How to Defeat Reed Devil Boss in Crimson Desert

Crimson Desert features around 76 boss fights, all of which bring a different challenge to the table. This includes the Reed Devil boss, a masked foe who terrorizes the citizens of Hernand. Formerly a slum-dweller, the Reed Devil’s fate changed after he donned a mysterious mask and inherited dangerous powers. He used these newfound abilities to wreak havoc on the locals, causing them to call on Kliff for help. So, if you’re struggling with this duel, here are some tips on how to defeat the Reed Devil boss in Crimson Desert.

Note: This guide is based on pre-release information from a 2024 build of Crimson Desert. We’ll be sure to update it with new info after the game’s full release.

Crimson Desert Reed Devil Boss Location

The Reed Devil boss in Crimson Desert is located in Frozen Soul Mountain in the Hernand region, which is the very first explorable area of the game. After being tasked with slaying this boss, head to the search area as marked on your map. Once you’re there, a cutscene should trigger automatically. If not, you’ll have to skip time until it’s early in the morning (5 AM).

The boss arena is a field of reeds, of course, which the Reed Devil uses to his advantage. Make your battle preparations before arriving at this location since the fight begins almost instantly. If you’re looking for specific location pointers, check out our Crimson Desert map guide for an overview of the region.

Crimson Desert Reed Devil Boss Moveset

The Reed Devil boss has three phrases that you’ll need to deal with. Every phrase is complemented by new moves that the boss tends to spam. Below, we’ve provided an overview of every phrase and how to deal with it:

Reed Devil Phase 1

During the first phase, you’ll mainly want to look out for his sword draw attack. The animation can be telegraphed quite easily since the Reed Devil will lower his upper body and clutch onto his sword. A one-second-long wind-up accompanies this animation, and you’ll also see a red glint coming off his sword.

If you spot this, do not attack. Your sword will bounce off the enemy, and he’ll slice through you. That initial slice is followed by his disappearing into the reeds and then reappearing for another slash. While he’s charging up, you can use the Blinding Flash ability to stun him, opening up a great attack window quickly. Alternatively, you can simply dodge the initial charge and the follow-up attacks since it’s a pretty short combination. You can also cancel it altogether with a perfect block, but this will require a lot of practice.

The second attack to look out for is a flurry of throwable spears. If there’s too much distance between you and the Reed Devil, he’ll fling three throwables in your direction before dashing towards you for a follow-up slash. Dodge the spears and block the follow-up attack to get back on the offensive.

Red Devil Phase 2

The second phase has a bit of gimmick behind it, which can be said for many other bosses in Crimson Desert. It triggers after a cutscene and sees the Reed Devil spawn Wicker Totems in the arena. During this phase, you won’t be able to engage him directly, as your goal will be to destroy the Totems.

The easiest way to do this is via Explosive Arrows, as they can be fired quickly without interrupting your mobility. Keep rolling and running after releasing an arrow since the Reed Devil will be hot on your tail, and there’s really no way to block his attacks.

Red Devil Phase 3

Once the Totems are down, the third phase of the Reed Devil boss fight will commence. This is easily the most challenging part of the encounter, as the devil will use aggressive Iaijutsu strikes to cut down your health bar. His sword draws will now send red-colored waves towards you, and you’ll also be interrupted by a clone that throws off your dodge timing. The attack itself is also pretty lengthy, meaning if he catches you, you’re in for a rough time.

The best way to stop this chain altogether is to close the distance and stop him from drawing the sword with a grapple. It’ll take some practice to nail down the timing, but this really is the best way to stop his most dangerous attack. In fact, a Dropkick can also work for this purpose.

Besides the Iaijutsu, he’ll also spam disguise attacks, where he’ll disappear into reeds and attack you from a different direction. To make these attacks move predictable, we highly recommend standing in the center of the field, where you’ll have extra visibility and more room to maneuver and evade his rapid strikes. Learn to punish these two moves, and you’ll breeze past the Reed Devil boss in Crimson Desert.

Best Skills to Defeat Reed Devil in Crimson Desert

The Reed Devil boss in Crimson Desert is far from the game’s most challenging enemy. This also means that he’s susceptible to various abilities and skills, but these are the ones that we recommend:

• Blinding Flash: Use it while he charges the sword draw to temporarily stun him.
• Grappling: A standard Throw is good enough to disrupt his attacks. If you’ve unlocked the Lariat, even better.
• Shield Bash: Block incoming attacks with your shield while simultaneously striking the enemy.

We’ll add more skills to this section as well as recommend weapons once the game is released. For the time being, be sure to check our Crimson Desert weapons guide for a look at some of the tools you can use for this boss fight.

Crimson Desert Reed Devil Boss Rewards

The rewards for the Reed Devil boss fight are yet to be revealed. In the Gamescom 2024 demo, the boss simply disappears in a cutscene once the encounter is finished, suggesting that you’ll have to fight him once more to properly get rid of him. This could mean the first encounter offers no rewards. Whatever the case may be, we’ll update this section once we know more.

And that wraps up our guide on the Reed Devil boss in Crimson Desert. Let us know if you struggled with this fight in the comments.