- Primary Subject: Crimson Desert
- Key Update: Multi-phase challenge combining pillar alignment, traversal via updraft, and a boss encounter
- Status: Confirmed
- Last Verified: April 15, 2026
- Quick Answer: Align all three pillars, activate the fan to reach the upper island, defeat the boss by targeting its weak point, then activate the final device to complete the challenge.
The Twisted Thicketway is an Abyss Restoration challenge in Crimson Desert that plays out very differently from most other puzzles in the game.
Instead of focusing on a single mechanic, it combines traversal, object manipulation, and a boss encounter into one continuous sequence.
You’ll typically access this area through Root’s End Ruins in the Sleet Isles, which acts as the main entry point on the surface.
From there, you follow the cables or pathways into a cave where the puzzle begins, although alternate routes like Abyss skybridges or teleporters can also lead you to the same location.
How Do You Start the Puzzle and Activate the Elevator?
Once inside, the first objective is to activate a lift that takes you up to the main puzzle platform.
At the top, you’ll find a central control device that allows you to interact using Axiom Force. This interaction temporarily lets you control a pillar-like structure, which becomes the key to solving the initial phase.
Your goal here is to move this pillar across three separate circular platforms positioned around the central structure.
Each platform requires the pillar to be correctly aligned before it can be locked in place.
Movement can feel slightly awkward at first, so adjusting your camera angle to better line up the pillar helps a lot.
As you rotate it, you’ll hear audio cues (usually a chime or a heavier locking sound) that indicate when it’s properly aligned.
The order of these platforms doesn’t matter, but all three must be completed.
Once done, the central mechanism will activate and visually confirm that the system is powered. With the alignment complete, the next step is to use that power to activate the core device.
While still connected to the mechanism, you’ll trigger the system, which in turn powers a large fan.
After doing this, you’ll need to return to the upper level of the area where you first entered.
At the center of that platform, the airflow from the fan will activate, creating a vertical updraft.
You can use your glide ability to travel upward along the current, carrying you to the Twisted Thicketway island in the Abyss and into the final stage.
How Do You Beat the Boss in Twisted Thicketway?
Instead of another puzzle segment, this section introduces a boss that tunnels beneath the ground and pops up unpredictably, so your focus should be on dodging and staying in motion until it surfaces.
When it emerges and briefly stops moving, a glowing weak point (located at the center of its head) becomes vulnerable. This is where you need to focus your attacks.
You can use ranged weapons like a bow to steadily build its stagger meter, or use Axiom abilities to interact directly with the core for faster results.
If you’re able to grab or manipulate the glowing core effectively, you can fill the stagger bar much more quickly than with standard attacks.
Once the stagger threshold is reached, the core drops to the ground, creating a short damage window. During this time, switch to melee attacks and deal as much damage as possible, as the boss takes significantly increased damage in this state.
If your damage output is high enough, you can defeat it in a single stagger phase, but if not, you’ll need to repeat the process—avoid attacks, wait for an opening, build stagger again, and capitalize on the next drop.
Some players also use environmental objects to deal heavy damage instantly, but this depends on your positioning and timing.
After the boss is defeated, the final part of the puzzle becomes available. You’ll need to climb up the central structure or nearby surfaces to reach a device positioned above the arena.
Once you get to the top, interact with it using your abilities to activate the mechanism and restore the Abyss node.
This completes the challenge and rewards you with an Abyss Artifact, which is tied to progression systems and upgrades in the game.
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