Overview
Traces in the Manor is the 37th main quest in Crimson Desert, part of Chapter 3's "The Face Behind the Mask" sub-chapter. There has been no word from Naira and Andrew, so Kliff heads to Glenbright Manor to track them down. The manor is located almost directly south of Emberwind Workshop in the Hernand region. When Kliff arrives, the estate has been devastated by the Devil of the Reed Field, and Reed Devil soldiers have taken control of the grounds.
This quest revolves around exploring the ransacked manor, solving the Golden Dagger puzzle, and uncovering a secret basement filled with valuable loot. It sets the stage for the supernatural investigation that dominates the rest of the sub-chapter, leading directly into the Nonhuman and Seed of Unease quests.
Quest Details
Detail | Information |
|---|---|
Type | Main Quest |
Chapter | Chapter 3: Howling Hill (The Face Behind the Mask) |
Region | |
Location | |
Prerequisite | |
Next Quest | |
Grace Manor Basement Key, Ruby-Hilted Golden Dagger, Sapphire-Hilted Golden Dagger, Grace Manor Iron Door Key, Cloudcart Blueprint, Memory Fragment |
Walkthrough
Traveling to Glenbright Manor
Head south from Greymane Camp following the quest marker. Glenbright Manor is the estate belonging to Count Alistair Grace, situated almost directly south of Emberwind Workshop. The ride there is a long one, so using your horse is recommended. There are no mandatory combat encounters on the road.
Arriving at the Manor
As you approach the manor gates, a cutscene triggers showing a corpse being thrown out of the entrance, immediately signaling that something has gone terribly wrong. Reed Devil soldiers attack on arrival. Five of them ambush Kliff in the entrance hall as soon as he enters. These soldiers are comparable to standard mid-chapter enemies and should not pose a major threat, though the ambush can catch you off guard if you enter without your weapon drawn. Defeat all five to clear the path forward.
The destruction inside the manor is widespread. Bodies of nobles and servants are scattered throughout the halls, and the environment tells the story of a swift, violent raid. The Reed Devil faction tore through Glenbright Manor's defenses with little resistance.
Ground Floor: Hidden Room
Before heading upstairs, check the ground floor for a hidden room. At the foot of the staircase on the right side, there is a painting depicting two knights fighting on horseback. Walk into the painting and push the wall to reveal a concealed space behind it. Inside this secret room, you will find the Grace Manor Basement Key on a side table. This key is needed later to unlock an iron door in the basement, so make sure you grab it before proceeding upstairs.
Upper Level: Ruby-Hilted Golden Dagger
Head up the right staircase to the upper floor. At the top of the stairs, look for a wall-mounted stand on the left. The Ruby-Hilted Golden Dagger can simply be picked up from this display. This is the first of two ceremonial daggers needed to unlock the study's secret passage.
Chandelier and Statue Puzzle
Continue along the upper corridor to find the second puzzle area. The room contains three key elements: a chandelier that shines a beam of light onto the wall, a marble statue holding a glass crystal on the opposite side, and a wardrobe (cabinet) to the left containing a gear mechanism with a handwheel.
Open the wardrobe and interact with the handwheel inside. Turn it to the right until the beam of light from the chandelier shines directly onto the crystal held by the marble statue. When the crystal glows and catches the light, a hidden recess in the wall opens, revealing the Sapphire-Hilted Golden Dagger. Pick it up to complete the puzzle.
The Study Room
Proceed to the main study, a large room with a fireplace and a desk. Above the fireplace are two slots corresponding to the two Golden Daggers. Place both the Ruby-Hilted and Sapphire-Hilted Golden Daggers into the slots. The bookcase to the right of the fireplace slides open, revealing a hidden room with a ladder leading down to the basement.
Before descending, thoroughly explore the study. On the desk next to the bleeding servant, you will find the Grace Manor Iron Door Key. The servant is a wounded man slumped against the wall who can provide his account of the attack if you interact with him (LB + X on Xbox, L1 + Square on PlayStation). He confirms that the "Devil of the Reed Field" personally led the assault and killed almost everyone in the manor.
Also in the study, hold LB (Xbox) or L1 (PlayStation) to raise your lantern and learn a Memory Fragment. You can play it back by holding the pause/menu button. On the back corner bookshelf adjacent to the servant, there is a Crafting Book: "Two-Handed Weapons of the World, Vol. 1." Make sure to open it and focus on it to learn crafting recipes for two-handed weapons.
The Survivor's Account
The wounded servant confirms that the Devil of the Reed Field personally led the assault, killing almost everyone in the manor. Crucially, he reveals that Count Alistair Grace, along with Naira and Andrew, managed to escape through a window before the Reed Devil could reach them. This is the first time Count Alistair Grace is introduced in the story. His role becomes significantly more important in the following quests, especially once his personal connection to the Reed Devil is revealed.
Secret Basement
Descend the ladder through the bookcase opening to reach the secret basement. This area contains several valuable items worth collecting:
Cloudcart Blueprint: A key item found on a table. This blueprint is required to craft the Cloudcart mount later in the game.
Red Dye: Found in containers in the basement. Useful for dyeing equipment.
Strongboxes: Several strongboxes are scattered around the basement. Pick them up and open them from your inventory. Equip a mask before looting to avoid detection.
Alchemy Formula: Meliara's Lesser Elixir: Behind the locked iron door in the basement. Use the Grace Manor Basement Key (from the hidden room behind the painting on the ground floor) to unlock it. This recipe grants a temporary boost of +75 Max HP and +1 Attack Speed level for five minutes.
Make sure to search the entire basement thoroughly before returning to the upper floor. The Cloudcart Blueprint in particular is one of the most important items found during this quest.
Collectibles and Key Items
Glenbright Manor contains a significant number of collectible items. The table below lists everything that can be found during the Traces in the Manor quest and how to obtain each item.
Item | Location | How to Obtain |
|---|---|---|
Ground floor, behind painting | Walk into the painting of two knights on horseback at the foot of the staircase to push the wall and reveal a hidden room | |
Upper level, top of stairs | Pick up from the wall-mounted stand at the top of the right staircase | |
Upper level, near statue | Solve the chandelier/statue puzzle by turning the handwheel until the light shines on the crystal | |
Study room desk | Found on the desk next to the bleeding servant after opening the bookcase | |
Study room | Hold LB (Xbox) / L1 (PlayStation) with your lantern to learn the memory | |
Crafting Book: Two-Handed Weapons of the World, Vol. 1 | Study room bookshelf | Found on the back corner bookshelf adjacent to the servant; open and focus on it to learn the recipes |
Secret basement | Found on a table in the basement accessed via the ladder through the bookcase | |
Secret basement | Loot from containers in the basement | |
Strongboxes (multiple) | Secret basement | Open the strongboxes after picking them up; equip a mask before looting |
Secret basement, locked room | Use the Grace Manor Basement Key to unlock the iron door in the basement |
Follow-Up Quests
The Traces in the Manor quest leads directly into two subsequent quests that continue the investigation of the Reed Devil. Both quests begin in or near the manor and should be approached in sequence.
Nonhuman
The Nonhuman quest (Mission 38) starts immediately after Traces in the Manor, in the same study room where you found the servant. After viewing the Memory Fragment (called "Grace Manor" in the Visione menu), exit through the window in the study. Drop down to ground level and use your lantern to reveal a faint yellow tracking trail left by the fleeing survivors.
Follow the trail southwest from the manor. You will encounter two groups of Reed Devil soldiers along the way. Defeat them and continue following the yellow line with your lantern. The trail leads to a farm in the southwest of Glenbright Manor, where a cutscene plays showing you find Naira, Andrew, and Count Alistair Grace alive.
Seed of Unease
The Seed of Unease quest (Mission 39) tasks you with tracking the Devil of the Reed Field to his lair. Use your lantern to follow the yellow trail through Steel Mountain, heading south through the canyon. The Reed Devil will materialize alongside other enemies as you move through the canyon; damage him whenever he appears, but do not expect to finish him here. He disappears after taking enough hits in each encounter.
Continue along the linear canyon path, following the yellow lantern line. At the end of the trail, you will find a field of reeds near a charred tree decorated with ribbons. Interact with the Devil of the Reed Field's doll on the altar to trigger the boss encounter. If you lose the trail at any point, toggle the lantern off and back on to reset it.
Boss Fight: Devil of the Reed Field
The Devil of the Reed Field is the first major boss encounter in Crimson Desert. He is a fast, agile swordsman who uses iaijutsu (quick-draw sword techniques) and retreats into the surrounding wheat and reed fields between attack chains. Stock up on food before the fight; bring at least 40 grilled meat or equivalent healing items.
Phase One
In the first phase, the Reed Devil fights with rapid sword combos and periodically disappears into the tall reeds. Keep your distance when he is attacking, then close in to deal damage when he sheathes his sword after finishing a combo. Blocking is effective against his rapid flurries, and well-timed parries will build his stagger gauge. A sword and shield loadout is recommended for stamina-efficient blocking.
Make good use of animation cancelling and combo strings. The following finisher moves are particularly effective:
Stab: Press RB/R1 + Y/Triangle at the end of an attack string. Deals high single-target damage.
Pump Kick: Hold Y/Triangle to launch a powerful kick that sends the Reed Devil flying. This move can be spammed repeatedly to keep him pinned against the arena edges.
Swift Stab: After landing a fully charged Stab, follow up immediately with RB/R1 to dash through opponents. This is a skill the Reed Devil teaches you during the fight through the "watch and learn" mechanic. If your vision turns blue, it means the Reed Devil is about to demonstrate Swift Stab.
Phase Two: Totems
When the Reed Devil reaches his second health bar, he enters a new phase. He summons multiple copies of himself that perform different attack patterns and creates five totems (scarecrows) scattered across the arena. The Reed Devil is completely immune to damage for the entire duration of this phase until all totems are destroyed.
Focus entirely on destroying the totems. Each totem takes about three strong attacks to break. You can also use Focused Shot or Charged Shot skills to destroy them from a distance, which keeps you safely away from the Reed Devil's copies. Once all five totems are destroyed, the Reed Devil's health circles deplete and he becomes vulnerable again.
General Tips
A sword and shield loadout provides the best balance of blocking efficiency and attack speed for this fight.
The reeds in the arena are dynamically destroyed as the fight progresses, gradually improving your visibility in later stages.
When the Reed Devil disappears into the reeds, prepare to dodge or block, as he will strike from an unpredictable direction.
During phase two, ignore the clones and sprint directly to each totem. Speed is more important than fighting the copies.
The Pump Kick can be "cheesed" by spamming it repeatedly, sending the Reed Devil crashing into arena walls, posts, and structures.
Notes
Count Alistair Grace is a new character introduced in this quest. His relationship to the Reed Devil becomes a major plot point in the next few quests.
The Nonhuman quest starts immediately after this one without any loading screen or transition, so be prepared to continue exploring from the study room.
The Grace Manor Basement Key and the Golden Dagger puzzle are independent of each other. You can complete them in any order, but both are needed to fully explore the basement.
The Cloudcart Blueprint is one of the most sought-after items in the manor. Do not leave the basement without picking it up.
If you miss any items during this quest, you can return to Glenbright Manor later in the game to collect them.