Crimson Desert: How to Clear Origin of Thoughts – Abyss Guide

If you have been throwing yourself off the edge of Origin of Thoughts trying to glide left toward those giant rings, that is exactly why you keep failing. This Abyss trial in Crimson Desert is not a leap-of-faith jumping test — it is a fixed route that goes west first, climbs a fan gauntlet, then ends on a ring puzzle. Get the direction and the battery step right and it solves itself.

The short version

• Get in: Clear the Riddle Square Abyss puzzle (the Spire of Clockwork chain in Demeniss), then rotate the grey pillar with Axiom Force and head west through the triangular Abyss Skybridge gate from Riddle Square’s ground-floor / southwest corner.
• Climb the gauntlet: Ride the multi-stage fan chain upward. Hold glide (Square on controller) once each fan catches you — do not tap.
• Power the dead fans: Grab the floating battery on the west side, drop it between the two deactivated fans on the upper platform, and lock it with Force Palm / Force Current (L3 on controller) to switch them back on. This is a required step, not optional.
• Solve the rings: On the central platform, line up the movable node on each of the three rings, then hit the base switch in the middle with Force Palm.
• Reward: You receive an Abyss Artifact and advance the Spire of Clockwork / Riddle Square progression.

The whole challenge is a reading test for air currents. The game dresses it up as a platformer, but the only thing that matters is using the fans, the battery, and the rings in the intended order. Brute-forcing long jumps or cutting diagonally just bleeds height and drops you off the route.

What you need before entering

• The Riddle Square Abyss puzzle completed — Origin of Thoughts sits at the end of the Spire of Clockwork chain in Demeniss, so you reach it through that progression rather than as a standalone door.
• Axiom Force (Force Axiomatique), the ability you use to rotate the grey pillar that opens the gate and to seat the battery later.
• Glide mapped and ready. On controller it is Square; use the equivalent on your layout.
• Patience for moving platforms. Several jumps are losses-in-waiting if you leap before the platform aligns.

Step 1: Open the path and go west

This is the mistake that wrecks most first runs. From Riddle Square’s ground floor / southwest corner, use Axiom Force to rotate the grey pillar, which exposes the triangular Abyss Skybridge gate. Cross through it heading west — not right of the final monolith, and not left toward the rings you can see in the distance. The rings come at the very end; chasing them now just throws you off the map.

Once you are through the gate, you are on the opening leg of the fan gauntlet. The route is fixed from here, so stop hunting for shortcuts and commit to the western line.

Step 2: Ride the fan gauntlet upward

The climb is a multi-stage chain of air currents. Treat every fan as a lift, not a springboard: step into the center of the airflow, jump, and hold glide (Square) the instant the current catches you. A quick tap gives you a shallow hop that dies before the next ledge — the single most common reason people slide back down.

Land cleanly at the top of each fan before lining up the next one. If you overshoot or clip an edge, stop and re-center your camera before committing to the following jump. Small corrections in the air are fine; hard directional inputs shove you out of the lift column.

Step 3: Power the dead fans with the battery

When you reach the upper platform and find a set of fans that will not turn on, this is the real puzzle — and it is mandatory, not a version quirk. Head to the west side and grab the floating battery. Carry it back and place it between the two deactivated fans on the upper platform.

Once it is seated, lock it in with Force Palm / Force Current (L3 on controller). The fans power on and open the route leading north and upward. If nothing happens, do not assume a bug: re-check that the battery is centered between the two dead fans and that you secured it with the force input. Almost every failure here is a placement that is slightly off the interaction point.

Step 4: Align the three rings on the central platform

With the northern fans live, follow them up to the central platform where the three giant rings sit. This is the finish line, not the opening — which is why going for the rings early fails so hard. Each ring has a single movable node. Line up the node on all three rings, then use Force Palm on the base switch in the middle of the platform to lock the solution.

Take the approach jumps deliberately. Seeing the finish makes people jump wider than the route allows; stay inside the airflow, land fully, then commit to the next platform.

Reward and what it unlocks

Solving the ring alignment and hitting the central switch awards an Abyss Artifact and advances your Spire of Clockwork / Riddle Square progression. If you are stockpiling these Abyss rewards for endgame builds, our best Abyssal gear farm and synthesis guide covers what to do with them. For the next puzzles in the chain, the Forgotten Altar Abyssal trial and the Dimensional Labyrinth use the same Axiom Force fundamentals.

Common mistakes

• Going right of the monolith or left toward the rings. The opening route is west, through the triangular gate. The rings are the last step, not the first.
• Tapping glide instead of holding it. You need sustained lift through every fan. Hold Square the moment the current grabs you.
• Treating the battery as skippable. If the upper fans are dead, the battery on the west side is the solution — not a leap of faith forward.
• Placing the battery off-center. It has to sit between the two dead fans and be locked with Force Palm / Force Current (L3).
• Oversteering in the air. Hard turns push you out of the lift column; make small adjustments.
• Jumping before platforms align. Waiting a second beats redoing the entire upper climb.

Practical takeaway

Stop fighting the route. Rotate the pillar with Axiom Force, go west through the triangular gate, climb the fan gauntlet on held glide, fix the dead fans with the battery on the west upper platform, then align the three rings and hit the central switch. Do it in that order and Origin of Thoughts goes from a death-loop to a five-minute clear with an Abyss Artifact at the end.