How to win at arm wrestling in Crimson Desert

How to win at arm wrestling in Crimson Desert | PC Gamer Skip to main content Open menu Close main menu PC Gamer THE GLOBAL AUTHORITY ON PC GAMES US Edition UK US Canada Australia Subscribe Sign in View Profile Sign out Search Search PC Gamer Games Hardware News Reviews Guides Video Forum More PC Gaming Show PC Gamer Clips Software Codes Coupons Movies & TV Magazine Newsletter Affiliate links Meet the team Community guidelines About PC Gamer PC Gamer Magazine SubscriptionWhy subscribe?Subscribe to the world’s #1 PC gaming magTry a single issue or save on a subscriptionIssues delivered straight to your door or device From$1Subscribe now Don’t miss these Action How to beat Marnie’s Excavatron in Crimson Desert Action How to beat Hornsplitter in Crimson Desert Action How to beat Reed Devil in Crimson Desert Action How to complete the Reunion puzzle in Crimson Desert Action How to fish for Annabella’s Request in Crimson Desert Action How to clean the chimney in Crimson Desert Action How to enter Hernand Castle in Crimson Desert Action How to mine iron ore for Rhett’s Request in Crimson Desert Action How to get Bloodstone in Crimson Desert Action How to use Blinding Flash in Crimson Desert Action How to get to Florindale in Crimson Desert Action How to complete Abyss Without Balance in Crimson Desert Action How to complete Gate to the Other World in Crimson Desert Action How to chop down trees for Turnali’s Request in Crimson Desert Action How to tame a horse and level it up in Crimson Desert PopularNEW: PC Gamer Clips!MarathonGDCBest PC gearQuizzes Games Action Crimson Desert How to win at arm wrestling in Crimson Desert Guides By Sean Martin published 20 March 2026 Triumph in Hernand tavern as part of Where Rumors Gather. When you purchase through links on our site, we may earn an affiliate commission. Here’s how it works. (Image credit: Pearl Abyss) Copy link Facebook X Whatsapp Reddit Pinterest Flipboard Email Share this article 0 Join the conversation Follow us Add us as a preferred source on Google Newsletter PC Gamer Get the PC Gamer Newsletter Keep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team. Contact me with news and offers from other Future brands Receive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsors By submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. You are now subscribed Your newsletter sign-up was successful Want to add more newsletters? Every Friday GamesRadar+ Your weekly update on everything you could ever want to know about the games you already love, games we know you’re going to love in the near future, and tales from the communities that surround them. 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From first-look trailers, interviews, reviews and explainers, we’ve got you covered. Signup + Once a month SFX Get sneak previews, exclusive competitions and details of special events each month! Signup + An account already exists for this email address, please log in. Subscribe to our newsletter You’ll first try arm wrestling in Crimson Desert during the Chapter 1 main quest in which you arrive in Hernand. Where Rumors Gather sees you head into the tavern to try and track down info about your scattered Greymane comrades, and I guess the best way to do that is try some random-ass minigame? Priorities, Kliff.The minigame itself is fairly straightforward, provided you’re a proficient button-basher, but here’s a rundown of how it works so you can keep progressing the Chapter 1 quest to clean a chimney and head to Hernand Castle.How to win at arm wrestling in Crimson Desert Arm wrestling is comparatively easy as Crimson Desert’s minigames go, at least more so than working out how to fish anyway. Here’s what you need to do:Article continues below You may like How to beat Marnie’s Excavatron in Crimson Desert How to beat Hornsplitter in Crimson Desert How to beat Reed Devil in Crimson Desert Once the countdown ends, tap E (or whatever the controller prompt it) as fast as you can, gradually filling the icon of the clenched fists with redOccasionally, to throw you off, a quicktime event will trigger. An arrow will spin around a circle and you’ll have to press R (or, again, whatever the controller prompt is) when it’s hovering over the white sectionAfter the quicktime event, go back to tapping E to progress as much as you can before the next quicktime eventWhen you fill the icon fully with red, you’ll slam their hand down and win the match. Essentially, it’s just a button-bashing minigame with a quicktime event thrown in, though Crimson Desert’s quicktime events are a bit borked. There’s one in battles later where a soldier will tackle and punch you in the face repeatedly, and the only way out is to hit a weirdly tough quicktime.By the way, when I beat all the arm wrestlers in the tavern, I completed the Hero’s Handshake I challenge and got an Abyss Artifact, so it’s worse defeating them all if you can.Crimson Desert characters: Unlock eachCrimson Desert Abyss Artifacts: Level upCrimson Desert respec: Swap your skillsHow to steal in Crimson Desert: Pilfer some lootHow to find keys in Crimson Desert: Open doorsHow to fast travel in Crimson Desert: Going placesRead moreRead less▼The biggest gaming news, reviews and hardware dealsKeep up to date with the most important stories and the best deals, as picked by the PC Gamer team.Contact me with news and offers from other Future brandsReceive email from us on behalf of our trusted partners or sponsorsBy submitting your information you agree to the Terms & Conditions and Privacy Policy and are aged 16 or over. Sean MartinSenior Guides WriterSean’s first PC games were Full Throttle and Total Annihilation and his taste has stayed much the same since. When not scouring games for secrets or bashing his head against puzzles, you’ll find him revisiting old Total War campaigns, agonizing over his Destiny 2 fit, or still trying to finish the Horus Heresy. Sean has also written for EDGE, Eurogamer, PCGamesN, Wireframe, EGMNOW, and