The best horses in Crimson Desert: guide to legendary mounts

Crimson Desert, it's a vast world. Like, really immense. And Pearl Abyss had the good idea of not sticking fast travel points every 200 meters as in some open worlds. Result: your horse is your best buddy. You're going to spend hours on its back crossing the plains of Hernand, the snowy mountains of Pailune, and the red forests of Tash Kalp.

The thing is, the base horse - Herspia, the one they give you after the prologue - she's nice but frankly limited. Average speed, weak endurance, you quickly find yourself walking next to your mount because she's out of breath. Not great.

Good news: it exists 3 legendary horses hidden in the map. Beasts with stats far above the rest, each specialized in a domain. And you can collect them all relatively early in your game if you know where to look. We explain everything.

By the way, if you struggle with framerate during your horseback rides, we have a complete benchmark of Crimson Desert on all graphics cards which should help you see more clearly.

Before talking about the legendaries, you have to master the taming system. Because the game doesn't explain anything to you. Zero tutorial, you figure it out. Classic Pearl Abyss.

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Here's how it works in practice:

1. Approach the horse — either in a crouched position so as not to scare it, or by running and jumping on it (both work, but the stealthy method is more reliable on legendaries)
2. Get on top — press E (PC), Square (PS5), or X (Xbox) when you are within range
3. The mini-game starts — you see a circle/lasso filling up. The goal: fill it completely before running out of stamina
4. Push the left joystick (or the directional keys) in the direction opposite to the horse's head — basically, aim towards the back of the animal. The trick that works best: hold S (or the stick downwards) and position your camera behind the horse
5. Hang in there — the horse will kick in all directions. Constantly adjust your direction. If you fall, it's okay, you can start over

Critical point: endurance. Legendary horses are much more difficult to tame than classic wild ones. The mini-game lasts longer and drains your stamina like nothing else. We recommend you minimum 4 to 6 points invested in the Endurance skill from the skills tree before embarking on the adventure. With 6 points, it's comfortable. With 4, it's tight but it works.

Another tip: Royler is in a snowy area, so remember to equip a cape with cold resistance. Camora, on the other hand — hot zone, fire resistance recommended. Rokade is in a more temperate zone, no particular concerns.

Before going into the details of each horse, here is a summary for those who just want to know which one to pick up first.

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It's simple: Royler is the best horse in the game for exploration . And by far. Its endurance bar is monstrous — we're talking about a base of 375+, which allows you to gallop for an eternity without stopping. When you switch from Herspia to Royler, it's day and night. You feel like you're going from a Twingo to a Ferrari.

Where to find it? Head to the Silverwolf Mountains in the Pailune region, north of the map. More precisely, near a small camp called Snowgrass Hearth , on the edge of a frozen lake. On the map, locate the big letter "P" of Pailune and go just below. He's hanging out there with 3-4 other normal horses — he's the white one.

From Hernand, about 2 km of journey. The area is snowy, so the cold will nibble at your endurance during the taming. Think about your cold resistance cape. And beware of black bear camps on the way — if you are still early in the game, go around them.

The big advantage of Royler is that he is accessible very early . You can technically go there from chapter 1, even if we advise you to have at least finished the prologue and accumulated some abyssal artifacts to increase your endurance. With 6 points of endurance, the mini-game goes smoothly. With 4, you need to be precise.

Royler's Stats:

• Health — 350
• Endurance — 315 (the highest in the game)
• Movement speed — 4/5
• Acceleration — 3/5
• Attack — 10 (weakling, not a warrior)
• Defense — 50

Our verdict: If you have to catch just one, take Royler. His speed and endurance completely change the gaming experience. No more breaks every 30 seconds to let your mount recover. You zip from one end of the map to the other without stopping, and that, that is priceless in such a large open world.

Rokade, it is the warhorse par excellence. Where Royler excels in exploration, Rokade is tailored for combat. It is a massive black horse with the biggest health bar of all the horses in the game You can charge into an enemy camp without worrying that your mount will be shot down in two hits.

Where to find it? Heading south, to the Steel Mountains, towards the Grace Estate domain. He prowls near a lake next to the Spire of Insight . It's not as far as Camora, but it's still a good little trip from Hernand. The area is temperate, no need for a special cape.

One thing to know: the area around Rokade is filled with enemies. Several players report having to clean up the camp before being able to approach quietly. If Rokade is not visible upon your arrival, move away 200-300 meters and come back — he will respawn.

Rokade is the black horse of the group, impossible to miss once you know what to look for. It stands out clearly from the normal wild horses around it.

Strengths of Rokade:

• Maximum health among all mounts — a true tank
• Ideal for horseback combat sequences and camp raids
• Accessible at the beginning/middle of the game without too much detour
• Balanced stats — not the fastest, but it can take a hit

Our verdict: If you like to charge headlong into the fray on horseback, Rokade is made for you. He doesn't go as fast as Royler over long distances, but you can charge a group of enemies without risking ending up on foot in the middle of the fight. The perfect combo if you get Royler for exploration and Rokade for battles.

Camora, it's the horse for those who want their mount to actively participate in combat. With the highest attack and defense stats of all horses, it can literally help to shoot down enemies while you focus on something else. A true companion in arms.

Where to find it? And there, hold on tight. Camora is hiding in the Redtree Forest , in the Tash Kalp region, all the way east on the map. It's quite a journey from the starting point. The place is beautiful — a bit like the Ghost of Tsushima ambiance with its red trees — but you have to go there.

It is clearly the furthest of the three, and probably not the one recommended to you at the very beginning of the game. However, if you are already advanced in the story or have fast travel points nearby, go for it.

Camora is the brown/red horse of the herd. The area is hot, so a fire-resistant cape will help you maintain your stamina during the taming mini-game. And as with the others: if you don't see it, move away and come back.

Strengths of Camora:

• Attack and defense at max — the horse does damage on its own
• Perfect for an offensive riding style
• Is located in one of the most beautiful areas of the game
• Complementary with Royler (exploration) and Rokade (defense)

Our verdict: Camora, it's the pick for the endgame. When you already have Royler to roam around and Rokade to tank, Camora completes the trio by adding offensive power. But if you have to choose only one as a priority, he comes after the other two because of his location.

Brief numerical summary to compare the three side-by-side. The values are based on basic stats, before equipment and level upgrades.

To gallop at full speed on Royler in the plains of Hernand is nice. Galloping at full speed at 15 FPS, much less. Crimson Desert is demanding, especially in open areas with dense vegetation and ray tracing enabled.

If you want to know exactly which graphics card will give you a smooth experience, we tested the game on a max of GPUs. You will find all the results on our page benchmark Crimson Desert .

And if you are looking for a good GPU for this game, here is our complete selection:

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Once you have tamed a horse, it joins your stable. You can go talk to the stable NPC in the cities to switch between your mounts, see their detailed stats, and equip them.

But capturing a legendary horse is just the beginning. To get the most out of it, you have to level it up. Three methods:

• Feed him — buy horse food from any saddler and use it from your inventory. It's the fastest.
• Caress it — target your horse (CTRL on PC, LB on controller) then press R. It gives XP for free. Spam that between two quests.
• Riding — simply by rolling with it, he gains XP passively. It's slow, but it adds up with the rest.

By leveling up, your horse unlocks new skills — some very useful like double jump or speed boosts. Check the horse tab in your inventory (key 5 on PC) to see the progress.

And if your horse falls in battle? Don't panic. You can resurrect it with an Equine Tonic (available at the saddler's or to steal in the world), via the "Recover" option at the stable, or with the Force Palm skill if you have unlocked it.

If you start your game and want to optimize, here is the order we recommend:

1. Royler first — as soon as you have 4-6 points of endurance. He is close and changes everything for exploration. It is the horse that will carry you for 90% of your game.
2. Rokade second — when you start having more frequent horseback battles. His high health will save you in war sequences.
3. Camora in last — when you naturally explore the east side of the map. No need to make the trip on purpose at the beginning of the game.

And remember: there are plenty of other wild horses to tame in the world, plus exotic mounts (bears, dragons, raptors...) that we discover throughout the adventure. But in terms of pure horses, these three legendary ones are at the top. The rest is just filler.

Royler, the legendary white horse. Its combination of speed + endurance makes it the best companion for exploration, which represents the majority of the game time. If you had to keep only one, it's him.

Yes, all three go to your stable and you can switch between them whenever you want by talking to the saddler NPC in any town.

Minimum 4, ideally 6 points in the Endurance skill of the skill tree. With fewer, you risk falling off the horse before filling the gauge.

Move away 200 to 300 meters, then come back. The horse respawns automatically. If enemies occupy the area, clean them up first — it can block the spawn.

No. If your horse falls in battle, you can resurrect it with an Equine Tonic, at the stable, or through the Force Palm skill. You never lose a legendary horse.

It depends on your resolution. Check our benchmark Crimson Desert to see the FPS per GPU. Basically, for comfortable 1440p, an RTX 5070 or RX 9070 XT does the job well.