Whelp...

I finally got off my butt to start working through zaws, kitguns, companions and any other modulars I've been avoiding. Part of my avoidance is due to the fact the modulars need a lot of open world materials and I'm not a big fan of the open world areas of the game. I spent the last few days putting together and play testing a loadout that has allowed me to make farming the open worlds for resources far less painful.

Before I get into the specifics...

The below is what I've found to

• be low thought / low spoon / dont need to think hard to be effective
• be efficient overall
  • probably not meta but definitely 'fast enough', especially with resource boosters
• be easy to use with controller, switch, steam link, etc
  • you do not need a pc or mouse+keyboard or 'real display' to use the below effectively
  • I have capital T Thoughts about controller accessibility and the below keeps controller concerns in mind
  • I tested the below with steam link, my folding phone and bluetooth joycons to ensure things arent too painful
• be generally useful across fishing, mining and conservation
• allow for working through the open worlds in 'loops', farming 'a bit of everything'
• allow targeted farming if you need or want to focus your efforts on specific resources
• allow for non-open world builds to co-exist with these builds
  • I tried very hard to avoid making the below ultra specific when it comes to forma and similar
  • I have the below gear setup with separate loadouts for both open world needs and general game needs

General Notes

• this is not meant to replace any 'meta': this is meant to be efficient overall, take the pain out of farming open world areas of the game, be useful no matter the platform or input method or display while keeping your sanity if not fond of open world areas of the game
• the below is pretty expensive in terms of forma and endo... dont panic: you do NOT need to max everything. this setup is meant to be very flexible and allow players to adjust if desired and/or necessary. I tested this with non-maxed gear. it was quite effective and usable with non maxed gear.
• I've included substitutions, where appropriate, for my recommendations. I tried to ensure you can use kit thats easier to obtain than my primary recommendations. you may lose a little utility but substitutions are perfectly valid
• you can reliably swap out individual pieces of the loadout for your preferences. secondary and melee weapons are very easy to swap for alternatives without losing utility or efficiency. the itzal archwing is not required but provides some quality of life gains compared to other archwings
• each link includes additional detail and nuance thats not included below

Loadout

• see each linked build for additional details
• ivara or loki
  • ivara is easier to use than loki as she has no fixed time for invisibility
  • if using loki, build for invisibility duration. see here for inspiration
• sniper for 'scouting ahead' and clearing enemies at distance if needed
  • prefer lanka or vulkar (wraith)
    • they have the most flexible zoom levels
    • I use vulkar and will swap to the wraith varient when I get one
  • snipetron vandal or rubico prime are good alternatives but have less flexible zoom
• pyrana
  • kills open world enemies fast and efficiently
  • can use akarius or similar 'nuke' secondary if preferred, just watch out for self-stagger and self-knockdown
  • this is a flex slot
• innodem or another dagger
  • fast attack speeds
  • have limited range to avoid accidental kills during conservation
    • mainly for clearing enemies trying to kill conservation targets in cambion
  • this is a flex slot
• oxylus (preferred) or heilos
  • oxylus better for general use
  • heilos only for codex scans
  • NO weapons
  • NO offensive mods
  • do not aggro conservation targets or enemies when stealth
• itzal
  • raw speed
  • use Penumbra (ability 2) to go invis + swap to sniper or tranq rifle in air
  • this is a flex slot. itzal is more of a QoL buff than anything

Playstyle for conservation

• use lures for targeted searches, archwing for general searches
  • when exiting archwing: watch out for 'slams' killing conservation targets, fly to ground then leave archwing mode for a 'soft slam' that wont kill the target
• go invis
• use tranq rifle to subdue target
  • some can be subdued with sleep arrows
• call in for retreival

Playstyle for general farming

• note: sleep arrows can help with managing 'mobs' that sometimes form in open worlds
• archwing to farming location
• go invis
• farm
  • use sunpoint drill with silence upgrade for mining
  • use oxylus to highlight fish instead of luminous dye
  • see above for conservation
  • you can fish and mine from dashwires: use this to your advantage for getting to hard to reach mineral veins and over water so you can fish any spot

Cambion Drift Loop

• reddit map thats useful
• go around outer edge of map in clockwise direction
  • can go on foot with prowl active
• open cysts as you see them
• pickup any residue (fass/vome) as you see them
• mine at far east and west caves (center of north/south)
• fish if you see any as you work through your loop
  • put out bait if you want to fish a hotspot for a bit
  • move on after 1 bait expires
• this loop will yield a large number of tokens for daughter (fishing), otak (mining), son (conservation), and father (cyst resources & residue)
  • youll need to run bounties for mother tokens
• convert various resources to tokens
• convert tokens to grandmother tokens
• turn in only grandmother tokens for syndicate rank
  • grandmother tokens are significantly higher syndicate rank rewards than any other token
  • this setup is meant to ensure grandmother tokens flow fast enough to be worth the effort