Crimson Desert’s first paid expansion, Charting the Unknown, unlocks tomorrow, Thursday, October 29, at 6 PM Eastern (3 PM Pacific, 10 PM UTC) on Steam, PlayStation Store, Xbox Store and the Epic Games Store, according to Pearl Abyss’s release-time notice. A patch for the base game ships at the same moment for everyone, whether they buy the DLC or not. And if you want to sail on day one, there is something to do tonight: the ship is built from Greymane Camp resources, so a stockpile gathered now turns into a hull the moment the expansion goes live.
Your first ship is built from camp resources, and Pearl Abyss says farm them now
Pearl Abyss’s Will Powers confirmed the mechanic on the Dropped Frames podcast this week. “You can build the ship if you have the resources, which you use camp resources,” he said. “So if you want to prepare for the DLC, you can farm up a bunch of resources in advance to be able to start building it. That builds you an unupgraded ship,” with upgrades for the hull, mast and other parts coming after. Pearl Abyss’s features overview lays out the two routes: send comrades on a ship-building dispatch mission at a port, or buy a ship outright from a Fleet Office manager.
The r/CrimsonDesert thread on the tip is full of players already at it. The top reply joked about a camp revolt “after I send them on the 18th logging mission,” and another announced that they and their 16,000 gold bars were ready.
You need the Howling Hill camp for the ocean, and the finished main story for the new chapters
The expansion has two entry points. The three new storylines for Kliff, Oongka and Damiane are epilogues, started from the Journal only after the main story is complete. The ocean content needs far less: a Greymane Camp set up at Howling Hill, which Powers said happens in chapter three of roughly twelve. The ocean-focused storyline opens after the “Howling Hill” main quest. Powers said the split exists so players can reach the sailing without being spoiled on the ending.
Diving has no prerequisite at all. Kliff, Oongka and Damiane can go underwater anywhere to find ruins, treasure chests, new creatures and mounts, limited only by breath, which a diving suit extends.
Castles, romance, a boss rush and rentable businesses have their own gates
Three castles can be claimed after the main story, by liberating each stronghold and then finishing the missions that unlock their courtyards and interiors for decoration. The upgraded housing system, which builds a house from the ground up, opens after the Howling Hill camp plus Luke’s Request in the “Grounds of the Sunrise” faction quest. Romance and marriage come from building trust with Pywel’s inhabitants, and friends start visiting the camp once it reaches a certain level. Businesses, from a restaurant in Vellua to a smithy at Zargan Tankworks, rent out once the matching region is liberated. The Garden of Trials, a back-to-back boss gauntlet with its own rewards, opens after the main questline.
Pearl Abyss says full patch notes arrive on release day. Pre-orders stay open on every platform until the DLC goes live. The base game got its free Enhanced update in August.
Pearl Abyss Says Crimson Desert Players Can Stockpile Camp Resources Before the DLC Launch to Build Their First Ship
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