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Myurdin
March 6, 2026 at 03:40 PM
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Myurdin is the leader of the Drunken Black Bears and the primary antagonist of Crimson Desert. He orchestrated the devastating ambush on the Greymanes at Pailune, scattering or killing most of the group and setting the events of the main story into motion. The attack left protagonist Kliff MacDuff for dead and forced the surviving Greymanes to scatter across Pywel as refugees. Myurdin is described as bold, brash, and ruthless, a warrior who charges at opponents "much like a large bear."
Myurdin is voiced by Alastair Parker, known for his roles as Blackwall in Dragon Age: Inquisition, Nergal Meslamstea in Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2, and Commander Torsten in GreedFall. Three members of Crimson Desert's voice cast (Alec Newman as Kliff, Peter Bramhill as Yann, and Alastair Parker as Myurdin) have all previously worked on Dragon Age titles.
Attribute | Detail |
|---|---|
Full Name | Myurdin |
Faction | Drunken Black Bears (leader) |
Role | Primary antagonist |
Voice Actor | Alastair Parker |
Fighting Style | Brutal melee combat with bladed weapons; charges like a bear |
Name Origin | Derived from the Welsh figure Myrddin Wyllt, later adapted as the Arthurian wizard Merlin |
The Black Bears are characterized as bearskin-clad warriors with a Norse berserker-inspired aesthetic. Press previews describe them as "effectively barbarians" in contrast to the more structured military organization of other factions. Myurdin himself fights with bladed weapons and uses a brutal, aggressive combat style. Multiple preview accounts describe him stabbing and overwhelming opponents with direct, heavy strikes. One preview described his approach as that of "a ruthless warrior who charges at you much like a large bear in combat," consistent with the faction's bear-themed identity.
The attack on Pailune is the inciting incident of Crimson Desert's narrative and serves as the game's opening sequence. The events unfold in a specific order documented across multiple hands-on previews.
The game opens with Kliff observing a burial mound in a somber scene described by reviewers as a "Game of Thrones-esque mourning of a fallen Greymane battle brother." This moment of grief is shattered when the Black Bears launch a surprise assault in the deep of night. A chaotic battle breaks out between the Greymanes and the Black Bears, and this firelit battle serves as the game's combat tutorial, teaching players the basics of parrying and sword combat under pressure.
The Greymanes are overwhelmed. The official Steam description states: "The Greymanes fall one by one in their clash against the Black Bears." The attack is connected to the death of Gian, the leader who had unified Pailune and maintained peace. One source of in-game narration reads: "Gian has fallen, and with the great leader's death, our land, Pailune, once unified, has been plunged into chaos. And now a bloody battle unfolds, between the Greymanes who fight to uphold his will, and the Black Bear forces that seek to set it aflame."
The tutorial battle culminates in a direct confrontation between Kliff and Myurdin, which functions as the game's first boss fight.
Myurdin is the first boss encounter in Crimson Desert. His health bar is red from the start, indicating a single-phase fight (in the game's boss system, blue indicates phase one, green phase two, and red the final and most dangerous phase). The encounter is designed as part of the opening tutorial sequence.
Despite the player being able to deplete Myurdin's health bar through gameplay, the fight ends in a scripted defeat. After the gameplay portion concludes, a cutscene shows Myurdin overpowering Kliff regardless of the player's performance. Kliff is stabbed, shot, and has his throat slashed before being thrown off a cliff into the water below. The title card appears as Kliff falls.
Left for dead in the water, Kliff is resurrected at the Corridor of the Void, described as "a stone and marble structure in some skybound place" connected to the Abyss. This resurrection grants Kliff supernatural abilities including telekinesis and the Crow's Wing glider. After his resurrection, Kliff is fished out of the water by a kindly cartographer and set loose in the Duchy of Hernand, where the open-world portion of the game begins.
The official Steam description captures Kliff's resolve: "Etching the names of his fallen companions into his heart, [Kliff] vows to rebuild the Greymanes and exact vengeance upon the Black Bears." The enmity with Myurdin is one of the core conflict elements that runs throughout the game.
The Black Bears, formally known as the Drunken Black Bears, do not share the vision of peace that Gian held for Pailune. Multiple sources describe them as seeking "to destroy any attempts at peace" and to seize control through brute force. After the ambush, Pailune falls entirely into the Black Bears' hands. The Greymane Camp in Hernand serves as "a refugee site of the Greymanes after Pailune was invaded and taken over by the Black Bears."
The Black Bears' aggression operates within a broader continental power vacuum. The King of Demeniss, the Unifier of Lands, lies in a coma, creating instability across Pywel. Multiple factions exploit this weakness: "Some seek only independence, but others dream of gaining their own absolutist rule." Myurdin and the Black Bears represent the most immediate and violent threat, but they are part of a larger web of competing powers.
The Abyss is a mysterious series of floating islands above Pywel, full of sorcery and magic. CGMagazine reported that "The Abyss is not inherently evil, but the people, including the villainous Black Bear forces, who use its power for chaos, corrupt its pull over the broader world." This confirms that the Black Bears under Myurdin's leadership exploit Abyss power, though the specific ways Myurdin personally wields supernatural abilities have not been detailed in pre-launch coverage.
One confirmed ally of the Black Bears is Cassius Morten, who appears in a later region. Pearl Abyss described him as "once a loyal officer to Marquis Stefan Lanford of Calphade, [who] has betrayed him and allied with the Drunken Black Bears in a violent rebellion." Kliff's search for his scattered Greymane comrades leads him to the war-torn region of Calphade, where Cassius Morten's rebellion, backed by the Black Bears, is under way. Cassius Morten is also a boss fight encountered during this questline.
The name "Myurdin" is derived from Myrddin Wyllt, a figure from Welsh medieval legend who was later adapted into the Arthurian wizard Merlin. This Celtic connection is consistent with Crimson Desert's broader use of Welsh, Scottish, and Celtic cultural influences. Kliff's surname "MacDuff" is Scottish. The world name "Pywel" also has Welsh styling, potentially drawing from the mythical Welsh figure Pwyll or the Welsh word pwyll meaning "sense, discretion, reason."
The Black Bear Forces for Myurdin's faction, military organization, and occupied territories
Kliff MacDuff for the protagonist's journey to rebuild the Greymanes and confront Myurdin
The Greymanes for the faction scattered by Myurdin's ambush
Pailune for the homeland lost to the Black Bears
Boss Battles for the game's boss fight system and health bar phases
