Overview
Committing crimes in Crimson Desert puts a price on your head. Whether you accidentally punched a guard or cleaned out a merchant stall, the bounty system tracks every offense and applies escalating consequences. This guide explains exactly how to pay off fines and clear bounties so you can move freely through Pywel's towns and cities again.
The quickest method is to visit a Confessional at any church and purchase a Writ of Absolution. The alternative is to let guards arrest you and serve jail time, which clears the bounty automatically but costs extra Contribution. Both options are covered in detail below.
How the Wanted System Works
When you commit a crime, two things happen immediately. First, you lose Contribution in that region regardless of whether anyone sees you. Second, a red search radius appears on your minimap centered on your position. What happens next depends on whether witnesses spot you inside that zone.
The wanted system progresses through three stages. Escaping early keeps the consequences minimal, while lingering or committing additional crimes pushes you into more dangerous territory.
Stage | What Happens | How to Escape |
|---|---|---|
Spotted | A red circle appears on your minimap. NPCs in the area may notice you. You have a brief window to leave before anyone reports the crime. | Sprint out of the red circle before the detection timer fills up. If no one reports you, the search ends and no bounty is applied. |
Searching | Eyewitnesses have reported you. Guards become alert and begin sweeping the area. A bounty is placed on your head and your Bounty Notice appears in the top-right corner of the HUD. | Leave the search area and break line of sight with guards. The active pursuit ends after you leave the zone, but the bounty remains on your record until paid or cleared. |
Arresting | Guards have spotted you directly. They turn hostile and charge at you, attempting to tackle Kliff to the ground. If a guard connects, a quick-time event triggers. | Fight off the guards or pass the QTE to kick them off. If you fail the QTE, Kliff is knocked unconscious and arrested. |
During the Arresting stage, if a guard tackles Kliff to the ground, you get a few seconds to hit the correct button prompts. Succeed and you shake free. Fail and you black out, wake up in a jail cell, and your bounty is forcibly deducted from your wallet.
Method 1: Buy a Writ of Absolution
The cleanest way to clear a bounty is to visit a Confessional inside any church in Pywel. Speak with the church representative and select "Buy Writ of Absolution" from the menu. The interface shows all your active bounties across every region. Select the one you want to pay off, confirm the cost, and your record is wiped clean.
The cost of the Writ equals the total bounty you have accumulated in that region. Minor crimes like theft add around 5 Copper to the bounty, while serious offenses like assault add 5 Silver or more. Each additional crime stacks on top of the existing amount. The maximum bounty cap is 100 Silver, so even a prolonged crime spree will not cost more than that.
You can pay off bounties from any region at any Confessional. You do not need to travel back to the region where the crime was committed. The cost is the same regardless of which church you visit.
If you do not have enough coins to pay the fine, visit a nearby vendor and sell unwanted items from your inventory before returning to the Confessional. You cannot purchase a partial Writ; the full amount must be paid in one transaction.
Church and Confessional Locations
Every major region in Pywel has at least one church with a Confessional. Churches are marked on the map with a yellow sun icon on an orange background. Below are the known locations:
Region | Location | Notes |
|---|---|---|
Church of Solumen, southeast of Hernand Castle | Available early in the game. A fast-travel point sits nearby, making this the most convenient option for most of the story. | |
Cathedral of Demeniss, near the southern wall of Demeniss City | A large, hard-to-miss building. Accessible once you reach Demeniss through the main story. | |
Pailune Confessional, central Pailune City | Not a full church building. It is a small stand in the city center where a church representative operates. | |
Delesyia Church, next to the castle in the City of Delesyia | Located beside the large castle at the heart of the city. |
Important: Some churches are not accessible until you progress far enough in the main story. If you pick up a bounty in a region whose church is still locked, you will need to either travel to another region's church to pay it off, or let guards arrest you to clear it through jail time.
Method 2: Getting Arrested and Serving Jail Time
If you cannot afford the fine or prefer not to spend the coins, you can let the guards catch you. When guards take Kliff down (either through the tackle QTE or by defeating you in combat), the screen fades to black and you wake up in a wooden holding cell.
Serving your sentence clears the bounty in that region automatically. Your wanted status resets to zero and guards stop pursuing you. However, this method comes with extra penalties:
Bounty deduction: The bounty amount is still deducted from your wallet upon release. You do not avoid paying; the coins are taken from you while you are imprisoned.
Additional Contribution loss: On top of the Contribution you already lost from committing the crimes, getting arrested costs even more Contribution EXP. This stacks with the original penalties and can push your regional standing into negative territory.
Time skip: The game advances time while you serve your sentence. Depending on the severity of your crimes, you lose in-game time.
Because of the extra Contribution EXP loss, getting arrested is almost always worse than paying at a Confessional. The jail route is only preferable when you genuinely cannot scrape together the coins and have no items left to sell.
Method 3: Evading Detection
For minor crimes like a botched pickpocket attempt or light vandalism, you can sometimes avoid a formal bounty entirely. When the red search circle appears on your minimap, sprint out of the zone and hide. If no eyewitness reports the crime before the detection timer expires, the search ends without a bounty being issued.
This does not work if you are already in the Searching or Arresting stage. Once a bounty has been placed, it stays on your record until you either pay it off or serve jail time. Evading guards after a bounty is active only delays the consequences; the bounty does not decay over time.
Using Stealth mechanics and committing crimes in isolated areas with no nearby NPCs significantly reduces the chance of being spotted in the first place.
Bounty Costs by Crime Type
Each criminal action adds to your running bounty total. The more severe the offense, the larger the increase. Below is a summary of how different crimes affect your bounty and Contribution:
Crime | Bounty Increase | Contribution Penalty |
|---|---|---|
Pickpocketing | Small (around 5 Copper) | -5 Contribution EXP |
Theft (containers, stalls) | Small (around 5 Copper) | -5 Contribution EXP |
Vandalism | Minor bounty if caught | Minor penalty |
Bullying / Intimidation | Moderate | Moderate penalty |
Assault | +5 Silver on top of existing bounty | -30 Contribution EXP |
Murder | Large increase; escalates rapidly | -30 Contribution EXP or more |
Bounties are region-specific. Committing crimes in Hernand does not affect your standing in Demeniss or any other region. Your map marks regions where you have active bounties, making it easy to track where you still owe fines.
The maximum bounty in any single region is capped at 100 Silver. Even if you go on an extended rampage, the fine will not exceed that amount.
Consequences of Ignoring Your Bounty
Leaving a bounty unpaid has real gameplay effects that get worse the higher the amount climbs:
Guard hostility: At low bounties, guards keep a closer eye on you but do not attack. As the bounty grows, guards become outright hostile and attack on sight. At high bounties, dozens of heavily armed guards converge simultaneously, making open combat extremely dangerous.
NPC restrictions: Merchants may refuse to trade with you. Quest givers may not offer missions. NPCs can flee or call for guards when you approach. An entire town can become effectively off-limits.
Vendor price increases: Lower regional Contribution (caused by unpaid crime penalties) raises vendor prices and limits access to services.
Lost quest access: Some side quests and faction quests are locked behind minimum Contribution thresholds. A crime-damaged reputation can block these until rebuilt.
Tips for Managing Fines and Bounties
Pay immediately after a crime. The cheapest time to clear a bounty is right after the offense, before additional crimes stack more Silver on top. Visit the nearest church before things escalate.
Keep coins in reserve. If you plan to experiment with crime, set aside at least 10 to 20 Silver so you can always afford a Writ of Absolution without selling gear.
Steal in isolation. The Contribution penalty from theft is unavoidable, but the bounty only triggers if a witness spots you inside the red search zone. Commit crimes when no NPCs are nearby and the search will expire harmlessly.
Use a mask. A criminal mask is required for theft and pickpocketing. You can buy one from the Back Alley Shop near the Church of Hernand for 10 Copper, earn one from the Jeffrey bounty quest in Chapter 2, or loot one from defeated bandits. Remove the mask when not actively committing crimes to avoid accidental suspicion.
Avoid assault and murder. Violence generates far higher bounties and Contribution penalties than theft. A single assault adds 5 Silver and costs 30 Contribution EXP, which takes significant effort to rebuild.
Never fight guards head-on. The guard response is designed to be overwhelming. Dozens of armed guards swarm at once, making a straight fight almost impossible. Run, pay the fine, or surrender.
Check your map for active bounties. Regions with outstanding bounties are highlighted on the world map. Clear them before traveling through those areas to avoid unexpected guard encounters.
Save before experimenting. If you want to test the crime system without lasting consequences, save your game first. You can always reload if the penalties are steeper than expected.
Related Articles
Law System - Full breakdown of crime detection, guard behavior, and the wanted system
How to Steal Items - Guide to theft mechanics, masks, containers, and pickpocketing
Contribution System - How regional reputation works and how to rebuild it after crimes
Stealth - Using stealth to avoid detection while committing crimes
Above the Law Challenges - Crime-related challenges and rewards
Church of Solumen - The primary church in Hernand