Playable Characters

Overview

Crimson Desert features three playable characters, each with a distinct combat archetype, weapon loadout, and traversal method. Players unlock all three through the main campaign and can freely switch between them during open-world exploration. There is no class system or character creator. All three characters have fixed identities, though their appearance can be modified through hairstyles, hair color, tattoos, and dyed equipment.

Kliff is the primary protagonist and the only character who can advance the main story. Damiane and Oongka become available at specific story milestones and can be used for side content, boss battles, and free-roam exploration. The switching system works similarly to the character swap mechanic in Grand Theft Auto V, allowing seamless transitions.

Each character maintains an independent set of equipment, skills, and Abyss Artifacts. Progress made on one character does not carry over to the others, which gives players reason to invest in all three.

Character Comparison

Kliff

Kliff is the main protagonist and leader of the Greymanes, a ragtag mercenary band trying to survive after a brutal attack by the Black Bears. He lost most of his family during that assault and now carries the weight of keeping his remaining companions alive. The King of Demeniss has fallen into obscurity, leaving a power vacuum across Pywel that Kliff must navigate.

Combat Style

Kliff is the most versatile character, with access to the widest selection of weapons. He handles like a classic action-adventure hero, combining frontline sword-and-shield work with ranged bow shots and wrestling-style grapples. His Axiom Bracelet grants elemental enhancements (fire, ice, lightning) that can be layered onto melee and ranged attacks. Kliff can switch between equipped weapons in real time without breaking his combo chain.

Key Abilities

For a complete profile including backstory, companion relationships, and build recommendations, see the Kliff article.

Voice actor: Alec Newman, known for his roles in Still Wakes the Deep, Cyberpunk 2077 (Adam Smasher), Dying Light 2, Elden Ring, and Dragon Age II (Sebastian Vael).

Damiane

Damiane is a swift, aggressive warrior who joins the Greymanes later in the story. She is the only female protagonist and brings a ranged-melee hybrid playstyle that emphasizes speed, aerial combat, and precision strikes. Damiane is widely considered the hardest of the three characters to master, rewarding players who favor high-risk, high-reward gameplay.

Combat Style

Damiane's melee arsenal consists of a two-handed claymore for devastating sweeping attacks and a rapier paired with a small buckler for faster, more precise strikes. The claymore moveset is surprisingly quick for its size, chaining horizontal slashes into thrust attacks. The rapier deals less damage per swing but attacks significantly faster, and the buckler enables quick parries that open enemies to ripostes.

For ranged combat, she carries a flintlock pistol for mid-range shots and a musket for longer-range engagements. The musket deals high damage after a short charge delay. Damiane can weave gunshots into her melee combos, firing the pistol between sword swings for a fluid combat rhythm.

Key Abilities

For a complete profile including backstory and build recommendations, see the Damiane article. A dedicated build guide is available at Build Guide: Damiane.

Voice actor: Rebecca Hanssen, known for Eve in Stellar Blade, Alfira in Baldur's Gate 3, and Queen Meve in The Witcher Netflix series.

Oongka

Oongka is a hulking orc and one of Kliff's most steadfast Greymane companions. He survived the Black Bear attack and plays a central role in the group's efforts to reunite and rebuild. Oongka is the most beginner-friendly character, with straightforward combos that deal massive area-of-effect damage.

Combat Style

Oongka's primary weapon is a two-handed greataxe that delivers devastating 360-degree spinning attacks effective against groups of enemies. These spins chain into follow-up slams that stagger everything in range. His secondary weapon is a large hammer with a charge-up swing that sends multiple enemies flying and can knock them into each other for bonus collision damage.

For ranged combat, Oongka uses a wrist-mounted crossbow that fires incendiary bolts. He can also fight bare-handed, using punches and kicks for close-range situations when enemies get inside his weapon range. His aerial slam launches him into the air with the greataxe before crashing down, creating a shockwave that damages and staggers surrounding enemies.

Key Abilities

For a complete profile including backstory and build recommendations, see the Oongka article. A dedicated build guide is available at Build Guide: Oongka.

Voice actor: Stewart Scudamore, known for Blackthorne in Final Fantasy XVI, Calgar in Warhammer 40,000: Space Marine 2, and Klaus in Lies of P.

Character Switching

Damiane and Oongka unlock at specific milestones in the main campaign. Once unlocked, players can freely swap between all three characters at almost any time during open-world gameplay. The switching is instant, with a brief camera transition similar to GTA V's character swap.

However, the main story can only be progressed while playing as Kliff. Damiane and Oongka are available for open-world exploration, side quests, boss battles, and all non-story activities. For detailed mechanics, see the Character Switching article.

Progression System

Crimson Desert does not use a traditional experience point or level-up system. Instead, each character progresses through a combination of better equipment, discovered skills, and Abyss Artifacts. Each character has their own independent skill tree with active and passive abilities organized across multiple branches. Skills are unlocked by spending Abyss Artifacts found through exploration, quest completion, and boss encounters.

Kliff has access to a unique mechanic called Observation Learning, where he can acquire new combat skills by watching NPCs and enemies perform them. After observing a move, he can spend an Abyss Artifact to permanently add it to his skill tree. Damiane and Oongka unlock abilities through the standard artifact system. For details on the full progression loop, see the Progression System article.

Customization

While all three characters have fixed identities and faces, their appearance can be adjusted in several ways. The Barber Shop and Dyehouse at the Greymane Camp allows changes to hairstyle, hair color, and tattoos. Equipment can be dyed at the Dyehouse, with each armor piece offering multiple dyeable layers (main surface, cloth details, accent trim). Dyes are found through exploration or crafted via alchemy. All customization is purely cosmetic with no gameplay effect.

Key Supporting Characters

Several non-playable characters within the Greymanes feature prominently in the story and have their own combat capabilities during scripted sequences.

For a full roster of named characters, see Notable NPCs and Companions.

Difficulty Comparison

The three characters offer noticeably different difficulty curves. Oongka is the most beginner-friendly thanks to easy-to-learn AoE combos, high health, and forgiving dodge timing. Kliff sits in the middle with balanced offense and defense, plus the widest weapon variety to adapt to any situation. Damiane is the hardest to master. Her glass-cannon design means she deals exceptional damage but can be downed quickly if players mistime her quick-step dodges. Her playstyle rewards aggressive players who can maintain combo chains while managing positioning.

For combat strategy advice for each character, see Combat Tips and the individual build guides: Build Guide: Kliff, Build Guide: Damiane, and Build Guide: Oongka.