Essential Things Crimson Desert Doesn't Tell You

Crimson Desert is an extremely vast game, but if there's one fault you might find as a new player, it's that it doesn't want, nor try, to hold your hand. While we do have an abundance of guides for the bosses and puzzles that await, you might need to know a few things that will help you, since the game doesn't tell you about them.

Below, you'll find a list of useful hidden mechanics and tips that will make Crimson Desert feel easier to navigate and less intimidating as you fight against its great deal of enemies and expansive open world. From healing your horse to unlocking new missions, and more.

Healing & Reviving Mid-Battle is Part of the Experience

Recovery Items and Palmar Pills Are Essential to Winning

• Palmar Pill Recipe Location
• Best Healing Items Location

Most fights in Crimson Desert are absolutely brutal. You're going to get beaten up, juggled, and bullied during boss fights. However, the game allows you to heal through this damage without the need for an animation that will interrupt your attacks or dodges.

You can constantly spam heal if you have Recovery Items, made from Cooking Pots with Meat and other Ingredients. In Hernand Town, you should always be combining meat and fruit/vegetables to make Meat Skewers and Braised Meat so you can Heal (Left D-Pad).

You can have an endless supply of Recovery Items to use while getting injured, but even if you do die, you're not out of the fight. With Palmar Pills, you can revive after death, waking you up in the same boss fight you died in, so you're not forced to retry with the boss fully healed. These mechanics of simply "outhealing" the boss are the key to victory.

Hold R1 & R2 to Fight Instead of Mashing the Buttons

Chain Combos and Rest Your Fingers From Spamming Buttons

It can feel rather tedious to spam R1 and R2 as you try to strike your opponents, especially when some areas in need of liberating have over 200 enemies or more to kill. Button mashing is never a delight, but Crimson Desert knows this, which is why you should hold the button instead.

You can hold R1 or R2 to attack constantly without the need to re-press the button, and what's even better is that you can chain these buttons into combos. Try holding R1 for a few, then switching to R2, or throw in an R1+R2. The blue skill tree has a great deal of combos for you to learn.

Unlock Side Quests by Completing Faction Quests

Faction Quests Unlock Greater Rewards and Even Secret Boss Fights

There are the Main Quests you can find in the Journal, but these don't actually open up more side quests. Side quests are a lot of fun because they allow you to experience unique boss fights and unlock even more unique items that will grow your arsenal and power.

You will unlock more side quests by completing Faction Quests. Check your Journal and look into each region's quest tab, and start completing the tasks required. This will automatically unlock even more quests from the Journal, including secret bosses that will challenge your skills.

Blinding Flash Reveals Secret Mysterious Zones Across the Map

Use L1+R1 to Reveal Shiny Objects in the Open-World That Grant Level Up Tokens and Fast Travel

One of the starting moves you'll learn in Crimson Desert is Blinding Flash, which is achieved with L1+R1. This fancy ability can be used to reflect light to burn grass and vines, but it can also be used to reveal secrets across the map, like Mysterious Zones and Sealed Abyss Artifacts.

By using Blinding Flash while flying, exploring, or on your horse, you can see a glint in the distance that indicates a point of interest. This is always worth checking out, as you can find a Mysterious Zone, which is either a puzzle that grants an Abyss Artifact to level up, or an Abyss Nexus, which is a fast travel point.

You might also find a Sealed Absys Artifact, which holds a unique challenge that, when completed, rewards an Abyss Artifact or Abyss Gear.

Bell Towers Will Unfog the Map

Remove the Fog of War By Ringing the Unique Bell Towers in Each Town/City

• All Bell Tower Locations

From Hernand Town to Varnia in the Crimson Desert, there are a total of 8 Bell Towers to find and ring. Each Bell Tower will open more of the map, allowing you to see unique points of interest like towns, settlements, and secrets, without having to open the map yourself by exploring.

Above, we've tagged where you can find every Bell Tower, and only one of these is locked to the Main Quest. You should always be hunting each city you visit for a Bell Tower so you can open the map, which makes following guides that include a map for unique loot easier to follow.

You Can Only Steal Items With the Mask Equipped

The Mask is Essential for Pickpockets and Thieves

• How to Get a Mask

When an open-world RPG releases into the market, one of the first things players want to do is steal things and indulge their inner criminal. Luckily for them, Crimson Desert does allow such mischief, but you'll first need to obtain a Mask.

Masks can be looted from Bleed Bandits in Hernand or purchased from the Black Market street vendors in Hernand Town. With a Mask, you can run into players and pickpocket, or break into buildings and start stealing items. This way, you'll amass a fortune by pickpocketing gold, coins, and other items.

Your Horse Won't Run If It Needs Healing

Heal the Horse Through Force Palm or Feeding It to Ride Again

Has your horse all of a sudden stopped running and instead enjoys a slow pace? Worry not, as it's just injured, likely from getting attacked by enemies or when you rode it off a cliff and forgot about it. Horses can't die, but they can't heal without your help, and if they're injured, they're not running until you fix it.

You can heal a horse by feeding them Sugar Cubes, Apples, and other consumables, which can be achieved by sitting on the back of your horse and selecting the "Feed" option from your inventory. Alternatively, you can use R3 to Force Palm the horse, which won't actually hurt them, but instead heal them.

Most Armor & Weapons Are Found by Exploring, Not Through Quests

Explore Caves to Find Chests Instead of Expecting to Buy or Loot Boss Gear

• Crowcaller Armor Set
• Fallen Kingdom Armor Set
• Frostcursed Armor Set
• Dark Marksman Armor Set
• Armor of the Shadows Set

If you've encountered a boss fight and thought "that armor is neat", only to defeat them and not be rewarded with their gear, then you don't need to worry. Most of the boss armor found in-game is actually tied to unique caves and chests, and is not related to the boss at all.

You can find all sorts of powerful armors and weapons early on, and what's even better is that most armor and weapons have the same stats, meaning you can upgrade anything without having to worry about finding something better later on. We've tagged some of our favorite armor sets above!

You Can't Keep Wild Animal Mounts That Aren't Horses

You Can Ride Lions and Bears, But Only Keep Legendary Horses

• All Legendary Horses Locations

There's a way to enjoy riding a bear, or even a lion, but you sadly won't be able to keep these mounts. While the game does showcase these animals as mounts, they're temporary, so don't go in thinking you'll be able to charge into battle and summon a giant bear to do all the work.

While you can't get these predators as mounts, you can still find legendary horses. There are three legendary horses on the map, and we've marked them all in the guide above for you to check out at any time. Legendary Horses are the best, with double the stats and speed of the default horses from the stables.