Riven Splicers are earned exclusively from The Icebind, with one guaranteed on successful completion. A Splicer combines two compatible traits on a Riven into a selected spliced trait plus a random replacement trait. The spliced trait stays locked during cycling, and that special lock alone does not double the Kuva cost.
Riven Splicing launched with Update 44.1.0 on October 7, 2026. Hotfix 44.1.1 corrected an unintended doubling of cycling cost and a Weak Point Damage issue. The rules here reflect those inspected notes, checked October 13; they supersede launch previews that still called Splicing a future feature.
01
Get a Riven Splicer first
The documented source is The Icebind, the six-player mission accessed through Cephalon Melica at Yuvan Peak. Completing the mission grants the Splicer. Optional side objectives produce Frozen Keys for additional chests, but the basic Splicer reward is attached to mission success.
Use the Icebind guide for prerequisites, Cryobells, and the mission process. The important planning distinction is that Splicers are limited by access to successful Icebind runs. Do not assume that buying regular Kuva, farming Entropic Eximus, or opening any Riven-related reward automatically produces a Splicer.
02
Open the Splicing menu and inspect compatibility
Select a Riven Mod and open its Riven Splicing menu. The interface lists your Rivens and distinguishes those with compatible trait combinations. Select an eligible Riven to inspect the available results. Show All Possible Splices explains the pairs supported for that Riven, while Change Selected Trait lets you choose when several splices are possible.
Compatibility depends on the actual traits already on the same Riven. Owning two separate Rivens with one ingredient trait each is not the process described by the official system. The operation combines traits on the selected Mod; it does not combine two entire Riven cards into one.
Before confirming, read the intended spliced result and both consumed traits. The chosen special result is known in advance. The extra replacement is random, so you are not choosing a complete finished roll merely by choosing the splice.
03
Elemental and faction combinations
These pairs are listed for all Rivens in the official Splicing notes. The in-game preview remains the final check for your selected card and its available combinations.
| Desired spliced trait | Required trait pair |
|---|---|
| Gas Damage | Toxin Damage + Heat Damage |
| Corrosive Damage | Toxin Damage + Electric Damage |
| Viral Damage | Toxin Damage + Cold Damage |
| Radiation Damage | Heat Damage + Electric Damage |
| Blast Damage | Heat Damage + Cold Damage |
| Magnetic Damage | Electric Damage + Cold Damage |
| Damage vs Orokin | Damage vs Corpus + Damage vs Grineer |
| Damage vs Techrot | Damage vs Corpus + Damage vs Infested |
| Damage vs Scaldra | Damage vs Infested + Damage vs Grineer |
An elemental combination is not automatically the best choice for every weapon. Consider the weapon's full elemental arrangement and the enemies you intend to fight. The trait table identifies legal combinations; it does not establish a universal damage ranking or the best result for your particular Riven.
04
Ranged-weapon combinations
The official ranged category includes Rifle, Shotgun, Pistol, Kitgun, Archgun, and selected Companion Rivens.
| Desired spliced trait | Compatible pairs |
|---|---|
| Weakpoint Damage | Damage + Zoom; or Damage + Multishot |
| Weakpoint Critical Chance | Critical Chance + Zoom; or Critical Chance + Multishot |
| Ammo Efficiency | Magazine Capacity + Reload Speed; or Weapon Recoil + Ammo Maximum |
| Magazine Reload While Holstered | Ammo Maximum + Reload Speed; or Ammo Maximum + Magazine Capacity |
| Status Damage | Damage + Status Chance |
Read these as alternatives where two pairs are shown. You do not need all four ingredient traits to obtain the result. Also consider what you remove: exchanging a useful original trait for a conditional result may change the weapon's behavior even if the new line looks impressive.
05
Melee-weapon combinations
The official melee category includes Melee, Zaw, and selected Companion Rivens.
| Desired spliced trait | Required trait pair |
|---|---|
| Heavy Attack Damage | Heavy Attack Efficiency + Additional Combo Count Chance |
| Heavy Attack Windup Speed | Heavy Attack Efficiency + Combo Duration |
| Parry Angle | Attack Speed + Range |
| Slam Damage | Melee Damage + Attack Speed |
| Status Damage | Melee Damage + Status Chance |
Match the result to your attack pattern. A Heavy Attack or Slam result deserves a different evaluation from a general melee configuration. This guide has not benchmarked specific Rivens and does not attach market values to any of these outcomes.
06
What happens to the two consumed traits?
The two ingredient traits are replaced by the chosen splice and one random trait from the normal cycling pool. That random result can include a trait that was just consumed. If both ingredients were positive, the replacement is positive. If one consumed ingredient was negative, the replacement is negative.
This preserves the Riven's positive/negative layout. After Splicing, the counts of positive and negative traits also remain fixed through subsequent cycles while the splice is present. For example, a card with three positive traits and no negative does not spontaneously become a three-positive, one-negative card simply because you continue cycling it.
That persistence is useful when you want to keep a layout, but it is a constraint when you want to change it. Evaluate the layout before spending the Splicer rather than focusing only on the name of the new special trait.
07
Spliced locks and normal trait locks
A spliced trait is automatically preserved during cycling. Its preservation does not itself count as the ordinary paid trait lock that doubles Kuva cost. You can also use the separate Trait Locking feature to preserve another trait, which gives you two retained traits while cycling the others.
The ordinary trait lock still has its own cost behavior. Read the displayed Kuva total before cycling, especially when combining the two systems. Update 44 also explains that an ordinary trait lock must be selected again after reopening its menu; do not assume a previous menu session guarantees the same choice now.
To remove a splice, unlock the spliced trait and cycle it away. The official notes describe this as the route to freeing the card for a new splice and changing its layout again. Do not treat removing the lock as a promised Splicer refund; no refund is established by these sources.
08
Work through one example before spending
Suppose your Riven contains positive Heat, Cold, and Toxin traits. The official example offers three possible splices: Blast, Gas, or Viral. Choosing Viral consumes the Cold and Toxin ingredients, creates the Viral trait, and rolls a new positive replacement. The remaining positive Heat trait is not the random slot in that operation.
The result retains three positive traits and no negative. Future cycling preserves Viral while the splice remains locked. If you additionally lock another trait with the ordinary system, account for its cycling cost separately. The example explains the transformation; it promises neither a particular random replacement nor a final numerical value.
Sources: Official Splicing rules and complete combination list, October 8 corrections, and ordinary Trait Locking introduction. No Riven roll, market price, or in-game damage test was performed.