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Abyss Dungeons
Artifacts and Abyss Fragments
Beginner's Guide
Environmental Puzzles
Fog of War and Map Discovery
Game Length and Content
Hidden Chests
Hot Air Balloon
Main Story Walkthrough
Map Completion Guide
Mounts
Progression System
Pywel
Root Hold
Secret Passages and Hidden Areas
Skiffs and Wagons
The Abyss
Traces of the Abyss
Treasure Maps and Puzzles
Urdavah
World Map
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Fast travel in Crimson Desert allows players to teleport instantly between discovered waypoints scattered across the continent of Pywel. The system uses two types of ground-level fast travel points: Abyss Nexus locations and Abyss Cresset locations. Both function as permanent teleportation anchors once activated, but they differ in how they are unlocked. Abyss Nexus points require the player to simply stand on a stone platform, while Abyss Cresset points are found inside Ancient Ruins and require solving a puzzle before activation.
Fast travel is not available from the start. Players must physically explore the world and activate each fast travel point before it becomes usable. There are 47 Abyss Nexus fast travel points spread across all five regions of Pywel, along with 60 Abyss Cresset locations tied to puzzle completions. On top of those ground-level waypoints, each of the 40 Abyss Restoration sky islands also contains a fast travel point, bringing the grand total to 147 fast travel destinations across the continent and its floating islands. Teleportation is completely free with no gold cost, stamina drain, or consumable required.
Important: Only Kliff can use Abyss sky island fast travel. If you are controlling Damiane, sky island fast travel is unavailable. Damiane can use ground-level Abyss Nexus and Abyss Cresset fast travel normally. For sky islands, switch back to Kliff before teleporting to Abyss sky islands.
To initiate fast travel, open your world map and navigate to the "All" tab that displays all objectives and location markers. You can also use the "Environment" tab, which filters to show environmental points of interest including fast travel icons. Hover over any activated Abyss Nexus or Abyss Cresset icon on the map, then use the appropriate input to teleport.
Platform | Fast Travel Input |
|---|---|
PC (Keyboard/Mouse) | Double-click on the fast travel icon on the map |
Xbox Controller | Hover over the icon and press Y |
PlayStation Controller | Hover over the icon and press Triangle |
Travel is instantaneous and can be initiated from anywhere in the open world. You do not need to be standing at a fast travel point to teleport to one. These fast travel points do not activate automatically as you explore the world; each one requires manual activation before it appears on your map.
The regular world map only shows ground-level fast travel points. To view fast travel points on the sky islands, you need to switch to the sky layer. On a controller, press R3 (click the right stick) while viewing the map. On PC, scroll the Mouse Wheel to toggle between the ground layer and the sky layer. Any activated Abyss fast travel points on the floating islands appear as blue icons on the sky layer, and you can teleport to them the same way you would a ground-level point.
An Abyss Nexus is a flat stone platform with an engraved circular pattern in the center. These are the simpler of the two fast travel point types. To activate one, walk onto the circular platform and position Kliff in the center of the formation. After a few seconds the engraved circle illuminates blue, confirming activation. Once activated, the Abyss Nexus appears as a blue icon on your map and is permanently available as a fast travel destination.
Abyss Nexus points are scattered throughout the open world in a variety of locations, from fields and hilltops to caves and quarry rest areas. Some are out in the open, while others are hidden behind vegetation, tucked inside ruins, or placed in hard-to-reach spots that require climbing. A few Abyss Nexus platforms are missing their center teleportation stone and must be repaired before they can be activated (see the Camp Fast Travel Repairs section below).
An Abyss Cresset is a more complex fast travel point found inside Ancient Ruins puzzle locations. There are 60 Abyss Cressets in total, spread across the regions of Pywel. To activate one, you must first complete a puzzle or trial within the ruins. These puzzles range from pushing stone platforms into alignment with Force Palm to navigating environmental obstacles, solving tile puzzles, and using specific skills like Axiom Force to interact with ancient mechanisms.
After solving the puzzle, a small pillar with a glowing object appears outside or at the end of the ruins. Interact with the pillar using the "Take" prompt to claim the Abyss Artifact and activate that location as a permanent fast travel point. This makes Abyss Cresset locations doubly valuable: they unlock fast travel and reward the player with Abyss Artifacts, which can be spent on new skills in the Abyss Tree or used during the refinement process to upgrade your gear.
Beyond the ground-level Nexus and Cresset points, the 40 Abyss Restoration sky islands each contain their own fast travel point. The Abyss is a realm of floating islands high above Pywel. Each island is a puzzle area, and completing or simply visiting an island's fast travel point activates it permanently. These sky island waypoints are visible on the sky layer of the map (press R3 on controller or scroll the Mouse Wheel on PC).
Sky island fast travel points are especially useful because of the skydiving trick. If there is no convenient ground-level Nexus or Cresset near your destination, teleport to a nearby Abyss island instead, walk to the edge, and jump off. Open the Crow's Wing glider to soar down toward your target on the surface. This approach completely bypasses mountains, rivers, hostile armies, and every other obstacle between you and your destination. It is often faster than riding a horse across difficult terrain.
Feature | Abyss Cresset | Sky Island | |
|---|---|---|---|
Total Count | 47 | 60 | 40 |
Activation | Stand on the platform until it glows blue | Solve a puzzle in Ancient Ruins, then claim the artifact | Visit the island and activate its fast travel point |
Puzzle Required | No | Yes | Yes (Abyss Restoration puzzle) |
No | Yes (Abyss Artifact) | Yes (Abyss Artifact) | |
Typical Location | Open world, hillsides, caves, quarries | Inside Ancient Ruins | Floating islands in the Abyss (sky layer) |
Map Layer | Ground layer (default) | Ground layer (default) | Sky layer (R3 / Mouse Wheel) |
As you explore Pywel, your map will highlight areas marked with white circles and question marks. These are labeled "Mysterious Energy" and signal that a point of interest is situated nearby. In many cases, these markers lead to either an Abyss Nexus or an Abyss Cresset, though some Mysterious Energy zones contain other points of interest such as Sealed Abyss Artifacts, open-world puzzle activities, or enemy encounters. You need to travel to each marker and investigate to confirm what it contains.
The most effective way to locate hidden fast travel points is the Blinding Flash ability (sometimes called Guiding Light). This skill highlights nearby Abyss-related points of interest as glowing blue lights on the horizon. When you activate Blinding Flash from a high vantage point, you may see multiple glimmering spots in the distance. Not all of them lead to fast travel points; some mark Sealed Abyss Artifacts or Abyss puzzle locations. You will need to visit each glint to confirm what it is.
Platform | |
|---|---|
PC (Keyboard/Mouse) | Press and hold CTRL + Left Mouse Button simultaneously |
Xbox Controller | Press and hold LB + RB simultaneously |
PlayStation Controller | Press and hold L1 + R1 simultaneously |
For best results, climb to a high vantage point that overlooks the region you want to search, then use Blinding Flash. The higher your elevation, the further the ability can detect blue glints. If Blinding Flash does not reveal anything, you may be too far away or the point is hidden behind terrain. Try moving to higher ground or a different angle.
Blinding Flash also has a Concentrate Light function. While channeling Blinding Flash, press and hold the Block input (CTRL on keyboard, L1/LB on controller) to focus the light on a specific target. This focused light can burn away vines and brush that conceal hidden Abyss Nexus platforms, and it is also used to solve certain Abyss Cresset puzzles that require directed light.
The world map starts almost entirely covered in fog. Ringing the eight Bell Towers scattered across Pywel clears the fog for their surrounding regions, which makes it much easier to spot Mysterious Energy markers. Ringing all eight bells uncovers the entire continent. A recommended approach from experienced players is to ring all Bell Towers first to fully reveal the map, then systematically visit each Mysterious Energy zone using Blinding Flash from elevated positions. This saves significant time compared to stumbling across fast travel points during normal exploration.
There are 47 Abyss Nexus fast travel points across the five regions of Pywel. Additional Abyss Cresset locations exist within each region as well, but those are tied to puzzle completions and are listed separately in the Abyss Cresset Locations article. The following tables list every confirmed Abyss Nexus location.
Hernand is the central plains region and is the player's primary base of operations during the early chapters. It has the densest fast travel coverage of any region.
# | Location Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
1 | Hernand North, Haunted Hill | Northern edge of the region |
2 | Central Hernand (1) | Near the main road |
3 | Central Hernand (2) | Second point in the central area |
4 | Near the castle grounds | |
5 | Requires repair; see Camp Fast Travel Repairs below | |
6 | Hernand South, The Witchwoods | Southern forested area |
7 | Hernand South | General southern Hernand |
8 | Hernand South, Scholastone Institute | Near the academy |
9 | Hernand East, The Ironwood | Eastern forest zone |
10 | Hernand East, Willow River | Along the riverbank |
11 | Downstream section of the Nas River | |
12 | Hernand Northern Edge, Upper Nas River | Upstream section of the Nas River |
Pailune sits to the north of Hernand and spans from the southern Sage's Peak through central woodlands up into the Silver Wolf Mountain range.
# | Location Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
1 | Pailune South, The Sage's Peak | Southern approach to the region |
2 | Pailune Central (1) | Central woodland area |
3 | Pailune Central (2) | Second central point |
4 | Pailune Central (3) | Third central point |
5 | Pailune Central, Wayward Woods | Within the dense forest |
6 | Pailune West | Western side of the region |
7 | Pailune North, Silver Wolf Mountain (1) | Lower mountain area |
8 | Pailune North, Silver Wolf Mountain (2) | Upper mountain area |
9 | Pailune North | Northern stretch of the region |
10 | Inside or near the main settlement |
Demeniss is a mid-sized region with nodes spread from the western Anvil Hill across to the eastern Breezeblown Knoll.
# | Location Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
1 | Demeniss West, Anvil Hill | Western approach |
2 | Demeniss Central | Center of the region |
3 | Main settlement | |
4 | Demeniss North | Northern area |
5 | Demeniss East | Eastern side |
6 | Demeniss East, Breezeblown Knoll | Far eastern landmark |
Delesyia stretches from the northern islands down through the central Gorthak area to the southern coast at Dewhaven and Mount Benus.
# | Location Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
1 | Delesyia North | Northern zone |
2 | Delesyia North, Island | Offshore island location |
3 | Central hub area | |
4 | Main settlement | |
5 | Delesyia South, Mount Benus | Southern mountainous area |
6 | Southern coastal town |
The Crimson Desert is the largest region by fast travel count and covers the southern desert zones including Tashkalp and Forebearer's Barrens.
# | Location Name | Notes |
|---|---|---|
1 | Crimson Desert South (1) | Southern approach |
2 | Crimson Desert South (2) | Second southern point |
3 | Crimson Desert, Tashkalp Inner Town | Inside the main Tashkalp settlement |
4 | Crimson Desert, Tashkalp (1) | Surrounding Tashkalp area |
5 | Crimson Desert, Tashkalp (2) | Second Tashkalp vicinity point |
6 | Crimson Desert, Tashkalp (3) | Third Tashkalp vicinity point |
7 | Western Barrens | |
8 | Central Barrens | |
9 | Eastern Barrens | |
10 | Far Barrens | |
11 | Canyon area | |
12 | Trade route area | |
13 | Far desert settlement |
All fast travel points are permanent once activated and remain accessible throughout the game. None of them are missable, and all regions stay open for backtracking at any point in the story.
Some Abyss Nexus platforms in the world are broken, with their center teleportation stone (called an Abyss Transporter) missing. These cannot be activated by simply standing on them. Instead, you must locate the missing stone elsewhere and return it to the platform. The two most notable examples are the Greymane Camp Abyss Nexus on Howling Hill and the Thinker's Meadow Abyss Nexus near your homestead. Both follow the same general repair process but have different prerequisites.
Before you can repair either broken Abyss Nexus, you need two things obtained through story progression:
Kuku Pot: Obtained after completing the Kiln Repair quest and restoring the Kilnden Workshop during Chapter 4. The Kuku Pot is a special container that can store and transport Abyss-related objects.
Force Palm: Focus ability: Learned on the road to Scholastone during Chapter 4. This upgraded version of Force Palm can shatter crystalline walls and slam objects into place.
The Abyss Nexus near the Greymane Camp on Howling Hill is missing its center stone. The platform itself is hidden among trees, pink flowers, and a bundle of thorny vines.
Step-by-step repair process:
Locate the broken Abyss Nexus on the hill next to the Greymane Camp.
Use Blinding Flash's Concentrate Light function or fire arrows to burn away the vines blocking access to the platform.
The missing Abyss Transporter stone is located underground in Karin Quarry, south of Hook Rapids and northeast of the camp.
Travel to the quarry and find the large crane in the center. If the quarry is still occupied by Bleed Bandits, complete the "Sealed in Stone" quest first by clearing the bandits and helping the workers lift a large stone using the crane.
After the quarry is cleared, drop into the hole beneath the crane (to the west of where the relic was lifted) and follow the underground path to a crystalline wall.
Use Force Palm: Focus to destroy the wall and retrieve the missing Abyss Transporter stone. The Kuku Pot will automatically contain it.
Return to the broken Abyss Nexus on Howling Hill. Discard the Abyss Transporter from the Kuku Pot near the platform.
Grapple the stone with Axiom Force, place it flat on the empty slot, then jump and use mid-air Force Palm to slam it into place.
Step onto the completed platform to activate it as a permanent fast travel point to the Greymane Camp.
The Thinker's Meadow Abyss Nexus is the fast travel point near your homestead. Like the Howling Hill Nexus, it is missing its center Abyss Transporter stone and is overgrown with vines. The repair process uses the same abilities and tools (Kuku Pot, Force Palm: Focus, Axiom Force, and Blinding Flash) but the missing transporter stone is found in a different underground location near the meadow.
Step-by-step repair process:
Find the broken Abyss Nexus near your house in Thinker's Meadow. It is covered in thorny brush.
Use Blinding Flash's Concentrate Light to burn away the vines blocking the platform, or fire burning arrows at the brush.
Locate the missing Abyss Transporter stone in the underground cave accessible from the nearby area.
Use Force Palm: Focus to break through the crystalline wall blocking the stone.
Retrieve the stone (it will be sealed in your Kuku Pot) and return to the broken Nexus at Thinker's Meadow.
Discard the Abyss Transporter from the Kuku Pot, move it over the empty space using Axiom Force, then jump and use Force Palm to punch the disc into place.
Stand on the completed platform to activate the fast travel point next to your house.
Having a fast travel point at your homestead is extremely convenient for returning to your base after long exploration trips or story missions. Prioritize completing this repair as soon as you obtain the Kuku Pot and Force Palm: Focus in Chapter 4.
Normally, a swirling portal animation plays every time you use fast travel, which adds a few seconds to each teleport. However, if you are standing directly on top of an active fast travel point (an Abyss Nexus or Abyss Cresset) when you open the sky map and select a destination, the load is nearly instant and the portal animation is skipped entirely. This small optimization saves noticeable time when chaining multiple teleport hops across the map, especially during dispatch missions or region-hopping for resource runs.
Fast travel has several restrictions. If any of these conditions apply, the map will display a red marker that reads "Cannot teleport in current state."
Restriction | Details |
|---|---|
Active combat | Fast travel is disabled while you are engaged in combat. You must break enemy aggro and leave combat before teleporting. |
Playing as Damiane | Damiane can use ground-level Abyss Nexus and Abyss Cresset fast travel, but cannot teleport to Abyss sky islands. Switch to Kliff to access sky island fast travel. |
Mounted | You cannot fast travel while riding a mount. Dismount from your horse, bear, raptor, or other mount first. Pearl Abyss has announced plans to allow fast travel while mounted in a future update, but this feature is not yet available as of Patch 1.02. |
Swimming | The map cannot be opened while swimming, which prevents fast travel. |
Climbing or falling | Fast travel is disabled during climbing and falling. Come to a stop on solid ground first. Prior to Patch 1.02, sprinting also prevented fast travel, requiring you to stand perfectly still before teleporting to an Abyss Nexus. As of Patch 1.02, players can now initiate fast travel while sprinting. |
Story mission lock | Certain main story sequences and boss encounters temporarily disable fast travel until the scripted event is resolved. |
Unactivated points | You can only teleport to fast travel points you have already discovered and activated. There is no way to travel to an unvisited location. |
The active combat restriction is the most common frustration, since enemies in later areas can be dangerous and teleporting away is not an option while aggroed. One workaround is the Storm Veil skill, which lets you instantly disengage and sprint away from non-boss combat. Once you break line of sight and enemies lose aggro, you can open the map and fast travel normally. This does not work during boss encounters.
Crimson Desert features multiple playable characters that can be swapped during gameplay. The game tracks each character's location independently, which means switching to another character teleports you to wherever that character currently is. This creates an unofficial fast travel method:
Summon a companion using the Characters and Mounts Wheel Menu (hold Up on the D-pad, select the character, press X/A).
Gather the characters together by pressing Start/Options.
Disband the party. The companion character will disappear but remains near your current location.
Use regular fast travel or travel on foot to a distant location.
When you want to return to your earlier position, switch back to the companion character via the Characters and Mounts Wheel Menu. You will be teleported to wherever they were left standing.
This trick becomes available as soon as Damiane joins Kliff during an early story quest. It works well for quick trips such as shopping in town, donating materials to Greymane Camp, or restocking supplies. However, characters that are not being actively controlled will eventually begin to move on their own, following their normal routines, so this is best used for short detours rather than long-term positioning.
One of the most powerful fast travel techniques in the game takes advantage of the 40 sky island fast travel points in the Abyss. The Abyss islands are positioned high above specific regions of Pywel, so they can serve as aerial launch pads.
If you cannot find a ground-level Nexus or Cresset near your destination, open the sky layer of the map (R3 on controller, Mouse Wheel on PC) and look for a sky island that sits above your target area. Teleport to that island, walk to the edge, and jump off. Open the Crow's Wing glider to control your descent and aim for your destination on the ground below. This completely bypasses mountains, hostile armies, rivers, and every other surface-level obstacle. For reaching hard-to-access areas or cutting across rough terrain, skydiving from a sky island is genuinely faster than riding a horse.
For areas between fast travel points, or when you prefer to travel organically, Crimson Desert offers a wide range of traversal options. Crossing the entire map on horseback takes roughly two hours.
Method | Description |
|---|---|
Primary ground mounts available from early game. Feature a unique horse drifting mechanic for sharp turns at speed. Can be tamed in the wild or purchased from vendors. | |
Bears | Rideable bear mounts that can attack enemies independently while the player swings weapons from the saddle. |
Raptors | Fast dinosaur-like riding creatures suited for quick ground traversal across open terrain. |
Dragons | Airborne mounts capable of fire breath. Used in specific story encounters and available for late-game exploration. |
The Crow's Wing glider ability is granted early in the main story. Allows gliding from elevated positions. Drains stamina, and the wings disappear if stamina is fully depleted mid-flight. | |
Physics-based swinging with momentum. Can be chained with the Crow's Wing glider to cover large distances quickly. | |
Climbing | Scale almost any surface including buildings, cliffs, and even enemies. Consumes stamina. Useful for reaching elevated Abyss Nexus locations. |
Aerial transport for reaching specific locations. Constructed at the Greymane Camp after recruiting a Freesword with the Engineering skill. | |
Wagons | Ground vehicles for hauling goods and cargo across regions. |
Skiffs | Watercraft for traveling along rivers and waterways. |
Battle Mech | Late-game dwarven-engineered mount with jump jets and thrusters. Functions as both a combat vehicle and rapid transport. |
Ring all eight Bell Towers early. Clearing the fog of war reveals every Mysterious Energy zone on the map, making it far easier to plan routes and locate fast travel points.
Use Blinding Flash from high ground. Climb to hilltops, towers, or Spire-type structures before using Blinding Flash. The higher your vantage point, the further the ability can detect blue glints.
Activate fast travel points as you encounter them. Even if you do not need a particular Abyss Nexus right now, stepping on it takes only a few seconds and saves you a trip later.
Check the map filter tab. If fast travel icons are not appearing on your map, make sure you have the "All" or "Environment" tab selected instead of a filtered view.
Prioritize Abyss Cresset locations. These give both a fast travel point and an Abyss Artifact, which is used for character progression in the Abyss Tree. Double the reward for the extra effort of solving a puzzle.
Combine exploration with quest travel. When a quest sends you to a new area, take a short detour to check nearby Mysterious Energy markers. Building your fast travel network alongside story progression keeps you from needing dedicated collection runs later.
Use the character swap trick for quick errands. Leave a companion at your current exploration spot, fast travel to town for shopping or crafting, then swap back to return instantly.
Dismount before opening the map. Since fast travel is disabled while mounted, get in the habit of dismounting before pulling up the map to avoid the "Cannot teleport" error.
Repair the camp Abyss Nexus points early. As soon as you obtain the Kuku Pot and Force Palm: Focus in Chapter 4, repair the broken Nexus platforms at Howling Hill and Thinker's Meadow. Having fast travel at your home base saves considerable travel time throughout the rest of the game.
Skydive from sky islands to reach distant locations. When no ground-level fast travel point is close to your destination, teleport to a nearby Abyss island on the sky layer and glide down. This is often the fastest route across mountainous or river-heavy terrain.
Remember that only Kliff can fast travel to sky islands. Damiane can use ground-level Nexus and Cresset points normally, but sky island destinations require switching to Kliff.
Stand on a fast travel point before teleporting. Selecting a destination while standing on an Abyss Nexus or Cresset skips the portal animation for a nearly instant load.
Use Storm Veil to escape combat before teleporting. If stuck in a fight and needing to teleport, Storm Veil breaks aggro instantly so you can fast travel once enemies lose interest.
Patch 1.02: Fast travel to Abyss Nexuses no longer requires the player to be perfectly still. Players can now fast travel while sprinting. Pearl Abyss also announced plans to enable fast travel while mounted in a future patch.
Abyss Nexus (all Abyss Nexus locations)
Abyss Cresset Locations (all Abyss Cresset locations)
Abyss Island Puzzle Solutions (all 40 sky island puzzles)
Exploration and Traversal (overview of movement and traversal options)
Mounts (all rideable creatures)
Gliding (Crow's Wing glider ability)
Fog of War and Map Discovery (Bell Towers and map reveal)
Abyss Artifacts Farming Guide (all Abyss Artifact sources)
Regions of Pywel (overview of the five regions)
Blinding Flash (ability details and controls)
Sky Islands (floating islands in the Abyss)
