Get Started Right in Crimson Desert (Spoilers ahead)
Crimson Desert is massive, with an enormous number of things to do, intricate nested mechanics, diabolical puzzles, and exciting combat. It’s easy to spend 30-40 hours just in the starting zone of Hernand. Because the game is so intentionally hands-off, it’s very easy to miss some important quests or encounters, and then get stuck.
Frankly, Crimson Desert is a game where there’s no shame in making use of walkthroughs, guides, and the collective wisdom of other players. In fact, doing so is part of Pearl Abyss’ plan. Crimson Desert wants the player to explore and make discoveries, but sometimes you just need a clue so you can move forward.
Here are 5 things you need to know as you start your journey through Pywel.
Mainline the Story Until You Get Your Camp
Getting your camp in Crimson Desert is part of the main quest line and comes a little after defeating the game’s first “real” boss, Hornsplitter. Why do you want your camp? For one thing, it’s where all your loot automatically goes when you clear a bandit camp. Eventually, you can recruit fellow Greymanes and send them off from your camp to perform tasks for you. Some Greymanes will stay in camp as vendors. Getting your camp also gives you access to the first secondary playable character, Damiane.
It’s easy to get lost in side quests and exploration, but we advise sticking to the main quest…at least for a while. If you must go rogue, focus on collecting food items and killing bandits, because they drop useful consumables.
Find the Teleporters
Crimson Desert doesn’t have healing bonfires or checkpoints like in Elden Ring (or a hundred other open-world action games). But you can teleport around the map once you unlock fast travel points. Look for a fog-of-war patch on the map with a big question mark on it and a suggestion that there’s magical energy hidden inside. Somewhere in the area is an Abyss Nexus, a stone glowing with magical energy. You can hit LB+RB to use your Focus (once unlocked) ability to look for glowing points. However, fast-travel locations are still pretty scarce compared to some other games.
Ring the Bells
Once you’re in the town of Hernand, climb the tower near the castle and ring the bell. Doing so will reveal more of the map. It’s a good idea to look for towers as you explore and ring the bells whenever you see them.
Don’t Neglect Cooking…and Befriending Dogs
Unlike many action games, you don’t use handy flasks to heal in battle. Especially early on, your primary source of healing will be food that you gather or cook. Eventually, you can unlock an ability that grants passive healing, and you can find alchemical items in the world, too. To start, though, do the early quest in Hernand that unlocks cooking and scour the towns and enemies for both recipes and pre-cooked food. Spamming food is the key to surviving early (and late) boss encounters. Extra tip: if you’re missing an ingredient in a recipe, you can always substitute something else. It might not be as nutritious, but it works. As you play, you’ll find ever-more-powerful recipes and rarer ingredients.
There are hundreds of dogs and cats in Crimson Desert, and other useful animals as well. If you pet a dog, you earn a small amount of trust. If you return to that specific dog over several days, it will eventually fully bond with you, and they can help you gather items.
Early Bosses Reinforce Your Abilities…Use Them
Starting with the first miniboss in Hernand, Crimson Desert’s early bosses (and some later ones, too) have weaknesses directly related to some new ability that the game gives you. So, if you’re struggling or just chipping away damage with your weapon, don’t forget your magical abilities. You’d be surprised how many bosses are weak to Force Push. This is true throughout the game. However, you might not have unlocked the specific ability that makes a tough boss trivial. The old-fashioned ways of learning attack patterns and having plenty of healing still work, too.
Bonus Tip: Pay Off Your Bounties
Just like many RPGs, getting caught stealing or attacking a non-enemy might earn you a bounty. Like other action RPGs, having a bounty on your head can turn enemies aggressive. The solution is to pay off your bounty at a local church.