The Steel Mountains Ruins bell puzzle is one of those moments in Crimson Desert where you stumble across something that looks complicated but rewards a few seconds of attention with a permanent fast travel point and an Abyss Cresset. The whole thing takes under two minutes once you know the sequence. Here's exactly what to do.
Where is the Steel Mountains Ruins puzzle?
The ruins sit in the Steel Mountains subregion of Demeniss, northwest of the Spire of Insight. According to IGN's wiki, the more precise location is within the Hernand region under Grace Estate, slightly northwest of the Spire of Insight marker on the world map. You're looking for a small outdoor workshop set against a mountain wall, with a group of eight bells and a board covered in symbol-marked papers.
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If you're having trouble spotting the site, pull out your lantern and hold it out while moving through the area. According to IGN's guide, a bright light will appear from the correct angle and point you straight to the puzzle.
Ruins location in Steel Mountains
The puzzle is part of the Thread in the Forest challenge series, which is Crimson Desert's collection of Ancient Ruins Puzzle challenges spread across Pywel. Completing this one also gives you a handy teleport node close to the Spire of Insight, making it worth grabbing early.
What do you need to solve the puzzle?
The mallet is sitting right at the puzzle site, so you don't need to bring anything specific. Pick it up, equip it, and you're ready. Multiple sources, including Shacknews and TheGamer, note that players often find the bow and arrow easier for landing precise hits on the bells, so switch to your bow if the mallet feels awkward.
How do you solve the Steel Mountains Ruins bell puzzle?
Numbering the eight bells from top-left to bottom-right, laid out in two rows of four:
The correct order to hit the bells, as confirmed across all four sources, is:
1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 4, 3, 2, 1
Pick up the mallet to start
The sequence is shown on the board to the left of the bells. Each piece of paper on the board displays a symbol that corresponds to a matching symbol above one of the bells. You're not guessing; the game is telling you the answer directly. The challenge is just executing it cleanly.
- Use the target function (CTRL on PC) to lock onto each bell precisely before swinging or shooting
- Hit each bell once per its appearance in the sequence
- Bell 4 appears twice in the sequence, so you'll strike it on the fourth hit and again on the seventh
What happens if you mess up the bell order?
Here's where the two main sources actually disagree slightly, so pay attention.
Shacknews states you must leave the area entirely and travel to a nearby fast travel point (over 200 meters away) to reset the puzzle. IGN's guide, updated March 23, 2026, says you can immediately start over with the correct order without any pause. The discrepancy likely comes down to how the mistake happens: accidentally walking into a bell mid-sequence may behave differently from simply hitting the wrong bell intentionally. The safest approach is to use the targeting function to avoid accidental contacts, and if the sequence clearly breaks, fast travel away and return.
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Use the bow if you keep accidentally nudging bells with the mallet. Several players across community reports found ranged attacks far more reliable for keeping the sequence clean.
What are the rewards for completing the puzzle?
Once you hit the final bell in the correct order, a pillar appears opposite the board. Take the Abyss Cresset from it. This gives you an Abyss Artifact and permanently unlocks a fast travel point at this location. Given how close it sits to the Spire of Insight, the travel node alone makes this one of the more practical early puzzle rewards in the Steel Mountains area.
For more Crimson Desert puzzles, collectibles, and challenge guides, browse more guides on GAMES.GG to keep your completion run moving.