Crimson Desert's Charting the Unknown DLC will let players build a home, marry some of Pywel's inhabitants and claim three castles. But those additions won't all open at the same stage of the game when the expansion arrives on October 29.
Alongside its new features overview video, Pearl Abyss has published the unlock requirements. Housing and sailing depend on progress around the Greymane Camp at Howling Hill, while the new character stories and claimable castles require completing the main story.
A home, a business and deeper relationships
The upgraded housing system allows players to build a house from the ground up. Access requires setting up the Howling Hill camp and completing Luke's Request in the Grounds of the Sunrise Greymanes Faction quest.
Kliff, Oongka and Damiane can also develop relationships with certain inhabitants through interactions that build trust, potentially leading to romance and marriage. Friends can visit the Greymane Camp once it reaches the required upgrade level.
Business management gives players another reason to return to liberated regions. After establishing the camp and completing the relevant regional liberation faction quest, players can rent and run facilities such as a Vellua restaurant or the smithy at Zargan Tankworks.
The three claimable castles sit further along the progression path. Players must finish the main story and relevant quests, then liberate each stronghold to unlock its claim missions. Once secured, the castles' courtyards and interiors can be decorated.
Sailing opens before the new character stories
Ocean exploration doesn't require finishing the campaign. The new ocean storyline becomes available after Howling Hill, and a ship-related questline opens once the camp is established there. Players can send comrades on a ship-building dispatch mission at a port or buy a vessel from a Fleet Office manager.
Diving itself has no special unlock conditions. Underwater exploration consumes breath, with equipment such as diving suits extending the time available to search for ruins, treasure and new creatures and mounts.
For players who have finished the main story, the DLC adds separate storylines for Kliff, Oongka and Damiane through the Journal menu. It also introduces Garden of Trials, a post-campaign combat challenge that pits players against previously encountered bosses in succession for special rewards.
Charting the Unknown launches on PS5, Xbox Series X|S and PC through Steam and Epic Games Store. Its October 29 release follows a two-week delay announced on September 30, when Pearl Abyss said it needed more development time for polish and stability. The studio plans to publish further details in release-day patch notes.