damage taken is transformed into Energy, while abilities gain enhanced range, duration and power. Affects the caster and nearby allies. Introduced in Update: Specters of the Rail 0.0 (2016-07-08) |
 Strength:100% (Energy Conversion)
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| Duration:15 / 20 / 25 / 30 s
| |||
 Range:160 / 240 / 320 / 400 m
| |||
|
Misc: 10% (Ability Range / Strength / Duration bonus) |
Info
- Amesha expends
100 energy to create an energy field that for 15 / 20 / 25 / 30 seconds which converts 100% of all damage taken by Amesha into energy. Additionally, Amesha and all allies within 160 / 240 / 320 / 400 meters will receive a 10% bonus to Ability Range, Ability Strength, and Ability Duration.
- In Landscape missions, the range of Vengeful Rush is reduced down to 16 / 24 / 32 / 40 meters.
- Vengeful Rush itself does not benefit from its own ability enhancements.
- If Amesha's energy is full, damage conversion stops and makes Amesha vulnerable to damage.
- In Landscape missions, the range of Vengeful Rush is reduced down to
Tips & Tricks
- The player can cast Vengeful Rush before, or while in an environmental trap to quickly max out their energy pool.
- The player can use Warding Grace or other abilities to stay below max energy to remain invulnerable.
Maximization
Maximization is a form of specialization: mods may be blended to result in values that vary between the top-end limits listed here. Click any maximized link to learn how to build it.
- Maximized Ability Duration increases effect duration to 39 seconds.
- Has no negative effect on this ability.
- Maximized Ability Efficiency reduces ability cost to 25 energy.
- Has no negative effect on this ability.
- Maximized Ability Range increases effect radius to 720 meters
- Has no negative effect on this ability.
- Maximized Ability Strength increases the damage to energy conversion to 175%.
- Has no negative effect on this ability.
References
Patch History
Update 17.5 (2015-10-01)
- Duration Mods now have an effect on toggled Abilities.
- For example: Mods that added 100% duration will make a 10 Energy drain become a 5 Energy drain.
- The minimum energy cost of an Ability cannot go below 25% of the base cost.
