Crimson Desert: How to Show Enemy Health Bars (Health Detection Device Location)

TL;DR

• There is no settings toggle for enemy health bars in Crimson Desert — only boss health bars show by default
• To see regular enemy health bars you need the Health Detection Device — a special helmet
• It’s found inside Marni’s Laboratorium in the far eastern part of Delesyia
• The location is only accessible during or after Chapter 11 (“Fortress Keys” main quest)
• Inside the main building, take a left down the corridor — the helmet is free on a table at the end
• Equip it, add it to your Functions Wheel, then press L2+R2 to lower the visor and lock onto an enemy to see their health bar
• Bonus: it also grants Daze immunity, preventing stuns in combat
• Cannot be upgraded or fitted with Abyss Gears

If you’ve been digging through Crimson Desert’s settings menu looking for a health bar toggle — you won’t find one. Pearl Abyss made a deliberate choice to hide regular enemy health bars, keeping the combat feel raw and immersive. Boss health bars appear by default, but for every other enemy, you’re swinging blind.

There is a way around this. It’s a helmet called the Health Detection Device, and it’s one of the more useful hidden items in the game. Equip it and lock onto any enemy, and a red health bar appears over their head. It also gives you Daze immunity as a bonus, which is genuinely useful in stun-heavy fights.

Here’s exactly where to find it and how to use it.

Is There a Settings Option for Enemy Health Bars?

No. Crimson Desert does not have a settings option to permanently display enemy health bars. The game only shows health bars for bosses automatically. For all standard enemies, the only way to see their health is through the Health Detection Device helmet.

If you’ve been wondering if you’re missing a setting, you’re not. The helmet is the only in-game solution. For a full breakdown of what Crimson Desert’s HUD does and doesn’t show, see our HUD explained guide.

What Is the Health Detection Device?

The Health Detection Device is a helmet-slot item with a built-in visor system. When equipped and activated, it projects a red health bar over any enemy you lock onto. This applies to all regular enemies — not just bosses.

It has two notable features beyond the health bar display:

Health bar visibility — Lock onto any enemy while the visor is active to see their exact health remaining. The bar only shows on the specific enemy you’re targeting, not all enemies on screen at once.

Daze immunity — While the helmet is equipped and active, you cannot be stunned or dazed by enemy attacks. This is a significant combat advantage in fights involving crowd-control-heavy enemies or bosses with stagger mechanics.

The trade-off is that the helmet has very low defensive stats — just 3 Defense — and cannot be upgraded through refinement, nor can it hold Abyss Gears. Wearing it means your head slot contributes almost nothing defensively, so your other armor pieces need to carry the load. If you’re building out your gear properly, check our how to increase defense level guide and the best unique weapons and armor guide for compensation strategies.

When Can You Get the Health Detection Device?

The Health Detection Device is only accessible from Chapter 11 onward. Specifically, you need to be on or have completed the “Fortress Keys” main quest.

Fortress Keys is a lengthy Chapter 11 mission where you use Marni’s transporter to visit three fortresses — Valvegard Garrison, a second outpost, and Marni’s Laboratorium — clearing enemies and defeating a boss at each to retrieve keys. It’s one of the longer, harder quests in the game. The boss at Marni’s Laboratorium is Dreadnought, a large robot enemy. You need to defeat Dreadnought and liberate the Laboratorium before the area becomes accessible enough to grab the helmet freely.

If you try to visit Marni’s Laboratorium before Chapter 11, the doors will be locked. Don’t waste time trying to access it early.

Health Detection Device Location — Marni’s Laboratorium

Marni’s Laboratorium is located on the southeast island of Delesyia, in the far eastern part of the map. It sits toward the lower-right corner of the world map. The compound is large and heavily guarded by mechanical enemies — robots and constructs that hit hard and can overwhelm you if you don’t clear carefully.

Here’s how to find the helmet once you’re inside:

Step 1 — Reach Marni’s Laboratorium. Travel to Delesyia and head to the Laboratorium compound. You can fast travel using the Abyss Nexus in the area if you’ve activated it. For help with Abyss fast travel points, see our all Abyss Nexus fast travel locations guide.

Step 2 — Clear the entrance area. Mechanical guards are stationed near the entrance and throughout the compound. They deal significant damage, so clear them out carefully rather than trying to rush past. Using hit-and-run tactics with your best weapons is recommended here. If you’ve been building a strong kit, check our critical rate OP boss build for a setup that handles these enemies efficiently.

Step 3 — Enter the central building. Head to the largest, primary building in the middle of the Laboratorium compound. This is the main structure, not the surrounding outbuildings.

Step 4 — Turn left immediately inside. As soon as you enter, do not go straight. Turn left and follow the corridor. This hallway leads deeper into the lab infrastructure past cages and scientific debris. It’s easy to miss the turning if you head straight in, so stay aware.

Step 5 — Follow the corridor to the end. Keep walking down the hallway until you reach a dead end. When you hit the wall at the end, face north. You’ll see a cluttered workbench table tucked in the corner of the room.

Step 6 — Pick up the helmet. The Health Detection Device is sitting on the table, free to take with no additional combat encounter or puzzle needed. Pick it up and it goes straight to your inventory.

How to Use the Health Detection Device

Getting the helmet is only half the job. A lot of players equip it and wonder why nothing happens. Here’s the full setup:

Step 1 — Equip it in your helmet slot. Go to your inventory and equip the Health Detection Device in the headgear slot like any other helmet. If you don’t like the look of it on Kliff, you can toggle the “Hide Helmet” cosmetic option in your equipment settings. The health detection effect still works even when the helmet model is visually hidden.

Step 2 — Add it to your Functions Wheel. Press Right D-Pad to open your Functions Wheel. Find the Health Detection Device in the radial menu and select it to make it the active function. Just having the helmet equipped isn’t enough — it also needs to be active on the elemental imbuement wheel. If you’ve swapped that slot to something else, health bars won’t display even if the helmet is on your head.

Step 3 — Lower the visor in combat. Press L2 + R2 simultaneously (or the equivalent on PC). Your character physically lowers the visor over their eyes. This activates the scanning mode.

Step 4 — Lock onto an enemy. The moment the visor is down, lock onto any enemy. A red health bar appears immediately above their head, showing their exact remaining health. The bar updates in real time as you deal damage.

The health bar only shows on the enemy you’re locked onto. If you switch targets, the bar moves to the new locked target. It doesn’t show passive health bars floating above every enemy in the area.

Why the Health Detection Device Is Worth Using

The most practical use is testing your builds and Abyss Gears. Without health bars, comparing weapon performance or new Abyss Core combinations is mostly guesswork — you just count hits until something dies. With the helmet on, you can watch exactly how much each hit takes off a live enemy’s health bar, giving you real data on your damage output.

For players working on Abyss Gear builds or trying out elemental attack combinations, this is a game-changer. Swap between loadouts mid-session and watch the health bar depletion rate change in real time.

The Daze immunity bonus is also meaningful. Many of the game’s elite enemies and later bosses have stagger or stun attacks. Being immune to Daze while the helmet is active lets you tank through crowd-control situations that would otherwise interrupt your combo. This pairs well with an advanced combat playstyle that relies on sustained pressure.

For boss fights specifically, knowing exactly when a boss crosses a health threshold lets you commit to aggressive plays with confidence rather than guessing how much life they have left. This is especially useful for multi-phase bosses where transitions can happen at specific health percentages. Check the all bosses locations guide to plan where to use it next.

Using the HUD Settings Alongside the Helmet

Crimson Desert’s HUD does have some customization in Display Settings — you can toggle damage numbers on or off and adjust various display options — but the enemy health bar setting in that menu refers to the helmet’s output, not a standalone toggle. You still need the Health Detection Device for it to do anything.

If you’re also working on other gear upgrades around the same time you pick up the helmet, check our how to upgrade weapons and armor guide and the how to reinforce equipment guide to make sure your other armor slots are compensating for the low defense of the Health Detection Device.

For players who’ve just made it to Chapter 11 and are in the middle of the Fortress Keys grind, also check out the all new power challenges and boss locations guide — there’s a lot of content unlocking around this point. And if you’re looking for other helmets worth grabbing, the Marni Laser Helmet and its upgrade is found in a nearby Marni facility and makes for a strong active-ability complement to the Health Detection Device’s passive utility.

For crafting your early gear before reaching Delesyia, our guide on how to craft the White Wood Bow in the First Steps of a Little Marksman quest is a good earlier-game reference for how crafting and gear progression works before the late game opens up.

Where to Play Crimson Desert

Crimson Desert is available on PC via Steam, PlayStation 5, Xbox Series X|S, and the Epic Games Store. Visit the official Crimson Desert site for more. For all our guides, visit our Crimson Desert hub.