Introduction to Crystals
Black Desert Online Crystals Guide will help you quickly establish a strong foundation for your journey. Let’s dive in and get you on the right track!
Welcome, adventurer, to a comprehensive guide on the intricate world of crystals in Black Desert Online. While these seemingly small items may appear inconspicuous at first glance, they hold immense power, capable of significantly enhancing your character’s abilities and shaping your combat prowess across both mobile and PC platforms. Crystals are not just an optional enhancement—they are an essential tool for optimizing your character’s stats and improving your performance in various aspects of the game. Whether you’re conquering tough enemies in PvE, engaging in intense PvP battles, or tackling complex boss fights, crystals will play a pivotal role in your journey.
As you dive deeper into the world of Black Desert, you’ll quickly realize that crystals are more than just stat boosters. They offer a wide array of benefits that can impact your gameplay in numerous ways. From increasing your attack power and defense to enhancing your movement speed, resistances, and even resource regeneration, crystals are the key to customizing your character’s build to fit your specific needs. The choices you make when selecting and equipping crystals can dictate the effectiveness of your character in different combat scenarios, making their proper management a crucial aspect of mastering the game.
In this guide, we will explore the different methods of acquiring, utilizing, and managing crystals in both Black Desert Online and Black Desert Mobile. Despite the core concept of crystals remaining the same across both platforms—enhancing your character’s abilities—the specifics of how you obtain them, how you equip them, and the systems in place for managing them differ. Black Desert Online offers a more intricate system with a dedicated crystal inventory, presets for crystal setups, and various methods of extraction and enhancement. Meanwhile, Black Desert Mobile streamlines the process to make it more accessible, but still offers a range of strategies for acquiring and managing these powerful items.
Understanding the differences and similarities between the two versions of the game will allow you to make the most of your crystal system, regardless of the platform you’re playing on. Whether you’re navigating the complexities of Black Desert Online’s crystal management or taking advantage of Black Desert Mobile’s more mobile-friendly approach, mastering the crystal system is key to progressing efficiently and effectively. So, let us delve into the specifics of acquiring, utilizing, and managing crystals in both games, and discover how these enhancements can shape your character’s journey through the vast and challenging world of Black Desert.
The Importance of Crystals
In both versions of Black Desert, crystals serve as a crucial method to augment your character’s statistics, offering a wide variety of enhancements that can significantly improve your performance in battle and other in-game activities. Crystals can provide additional effects such as increased attack power, defense, movement speed, health regeneration, and specialized resistances. They can also enhance your character’s resource regeneration abilities, such as increasing stamina recovery or providing better performance in gathering and crafting. The power that these crystals grant can make the difference between surviving in tough PvE encounters or dominating other players in PvP combat.
Crystals also play an important role in customizing your character’s build, allowing players to fine-tune their stats according to their playstyle or the specific content they are tackling. Whether you’re gearing up for a high-damage build for grinding monsters, optimizing for high defense to endure in intense battles, or focusing on resistances to handle specific debuffs, the right combination of crystals can make your character more versatile and capable.
While the core concept of using crystals to enhance your stats remains the same across both platforms, there are notable differences in how you acquire, manage, and utilize them in Black Desert Mobile compared to Black Desert Online on PC. In Black Desert Online, players have a more intricate and detailed crystal management system, including features like crystal presets, dedicated crystal inventory, and a system for extracting or removing crystals. In contrast, Black Desert Mobile offers a more streamlined approach to crystals, where players can craft them in the Alchemy Lab, acquire them through loot drops, or purchase them from NPC vendors, with a more mobile-friendly interface that caters to the platform’s gameplay style.
The differences extend to how crystals are used in each game’s combat system. In Black Desert Online, players have to carefully select and equip crystals for specific gear, making decisions about whether to focus on PvP or PvE builds, or tailoring their equipment for specific boss fights or grind zones. In Black Desert Mobile, while you still have various crystal options and strategies to choose from, the system is more accessible, allowing for simpler customization options but with a strong emphasis on crafting and collecting crystals to keep up with evolving gameplay challenges.
Overall, whether you’re a mobile adventurer on the go or a PC player deeply immersed in the complexities of the game’s systems, crystals serve as an indispensable tool in both versions of Black Desert, offering players the means to significantly enhance their character’s effectiveness and optimize their gameplay experience across a variety of scenarios. Understanding the intricacies of acquiring, equipping, and managing crystals in each version of the game is essential for mastering the game’s combat and progression systems.
Acquiring Crystals in Black Desert Mobile
For those venturing in Black Desert Mobile, acquiring crystals is a multifaceted process. You might find them as loot dropped by defeated enemies during your adventures. Your Camp plays a vital role, housing the Alchemy Lab where you can craft various crystals to suit your needs. Additionally, most villages host a crystal vendor offering a selection for purchase.
Engaging in Merchantry can also yield crystal riches; by building rapport (or amity) with city merchants to a total “reputation” of 120, you can purchase yellow crystal chests. Furthermore, keep an eye out for yellow and orange boxes from events within Merchantry, as these too can contain valuable crystal boxes. For those brave enough to face the dangers, the Nightmare Map offers a chance to obtain yellow crystal bags as drops.
Types of Crystals in Black Desert Mobile
The types of crystals you’ll encounter in Black Desert Mobile are diverse. Early on, you’ll encounter epic grade crystals, providing initial stat boosts. As you progress, the aforementioned yellow crystal chests and event-based orange crystal boxes will offer more advanced options. A significant category is Dimensional Crystals, which harness the power of different combat branches such as Aal, Labreve, Serrett, and Ahib.
These are crafted in your Alchemy Lab or through the general Craft menu using a combination of Dimensional Fragments (obtained by feeding Abyssal-grade or higher gear to your Black Spirit, purchased with Dark Coins from Gervaise, or found in Field of Valor), Empty Crystals (bought with Dark Coins from Gervaise), Cron Stones, Abyssal Crystal Fluid, and Silver. It’s important to note that Dimensional Crystals cannot be extracted if they are equipped on gear of ancient grade or higher.
Later in your journey, you’ll encounter Chaos Crystals and their refined counterparts. Chaotic Crystals, equipable on gear, and Refined Chaotic Crystals, for accessories, are crafted using Obsidian Crystal, Faded Chaotic Crystal (or Faded Refined Chaotic Crystal), Chaos Core, and Primal Crystal Fluid. When crafting these, you can even select the desired combat branch, and their stats will vary upon creation. Primal Crystal Fluid itself can be crafted using three Dimensional Crystals or three Ah’krad Crystals, and the faded versions of the Chaotic Crystals can be purchased from the NPC Gervaise in towns using Dark Coins.
Equipping and Removing Crystals in Black Desert Mobile
Equipping crystals in Black Desert Mobile is a straightforward process. By selecting a piece of gear, you can choose the crystal you wish to slot in, which will cost a certain amount of Silver depending on the crystal’s grade. This management can be accessed through the “Black Spirit’s Influence” page. Conversely, removing crystals is a more premium endeavor, as it can only be done by spending Pearl. The extraction fee also scales with the crystal’s grade, and be warned, deleted crystals are gone forever.
Another way to potentially upgrade your crystals is through fusion. By combining three crystals of the same grade, you have a chance to obtain a new crystal, with a very low probability of it being of a higher grade. This process also requires Silver, and the effect of Lightstones can subtly increase your chances of obtaining higher-grade crystals from fusion.
Crystals in Black Desert Online (PC)
Shifting our focus to Black Desert Online (PC), the crystal system presents a more intricate layer of management. Here, you have a dedicated Crystal Inventory, separate from your regular item storage, which initially can hold up to 50 crystals and can be expanded to a maximum of 140 slots. To streamline the process of adapting to different combat situations, the PC version offers Crystal Presets. You can save and quickly switch between different crystal setups, starting with five presets that can be increased to fifteen. These presets can even be renamed for better organization.
The act of placing crystals into your gear is called Transfusion, accessible through your Inventory window. The number of crystal slots available on your gear can be influenced by factors such as the reformation of your awakening weapon, which can unlock slots if you use a Heart of Karanda or Garmoth’s Heart. Gear with sockets created using the Black Spirit’s Claw allows for the transfusion of a special Ancient Spirit’s Crystal in the middle slot. Additionally, slots at the bottom of the Transfusion UI can be unlocked by using Kkebiwater, an item obtained from the main questline in the Land of the Morning Light region.
Removing Crystals in Black Desert Online (PC)
Removing crystals in Black Desert Online (PC) can be done through Extraction or Removal (destroying). To extract a crystal, you’ll need either a Crystal Extraction Tool, craftable via Simple Alchemy (requiring 10 Magical Shards and 100 Pure Iron Crystals), or a Black Spirit Essence, purchased from the Pearl Shop. You then interact with a blacksmith, choose the Extraction option, and select the crystal you want to retrieve from your Crystal Inventory. If you wish to simply destroy a crystal, you can do so through the Transfusion window by clicking the Owned Crystal button and then the trash bin icon, selecting the crystal, and confirming its removal, keeping in mind that this action is permanent.
There are also limitations on the maximum quantity of certain crystal groups that can be registered within a single preset, so careful planning is essential when optimizing your crystal builds.
PvE and PvP Crystal Builds in Black Desert Online (PC)
When it comes to PvE crystal builds in Black Desert Online (PC), the possibilities are vast and often tailored to specific monster zones and your character’s class. For players looking for a cheap crystal example, a build costing around 2.5 billion silver might include a Girin’s Fragment, four Ancient Magic Crystal of Crimson Flame – Power, two Ah’krad Crystals, two Corrupted Magic Crystals, two Dark Red Fang Crystal – Valor, two Crystal of Elkarr, and two Ancient Magic Crystal of Nature – Adamantine, totaling 15 crystal slots.
A more general Basic/Core Crystal Build focuses on high damage, potentially using two Crystal of Mysterious Darkness (effective in areas with frequent back-attacks) or two Corrupted Magic Crystals (for consistent critical hit damage), alongside other damage-boosting crystals like Ultimate Combined Magic Crystal – Macalod, Girin’s Tear, Dark Red Fang Crystal – Valor, Ancient Magic Crystal of Crimson Flame – Power, Glorious Crystal of Gallantry – Ah’krad, Crystal of Brutal Decimation, and Rebellious Spirit Crystal.
For grinding in areas requiring high accuracy, such as Ash Forest or Crypt of the Resting Thoughts, Accuracy Crystals like Elkarr Crystals and JIN Magic Crystal – Viper become crucial, aiming for at least 900 accuracy.
In challenging end-game grind spots where crowd control (CC) can lead to swift defeat, achieving 100% Resistance to specific CC types is paramount. This can be accomplished using Ancient Magic Crystal of Nature crystals combined with a Villa buff, or by using a Khalk Elixir in addition to the crystals and buff, allowing for an extra damage crystal slot. For example, two Ancient Magic Crystal of Nature – Adamantine and one Black Magic Crystal – Intimidation, along with a Villa buff, can provide 100% Knockdown/Bound resistance.
Crafting Crystals in Both Versions
While crafting crystals is more prominently featured in Black Desert Mobile through the Alchemy Lab in your Camp, the concept exists in both games. In Black Desert Mobile, as previously discussed, you can craft various tiers and types of crystals using gathered resources and assigning workers. The Alchemy Lab specifically allows for the creation of potions, crystals, Cron Stones, and more.
A unique aspect of Black Desert Online (PC) is the possibility of crystal shattering upon death when fighting monsters, albeit with a small chance. Thankfully, the game provides a mechanism for restoring broken crystals. You are granted three restoration opportunities per year (with the possibility of additional restorations through Pearl Shop coupons). Broken crystals can be restored via the death screen immediately after respawning, through a trash can icon in your Inventory, or via the Crystal tab under Menu -> Adventurer Support -> Item Recovery. Restored crystals are then sent to your Crystal Inventory. However, it’s crucial to note that crystals broken while your Family Karma is negative cannot be restored.
Conclusion
In conclusion, mastering the crystal system in both Black Desert Mobile and Black Desert Online is not just a side task but a fundamental part of your overall character progression and optimization. Crystals provide essential buffs and enhancements that can make a huge difference in how you approach and tackle various challenges across the game, from high-stakes PvP battles to intense PvE grinding or boss fights. Whether you’re meticulously crafting powerful Dimensional Crystals in your mobile camp or carefully fine-tuning a resistance build for a treacherous grind spot in the PC version, your understanding of the crystal system will significantly impact your success.
The versatility of crystals, from enhancing basic stats like attack power and defense to boosting specialized attributes like accuracy, resistance, and resource regeneration, offers players countless ways to tailor their gameplay experience. In Black Desert Mobile, crystals are more accessible, but the need to craft, fuse, and strategically equip them remains critical to your progression.
In Black Desert Online, the complexity increases with an array of inventory management tools, presets, and more intricate systems for customization. Regardless of the version, taking the time to master how to acquire crystals, the best types for your class or playstyle, and the most effective ways to equip and remove them is invaluable in making sure you’re always at the top of your game.
As you progress through both games, remember that your crystal setup should always be fluid and adaptable to the specific content you are tackling. Engaging in different types of content—whether it’s a high-level grind, a challenging boss fight, or a PvP encounter—requires a unique approach to your crystal choices. Crystals that work well in one scenario may not be as effective in another, so constantly reassessing and tailoring your setup will allow you to maximize your combat effectiveness and survive tougher challenges.
Furthermore, don’t overlook the importance of keeping your crystals upgraded, as the power of your gear and abilities will often depend on them. The opportunity to craft and fuse crystals gives you the chance to experiment and adapt your approach as new game content is released. By understanding how each crystal type affects your character and gameplay, and considering factors like gear and the specific enemies you’re facing, you’ll be able to make more informed decisions that give you an edge in any situation.
Ultimately, whether you’re exploring the world of Black Desert Mobile or diving into the complexities of Black Desert Online, crystals are a central part of your journey. They not only enhance your stats but also help define your character’s identity in combat, allowing you to push your limits and achieve your full potential. By investing time into understanding the nuances of the crystal system and refining your strategies, you’ll greatly improve your ability to tackle the game’s challenges and enjoy a more rewarding adventure.
