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Ancient Ruins and Their Puzzles - Version 3 vs Version 4
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11Overview22Ancient Ruins are exploration sites scattered across the continent of Pywel in Crimson Desert. There are 37 Ancient Ruins in total, and each one conceals an Abyss Cresset behind a unique environmental puzzle. Solving the puzzle activates the Cresset, which serves two purposes: it becomes a permanent fast travel waypoint, and it awards an Abyss Artifact. Each Abyss Artifact translates directly into a Skill Point that can be spent on the skill tree to learn new combat abilities or boost core stats like health, stamina, and attack power.44Progress across all 37 ruins is tracked in the journal under the Challenges tab, specifically in the section called "The Thread in the Forest." Completing every Ancient Ruins Challenge unlocks the Puzzle Solver trophy and achievement. Because each ruin also activates a fast travel point, thorough puzzle hunters will have a well-connected travel network by the time they finish.67Pearl Abyss has cited The Legend of Zelda series as a direct influence on the puzzle design. Previews and early reviews frequently compared the ruins to shrines from Breath of the Wild, noting that each Ancient Ruin feels like a self-contained puzzle chamber with its own rules and logic.89How to Find Ancient Ruins1011Ancient Ruins are not marked on your map by default. When you approach one, it appears as a white circle with a question mark, labeled "Mysterious Energy." However, you do not need to stumble onto them by accident. The game gives you a long-range detection tool that makes systematic searching practical.1213The key ability is Blinding Flash, a sword skill that reflects sunlight off your blade. When you activate Blinding Flash while exploring the open world, glints of light appear on the horizon. Each glint marks the direction of an undiscovered Abyss Cresset or Ancient Ruin. Head toward the glint, and the Mysterious Energy icon will appear on your map as you get closer. This mechanic rewards players who actively scan the environment from high vantage points rather than relying on map markers alone.1415Some Ancient Ruins are hidden inside caves, behind waterfall passages, or at the end of narrow cliffside trails. A handful are found underground and require dropping through a hole or entering a dungeon entrance. If a glint from Blinding Flash seems to point at the base of a cliff or mountainside, look for a cave opening or a destructible barrier nearby.1617Required Skills1819Many Ancient Ruins require specific abilities to interact with the puzzle mechanisms. If you arrive at a ruin and cannot solve it, you likely need to progress further in the main story or invest points in the skill tree to unlock the missing ability. The table below lists every skill used across the 37 ruins.2021SkillPuzzle UsageHow to UnlockNature's GraspLifts stone gates blocking ruin entrances and moves broken columns on puzzle platformsChapter 2 (Reunion quest)Force PalmStrikes wall-mounted disc platforms and activates power devices; inverts the state of adjacent discsChapter 1 (Abyss Without Balance quest)StabPierces mechanism sockets to rotate dials, fountains, pillars, and sundialsMain quest progressionBlinding FlashBurns away vines and foliage blocking mechanisms and pillars; also used to detect ruins at rangeMain quest progressionNature's SnareOperates water drainage mechanisms to lower water levels in flooded ruinsSpirit (green) branch of the skill treeTurning SlashBreaks through ice barriers covering frozen pools and mechanisms in cold-region ruinsMain quest progressionForce CurrentPushes elemental blocks in the Hidden Chamber of Wisdom; flips stone doors in mazesAxiom Archive quest lineFocused ShotSlows time with the bow to mark and shoot multiple rotating totems before walls closeRanged skill tree branch2223Nature's Grasp and Force Palm are the two most critical puzzle skills. Between them, they cover roughly half of all Ancient Ruins interactions. If you are exploring early in the story, prioritize unlocking these before heading into unknown regions.2324Puzzle Types2526The 37 Ancient Ruins feature over a dozen distinct puzzle formats. Some types appear multiple times across different regions with increasing complexity, while others are unique to a single ruin. Understanding the core mechanic of each type makes it much easier to recognize what a puzzle is asking when you encounter a new one.2728Force Palm Sequence2930Found in ruins like the Timberdale Cliff Ruins and Timberdale Gorge Ruins. The puzzle presents a set of wall-mounted discs. When you hit a disc with Force Palm, it presses into the wall but also inverts the state of any adjacent disc. A disc that was pressed in pops out, and one that was out presses in. The goal is to get all discs pressed into the wall at the same time so the energy line connects from one side to the other. This is a logic puzzle where order matters. Trial and error works eventually, but observing which discs are linked to which neighbors lets you solve it efficiently.3132Pillar Height Alignment3334Found at the Duskwood Hill Ruins and Deepfog Basin Everfrost Ruins. A central pedestal has four Stab sockets. Each socket controls a different combination of tall stone pillars, raising or lowering them. The target height is shown by the leftmost pillar, which does not move. You need to cycle through the sockets until every pillar matches that reference height. Keep track of which socket moves which pillars to avoid undoing your progress.3536Statue Rotation3738Found at the Sunrise Plains Ruins, Golden Plains Ruins, and the Red River Ruins. Each statue sits on a rotating base with a dial or Stab socket on its back. The goal is to turn every statue so it faces the central Abyss Cresset. Some statues are linked, meaning rotating one also moves another. At the Golden Plains Ruins, you must first burn away vines with Blinding Flash to reveal a hidden fourth statue before you can begin. Listen for a grinding noise or watch for a glow to confirm a statue has reached the correct angle.3940Fountain Rotation4142Found at the Arboria Forest Ruins and Fuming Lands Ruins. Stone fountain pillars each have a waterspout and a Stab socket. Rotating a pillar redirects its water stream. The goal is to point every spout inward so that all the water flows into a central basin. At the Fuming Lands Ruins, vines cover some mechanisms, and you must burn them with Blinding Flash before you can interact with the pillars.4344Bell Sequence4546Found at the Steel Mountains Ruins. A set of six bells hangs in a row. A nearby board displays musical note symbols indicating the order in which the bells must be struck. The correct sequence is 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, then back down: 4, 3, 2, 1. You hit the bells by using a mallet or the appropriate melee interaction. If you make a mistake, the puzzle resets.4748Sundial and Symbol Matching4950Found at the Halssius Conflux Ruins and the Grey Forest Ruins. A rotating metal frame or sundial sits in the center of the room, and illuminated statues around the edges each display a symbol. You use the Stab skill on the central pillar to rotate the frame until the symbols on the floor align with the ones lit up on the statues. The Halssius Conflux puzzle has three rounds, each adding more symbols to match simultaneously.5152Red Light, Green Light5354Found at the Drakesfall Gorge Ruins and Mount Benus Ruins. A king statue watches over a walkway leading to the Abyss Cresset. When the statue's eyes glow red, it is watching. If you move while the eyes are red, you are knocked back to the start. Move only when the eyes are dark. At Mount Benus, the ground is muddy, so sprinting causes Kliff to slide forward even after you release the input. Walk slowly and carefully on that variant.5557Stepping Stone Puzzles5759Found at the Precipice of Echoes Ruins and Beardtree Hills Rock Ruins. Floor plates display pairs of identical symbols. Step on the starting plate, then walk to the plate with the matching symbol without stepping on any incorrect plates. There are typically three rounds, and the final round at Beardtree Hills requires stepping on every single plate in the correct sequence without errors.5961Sliding Block and Moving Block Puzzles6163Found at the Deepfog Basin Dragon Head Ruins and Five-Finger Mountain Icy Ruins. Tiles or blocks on the floor can be moved with the Stab ability. Drag them horizontally or vertically to arrange the pieces into a complete image or diagram. At Five-Finger Mountain, you must first break the ice covering the puzzle area with Turning Slash before you can interact with the blocks.6365Water Drainage6567Found at the Haunted Hill Ruins, Wiggling Hill Ruins, Silver Wolf Mountain Ruins, and Beardtree Hills Sunflower Ruins. A flooded area conceals the Abyss Cresset. Use Nature's Snare on a mechanism submerged in (or adjacent to) the water to partially drain the pool. A second mechanism usually becomes accessible after the first drain, and casting Nature's Snare on it finishes the job. At Silver Wolf Mountain, you must also break ice with Turning Slash before the drainage mechanism is reachable.6769Lantern Lighting6971Found at the Hunter's Cabin Ruins and as a second phase at Wiggling Hill Ruins. Stone lanterns surround a graveyard or ruin entrance. Use Blinding Flash to light each unlit lantern. At Hunter's Cabin, you must first use the Visione ability to trigger a memory scene before the lanterns become interactive. Lighting all lanterns opens a tomb door or reveals the Abyss Cresset.7173Wall Lift Puzzles7375Found at the Meandering Hills Ruins, Black Wall Ruins, and Blue Thicket Ruins. Nature's Grasp lifts a stone wall or column blocking access to the ruin interior. At Meandering Hills, lifting the wall is only the first step; you then need to hit three stone plates with Force Palm in the correct order (middle, left, right). At Blue Thicket, you lift two walls to redirect energy toward a central device.7577Mural Dial Rotation7779Found at the Dragon's Stone Chamber Ruins and the Trembling Woods Ruins. Multiple rotating dials must be aligned based on clues found on nearby murals or in a separate location. At the Dragon's Stone Chamber, the clue mural is located at the Anvil Hillside Terrace, not inside the ruin itself. You need to visit that location first, observe the correct symbols, and then return to rotate the three dials into position.7981Maze Challenges8183Four of the 37 Ancient Ruins are classified as Maze Challenges rather than single-room puzzles. These are the Ancient Rift Maze, Smoking Lands Desert Mouth Maze, Burhum Maze, and Dawnreach Maze. In each maze, you must navigate a multi-room dungeon, solve smaller puzzles along the way, and collect three Engraved Stones. Placing all three stones in receptacles at the end of the maze opens the path to the Abyss Cresset. Maze challenges tend to be longer and more involved than standard ruins.8385Other Unique Puzzles8587Stone/Pot Stacking (Bamboo Forest Seonangdang, Kingshield Mountains): Stack three stones or four pots from largest to smallest without toppling them.Stone Placement (Duskwood Waterside Ruins): Pick up a white stone and place it in an empty slot to complete a line of five matching stones.Elemental Block Puzzle (Hidden Chamber of Wisdom): Push blocks matching elemental symbols (Wind, Lightning, Ice, Fire) using Force Current.Totem Rotation Under Time Pressure (Red River Ruins): Turn a crank to lower walls revealing rotating totems. Use Focused Shot to slow time and mark the correct totem faces (identified by red glowing eyes) before the walls close.Rotating Frame Symbol Matching (Halssius Conflux, Grey Forest): Rotate a central dial until its symbols align with those illuminated on surrounding statues.8789Ruins by Region8991The 37 Ancient Ruins are spread across five regions of Pywel. The table below lists every ruin organized by region, along with its puzzle type and the key ability required to solve it. Ruins with no special ability requirement can be completed as soon as you find them.9193Hernand9396Hernand is the starting region and contains the highest concentration of Ancient Ruins. Many of the ruins here serve as introductions to puzzle types that appear in more complex forms later. The Meandering Hills Ruins is encountered during the Act 2 story quest "Reunion" and cannot be missed.9598RuinPuzzle TypeRequired SkillSteel Mountains RuinsBell SequenceNone (mallet interaction)Duskwood Hill RuinsPillar Height AlignmentBlinding Flash, StabHunter's Cabin RuinsLantern LightingVisione, Blinding FlashMeandering Hills RuinsWall Lift + Force Palm SequenceNature's Grasp, Force PalmDuskwood Waterside RuinsStone PlacementNonePrecipice of Echoes RuinsStepping Stone SymbolsNoneHaunted Hill RuinsWater DrainageNature's SnareHalssius Conflux RuinsSundial/Symbol Matching (3 rounds)StabDrakesfall Gorge RuinsRed Light, Green LightNone (timing only)Dragon's Stone Chamber RuinsMural Dial RotationStabSunrise Plains RuinsStatue RotationStabDeepfog Basin Everfrost RuinsPillar Height AlignmentStabDeepfog Basin Dragon Head RuinsSliding Block PuzzleStabArboria Forest RuinsFountain RotationStabAzure Moon Labyrinth RuinsButton Pressing (Visual Clues)NoneAncient Rift MazeMaze ChallengeConcentrated Light97100Demeniss98101Demeniss covers the plains, bamboo forests, and volcanic areas east and south of Hernand. The ruins here feature several stacking puzzles and statue rotation challenges, along with the elaborate Screaming Vault multi-room dial puzzle.100103RuinPuzzle TypeRequired SkillTrembling Woods RuinsClock Dial RotationStabWiggling Hill RuinsWater Drainage + Lantern LightingNature's Snare, Blinding FlashBamboo Forest Seonangdang RuinsStone StackingNoneKingshield Mountains RuinsPot StackingNoneSunrise Plains RuinsStatue RotationStabGolden Plains RuinsStatue Rotation + Vine BurningBlinding Flash, StabFuming Lands RuinsFountain Rotation + Vine BurningBlinding Flash, StabScreaming Vault RuinsTriple Dial AlignmentStabSecret Chamber of the Golden PlainsGrapple + Force PalmBlinding Flash, Force PalmSmoking Lands Desert Mouth MazeMaze Challenge (Door Symbols)Force Current102105Pailune103106Pailune is the frozen northern region with ice-covered mountains and deep caves. Several ruins here require Turning Slash to break through ice barriers. The Hidden Chamber of Wisdom introduces the Force Current ability to puzzle design.105108RuinPuzzle TypeRequired SkillHidden Chamber of WisdomElemental Block PuzzleForce CurrentSilver Wolf Mountain RuinsIce Breaking + Water DrainageTurning Slash, Nature's SnareFive-Finger Mountain Icy RuinsIce Breaking + Sliding BlockTurning SlashFive-Finger Mountain Valley RuinsStatue ShootingRanged attackBlack Wall RuinsSimple Wall LiftNature's Grasp107110Delesyia108111Delesyia is a forested region with thick canopies, thickets, and elevated ruins. The Beardtree Hills area alone contains two ruins with very different mechanics. Mount Benus hosts the harder variant of the Red Light, Green Light puzzle with slippery muddy terrain.110113RuinPuzzle TypeRequired SkillTimberdale Cliff RuinsEnergy Conduction (Force Palm discs)Blinding Flash, Force PalmTimberdale Gorge RuinsWall Destruction + Energy ConductionTurning Slash, Force CurrentBlue Thicket RuinsWall Lift + Energy RedirectionNature's GraspBeardtree Hills Rock RuinsStepping Stone Symbols (Hard)NoneBeardtree Hills Sunflower RuinsWater DrainageNature's SnareMemory-Laden RuinsMural Clue + Block PushingBlinding Flash, Force CurrentMount Benus RuinsRed Light, Green Light (Mud)None (timing + caution)Grey Forest RuinsAngel Statue Symbol MatchingStab112115Crimson Desert Region113116The Crimson Desert region is the arid southeastern territory. It contains the Red River Ruins (one of the more mechanically demanding puzzles due to its time pressure) along with two of the four Maze Challenges.115118RuinPuzzle TypeRequired SkillRed River RuinsCrank + Totem Rotation Under Time PressureFocused ShotBurhum MazeMaze Challenge (Force Palm plates)Force PalmDawnreach MazeMaze Challenge (Tower + Stone Collection)Force Palm117120Rewards118121Every Ancient Ruin awards the same two things when its puzzle is completed: an Abyss Cresset activation and one Abyss Artifact. The Abyss Cresset becomes a permanent fast travel point, and the Abyss Artifact grants one Skill Point for the skill tree.120123Completing all 37 Ancient Ruins provides 37 Abyss Artifacts in total. These are a significant portion of the available Skill Points in the game. Players who skip ruins will find themselves noticeably behind in skill progression compared to those who complete them. The fast travel points are equally valuable, especially in Pywel's large open world where waypoints can be sparse in remote areas.122125Beyond the Artifact reward, fully completing all 37 Ancient Ruins Challenges unlocks the "Puzzle Solver" achievement/trophy. This is tracked in the journal under Challenges, making it easy to see which ruins you have left.124127Tips and Strategies126129Unlock Nature's Grasp and Force Palm early. These two skills are prerequisites for the most ruins. Without them, you will frequently arrive at a puzzle site only to discover you cannot interact with it yet.Use Blinding Flash from hilltops. The higher your elevation, the more glints you can spot on the horizon. Mountain peaks, towers, and castle walls are ideal scanning positions.Check for external clues. Some puzzles (Dragon's Stone Chamber, Memory-Laden Ruins) require information found at a completely different location. If a ruin seems unsolvable, look for murals, carvings, or environmental markers in the surrounding area.Watch for linked mechanisms. In statue rotation and pillar height puzzles, moving one element often moves another. Observe the connections before committing to a sequence of moves.Walk, do not run, in Red Light Green Light puzzles. At Mount Benus, the muddy ground causes sliding when you sprint. A slow walk is the safest approach.Stacking puzzles require patience. The stone and pot stacking puzzles at Bamboo Forest Seonangdang and Kingshield Mountains are physics-based. Place objects gently and make sure each piece is centered before adding the next.Save maze challenges for later. The four Maze Challenges are longer and more complex than standard ruins. They are better tackled once you have a full set of puzzle skills and good gear, since some mazes contain enemies as well.Reset if stuck. Most puzzle mechanisms reset if you leave the area and return. If you have gotten a puzzle into an unsolvable state, walk away until the Mysterious Energy icon resets, then re-enter.128131Related Articles130133Ancient Ruins Solutions - Step-by-step walkthrough for every ruinAncient Ruins Challenges - Challenge tracking and completion checklistAll Puzzle Solutions - Hub page for every puzzle type in the gameEnvironmental Puzzles - Broader overview of all puzzle categoriesAbyss Cresset Locations - All 60 Abyss Cressets (including non-ruin ones)Strongbox Puzzle Solutions - Lock-based puzzles found in buildingsAbyss Artifacts - All sources of Skill PointsSkill Tree - How to spend your earned Artifacts
