Relic Exchange vendors let you spend the relics collected during ocean exploration in Crimson Desert’s Charting the Unknown DLC. Their stock varies between locations, with rewards including diving equipment, breathing device blueprints, Abyss Gear blueprints, ship cosmetics and pet outfits.
This guide covers five vendor locations and their notable rewards, along with several ocean quests and encounters that award additional relics.
If you are still getting started at sea, our Crimson Desert ship guide explains how to unlock your first vessel and begin island pioneering.
Relic Exchange Vendor Locations
Delesyia Port Relic Exchange Vendor
Visit Delesyia’s port to find a Relic Exchange vendor selling ship cosmetics, including sails, alongside books containing additional information.
This merchant is useful if you want to change your ship’s appearance. If your priority is extending your dives or unlocking new combat effects, check the equipment and blueprint selections at the other vendors before spending your relics.
Pioneered Island Relic Exchange Vendor
Progress through A Wider World, the introductory ocean questline, until you pioneer the island south of Hernand. Once the island has been developed, a Relic Exchange vendor appears beside the small port you establish.
This merchant offers an early way to obtain diving equipment if you did not receive the preorder diving suit.
Notable purchases include:
Diving suit part blueprints, allowing you to work towards equipment for longer dives.
Explorer’s Breathing Device blueprint, which unlocks a backpack item that increases underwater breathing capacity and swimming speed.
Check this vendor after completing the pioneering objective, as it is easy to continue exploring without inspecting the new shop.
Demeniss Port Relic Exchange Vendor
At Demeniss port, look a short distance inland from the waterfront for another Relic Exchange vendor.
This merchant sells completed diving suit pieces and the blueprint for the Propulsion-Type Breathing Device.
The breathing device is an upgrade over the Explorer’s Breathing Device, providing:
600 seconds of additional breathing capacity.
Increased swimming speed.
Underwater propulsion that consumes stamina while you hold the sprint input.
The propulsion effect helps you travel quickly between underwater locations, making this a useful purchase if you plan to spend more time searching ruins and caves.
The additional breathing capacity does not remove the need to monitor your oxygen. Our Crimson Desert underwater exploration guide explains how depth affects your dives and how to prepare your equipment.
Samora Island Relic Exchange Vendor
After completing the introductory shipbuilding quests, a follow-up faction quest in Delesyia directs you towards Samora Island to the east.
The island is occupied by the Dancing Catfish pirates. Clear their stronghold, then visit the ruins to find the Relic Exchange vendor.
This merchant focuses on outfits, including clothing themed around occupations such as cooking, fishing and architecture. The shop also sells pet versions of some outfits.
Visit this vendor if you want more clothing options for your characters and companions. For the business systems associated with these occupations, our Crimson Desert facilities guide covers workers, production and income.
Satyros Island Relic Exchange Vendor
Another useful Relic Exchange vendor is located on an island in the far southwest of the ocean. Search the southeastern part of the island at the location shown below.
This merchant sells blueprints for new Abyss Gear with combat effects, alongside additional pet clothing. If you are collecting relics to improve your combat options, this is a worthwhile shop to inspect before spending your currency elsewhere.
Whether clearing the nearby hostile outposts is required to make the merchant appear has not been confirmed.
These purchases are blueprints, so check the crafting requirements before choosing which ones to buy.
What to Buy First with Relics
Choose your purchases around what you want to do next.
If you are struggling to stay underwater long enough to explore, prioritise diving equipment and a breathing device. The Propulsion-Type Breathing Device is particularly useful because it improves both breathing capacity and underwater movement.
If your diving equipment is already sufficient, inspect the southwestern vendor’s Abyss Gear blueprints for combat effects that suit your build.
Ship cosmetics, occupation outfits and pet clothing provide more customisation options. You can return for these once you have the exploration equipment or combat blueprints you want.
How to Get More Relics
Ocean quests, optional bosses and underwater ruins provide opportunities to collect more relics while exploring.
After clearing the outpost on Samora Island, continue the quest involving the missing serpent’s relic. This leads to a major ocean boss encounter that awards 20 relics and an Abyss Artifact.
There are also two optional encounters around the pair of closely positioned islands in the far southwest:
Bone nest encounter: Defeat the optional boss on the northern island to receive five relics and an Abyss Artifact.
Waterfall village encounter: Defeat the optional boss associated with liberating the village on the southern island to receive five relics, an Abyss Artifact and the Satyros Spear.
The spear comes with Eclipsed Thorn, an Abyss Gear effect that produces a follow-up attack with spheres of light.
You can also collect relics while searching underwater ruins and caves. One location worth exploring is the hidden ruin containing the Lumen Sword, where you can gather relics while searching for the weapon.
