Crimson Desert Guide: Kliff Skills & How to Play

Kliff is the heart of Crimson Desert, the first playable character you control and the leader of the Greymanes. Voiced by Alec Newman, he starts with a Sword of the Wolf and a Grey Wolf Wooden Shield, but his true potential only reveals itself once you understand how his three skill trees work together. Whether you want to pummel enemies bare-handed, unleash elemental fury, or zip across the open world with Force attacks, this guide breaks down everything you need to know.

Who Is Kliff and What Makes Him Unique?

Kliff is not a straightforward sword-and-board fighter. His combat identity is built around mixing weapon attacks with unarmed strikes, swapping between multiple weapon configurations, and tapping into supernatural Force abilities that serve double duty in both exploration and combat. That flexibility is what separates him from more traditional action RPG protagonists.

His starting loadout is modest, but the moment you begin investing in his skill trees, the options multiply fast. The challenge early on is knowing where to put your limited Abyss Artifacts for maximum impact.

Kliff's starting weapon loadout

Kliff's Three Skill Trees

Kliff has access to three distinct progression paths: Stamina, Spirit, and Health. Each one unlocks a different dimension of his kit.

Stamina Tree

The Stamina tree is where most of Kliff's direct combat power lives. It covers his weapon attack chains, unarmed strikes, and ranged options through Marksmanship. Skills like Clothesline, Body Slam, and Dropkick give you a toolkit for staggering enemies and keeping them off balance.

The most important early pickup here is Blinding Flash Finisher, which is one of the strongest tools for handling groups of aggressive enemies. When multiple enemies crowd you, this skill creates breathing room fast.

Also worth noting: Armed Combat Level 2 unlocks Evasive Slash, which activates the Spear's Counter Stance. This is one of the best defensive mechanics in the early game, letting you punish incoming attacks instead of just dodging away.

Spirit Tree

The Spirit tree gives Kliff his supernatural edge. Force Palm is the gateway skill here, and it opens up a chain of powerful follow-up abilities. Aerial Force Palm (unlocked at Force Palm Level 1) lets you activate Force Palm up to three times while airborne, which dramatically improves vertical traversal without burning through your Stamina bar.

Pair that with Double Jump and you have a movement system that makes the open world feel genuinely accessible. These two skills together are the most efficient early investment for exploration before you have strong mounts available.

The Spirit tree also includes Nature's Grasp, Nature's Snare, and Nature's Echo, which tie into Kliff's ability to interact with the environment and manipulate enemies during combat.

Force Palm aerial mobility in action

Health Tree

The Health tree is where Kliff's kit gets genuinely unusual. Axiom Force anchors this tree and feeds into traversal abilities like Flight and Aerial Roll. Beyond movement, this tree unlocks elemental skills including Flame Strike, Frost Mantle, Lightning Surge, and the Imbue Element ability that lets you apply elemental effects to your attacks.

Mystical Storage and Winch round out the utility options here, giving Kliff tools for puzzles and environmental interactions that go beyond standard combat.

Health tree elemental skill options

What Are the Best Early Skills for Kliff?

After testing the full skill set across the opening chapters, three early picks stand out as the highest-impact investments:

1. Blinding Flash Finisher (Stamina Tree): Your best crowd control option early on. The animation clears space around Kliff and punishes grouped enemies.
2. Grappling Level 2 for Lariat (Stamina Tree): Lariat is the fastest grapple in the early game. Its shockwave pushes enemies back, creating distance and stagger simultaneously.
3. Force Palm / Aerial Force Palm (Spirit Tree): Essential for exploration. Three mid-air activations mean you can reach elevated areas without relying on stamina-heavy climbing.

How to Play Kliff Effectively in Combat

Weaving Unarmed Strikes Into Weapon Combos

The single most important thing to understand about Kliff is that his unarmed skills deal more stagger damage than his weapon attacks. Skills like Lariat, Pump Kick, and Meteor Kick are not just flashy extras. They are the primary tools for breaking boss guards and opening windows for heavy weapon damage.

The optimal approach is to start a combo with weapon attacks to build pressure, then weave in an unarmed strike to stagger the target, then return to weapons for the punish window.

Using the Spear as a Secondary Weapon

Kliff handles the Spear exceptionally well, particularly for punishing boss attacks. When you add the Quick Swap skill to your kit, you can transition to the Spear mid-fight to take advantage of its reach and counter properties without losing momentum.

Dual Wielding for Aggressive Pressure

Kliff can dual-wield any two one-handed weapons by replacing the shield slot in the weapon wheel with a second one-handed weapon. This configuration trades defensive options for faster attack speed and higher sustained damage. The key detail: weapon combinations are not restricted by type, so you can mix and match freely as long as both are one-handed.

Force Palm and Axiom Force in Combat

Both Force Palm and Axiom Force are primarily designed for traversal, but they have genuine combat applications. Force Palm can reposition enemies or create openings, and Axiom Force gives you aerial options that standard weapon users cannot access. Building these into your combat rotation adds unpredictability that most enemies are not designed to handle cleanly.

For more tips and strategies across all of Crimson Desert, browse more guides to keep your playthrough moving forward.