Crimson Desert: How To Equip Abyss Gears

3 hours ago 5

Published Mar 19, 2026, 10:00 PM EDT

Lee D’Amato is a writer born, raised, and based in Queens, New York. With collective thousands of hours in games like Final Fantasy, Metal Gear, Elden Ring, and The Legend of Zelda, he's now writes game features, guides, and reviews for Screen Rant, but has covered a wide range of topics, including ancient history, affordable travel, and overall health.

You’re likely to find several Abyss Gears in the early hours of Crimson Desert, especially if you’re exploring quite a bit of the open world. These items can completely change the way you approach combat, slotting into your gear to change your basic stats and unlock new strategies.

You can find Abyss Gears in a number of ways: completing content, exploring, opening Sealed Abyss Artifacts, et cetera. But you likely won’t be able to equip the first few Abyss Gears you find, at least not until you’ve progressed through a certain amount of the story. Here’s everything you need to do to equip Abyss Gears and change Kliff’s build in Crimson Desert.

How To Equip Abyss Gears

You Need A Witch

In order to equip an Abyss Gear, you’ll have to speak to a witch. These are special merchants who generally don’t cluster up with all the other shops in major cities – you usually have to go out of your way to find them.

Most mid- to late-game equipment comes with Abyss Gear slots, although the number of slots available will vary. Some items can even be upgraded to add extra slots.

There are multiple witches located throughout Pywel, but you can’t find your first witch – or equip Abyss Gear – until Chapter 5 of the main story. We’ll describe how to get there below.

Where To Find A Witch

Unlocks In Chapter 5

The Hermit Witch location on Crimson Desert's map

Progress through the game until you begin Chapter 5. Attend the banquet as part of the quest “Demenissian Delegation,” and at least start the boss fight against Kearush, the Slayer, who shows up as part of the event. You can either defeat him, or, after being beaten, choose "Give Up" to spawn outside the arena.

After that, a white crow will appear on your shoulder, and give you a letter. Read it to start the first quest for the Witches faction, “The Hermit Witch,” in order to unlock the ability to equip Abyss Gears and continue with the main story. Accept the quest, and a map marker will appear at the map point indicated above, within The Witchwoods.

Head to the area, defeat all the enemies surrounding the witch’s house, and enter through a hole in the roof. Untie the witch and speak to her to learn the details of her quest, but more importantly, you’ll now be able to use her services to slot Abyss Gears into your equipment.

With that, you can start customizing your build with Abyss Gear and expanding your options for combat in Crimson Desert.