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Drake's Fall Castle
April 10, 2026 at 09:31 PM
Reconcile fast travel tip with Despawn Glitch Warning: clarify nearby, not distant
Drake's Fall Castle (also written as Drakesfall Castle) is a ruined fortress located directly north of Hernand in Crimson Desert. The castle sits at the heart of the Drakesfall Gorge area, a region saturated with Abyss energy that attracts a dense population of Bismuth Oreback Crabs and other Abyss-touched creatures. For players looking to power up Kliff's equipment and abilities efficiently, Drake's Fall Castle is widely considered the single best farming location in the entire game. In one session at this location, you can accumulate Abyss Gear cores, Abyss Cells, Bismuth Ore (which sells for silver), and large amounts of XP that fill the Abyss Artifact progress bar. No other location in Pywel offers all four of these rewards simultaneously at this density.
A fast travel point (Abyss Nexus) was added near the castle ruins in a recent patch, making it trivial to teleport in, clear the area, teleport away to reset spawns, and repeat the cycle. The farm is accessible once you reach the Hernand region during the main story, though the enemies here hit hard enough that players still working through Chapter 2 should wait until they have stronger gear before attempting it.
Drake's Fall Castle is located in the northern portion of the Hernand region, on the border with the Demeniss highlands. To reach it, open the world map and look directly north of the city of Hernand. The castle ruins are marked on the map and sit on an elevated plateau within Drakesfall Gorge.
The fastest way to reach the farm is by using the Abyss Nexus fast travel point located right next to the castle. If you have not unlocked this particular Nexus yet, you will need to travel there on foot or horseback from Hernand and activate the teleporter on your first visit. Once activated, every subsequent visit is instant.
When you first arrive at the castle, you need to climb inside the ruins. The castle walls have collapsed in several places, creating natural entry points. There will be no soldiers present initially; instead, the interior is overrun with Abyss creatures, primarily the Bismuth Oreback Crabs that make this location so valuable.
The castle is home to several types of Abyss-touched creatures. The primary enemies you will encounter are Bismuth Oreback Crabs, which disguise themselves as metallic ore deposits when idle. Understanding the difference between the small crabs and the large crabs is absolutely critical to maintaining this farm.
Enemy | Size | Behavior | Notes |
|---|---|---|---|
Small Bismuth Oreback Crabs | Small | Disguise themselves as strange metallic ore deposits. Reveal themselves when struck with Force Palm or approached closely. Attack with physical strikes. | These are the primary farm targets. They respawn continuously as long as the large crabs (spawners) remain alive. |
Large Bismuth Oreback Crabs (Spawners) | Large (mini-boss tier) | Act as spawner nodes for the small crabs. They are significantly tougher and deal heavy damage. Behave like mini-bosses. | DO NOT KILL THESE. Killing a large crab permanently stops small crab spawns in that area. See the Critical Warning section below. |
Other Abyss Creatures | Various | Additional Bismuth-touched creatures roam the castle grounds. These are secondary targets that also drop Abyss materials. | Lower priority than the small crabs but still worth killing for extra XP and drops. |
The small crabs look like jagged, metallic clusters in their idle state and blend in perfectly with the rocky terrain around the castle. They can be forced to reveal themselves by hitting the metallic deposits with Force Palm. Once agitated, they become aggressive and will attack with physical strikes. Despite their small size, they deal a surprising amount of damage and have decent defense, so do not underestimate them. Having strong gear and effective dodging habits is recommended.
Every single small crab you kill at Drake's Fall Castle drops valuable resources. This is what makes the location so efficient: you are guaranteed useful loot from every kill, not just a random chance. The following table lists the drops you can expect from farming the small Bismuth Oreback Crabs.
Drop | Type | Use |
|---|---|---|
Mineral / Crafting Material | Sells for silver at vendors. Can also be donated to your Greymane Camp for camp upgrades. Used in certain crafting recipes. | |
Upgrade Material | Primary ingredient used at Witch altars to create and upgrade Abyss Gear. Also used to enhance Health from the Skills menu. Expect roughly 6 to 10 Abyss Cells per full clear of the castle area. | |
Abyss Gear Cores (Insight) | Abyss Gear Core | Provides Insight-type stat bonuses when socketed into equipment via a Witch. Insight cores improve perception-related attributes. |
Abyss Gear Cores (Attack) | Abyss Gear Core | Boosts weapon damage output when embedded. Attack cores are essential for increasing Kliff's damage without upgrading the weapon itself. |
Abyss Gear Cores (Destruction) | Abyss Gear Core | Powerful offensive cores that increase overall destruction capability. Can be crafted at Witch altars with Abyss Cells, Garnet, and butterfly materials. |
Abyss Gear Cores (Other Types) | Abyss Gear Core | Various additional core types may drop, including defensive and utility variants. All can be socketed into equipment at a Witch. |
In addition to direct drops, you earn XP with every kill. The XP fills the yellow Abyss Artifact progress bar located next to the minimap on the lower left of the screen. Every time this bar fills completely, you receive a free Abyss Artifact, which is the primary progression currency used to increase core stats like Health, Stamina, and Spirit, unlock new skills, and extend combo chains. There is no cap on the number of times you can level this bar, making Drake's Fall Castle an infinite source of Abyss Artifacts as long as you keep killing.
This is the single most important rule for farming Drake's Fall Castle. The large Bismuth Oreback Crabs that roam the castle grounds are not regular enemies. They are spawner nodes. Every small crab in the area is spawned by one of these large crabs. As long as the large crabs are alive, they will continuously produce new small crabs for you to farm.
If you kill a large crab, the small crabs it produces will stop spawning permanently. This is not a temporary cooldown. It is a permanent change to your save file. Once the large crab is dead, Hernand soldiers will move into the vacated area, and the crab spawns will never return. You will have locked yourself out of the farm forever on that save.
This has caught many players off guard. The large crabs behave like mini-bosses, and the natural instinct is to fight and kill them. Resist that urge. Treat the large crabs as friendly infrastructure that powers the entire farm. Walk around them, avoid hitting them, and focus exclusively on the small crabs.
This warning extends to your build choice. If you are running a weapon or skill loadout with large area-of-effect (AoE) attacks, you risk accidentally hitting and killing a large crab while farming the small ones. AoE abilities like wide sword sweeps, explosion skills, or any attack that hits multiple targets in a radius can clip a nearby large crab without you even noticing. Several players, including prominent content creators, have permanently lost access to the Drake's Fall farm because they were using AoE builds and accidentally killed a spawner during a farming session.
Before you start farming at Drake's Fall Castle, switch to a single-target or precision build. One-handed swords, daggers, spears with thrust attacks, or ranged weapons like bows and muskets aimed at individual targets are all safe choices. Save your AoE builds for other farming spots and dungeons where there is no spawner mechanic to worry about.
If you accidentally kill one or more of the large crabs, the damage is permanent for that specific spawner. If all large crabs in the castle are killed, the entire farm is gone. Hernand soldiers will move into the castle, the Abyss creatures will not return, and you will need to rely on other farming methods for Abyss Cells and Gear Cores. See the Alternative Farming Location section below for a backup option.
Drake's Fall Castle is the premier location for farming Blank Abyss Cells in Crimson Desert. The castle interior contains approximately 30 to 40 dormant enemies spread across six to seven distinct groups. These enemies appear as shiny, metallic deposits on the ground and will not attack until you strike them first. This dormant behavior makes the farm uniquely controllable: you decide when and where combat begins, allowing you to pull groups on your own terms.
Empty your inventory beforehand. The enemies here drop a large volume of loot per run. If your bags are full, you will miss valuable drops. Sell or store anything you do not need before heading to the castle.
Fast travel to the local Abyss Nexus. Open the map and teleport to the Abyss Nexus fast travel point located right next to Drake's Fall Castle. On the world map, the castle sits north of Hernand, at the bottom right of the "PA" in Paloon, just south of where the river forks.
Enter the castle and locate dormant enemy groups. Run inside and look for the shiny metallic clusters on the ground. Each cluster is a dormant enemy waiting to be activated. They are arranged in six to seven groups throughout the castle interior.
Wake enemies by striking them. Hit a dormant cluster with any attack to wake the enemies in that group. They will spring to life and begin attacking. You can wake multiple groups at once to create larger packs for efficient AoE clearing.
Group enemies together and use Turning Slash. Once enemies are awake, run through them to bunch the group up, then use Turning Slash to deal area damage to the entire pack. Turning Slash requires focus (spirit) to execute, so make sure you have enough spirit built up before engaging. A spear with fast stab attacks works well for building spirit quickly between Turning Slash uses.
Watch your health. The enemies deal damage on contact and through proximity. When surrounded by a large group, your health drains steadily even without direct attacks. Bring healing meals and consume them proactively rather than waiting until you are nearly dead.
Be careful around the larger crab-like enemies. Some groups contain bigger enemies that sit in areas with metal surroundings. These hit significantly harder than the standard dormant crabs and take more effort to bring down. Prioritize dodging their attacks while focusing on the weaker targets first.
Loot everything after clearing. See the Looting Tips section below for the fastest collection method.
Fast travel to the local Abyss Nexus to reset. After looting, teleport to the Abyss Nexus right next to the castle. This resets the dormant enemies inside. Then simply run back into the castle to start another cycle. Do NOT fast travel to a distant location (see the Despawn Glitch Warning below).
Repeat. Each full clear takes only a few minutes once you learn the enemy group positions. You can chain runs indefinitely as long as you follow the reset rules.
Efficient looting is just as important as efficient killing at Drake's Fall Castle. The sheer volume of drops means you can waste significant time if you pick items up one at a time.
Stow your weapon first. Double-tap left on the D-pad (or the equivalent keyboard bind) to put your weapon away. You cannot loot while your weapon is drawn.
Hold the pickup button and walk. Hold the pickup button (X on Xbox, Square on PlayStation) and walk through the loot field. Kliff will automatically grab items as you pass over them without needing to press the button for each individual drop.
Check the minimap for remaining loot. Gray cross icons on the minimap indicate loot bags you have not yet picked up. Scan your minimap after each group clear to make sure you did not miss anything in the corners.
Summoning your pet is optional. You can summon a pet companion to help collect drops, but pets sometimes pick up junk items that waste inventory space. If you are running low on bag slots, manual looting is more selective.
Follow this step-by-step approach to farm Drake's Fall Castle efficiently and safely.
Fast travel to the Abyss Nexus near Drake's Fall Castle. If you have not unlocked the teleporter yet, travel to the castle on foot or horseback from Hernand and activate it first.
Climb into the castle ruins. Enter through one of the collapsed wall sections. The interior will be filled with Bismuth deposits (disguised small crabs) and roaming Abyss creatures.
Identify the large crabs and mentally mark their positions. These are the spawners you must avoid at all costs. They are noticeably bigger than the small crabs and behave like mini-bosses.
Use Force Palm on the metallic ore deposits scattered around the castle floor to reveal hidden small crabs. Alternatively, approach them closely and they will emerge on their own.
Kill only the small crabs. Use single-target attacks. Pick them off one by one. Collect the Bismuth Ore, Abyss Cells, and Abyss Gear Cores that drop from each kill.
Watch the yellow XP bar next to your minimap. Each kill contributes XP. When the bar fills, you receive a free Abyss Artifact.
Once the area is cleared, fast travel to the local Abyss Nexus right next to Drake's Fall Castle. This forces the dormant enemies to respawn. Then run back into the castle and repeat. Do NOT fast travel to a distant town or location, as this can trigger a permanent despawn glitch (see Despawn Glitch Warning section).
Repeat the cycle as many times as needed. There is no limit to how many times you can clear and reset the area, as long as the large crabs remain alive.
Bring a strong single-target weapon. One-handed swords, daggers, or thrust-oriented spears work well. Avoid wide-sweeping two-handed weapons.
Equip defensive gear. The small crabs deal more physical damage than you might expect, especially in groups. Good armor reduces the risk of getting overwhelmed.
Stock healing items. While individual crabs are not deadly, sustained farming means taking chip damage over time. Bring potions or food.
Be at least mid-game power level. Players still in Chapter 2 will struggle against the crabs here. It is better to wait until you have access to stronger equipment and a deeper skill tree.
Based on community testing across dozens of farming sessions, here are the approximate yields you can expect from a single full clear of Drake's Fall Castle.
Drop | Quantity per Clear | Notes | |
|---|---|---|---|
6 to 10 | N/A (crafting material) | Primary target; used at Witch altars for Abyss Gear crafting and Health upgrades | |
Large stack per clear | 1 silver per ore; 300 to 700 silver per hour of farming | Steady income source; sell to vendors or donate to Greymane Camp | |
Abyss Gear Cores (Insight / Critical Rate) | 1 to 2 per run (not guaranteed) | N/A (equipment) | Insight cores boost perception and critical rate when socketed |
Abyss Gear Cores (Destruction / Attack) | 1 to 2 per run (not guaranteed) | N/A (equipment) | Destruction and Attack cores boost raw damage output |
Core drops are not guaranteed on every run but average one to two across several clears. Bismuth Ore is the most consistent drop and provides a reliable silver income alongside the more valuable Abyss materials. Over the course of an hour of focused farming, expect to accumulate between 300 and 700 silver worth of Bismuth Ore alone, in addition to the Abyss Cells and Gear Cores.
After a farming session at Drake's Fall Castle, you will have accumulated a mix of Abyss Cells, Abyss Gear Cores, Bismuth Ore, and Abyss Artifacts from the XP bar. Here is how to make the most of each resource.
Take your Abyss Cells to a Witch. Witches are special merchants found throughout Pywel who handle all functions related to Abyss Gear. They can install Abyss Gear, remove it, create new sockets in your equipment, and sell you crafting recipes. The key service for farming is the crafting menu: use Abyss Cells as a primary ingredient to craft new Abyss Gears. For example, a Destruction 1 Abyss Gear requires one Orange-Barred Sulphur Butterfly, one Abyss Cell, and one Garnet. If you have two copies of the same Abyss Gear (such as two Destruction 1 cores), you can combine them at the Witch via the Synthesis option (press R2 on the crafting tab) to create a more powerful level 2 or level 3 version.
Cores dropped directly from the crabs can be equipped immediately. Visit a Witch to create a socket on your weapon or armor (this costs silver), then embed the core into the socket. Installing and extracting cores is a free service, but creating new sockets is not. Attack and Destruction cores are the highest priority for boosting Kliff's damage output, while Insight cores improve utility stats.
Bismuth Ore can be sold to vendors for silver, which you will need for socket creation, gear upgrades at the blacksmith, and general supplies. Alternatively, you can donate Bismuth Ore to your Greymane Camp to contribute toward camp upgrades and resource pools. Bismuth is also used in certain mining and crafting recipes.
Spend your earned Abyss Artifacts in the Skills menu to increase core stats (Health, Stamina, Spirit), unlock new combat abilities, and extend your combo chains. Unlike traditional XP-based leveling, Abyss Artifacts can be refunded and redistributed at any time, so feel free to experiment with different stat distributions.
If you have accumulated a surplus of Abyss Cells from your farming sessions, there is a secondary use for them beyond Witch crafting. Open your inventory and look for the option to "obtain the seed" from your Abyss Cells. This extracts a plantable seed from the cell material.
Take these seeds to the farm area at your Greymane Camp and plant them in the crop plots. The seeds take a few in-game days to grow. You can speed up the process by sleeping at a campfire or bed to advance time. Once mature, the plants yield additional Abyss-related resources, making this a worthwhile investment that compounds the value of your farming runs at Drake's Fall Castle.
Occasionally, after you have farmed the area several times, Hernand Troops may move into Drake's Fall Castle and temporarily occupy the space. When soldiers are present, the Bismuth Oreback Crabs will not spawn, and the farm will appear empty.
This is a temporary event, not a permanent loss (unlike killing the large crabs). If you arrive at the castle and see soldiers instead of crabs, simply leave and go complete a few quests, explore other areas, or advance the story. After three to four in-game days, the troops will clear out and the Bismuth crab deposits will return to their normal state. This is a separate mechanic from the permanent loss that occurs when you kill the large spawner crabs.
Critical: There are two rules you must follow to keep the Drake's Fall Castle farm working. Breaking either of these rules can trigger a permanent despawn glitch that ends your ability to farm this location.
Always leave at least one group of dormant enemies alive inside the castle. If you kill every single enemy in the area before resetting, the game may register the location as "cleared" and stop respawning them entirely. The safest approach is to skip the last group you encounter and go straight to the reset step.
When resetting the farm, always fast travel to the local Abyss Nexus that is right next to the castle. Do not teleport to Hernand, another city, or any far-away fast travel point. Traveling to a distant location can trigger a permanent despawn glitch where the dormant enemies never return. The safe reset loop is: clear enemies, loot, teleport to the nearby Abyss Nexus, run back inside.
If you arrive at Drake's Fall Castle and find Hernandian guards occupying the area instead of dormant enemies, the farm has entered a glitched or occupied state. In most cases, this is recoverable:
Leave the castle area entirely.
Wait one to three in-game days. Advance time by sleeping at a campfire, bed, or simply completing quests and activities elsewhere.
Return to Drake's Fall Castle and check whether the dormant enemies have respawned.
If the enemies are still absent after three in-game days, the glitch may be permanent for that specific save. You will need to use the alternative farming location described later in this article.
The Hernandian guard occupation is sometimes a natural event (described in the Hernand Troop Occupation section above) and resolves on its own. However, if it was caused by killing all enemies or fast traveling too far, recovery is not guaranteed.
While farming at Drake's Fall Castle, you may notice the Drakesfall Gorge Ancient Ruins nearby on the plateau. This location contains a puzzle based on the "Red Light, Green Light" mechanic (a reference to the popular show Squid Game). To solve it, step on the stone plate at the edge of the area, which causes the statues of soldiers to raise their swords. Walk toward the king statue at the opposite end, but stop moving whenever the king turns around with its eyes lit up. If the king sees you moving, its eyes turn red and you must restart.
Completing this puzzle activates a nearby Abyss Cresset, which converts into a fast travel point and rewards an Abyss Artifact. This is a nice bonus objective to complete during your farming sessions.
If you have permanently lost access to the Drake's Fall Castle farm by killing the large spawner crabs, there is an alternative location that serves as the next best option for XP farming. This backup spot is located south of the castle area, in a zone marked by a "mysterious energy" presence on the map.
Important: If you find the mysterious energy marker at this location, do not interact with it or attempt to solve it. Resolving the mystery event may lock the farm, similar to how killing the large crabs locks Drake's Fall. Leave the energy marker alone and focus on the enemies.
This alternative location has a couple of fast travel points nearby for easy access. The area contains the highest concentration of elite "pot" enemies in the game. These enemies pop up out of the ground, making them easy to spot. They are vulnerable to heavy attacks and go down relatively quickly.
Drop | Type | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Upgrade Material | Used for gear upgrades and refinement at the blacksmith | |
Garnets | Crafting Material | Used in Abyss Gear crafting recipes at Witch altars (e.g., Destruction cores) |
Abyss Cells | Upgrade Material | Same cells used for Abyss Gear crafting and Health upgrades, though lower drop rate than Drake's Fall |
Abyss Gears | Abyss Gear drops | Direct Abyss Gear drops, saving the crafting step |
While this alternative spot does not match Drake's Fall Castle for combined efficiency across all resource types, it is excellent for pure XP farming. The high density of elite pot enemies means you can chain kills rapidly, filling the Abyss Artifact bar quickly. The Epidote and Garnet drops are also valuable for gear progression, making this a solid backup for players who need to recover from losing the primary farm.
Factor | Drake's Fall Castle | Elite Pot Enemies (Alternative) |
|---|---|---|
Location | North of Hernand, Drakesfall Gorge | South of the castle area, near mysterious energy marker |
Primary Drops | Bismuth Ore, Abyss Cells, Abyss Gear Cores | Epidote, Garnets, Abyss Cells, Abyss Gears |
XP Efficiency | Very high (continuous spawns from large crabs) | High (dense elite enemy clusters) |
6 to 10 per full clear | Lower per clear, but consistent | |
Risk of Permanent Loss | Yes (if large crabs are killed) | Possible (if mysterious energy is solved) |
Abyss Nexus right next to the castle | Two fast travel points nearby | |
Recommended For | All-in-one farming: XP, cells, cores, ore, and silver | Pure XP farming and gear upgrade materials |
Always identify the large crabs first. Before you start killing anything, walk the castle grounds and locate every large crab. Memorize their positions so you can maintain safe distance during combat.
Use single-target attacks only. This cannot be stressed enough. Switch off any AoE skills, wide-sweep weapons, or explosion-type abilities before entering the farm area.
Fast travel reset method. After clearing the small crabs, fast travel to a nearby location (such as the closest waypoint), then immediately fast travel back to Drake's Fall. Avoid fast traveling to a distant town, as this can trigger the Despawn Glitch. The enemies will have respawned, ready for another clear.
Sell Bismuth Ore for silver. The Bismuth you collect adds up quickly over multiple farming sessions. Selling it provides a steady income to fund socket creation, blacksmith upgrades, and general supplies.
Stack farming sessions before visiting a Witch. Rather than visiting a Witch after every single clear, do several farming runs first and accumulate a large pile of Abyss Cells and cores. Then visit the Witch once for a big crafting and upgrading session.
Plant your surplus cells. If you have more Abyss Cells than you can use immediately, extract seeds and plant them at your camp farm. The grown resources compound your farming returns over time.
Check for soldier occupation. If the castle is occupied by Hernand Troops, do not panic. This is temporary. Complete other objectives for a few in-game days and return later.
Complete the nearby puzzle. The Drakesfall Gorge Ruins Puzzle (Red Light, Green Light) is right nearby. It grants an Abyss Artifact and activates a fast travel point, both of which are useful.
Abyss Gear - Full guide to the Abyss Gear augmentation system, stat bonuses, and how to socket cores into equipment
Abyss Gear Guide - Detailed walkthrough of obtaining, upgrading, and optimizing Abyss Gear setups
Abyss Cores - Overview of all Abyss Core types and their uses in progression
Mining - Guide to gathering mineral resources including Bismuth Ore throughout Pywel
Minerals - Reference for all mineral types, locations, and crafting applications
Greymane Camp - Your home base where you can plant seeds, donate resources, and access crafting facilities
Combat Tips - General combat advice and techniques applicable to farming encounters
Tips and Tricks - Broader collection of helpful advice for progression and exploration
