TL;DR
- The Steel Mountains Ruins bells puzzle is an Ancient Ruins challenge in southern Hernand, northwest of the Spire of Insight
- There are 8 bells arranged in two rows of four — only 6 are used in the solution
- Read the notice board to the left of the bells to learn the correct order
- The correct bell sequence is: 1, 2, 3, 4, 5, 6, 4, 3, 2, 1
- Use the Mallet sitting on the barrel next to the bells — or a bow if the mallet gives you trouble
- One wrong bell resets the whole puzzle — there is no partial save
- Completing it unlocks an Abyss Cresset, giving you an Abyss Artifact (Skill Point) and a new fast travel point
The Steel Mountains Ruins bells puzzle is one of Crimson Desert’s Ancient Ruins challenges, and it is one of the more satisfying ones. It shows up on your map as a Mysterious Energy Zone and sits tucked away in an alcove in the Steel Mountains with nothing but a rack of bells, a notice board, and a mallet waiting for you. No enemies, no combat — just music and logic.
The catch is that hitting even one bell out of order resets the whole thing. If you are not sure which bells to strike or in what sequence, this guide has the full solution and everything you need to clear it cleanly on the first try.
For a full overview of all puzzles and exploration content across the game, visit our Crimson Desert hub page.
Where to Find the Steel Mountains Ruins
The Steel Mountains Ruins are located in the southern part of the Hernand region. On your map, look northwest of the Steel Mountains text and find the area near the Spire of Insight — the ruins sit just to the north of it.
The Goldleaf Guildhouse is roughly the halfway point between Hernand City and this location, so it makes a good reference marker if you are riding out from the city. There is also a separate Abyss Nexus fast travel point next to the nearby Ruined Chapel, so if you have that activated, use it to get close quickly.
The ruins are not hidden inside a cave or buried underground. Look for an alcove at the northern foot of a small mountain, decorated with Shai-style ornaments — flowers and clay pots placed around the cliff face. Once you spot those, you are in the right place. The puzzle area appears on your map as a Mysterious Energy Zone question mark. For more on what Mysterious Energy Zones mean and how they work across the full map, check out our guide on the Demeniss City Mysterious Energy Zone.
What You Are Looking At
When you arrive at the ruins you will find:
A rack of 8 bells built into a cubby along the cliff face, arranged in two rows of four. Each bell has a unique rune or symbol carved into the wooden frame above it.
A notice board a few meters to the left of the bells, covered in pieces of paper pinned to it. Each piece of paper shows one of the bell symbols in a specific sequence — reading right to left, top to bottom, this is the order you need to ring them in.
A Mallet sitting on a barrel or altar next to the bells. This is what you use to strike them.
The key detail to notice right away: the notice board only references six of the eight bells. The bottom-right two bells are never referenced by any of the notes on the board. You can ignore those two completely. Your entire solution uses only the first six bells.
How to Number the Bells
To make the solution easy to follow, number the bells from left to right, top to bottom:
The top row from left to right is Bell 1, Bell 2, Bell 3, Bell 4.
The bottom row from left to right is Bell 5, Bell 6, Bell 7, Bell 8.
Bells 7 and 8 — the bottom-right two — are never part of the sequence. Ignore them entirely.
The Correct Bell Order — Full Solution
Strike the bells in this exact order:
1 → 2 → 3 → 4 → 5 → 6 → 4 → 3 → 2 → 1
That is ten strikes in total. The sequence goes up through bells one to six in ascending order, then descends back down from bell four to bell one. It mirrors itself — like a musical scale played up and then partially back down.
When you hit the final bell correctly, all six bells will ring out together in a tone that confirms the puzzle is solved. A hidden wall to the right of the bells will lower, revealing the Abyss Cresset inside.
How to Use the Mallet
Pick up the Mallet from the barrel next to the bells. Equip it and make sure it is in your hand before you start.
To aim and strike a bell:
- PlayStation: Hold L1 to aim, then press the attack button to strike
- Xbox: Hold LB to aim, then press the attack button to strike
- PC (Keyboard & Mouse): Hold Ctrl to aim, then click to strike
Take your time between each strike. There is no timer on this puzzle. You are not being rushed. If you need to glance back at the notice board to check the next symbol before hitting the next bell, go ahead — the game gives you all the time you need.
What If You Hit the Wrong Bell?
If you ring a bell out of order, the puzzle resets completely. There is no checkpoint, no partial credit, and no reset button. You simply start the sequence again from Bell 1.
This happens more often than you would expect because the bells sit close together and aiming at exactly the right one can be fiddly. A couple of things help:
Use a bow instead of the mallet. This is the tip most players swear by. Switching to your bow and shooting each bell with an arrow gives you better range and a cleaner aiming angle. It is easier to target individual bells from a step or two back than by swinging the mallet up close. The bow triggers the bells just the same as the mallet does.
Move between bells slowly. Do not rush from one to the next. Make sure your cursor or aim is firmly locked on the correct bell before you strike. The bottom row bells in particular can be easy to misclick if you are moving too quickly.
You can peek at the board mid-sequence. The puzzle does not reset if you look away from the bells to re-read the board. Take a moment between strikes to confirm the next symbol if you need to.
What You Get for Solving It
Once the hidden wall lowers, walk through into the small room behind it. Inside you will find the Abyss Cresset — a glowing pedestal. Interact with it to claim your reward.
You receive one Abyss Artifact, which translates directly into one Skill Point you can spend in the skill tree. This is the standard reward for every Ancient Ruins challenge in the game. You also unlock the Abyss Cresset as a permanent fast travel point, letting you teleport back to this location from anywhere on the map at any time.
The Abyss Artifact from this ruins is not sealed — you get it directly and can spend it immediately on any skill or stat upgrade you like. If you want to prioritize where to spend it, check out our guide on best skills to level up first.
About Ancient Ruins Puzzles in Crimson Desert
The Steel Mountains Ruins is one of 37 Ancient Ruins scattered across the continent of Pywel. Every single one hides an Abyss Cresset behind a unique puzzle, and every one rewards an Abyss Artifact on completion. Clearing them all is one of the best ways to build up your skill tree without relying solely on combat drops.
The bells puzzle here is one of the gentler puzzle types in the game. No abilities are required, no enemies block your path, and the clues are right there in front of you on the notice board. Some other ruins require specific skills like Force Palm, Nature’s Grasp, or Blinding Flash before you can even access them, so this one is available very early in your playthrough.
If you are working through more puzzles, here are some others to tackle:
- Kingshield Mountains Ruins Puzzle Solution
- Bamboo Forest Seonangdang Ruins Puzzle Solution
- Drakesfall Gorge Statues Puzzle Solution
- Wiggling Hill Ruins Puzzle Solution
- Haunted Hill Ruins Puzzle Solution
- Trembling Woods Puzzle Solution
- Golden Plains Ancient Ruins Puzzle Solution
- Azure Moon Labyrinth Ancient Ruins Puzzle Solution
- Sunrise Plains Ancient Ruins Puzzle Solution
- Five-Finger Mountain Valley Ruins Puzzle Solution
- Hidden Chamber of Wisdom Puzzle Guide
For related exploration content in the area:
- Spire of Insight Puzzle Guide
- How to Get and Use Focused Force Palm
- How to Use Blinding Flash
- How to Get Abyss Cells
- How to Open Sealed Abyss Artifacts
- How to Unlock Double Jump
- Mysterious Energy — Demeniss City
- All Strongbox Puzzle Solutions and Locations
- All Sanctum Locations
- How to Fast Travel
Where to Play Crimson Desert
The Steel Mountains Ruins bells puzzle is straightforward once you know the sequence. Head northwest of the Spire of Insight, read the notice board, pick up the Mallet, and play bells 1 through 6 in ascending order then back down to 1. Ten strikes, one secret wall dropped, one Abyss Artifact claimed. Use a bow if the mallet gives you trouble, take your time between each strike, and you will have it done in under a minute.
