Crimson Desert

Advanced Combat Guide

Crimson Desert Walkthrough Team

Last updated on: March 23, 2026 10:01 AM

Advanced Combat Guide.png
Summon allies and perform hidden moves to emerge victorious in Crimson Desert. Check out our advanced combat guide for useful tips to gain an advantage in combat.

List of Contents

Advanced Combat Guide
Related Guides

Advanced Combat Guide

Summon Allies To Join You in Combat

Perform Hidden Moves

Take Out Ranged Opponents First

Reposition Often

Prepare Plenty of Grilled Meat

Pay Attention to Environmental Hazards

Summon Allies To Join You in Combat

Summon allies in the freesword.png
You can summon allies to join you in combat. This is helpful for quests with a lot of combat because they can draw the enemy's attention away from you, allowing you to focus on defeating opponents.

Summoning allies isn't always available, like Cliff's story quests. However, they are quite valuable when available, such as in the Stolen Quarry section of the Estate in the Dismay Quest.

Note that you still need to monitor their health; they will retreat if it runs out. Avoid this, as they will be unavailable to be summoned again if they are severely injured and will only be available after a long cooldown period.

All Playable Characters

Heal Allies with Healing Palm

Heal Allies with Force Palm.png
You can use the Force Palm skill to recover your allies' health, allowing you to save some food. Though it stuns them briefly, you can heal your allies regularly with this skill. It should strictly be used in between combat encounters.

Since it's easy to regain spirit with focus, do so as many times as necessary. You can track your allies' health via the Freeswords radial menu.

How to Unlock Healing Force Palm

Perform Hidden Moves

Move	How to Execute
Scoop Slam	Peform a Lariat while holding down the opposite direction of where the character is facing.
German Suplex	Perform a Lariat with the target's back facing towards you. It can be performed by immediately performing the Lariat input after a Scoop Slam.
Elbow Drop	Perform a Lariat while the enemy is lying on the ground.
Punt Kick	Hold the unarmed melee button shortly, then release it on a downed enemy.
Clothesline Slam	Do a maximum sprint instead of a regular sprint and a Modified clothesline with an added bodyweight slam.
Shield Bash Combo	Instead of pressing the buttons, hold the block and strong attack buttons. This will cause your shield bash to be followed by a charge and three heavy strikes.

There are additional combat moves that the game does not explicitly inform you about. For example, you can perform a Scoop Slam by inputting a back motion while executing a lariat. You can also perform a German Suplex when your opponent isn't facing you.

These are just a few examples of moves that aren't listed on the Skills menu but that you can still perform in the game. This adds complexity to the combat system and provides additional options for stringing together combos.

List of All Skills

Take Out Ranged Opponents First

Take out Ranged Opponents FIrst.png
Prioritize taking out ranged opponents first, as their arrows can be difficult to dodge during combat. Although the damage they deal is minimal, it adds up as you take more hits.

For this reason, players should prioritize ranged opponents in every combat encounter to avoid unnecessary damage.

Reposition Often To Avoid Getting Overwhelmed

Reposition Often.png
Since many of The Crimson Desert's combat encounters will pit players against multiple enemies, players should reposition often to avoid getting overwhelmed.

Enemies often try to get behind you, so you can take damage from all directions if you don't keep moving.

Prepare Plenty of Grilled Meat

Prepare Grilled Meat.png
Players should prepare plenty of grilled meat, which can be eaten during most combat encounters. They are easy to make, saving you time on gathering additional ingredients.

That being said, you can always cook specific dishes for harder encounters, such as boss fights.

List of All Food

Pay Attention to Environmental Hazards

Players should pay attention to environmental hazards, such as exploding barrels, because they can harm players if they explode nearby.

This also includes destructible objects, which can damage and stagger players if they are hit, so players should exercise caution when fighting near them.

Crimson Desert Related Guides

Crimson Desert - Wiki and Guides

Crimson Desert Guides

Meta Guides

Best Ways to Farm Money	Best Skills to Get Early	Best Places to Visit Early
Best Abyss Gears	Best Ways to Farm Abyss Artifacts	Best Armor
Best Weapons	-	-

Beginner Guides

Beginner's Guide	Early Progression Guide	Is There Transmog?
How to Fast Travel	Where to Store Items	Can You Skip Cutscenes
How to Steal Items	How to Pass Time	How to Log Trees
Can You Hide Your Helmet?	Death Penalty Explained	Trust System Explained
How Long Is Crimson Desert?	How to Heal Your Horse	How to Equip Abyss Cores
All Missables and One-Time Events	How to Play Duo	How to Infiltrate Guarded Areas
Best Items to Keep, Buy, and Sell	Wanted System Explained	Best Side Quests to Complete
What Are Mysterious Energies?	How to Unlock and Get Pets	List of Trophies and Achievements
How to Fish	How to Clear Fog of War	How to Deal with Cold and Hot Climates
How to Respec Skills	How to Find the Room the Key Opens	Refinement Guide
How to Craft Equipment	How to in Win Arm Wrestling	How to Change Characters
How to Save	How to Sheathe Your Weapon	Camp Features
How to Enter Waterfalls	Do Enemies and Gatherables Respawn?	List of Puzzles
How to Burn Vines	How to Make Fire Arrows	How to Cook Food
Story Explained	How to Mine Ores	Mouse and Keyboard or Controller?
How to Dye Armor	Trading System Explained	Why Does Your Lantern Glow Blue?
Where to Turn In Bounties	Supply Chests Locations	HUD Explained
Is There New Game Plus?	How to Slide	What Are Unequippable Equipment?
How to Tame Horses	How to Take the White Bird's Letter	Do Weapons Have Durability?
How to Unlock Barber	How to Win Archery Contests	How to Increase Reputation
Advanced Combat Guide	-	-

Character Progression Guides

How to Unlock Core Slot	Leveling System Explained	How Many Skill Points Can You Get?
How to Equip Abyss Cores	How to Increase Health	How to Increase Spirit
How to Increase Stamina	How to Unlock Elemental Skills	-

Combat Tips

How to Beat Flying Enemies	How to Heal	Can You Defeat Myurdin? (Tutorial Boss)
How to Perfect Dodge	How to Parry Attacks	How to Lock On Targets

Settings Guides

List of All Controls

Best Settings

Difficulty Explained

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Crimson Desert Walkthrough & Guides Wiki

Quick Access

Advanced Combat Guide

Advanced Combat Guide

Summon Allies To Join You in Combat

Heal Allies with Healing Palm

Perform Hidden Moves

Take Out Ranged Opponents First

Reposition Often To Avoid Getting Overwhelmed

Prepare Plenty of Grilled Meat

Pay Attention to Environmental Hazards