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How to Get Behind Waterfalls
April 8, 2026 at 02:31 PM
Convert partial-term wikilinks to full-term wikilinks (5 merges)
Scattered across the continent of Pywel are dozens of waterfalls concealing hidden caves behind their flowing water. These locations, known as waterside caves, are one of the most rewarding types of secret areas in Crimson Desert. There are 43 waterside caves to discover in total, each containing treasure chests with equipment, Palmar Pills, and other valuable items. Walking straight into a waterfall will knock Kliff back and deal damage, so entering them requires a specific combat technique.
You cannot walk through waterfalls normally. Attempting to do so will push Kliff backwards and cause damage. Instead, you need to use the Stab skill to pierce through the water and step into the cave behind it.
The Stab attack is performed with the following inputs depending on your platform:
Platform | Input |
|---|---|
PlayStation 5 | R1 + Triangle |
Xbox | RB + Y |
PC (Keyboard + Mouse) | Left Shift + Right Click |
Stand directly in front of the waterfall and perform the Stab. Kliff will thrust forward through the water and enter the cave. The Stab costs 40 Stamina per use, so make sure you have enough before attempting it.
The Stab is part of the Blue Skill Tree, which covers Stamina-based combat abilities. It is one of the earliest skills available and is already unlocked when you begin the game. If for some reason it is not available, you can acquire it through the Skill Acquisition system by observing certain enemies or by spending a Skill Point in the Blue tree. The Stab can be upgraded up to level 3, though any level is sufficient for entering waterfalls.
Not every waterfall in the game hides a cave. Only waterfalls that meet specific visual criteria have an interior you can access. Look for the following signs:
Stacked stones: A small pile or cairn of stacked rocks sits on the platform directly in front of the waterfall. This is the most reliable indicator that a waterside cave exists behind the water.
Flat platform: There is a walkable ledge or platform at the base of the waterfall where Kliff can stand and face the water wall.
Narrow opening: Accessible waterfalls tend to have a distinct, narrow stream of falling water rather than a wide cascade.
If you attempt to Stab through a waterfall and Kliff bounces off or the attack does not pass through, there is no cave behind it. Move on and look for another waterfall with the stacked stones marker.
Waterside caves are compact spaces, but they always contain useful loot. Every cave features at least one treasure chest along with loose items scattered around the interior. The types of rewards you can expect include:
Reward Type | Details |
|---|---|
Healing consumables used for revival. Found loose on the ground inside most caves. | |
Golden Palmar Pills | Rare variant that restores 100% of your health upon revival. Occasionally found in waterside caves instead of regular pills. |
Treasure Chests | Each cave contains at least one chest. These can drop weapons, armor pieces, and other equipment upgrades. |
Swords, bows, daggers, and other weapon types may appear in chests. Quality varies by region and story progression. | |
Body armor, headgear, cloaks, gloves, and footwear can all drop from waterside cave chests. | |
Some caves contain loose gathering nodes or material drops near the chest. |
The quality of equipment found in waterside caves generally scales with the difficulty of the region you are exploring. Caves in later areas like Delesyia tend to offer stronger gear than those near Hernand.
While there are 43 waterside caves spread across every region of Pywel, several stand out for their accessibility or the quality of their rewards.
Located directly north of the main Hernand gates, the Weeping Waterfall is one of the first waterside caves most players encounter. Follow the riverbed north from the city entrance until you reach the waterfall at the end. Walk through it (using the Stab technique) to enter a hidden grotto containing an Ancient Obelisk. Interacting with the Obelisk grants Kliff one full Skill Point, making this one of the most valuable early-game discoveries. This is an easy detour to take right after arriving in Hernand for the first time.
The area surrounding Hernand has the highest concentration of accessible waterside caves early in the game. Several waterfalls line the rivers and streams running through the forests north and east of the city. Keep an eye on the minimap for water features and follow streams to their source to find waterfalls with stacked stone markers. The loot in Hernand-area caves is suitable for early progression, typically containing entry-level weapons and standard Palmar Pills.
As you progress into Pailune and Demeniss, the waterside caves become slightly harder to find but offer better rewards. The mountainous terrain in these regions means waterfalls often appear at the base of cliffs or along elevated river paths. Equipment dropped from chests in these areas is noticeably stronger, and Golden Palmar Pills appear more frequently.
The Delesyia region, accessible later in the story, contains some of the most tucked-away waterside caves. These tend to be off the beaten path and require deliberate exploration to locate. The gear found inside is among the best available from waterside caves, making them worth seeking out before tackling late-game bosses.
Once inside a waterside cave, you have two options for leaving:
Fast travel: Open the map and fast travel to any unlocked Abyss Nexus point. This is the quickest method if you are finished exploring the area.
Stab back through: Face the waterfall from inside the cave and perform the Stab attack again. This will push Kliff back through the water to the outside ledge.
Follow rivers and streams. Waterside caves are always located at the base of waterfalls, so tracing a river upstream is one of the most reliable ways to find them.
Look for the stacked stone cairn before wasting Stamina on a Stab. If there are no stones on the platform in front of the waterfall, there is no cave behind it.
Save your Golden Palmar Pills for multi-phase boss fights. Hold off on using them until the final phase so you do not have to restart the entire encounter.
Waterside caves count toward map completion and the Collectibles tracker. Check your progress in the Knowledge System to see how many you have found.
If you are bounced back by a waterfall, that waterfall does not have a cave. Do not keep trying the same one.
Revisit earlier regions after progressing through the story. Some waterside caves in early areas may have been easy to miss, and the Palmar Pills inside are always useful regardless of when you collect them.
The Stab only costs 40 Stamina, so even at low levels it is easy to perform. There is no minimum level or gear requirement for entering waterside caves.
