Crimson Desert Howling Hill is Chapter 3, with 17 missions divided into Homestead, The Face Behind the Mask and Pioneering. You establish Greymane Camp, fight the Devil of the Reed Field and send Luke and Ronald to expand the camp. Completing the chapter also prepares your save for Charting the Unknown’s ocean storyline, which unlocks after Howling Hill.
The hardest points are cooking for the workers, surviving the Reed Devil and finding the hidden dispatch menu. Here’s the correct quest order, what to do at each milestone and how to finish the chapter without confusing its first camp expansion with later faction missions.
All Crimson Desert Howling Hill quests in order
These 17 Crimson Desert Howling Hill quests appear in the main Journal across three sections.
| Part | Quest | Main goal |
|---|---|---|
| Homestead | Old Friend | Reconnect with Marius |
| Homestead | First Step to Rebuilding | Meet Marquis Serkis |
| Homestead | A Fresh Start | Establish camp |
| Homestead | Reward for Their Sweat | Cook soup for workers |
| Homestead | Return of the Comrade | Continue reunion |
| Homestead | Familiar Curses | Investigate the healing-house story |
| Face Behind the Mask | Return | Resume investigation |
| Face Behind the Mask | Traces in the Manor | Search Glenbright Manor |
| Face Behind the Mask | Nonhuman | Follow clues |
| Face Behind the Mask | Seed of Unease | Track Reed Devil |
| Face Behind the Mask | Dance with the Devil | Defeat boss |
| Pioneering | Hope After the Draught | Return to camp |
| Pioneering | Scattered Comrades | Speak with Marius |
| Pioneering | Rumors from the Sawmill | Find Luke and Ronald |
| Pioneering | A Gentle Touch | Read shrine letter |
| Pioneering | Bustling Hill | Dispatch camp expansion |
| Pioneering | Greymanes Reunited | Finish chapter |
Some community walkthroughs translate particular mission names differently, but the three-part structure above matches the game’s documented quest sequence.
Homestead: unlock the camp and cook two soups
Crimson Desert Howling Hill begins by reuniting Kliff with Marius and meeting Marquis Serkis. At Howling Hill, complete the marked tent and supply jobs in A Fresh Start to establish the camp. In Reward for Their Sweat, take the Clear Soup recipe beside the cooking pot, read it and make two Modest Clear Soups.
Each portion requires one Tough Meat, one Barley and one Water. Ingredients are provided near the recipe, so the mission doesn’t require a separate hunt. Once you have cooked both, walk towards the workers’ table to serve them and trigger the story scene. Finish Return of the Comrade and Familiar Curses by following the Journal markers.
The Face Behind the Mask: progress past Reed Devil
In the middle of Crimson Desert Howling Hill, follow Return, Traces in the Manor, Nonhuman and Seed of Unease through the Glenbright Manor investigation. Dance with the Devil brings the boss fight. Bring healing and repaired gear, block or dodge its telegraphed attacks and counterattack after an opening instead of attempting a long combo every time.
The encounter is necessary main-story progression. Returning to camp and expanding it will not bypass the boss. If defeated repeatedly, focus first on surviving attack strings; getting through a phase with your health intact is more valuable than trading every hit.
Pioneering: recruit Luke and Ronald
In the final Crimson Desert Howling Hill section, return to camp and speak to Marius in Scattered Comrades. Travel towards the sawmill and Coalvale Workshop for Rumors from the Sawmill to find Luke and Ronald. They are the two comrades needed for the first camp expansion.
Back at the camp, A Gentle Touch asks you to inspect the dragon-head totem near the shrine. Pick up and read the letter in your inventory to learn camp management. If Bustling Hill isn’t appearing, check whether you examined the letter after collecting it.
How to finish Bustling Hill and Greymanes Reunited
The final task in Crimson Desert Howling Hill is a timed dispatch. Open the map, choose the All filter, inspect Howling Hill and switch to Mission List. Select Howling Hill Camp Expansion, assign Luke and Ronald, then confirm Dispatch. The assignment takes about 18 in-game hours, and resting moves the timer forwards.
When it completes, return to the camp and enter the highlighted area for Greymanes Reunited. That cutscene finishes Chapter 3 and opens Chapter 4. This is different from the later Grounds of the Sunrise faction mission called Expanding the Camp; you don’t need to complete those later upgrades just to close Chapter 3.
Crimson Desert Howling Hill not progressing?
If Crimson Desert Howling Hill seems stuck, compare the current objective against these checks. Make two correct soups, not one, in Reward for Their Sweat. Read the shrine letter in A Gentle Touch. For Bustling Hill, use the camp’s Inspect → Mission List rather than a normal Journal selection, and make sure Luke and Ronald are free.
Other issues have separate solutions: our Mysterious Pot guide, Ether Rest Power Core guide and map discoveries fix address problems elsewhere in the campaign.
Does Howling Hill unlock Charting the Unknown?
Completing Crimson Desert Howling Hill is Pearl Abyss’s confirmed prerequisite for the new ocean story. The three additional character stories and Garden of Trials instead require completing the full campaign. Shipbuilding has another requirement: establish Greymane Camp and finish its new related DLC questline.
You can prepare for the October 29 expansion by finishing the chapter now. The Silver Pouches guide covers money preparation and Water Stride covers existing surface-water travel, distinct from DLC diving.
Related Guides
Sources: Pearl Abyss official DLC requirements.
