How to complete Abyss Without Balance in Crimson Desert

Completing Abyss Without Balance is your first real introduction to the Abyss in Crimson Desert. After doing some good deeds around Hernand and finding your way into Hernand Castle to use the Mystical Key, you’ll enter a portal into the mysterious Abyss realm. If you didn’t before you entered, make sure to return and grab the Faded Abyss Artifact from the chest in the portal room, since this will let you respec when you want.

The initial section where you unlock Axiom Force, align the circuits, and speak to Alustin is all self-explanatory and well-tutorialised, but after that, there are a couple of slightly trickier puzzles to solve. So, here’s how to complete Abyss Without Balance.

Go through the skybridge to the heart of the Abyss

You’ll have to walk through the triangular arch and then use Axiom Force to move the dial until the bridge powers up (Image credit: Pearl Abyss)

After you speak to Alustin inside the Axiom Archive, you’ll appear back outside and have to “Pass through the gate and operate the alignment device with Axiom Force” to activate the skybridge. The gate is right in front of you, so just go through it to make the alignment device appear—a pillar with a dial. You need to:

Hold tab (L3 on controller) and then release it when aimed at the dial to attach Axiom Force to itMove the dial right with D (or D-pad on controller) until you start hearing a charging noiseShortly after the skybridge will build

After this, you’ll have quite a long platforming section. It’s all quite straightforward, though there is one jump to a higher platform that looks impossible—just run and jump then press space to grab onto the side and climb up. You’ll also have to wait at a couple of points for slow floating platforms to arrive that you can ride, so be patient with those.

Finish this section and you’ll arrive at the heart of the Abyss, where you can activate an Abyss Nexus fast travel point. You will, however, have to complete one more puzzle.

Remove the wall and combine the Abyss Cell

Use Axiom Force to move the blue sparking cube until it’s touching the cube with square holesPearl AbyssMove the cell over the indent near the batteries and learn Force Palm to punch it into placePearl AbyssClimb onto the big dial and use Force Palm in the centre to activate itPearl Abyss

Just in front of the Abyss Nexus you activated, you’ll find a puzzle in a kind of courtyard area. The first instruction will be to “Move the floating power core to the deactivated lantern,” so here’s what you need to do:

Use Axiom Force to grab the floating blue-ish cube and move it to the lantern—the cube with a square hole on each face—on the right side of the area.If you do this correctly, you’ll get a new objective to “Combine the Abyss Cell,” so drop down into the space below.Use Axiom Force to grab the floating blue square down there, and move it into the slot of the same shape just to the right of the three sparking batteries—you can’t push it in yet, but if you place it right you’ll learn the Force Palm ability.With the blue square lined up over its slot, stand in front of it facing, and then hold middle mouse button to charge a Force Palm before releasing, punching it into place. The cell will power up and the big dial up above will start glowing.You’ll now get the objective to “activate the Abyss power supply”. All you need to do here is climb onto the big wheel, position yourself towards the centre, and then hold and release middle mouse button again to Force Palm, which will push you clear.

With that, you’re all done. Collect the Abyss Artifact that appears and then speak to White Crow to complete Chapter 1.

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