Sanctum of Solace Puzzle Walkthrough in Crimson Desert

Learn how to cleanse the Sanctum of Solace in Crimson Desert, how to solve the secret puzzle, and deal with the Antumbra’s Staff boss.

Where to find the Sanctum of Solace

You can find the Sanctum of Solace east of the Wayward Woods, in Pailune.

Important: You will only be able to solve the Sanctum of Solace puzzle after meeting Bari, the Witch of Kindness.

The Sanctum is part of The Witch of Kindness questline, which includes three more Sancrums you need to find and cleanse:

Dealing with the Antumbra Order

You have to liberate the Sanctum first. Each Sanctum is guarded by forces of the Antumbra Order. The Antumbra Order is a group of religious zealots who believe that darkness can bring true balance to Pywel. Their way of worshipping is by offering human sacrifices.

Most of the enemies in the Sanctums fight with traditional melee weapons. However, a few of them fly and cast shadows that deal considerable damage. Having to deal with them while being overrun by the sword and axe wielders is not fun, but luckily for you, there is an easy way to get rid of them.

To kill these flying enemies, simply use Blinding Flash to reflect the light against them. There is no death animation; they just disappear.

Arrows or Aerial Force Palm can work as well, but I don’t recommend this slower and less efficient method because the NPCs are very fast.

How to beat Antumbra’s Staff Boss

The Antumbra’s Staff is one of three “minor” bosses of the Antumbra Order. Since there are no story requirements for this quest, you can fight this guy at multiple stages of the game. Meaning that you can encounter this boss when you have few skills learned or far in the late game.

This boss has a single melee attack that can hit up to three times. Thankfully, it’s not unblockable and is very easy to parry or dodge.

The Antumbra’s Staff excels at casting shadows from a medium distance. These shadows are fast and deal a ton of damage, even when you block them with the shield. These attacks can’t be parried, only dodged or partially blocked.

There are three different ways in which the Antumbra’s Staff can attack with shadows. The first one looks just like its melee attack, with the only difference being the shadows that come out of its staff.

You can expect it when it does the animation for a melee attack at medium to large distances. In other words, if it can’t hit you with a melee attack and it still does the melee attack animation, it’s shooting shadows.

The second attack is easier to react to because you can see the very distinctive red glow of an unblockable attack. The Antumbra’s Staff will “charge” its power and then shoot. You can try to dodge it or block/redirect with Nature’s Snare.

The third and deadliest attack is a combination of the first two with an extra touch. For this one, the Antumbra’s Staff does the melee animation that also shoots shadows while teleporting multiple times all over the area.

This one is extremely dangerous because it can hit you with a melee attack or the shadows. One hit is enough to remove an absurd amount of health.

Using Nature’s Snare to block it is difficult because it can teleport behind you and hit you before you can move. Dodging is what worked best for me, but you risk depleting your Stamina. If this happens, you are a sitting duck.

Despite its acrobatic movements, Antumbra’s Staff falls into the mage category. So, a fairly easy way to beat him is by being extremely aggressive and giving him as little space as possible.

Use Face Palm to interrupt when it begins to cast the unblockable attacks and parrying/dodging its melee attack. Also, try to maintain at least half your Stamina and Spirit in case you have to dodge all over the area, and or for a possible Nature’s Snare.

Defeating this mighty enemy will grant you its weapon, the Guidance of Dark Pursuit.

How to cleanse the Sanctum

Right after defeating the Antumbra’s Staff, look at the big building. Climb to the spot marked on the following picture, use the stab to get to the other side, and loot the chest that contains the Icewing Plate Boots.

Now head towards the Sanctum; there’s a bridge nearby. Step on the edge and jump all the way down.

You will see a gap in the wall, get to the other side to find the first fusion core.

It’s locked behind some bars. Trying to move it with Axiom Force will not work, but don’t worry, all you have to do is seal it on the Kuku Pot.

The second fusion core is just a few meters away from the broken wall. Head there and seal it on your Kuku Pot.

There’s a hidden movable wall here. Climb there and use Force Palm to get to the other side. The treasure chest here contains the Dagger of Dark Pursuit.

Return to the Sanctum and place the respective cores in their place.

Remember that you can use Force Palm to lock them in when it glows green.

Second (Secret) Puzzle

There is a hidden puzzle in this Sanctum. See the blue crystal at the front of the Sanctum? You have to use the Blinding Flash to redirect light directly into it. The circle with the little gems will start to rotate.

Make sure to focus the light only when a gem is passing through the circle at the top. A metallic sound will trigger when you do it correctly. I’d describe it as something metallic being hit with a sword.

Try to get used to the timing. That will make it easier for you. The piece that comes out of the Sanctum is the actual reward, not another part of the puzzle. Seal it away on your Kuku Pot.

If you have a custom keybind for Blinding Flash on a single button, this may prevent you from completing this puzzle and timing here is key.