Revision 7

Overview

Ator's Orb is a unique Abyss Core in Crimson Desert that summons tracking orbs whenever the player performs Forward Slash attacks (R2 forward slashes). The orbs home in on nearby enemies and deal damage on impact, providing consistent supplementary damage alongside your normal melee output. Because Forward Slash is a staple combat skill used across virtually every sword build, Ator's Orb delivers value in nearly every encounter without requiring any change to your playstyle.

This Abyss Core comes pre-installed on the Darkbringer, a powerful two-handed sword found at the White Wastes Sanctuary in the northern Pailune region. Like all Abyss Cores, Ator's Orb can be removed from the Darkbringer and slotted into a different weapon of the player's choosing, making it a versatile piece of gear that is not locked to a single loadout.

How It Works

When Ator's Orb is equipped on a weapon, performing Forward Slash attacks (the R2/RT forward slashing combo) causes yellow orbs to spawn around the player. These orbs hover briefly in the air before locking onto the nearest enemy and flying toward them. On contact, each orb deals damage to its target. The effect triggers reliably whenever you use Forward Slash, which is one of the most commonly used offensive moves in melee combat.

The tracking behavior of the orbs means they rarely miss, even against mobile enemies. They will pursue their target through lateral movement and can hit enemies that have dodged away from your initial slash. This makes Ator's Orb especially effective in fights where enemies frequently reposition or in encounters with multiple targets spread across a wide area.

The orbs deal their damage independently of your weapon swings. This means the total damage output from a Forward Slash with Ator's Orb equipped is your standard melee damage plus the orb impact damage on top. Over the course of a long fight, this supplementary damage adds up significantly.

Stats and Properties

How to Obtain

Ator's Orb is obtained by picking up the Darkbringer sword, which comes with the core already installed. The Darkbringer is located in the northern Pailune region, at the White Wastes Sanctuary near the Silverwolf Mountains. The sanctuary sits to the west of Silver Wolf Mountain, northeast of Five-Finger Mountain on the map, and north of Whisperleaf Fortress.

When you arrive at the location, you will find a large pit containing the partially unearthed remains of a giant skeleton. The Darkbringer sword is lodged in the jaw of the skull, clearly visible and glowing. Simply walk up to the skeleton and interact with it to pull the sword free. There is no boss fight, puzzle, or quest prerequisite required. Any player who can reach the Pailune region can collect it.

Step-by-Step Directions

• Travel to the Pailune region and head toward the Silverwolf Mountains in the northern part of the map.

• Locate the White Wastes Sanctuary (north of the map, near the town of Poon).

• From the sanctuary, look for a nearby Abyss Nexus along the mountains. Head west and watch for circling crows marking a large crater.

• Enter the crater and approach the giant skeleton skull. The Darkbringer is stuck in the skull's teeth.

• Interact with the skull to collect the Darkbringer. Ator's Orb is already installed in one of its Abyss Core slots.

Removing and Transferring Ator's Orb

Ator's Orb can be extracted from the Darkbringer and installed on another weapon, just like any other Abyss Core. To do this, visit a Witch and use the Extract option to remove the core from the Darkbringer. Once extracted, you can then embed it into any weapon that has an available Abyss Core socket.

This flexibility is valuable for players who prefer one-handed swords, curved swords, or other weapon types over two-handed greatswords. Since the core's trigger condition is Forward Slash (a skill available across all sword weapon types), Ator's Orb works effectively on any melee weapon you regularly use Forward Slash with.

• Extract: Visit a Witch and remove Ator's Orb from the Darkbringer.

• Embed: Slot Ator's Orb into any weapon with a free Abyss Core socket.

• Cost: Extraction is free. Creating additional sockets on a weapon costs Silver (5, 10, 20, 30, or 40 Silver per socket, up to 5 sockets maximum on two-handed and ranged weapons).

Build Synergies

One of the strongest aspects of Ator's Orb is how well it stacks with other Abyss Cores that also trigger on Forward Slash or heavy attack inputs. Because Forward Slash is a move you use constantly in combat regardless of your build, any core that activates on the same input creates a natural synergy that multiplies your damage output with no extra effort.

Ator's Orb + Crow's Pursuit

The most notable synergy is pairing Ator's Orb with Crow's Pursuit, a unique Abyss Core that summons a murder of spectral crows to attack nearby enemies when you land heavy attacks. Crow's Pursuit is obtained from the Tauria Curved Sword, which drops from the Crowcaller boss fight during Chapter 5 of the main story.

When both cores are equipped on the same weapon, every Forward Slash attack fires out tracking orbs from Ator's Orb and launches spectral crows from Crow's Pursuit simultaneously. The combined effect produces a massive burst of supplementary projectile damage on top of your normal melee strike. This pairing is exceptionally strong for crowd control, as the orbs and crows spread out to hit multiple targets in a group, thinning out clusters of enemies while you focus your melee swings on the primary threat.

Synergy Combinations

Combat Tips

• Forward Slash is a core skill you will use in almost every combat encounter. Ator's Orb benefits from this naturally, meaning you do not need to change your playstyle to get value from it. Just fight normally and the orbs will do their work.

• The tracking orbs are particularly effective against fast-moving enemies and bosses that dodge frequently. Even if the enemy evades your melee swing, the orbs will often still connect because of their homing behavior.

• In group fights, the orbs spread out and hit different targets. Combined with Crow's Pursuit, this creates a potent area-of-effect damage layer on top of your single-target melee attacks.

• If you plan to transfer Ator's Orb to a one-handed sword or curved sword, make sure the weapon has enough Abyss Core sockets. Visit a Witch to create additional sockets if needed.

• Ator's Orb is available as soon as you can reach the northern Pailune region, making it one of the earliest unique Abyss Cores you can access. Picking it up early gives you a significant damage advantage for the mid-game.

• The orbs deal their damage independently of your weapon's base attack stat. This means they are equally effective whether you keep them on the Darkbringer or transfer them to a lower-attack weapon that you prefer for its other properties.

Comparison with Other Offensive Abyss Cores

Among offensive Abyss Cores, Ator's Orb stands out for its reliability. Because it triggers on Forward Slash, one of the most frequently used attacks in any sword build, it generates consistent supplementary damage throughout every fight. Crow's Pursuit offers a similar projectile-based offense but triggers on heavy attacks specifically. Momentum provides a larger single-hit damage boost (+35%) but only applies to Turning Slash, making it more situational. For players who want a core that passively adds damage to their existing combat flow, Ator's Orb is one of the strongest choices available.

Lore

The name "Ator's Orb" suggests a connection to a figure named Ator, though the game provides limited direct lore about this individual. The Darkbringer sword that houses the core is found embedded in the skull of a colossal skeleton at the White Wastes Sanctuary, hinting at an ancient battle or ritual involving a being of immense power. The nature of the tracking orbs, which manifest as glowing projectiles infused with Abyss energy, aligns with the broader Abyss powers that permeate the world of Pywel.

See Also

• Darkbringer

• Abyss Gear

• Crow's Pursuit

• Forward Slash

• Two-Handed Weapons

• White Wastes Sanctuary

• Unique Weapons

• Build Guide: Kliff

Community Tier List Rating: Ator's Orb

A community ranking video titled All Abyss Gears Tier List (Best to Worst Ranked) scores every Abyss Gear out of 30 across three categories: damage, usability, and utility. Each category is worth 10 points, and the totals are bucketed so that 25 to 30 is S tier, 20 to 24 is A tier, 15 to 19 is B tier, 10 to 14 is C tier, 5 to 9 is D tier, and anything below that lands in F tier. Treat the numbers below as one experienced player's testing rather than a hard rulebook, but the overall ranking lines up with what most Best Abyss Gears Guide tier lists are converging on.

• Overall Score: 22/30

• Damage: 6/10

• Usability: 9/10

• Utility: 7/10

• Community Tier: A Tier

A tier covers gears that perform well in almost every build. They are not quite the standout picks of the whole list, but they pull their weight and rarely feel like dead slots.

The most heavily picked-up heavy-attack gear in the community, partly because it is one of the most accessible and partly because it is genuinely good. Damage per hit is modest but the spam frequency and reliable stagger keep it in A tier. Some community videos refer to this gear as 'Tor's Orb' instead of Ator's Orb, but they are the same gear.

Proc Reminder: Heavy attack proc. Spammable in a way most heavy-attack gears are not, which is the entire reason it scores 9 in usability.

Ator's Orb is the workhorse pick for heavy-attack builds that prefer pressure over burst. If you want bigger per-hit numbers, swap to Shadow Claw. If you need to hit a kiting target at range, swap to Crow's Pursuit. For everything else Ator's Orb stays slotted.