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Skill Tree Guide
March 26, 2026 at 08:55 AM
Embed images: added 1 topic-specific image
The skill tree in Crimson Desert replaces traditional experience-based leveling with a currency called Abyss Artifacts. Every combat ability, stat upgrade, and traversal skill in the game is unlocked by spending these artifacts on nodes in a large triangular skill tree. Because Abyss Artifacts are finite (though farmable), the order in which you spend them has a major impact on your effectiveness in combat, exploration, and puzzle-solving.
This guide explains how the skill tree is structured, where to find Abyss Artifacts, which skills to prioritize in the early and mid game, and how to reset your choices if you change your mind. Whether you are just starting out or looking to optimize a second playthrough, the information here will help you spend your skill points wisely.
The skill tree is organized into three color-coded branches arranged in a triangle. Each branch contains a mix of passive stat boosts (represented by large diamond-shaped nodes) and active combat abilities. The three branches are:
Branch | Color | Max Level | Focus |
|---|---|---|---|
Stamina | Blue | 16 | Physical combat, archery, wrestling, grappling, and raw athleticism |
Spirit | Green | 14 | Nature-attuned abilities, defensive tools, Keen Senses, Focus, and ranged spirit skills |
Health | Red | 18 | Axiom Bracelet powers, elemental attacks, Flight, and Axiom Force |
Each playable character has a separate skill tree of similar scope. Kliff has 24 skills across his three branches, each upgradable multiple times. Damiane and Oongka have their own full-sized trees that unlock independently. Skill points spent on one character do not affect the others, but resetting one character's tree will reset all three simultaneously.
At the center of the triangle, where all three branches converge, sits a capstone skill called Falling Palm. This powerful ground slam can only be unlocked after fully completing one of the three branches. Reaching it requires heavy investment in a single direction, so most players will not see Falling Palm until the late game or post-game.
The Stamina branch governs your physical combat toolkit. It contains weapon proficiency skills like Armed Combat, Forward Slash, Turning Slash, and Evasive Slash, along with archery abilities and unarmed techniques. Stamina itself is the stat that fuels sprinting, dodging, climbing, attacking, and staying airborne, making it the single most important resource for both combat and exploration.
Key skills in the Stamina branch include Armed Combat (your bread-and-butter melee combo system), Sword Flurry (a spinning leap attack), and various proficiency upgrades that extend combo strings for Forward Slash and Turning Slash. Archery skills like Focus Shot also branch off from this tree, giving you ranged options against flying enemies and distant targets.
The Spirit branch focuses on supernatural defensive and utility abilities. Spirit is consumed when using special skills, and this branch contains some of the most powerful tools for surviving difficult encounters. Keen Senses is the centerpiece: at level 2 it grants Perfect Dodge (which slows time on a well-timed evade), and at level 3 it unlocks a Counter ability. Focus is equally important, as reaching level 3 grants Focused Insight, which slows time, regenerates spirit for free, and makes parries much easier to land.
Other notable Spirit skills include Nature's Snare (a wind barrier that blocks incoming projectiles and absorbs spell energy), Nature's Echo (phantom clones that distract enemies), and Focus Shot (a volley of arrows that marks multiple targets and builds stun damage against flying enemies).
The Health branch is built around the Axiom Bracelet and its supernatural powers. It contains the Health stat (upgradable to level 18), Axiom Force (a grappling ability essential for traversal and puzzle-solving), Flight (which unlocks after a story event and can be upgraded with Swift Flight for air sprinting), and elemental attacks like Fist of Flame and Imbue Elements. This branch also contains Veil of Fog, a smoke-screen escape tool.
The Health branch reaches the deepest level of any tree (level 18), but it is also the smallest in terms of total unique skills. Most of its depth comes from the many stat levels for Health itself and the elemental infusion system, which requires significant investment before it becomes a reliable DPS source.
Abyss Artifacts serve as skill points in Crimson Desert. Unlike traditional RPGs where you earn experience and level up, here you collect discrete artifacts from multiple sources scattered across Pywel. Some sources are one-time pickups, while others are repeatable. Understanding all the sources will help you maximize your skill point income.
Source | Description | Repeatable? |
|---|---|---|
Abyss Challenges | Floating island puzzles in the Abyss. Each path contains multiple cresset puzzles, and solving each one awards an Abyss Artifact plus a fast travel point. | No (one per puzzle) |
Secret Places / Cressets | Hidden cresset pillars found in the overworld. Activating one grants a skill point and unlocks a fast travel location. | No (one per cresset) |
Ancient Ruins | Environmental puzzles (e.g., Dragon's Stone puzzles) that, once solved, reveal a cresset. The cresset then awards the artifact. | No (one per ruin) |
Sealed Abyss Artifacts | Purple cube icons on the minimap, found at shrines and crossroads on main roads. Picking one up triggers a timed challenge (weapon challenge, combat challenge, or life challenge). Complete the challenge and convert the sealed artifact in your inventory to receive a usable Abyss Artifact. | No (one per seal) |
Artifact Gauge | A curved yellow bar displayed near the minimap at the bottom left of the screen. It fills gradually as you deal and receive combat damage. When the bar is full, you earn a free Abyss Artifact and the gauge resets. | Yes (infinite) |
Witch Vendors | Certain Witch merchants sell a small number of Abyss Artifacts for silver. | Limited stock |
Faction Quests | Grey main faction quests like Embers of Return award Abyss Artifacts as completion rewards. A single playthrough of these quests can yield roughly 10 artifacts in about 30 minutes. | No (one per quest) |
Main Story Quests | Several main story quests and certain side quests reward an Abyss Artifact upon completion. | No (one per quest) |
Of these sources, the Artifact Gauge is the only truly unlimited one. Everything else is a finite pickup or a one-time quest reward. However, between all the cressets, sealed artifacts, abyss puzzles, vendor sales, and quest rewards spread across Pywel, there are more than enough skill points to unlock every critical skill and still have leftovers to invest in stat boosts.
Abyss Artifacts are scarce in the early game, so spending them wisely is essential. The following priority list reflects a balanced approach that maximizes survivability, mobility, and damage output as you progress through the story. This order assumes you are playing as Kliff, the primary character for most of the game.
Priority | Skill | Branch | Why It Matters |
|---|---|---|---|
1 | Stamina to 200 | Blue | Your absolute first priority. Stamina governs sprinting, dodging, climbing, attacking, and flying. Check your current value on the Infantry screen. You need 200 minimum to unlock Aerial Maneuver. |
2 | Axiom Force > Aerial Maneuver | Red | Upgrade Axiom Force to level 2 to unlock Aerial Maneuver. Requires 200 stamina to use. This single skill transforms exploration: you can grapple across chasms, reach high ledges, navigate Abyss puzzles, and cover ground faster than any mount. It is a genuine game-changer. |
3 | Flight > Swift Flight | Red | Flight itself is unlocked through the Traces main quest (White Crow gives you the crow cloak). After that, invest in Swift Flight to sprint while airborne. This dramatically improves exploration range and makes reaching distant cressets and Abyss islands much easier. |
4 | Keen Senses to Level 2 | Green | Level 2 grants Perfect Dodge, which slows time on a well-timed evade. This is your primary defensive tool if you are not using a shield. It opens a window for free counterattacks and makes even the toughest bosses manageable. |
5 | Focus to Level 3 | Green | Level 3 unlocks Focused Insight: time slows down, spirit regenerates for free, and parrying becomes nearly effortless. Extremely valuable against aggressive bosses and large mob groups. |
6 | Blinding Flash Finisher | Green | After blinding an enemy, hold heavy attack to unleash a rapid multi-hit combo while time slows. Delivers roughly 6 heavy attacks in seconds and Kliff auto-dashes between enemies. The best early DPS skill by a wide margin. It bypasses the need for attack speed upgrades and remains dominant well into the late game. |
7 | Nature's Snare | Green | Creates a wind barrier that blocks incoming projectiles and absorbs spell energy. Outstanding against ranged bosses, archers, and spellcasters. The absorbed energy can be discharged as a focused shot for bonus damage. |
8 | Focus Shot | Blue | Fires a volley of arrows that mark and hit multiple targets. Excellent against flying enemies, builds stun quickly, and provides a reliable ranged option when melee is unsafe. |
9 | Forward Slash Proficiency | Blue | Adds an extra attack at the end of the Forward Slash combo chain. A straightforward damage increase for your most-used melee string. |
10 | Turning Slash Proficiency | Blue | Lets you combo into a fast Turning Slash from other attacks. Adds a powerful spinning downward strike that blows enemies away, useful for crowd control. |
11 | Red | Sends energy along your Axiom Force grapple line, causing a remote explosion with the same effect as Force Palm. Essential for solving Abyss puzzles that require pushing blocks or activating switches from a distance. | |
12 | Health Upgrades (Level 2-4) | Red | Additional health makes boss fights more forgiving. Levels 2 through 4 are relatively cheap and provide a meaningful survivability buffer. Delay further health investment until the core combat skills above are covered. |
13 | Spirit Upgrades | Green | Extra spirit becomes more relevant in the mid-to-late game when elemental DPS and spirit-heavy abilities like Blinding Flash Finisher start consuming large amounts per use. Invest here once your core mobility and defense are set. |
This priority order balances mobility, defense, and offense. Stamina comes first because it gates Aerial Maneuver and affects virtually every action you take. Keen Senses and Focus come next because surviving hits is more important than dealing damage in the early game. Blinding Flash Finisher then gives you a massive burst damage option that carries through most of the story.
When upgrading Axiom Force, you will eventually have the choice between two sub-skills: Aerial Maneuver (unlocked at Axiom Force level 2) and Aerial Swing (unlocked at Axiom Force level 3). These serve different purposes and have very different stamina costs.
Skill | Requirement | Effect | Stamina Cost |
|---|---|---|---|
Aerial Maneuver | 200 Stamina | Instantly leap across long distances using Axiom Force. Works as a mid-air dash that covers gaps, reaches high platforms, and makes Abyss navigation trivial. | Moderate |
Aerial Swing | Very high Stamina | Swing like a pendulum using Axiom Force and launch with momentum. Covers large distances but drains nearly all stamina on use. | Extreme |
Recommendation: Always get Aerial Maneuver first. It requires only 200 stamina (achievable by mid-game) and completely transforms how you move through the world. Aerial Swing should be ignored until you have an extremely high stamina pool, because using it will leave you with almost no stamina afterwards, making follow-up actions impossible. Aerial Maneuver is the game-changer; Aerial Swing is a luxury for late-game characters with massive stamina reserves.
While Abyss Artifacts are not infinitely farmable from fixed sources, you can maximize your income per hour by batching three activities together during your exploration runs:
Fill your Artifact Gauge through combat. As you travel between points of interest, fight every enemy group you encounter. The yellow bar at the bottom left of the screen fills from dealing and receiving damage. When it maxes out, you receive a free Abyss Artifact and the gauge resets. This is the only truly unlimited source of skill points.
Liberate blockaded locations. Red markers on the map indicate enemy-occupied camps and strongholds. Clearing these locations gives you significant combat to fill the artifact gauge, plus many of them contain sealed artifacts or cressets as bonus rewards.
Complete Sealed Abyss Artifact challenges along the way. Sealed artifacts appear as purple cube icons on your minimap when you get close. They are commonly found at shrines and crossroads along main roads. Pick them up to start the associated challenge (weapon, combat, or life challenge), complete it, then convert the sealed artifact in your inventory to receive a usable Abyss Artifact.
Sealed Abyss Artifacts sit on small stone altars and are marked by a purple icon on the minimap, but the icon only appears when you are physically nearby. To find them more efficiently, use the light reflect technique: climb to a high vantage point and look for the telltale shimmer of the artifact altars in the distance. They are most commonly placed at shrines and crossroads along main roads throughout Pywel.
The Grey main faction quests (such as Embers of Return) are an excellent source of skill points relative to time invested. A single run through these quests can yield roughly 10 Abyss Artifacts in about 30 minutes, along with contribution experience for the Greymane faction, consumable rewards, and Medium Bags for inventory expansion. Prioritize these quests early if you want a quick influx of skill points.
Crimson Desert features a unique "watch and learn" mechanic that lets you unlock certain skills for free simply by observing enemies perform them in combat. When an enemy uses a learnable skill, a "Learning" progress bar appears in the top left corner of the screen, showing the skill name and a counter (for example, 1/3). Once you have witnessed the skill enough times, it unlocks permanently without costing an Abyss Artifact.
This system incentivizes paying attention during fights rather than rushing through them. Some skills that can be observed include the Clothesline technique, which you can learn for free by watching Black Bear enemies use it during Chapter 6, and the Evasive Roll, which can be observed during the Hornsplitter boss fight in Chapter 2.
Let enemies attack you (or allies) and watch for the Learning bar to appear. Do not kill enemies too quickly if you want to observe their techniques.
You can still spend an Abyss Artifact to unlock an observable skill early if you need it before encountering the right enemy. If you later observe it, you can respec to reclaim the artifact.
Skills learned through observation are permanently kept even after a respec. Because you never spent an Abyss Artifact on them, the respec process does not affect them.
Check the skill tree regularly to see which of your locked skills have an "Observable" tag. This tells you the skill can be learned for free if you find the right enemy.
If you are unhappy with how you have allocated your Abyss Artifacts, you can perform a full reset of the skill tree using an item called a Faded Abyss Artifact. Resetting costs one Faded Abyss Artifact and refunds every skill point you have spent, letting you redistribute them from scratch.
Method | Details |
|---|---|
Witch Vendors | The most reliable on-demand source. Witch merchants sell 3 Faded Abyss Artifacts per transaction at a cost of approximately 2.85 silver each. |
Treasure Chests | Found in various nooks and crannies throughout the Abyss, particularly on the floating islands. Explore thoroughly after solving each puzzle. |
Crafting | Travel to Scholastone during Chapter 4 and complete the research project "Research on the Abyss Energy Restoration Phenomenon." This costs 12 silver and takes eight hours of in-game time to complete. Once finished, you can craft Faded Abyss Artifacts on demand. |
Quest Rewards | Certain story and side quests reward Faded Abyss Artifacts. Check your journal for quests that list this as a reward. |
Resetting one character's skill tree resets all three playable characters (Kliff, Damiane, and Oongka) simultaneously. You cannot reset a single character in isolation.
Skills unlocked through the observe mechanic are permanently kept and are not affected by a respec. You never spent an Abyss Artifact on them, so they remain.
To perform the reset, open the Skills menu and hold the designated reset button (F on keyboard, X on Xbox controller, Square on PlayStation controller).
Because respeccing is relatively inexpensive (especially once you can craft Faded Abyss Artifacts), do not stress over early skill choices. You can always reset and reallocate later.
While skill points drive your abilities, gear upgrades through the refining system determine your raw stats. The two systems complement each other, and managing them together is important for efficient progression.
Upgrade all gear to level 4. Level 4 refinement is affordable and gives a meaningful stat boost for every equipment piece. It should be your baseline target for all weapons and armor.
Do not push past level 4 too early. Levels 5 and above require Abyss Artifacts as upgrade materials. Until you have unlocked all the combat skills you need from the skill tree, keep gear at level 4 and invest your artifacts into skills instead.
Prioritize skills over gear. A new skill (like Blinding Flash Finisher or Keen Senses) has a far greater impact on your combat effectiveness than a single level of gear refinement. Only invest artifacts into gear once your skill tree priorities are satisfied.
Check your Stamina on the Infantry screen. Before investing in Aerial Maneuver, open the Infantry menu and confirm your current stamina value. You need exactly 200 to use the skill. If you are close but not quite there, spend a few extra points on stamina nodes first.
Flight is story-locked. You cannot invest in Flight or Swift Flight until after completing the Traces main quest, where White Crow gives you the crow cloak. Do not plan around Flight for early-game exploration.
Force Current doubles as Force Palm at range. If you are stuck on an Abyss puzzle that seems to require pushing a block from a distance, Force Current is the answer. It sends energy along your Axiom Force grapple line with the same push effect as a direct Force Palm.
Use the observe mechanic to save artifacts. If a skill has an Observable tag and you do not need it immediately, wait until you encounter the right enemy. This saves an artifact for something you cannot get for free.
Batch your exploration. Combine artifact gauge farming, location liberation, and sealed artifact hunting into single exploration sweeps. This is far more efficient than focusing on one activity at a time.
Spirit becomes critical late game. Early on, Spirit feels less important because your core skills do not consume much. As you unlock elemental infusions and high-cost abilities like Blinding Flash Finisher (5 Spirit per strike), having a deep spirit pool becomes the difference between winning and running dry mid-combo.
Respec is cheap. Do not agonize over early skill choices. Once you unlock Faded Abyss Artifact crafting in Chapter 4, you can reset your tree whenever you want for a modest silver cost.
Invest in Stamina until you reach 200. This unlocks Aerial Maneuver and improves every physical action.
Unlock Aerial Maneuver (Axiom Force level 2). Exploration and Abyss navigation become dramatically easier.
Get Keen Senses to level 2 for Perfect Dodge. Survivability skyrockets.
Push Focus to level 3 for Focused Insight. Free spirit regen and easy parries.
Unlock Blinding Flash Finisher. Your damage output doubles overnight.
Upgrade Swift Flight for air sprinting. Long-distance travel and reaching cressets becomes trivial.
Pick up Force Current when you hit Abyss puzzles that need remote Force Palm.
Fill in Health (levels 2-4), then weapon proficiency skills, then Spirit as needed.
Challenges (Abyss puzzle walkthroughs)
Combat Tips (general combat strategy)
Axiom Force (detailed traversal guide)
Keen Senses (dodge and counter mechanics)
Blinding Flash (finisher combo details)
Refining System (gear upgrade guide)
Elemental Attacks (infusion and element system)
Greymane Camp (faction quests and commissions)
Witch Locations (vendor locations for artifacts and respec items)
