How to Defeat Kailok the Hornsplitter Boss in Crimson Desert

Kailok the Hornsplitter is the first proper boss that most players will come across in Crimson Desert. Decked out with golden ornaments, the leader of the goblins is a major step up from the goon mobs that the game throws at you during its initial hours. As such, the difficulty spike can be pretty daunting. To help make this encounter a bit easier, we’ve put together a boss guide with tips on how to defeat the Hornsplitter in Crimson Desert.

Hornsplitter Boss Location in Crimson Desert

You’ll fight Kailok the Hornsplitter at the climax of the “End of Greed” questline in Crimson Desert. Since this boss is tied to the main story, it’s impossible to miss him if you’ve been following the beaten path. As for his location, you’ll find the Hornsplitter at the top of Unicorn Cliff near the Nas River.

While making your way to the boss, you will run into a sizable horde of enemies. So, make sure to stock up on food resources, or you’ll be entering the boss fight at a disadvantage.

How to Beat Hornsplitter in Crimson Desert

The key to beating the Hornsplitter is to perfect your blocks and dodge timing. Since Kailok pops up early on in the game, he’s one of the easier encounters in the long list of boss fights in Crimson Desert. He’s going to be aggressive from the jump, relying on slashing combinations that are lethal if you don’t get out of the way. The Hornsplitter also has an annoying AoE attack that can erase a chunk of your health bar.

To make this battle easier, here’s a set of tips to keep in mind:

Watch Out for the Wind Slash

The Hornsplitter’s most reliable attack is the Wind Slash. If you see him holding his sword by the side, accompanied by a red glint, it means he’s charging up for an AoE combination. He’ll go on to send multiple waves of blue-colored projectiles in your direction. Do not bother blocking them. Instead, we recommend holding down the dodge button in a specific direction and evading the wave altogether.

This is crucial for the boss fight, since the Wind Slash attacks are easily the most powerful moves in his arsenal. Learn how to avoid them, and you’ll be set for the rest of the encounter.

Manage Stamina

Since you’ll be dodging and evading for the majority of the fight, managing your stamina is essential. In fact, stamina is arguably the most important foundational skill in Crimson Desert, so we highly recommend upgrading it using Abyss Artifacts before challenging the boss. Throughout the fight, keep an eye on your stamina bar and make sure not to engage if you don’t have the reserves.

Avoid the Ranged Flurry

At certain points in the fight, the Hornsplitter’s boss arena will start to dim while he charges up another red glint attack. When this happens, he’ll send Wind Slashes in your direction. Just as we mentioned in the first tip, make sure to dodge these attacks. You cannot tank through this combo, as it will result in instant death.

Use Shield to Block Light Attacks

While you can technically parry his sword strikes, getting the timing right requires a ton of practice. Instead of putting in the extra effort, you can simply tank through his light attacks using a shield. This works for most of his sword-based combos, but you will still have to dodge out of the way when he executes a Wind Slash.

Spam Evasive Roll After it Unlocks

After you get the boss down to 50% health, you’ll automatically see a pop-up informing you that the Evasive Roll has been unlocked. From this point on, the Hornsplitter boss becomes a cakewalk as you can easily roll away from his Wind Slashes. Make good use of this ability as soon as it is unlocked, and before you know it, the boss will be defeated.

Best Skills to Defeat the Hornsplitter Boss in Crimson Desert

Since the Hornsplitter is an early game boss, you won’t have the largest collection of skills at this point. With this in mind, we’ve listed the best starter skills for the encounter:

• Force Palm: Use the ability at the end of your combinations to stun the Kailok and make him vulnerable.
• Evasive Roll: As mentioned earlier, make full use of this ability when it unlocks during the fight – especially to avoid his Wind Slashes.
• Pump Kick: This skill should already be in Kliff’s wheelhouse by this point, so make sure to use it to disrupt the Hornsplitter’s charging attacks.

Even if you don’t have these Crimson Desert skills, the boss can still be defeated with some patience and careful positioning. However, you can always regain the edge by learning how to respec skills in Crimson Desert.

Crimson Desert Hornsplitter Boss Rewards

Once the Hornsplitter is in the dust, you’ll be rewarded with a cool cutscene as well as these items:

• Sword of the Lord (One-Handed Sword)
• Iron Ore (Resource)
• Copper Ore (Resource)

And that wraps up our guide on how to defeat the Hornsplitter boss in Crimson Desert. Let us know if the tips helped you out in the comments.