Conan Exiles Climbing Gear Guide: Become The World's Best Rock Climber

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Emily has thousands of hours clocked in survival games, from ARK: Survival Evolved to 7 Days to Die; she loves the diversity of the genre. Initially skeptical about the theme of Conan Exiles, she quickly became addicted to the game and now recommends it to every survival fanatic she meets. Right now, she's probably in the Tundra on a seemingly endless quest to find a Baby Sabertooth.

Where Climbing Began in Conan Exiles

Conan Exiles first introduced climbing in July 2017. So for the first six months, Conan Exiles players had to walk around every cliff with some areas they just couldn’t access in the way they can now.

How to Climb

This is something that I think has a learning curve that veteran players forget about. It took me a good fifteen minutes to climb my first cliff and another week or two to perfect basic climbing. I’m not ashamed to admit it because I know I’m not alone.The controls are simple.

According to the Conan Exiles instructions, all you do is press space (on PC) next to a climbable surface. Sounds easy. But the catch is that you will just jump if you follow these directions.

Instead, you have to hold forward before you press the space bar. That will allow you to grab the surface. From there, you just hold any direction to climb in said direction. The next part is what I had trouble with.

Conan Exiles Climbing Gear Guide — Image by Emily Medlock

To let go before your stamina runs out, you have to press the crouch key (shift for most PC players). But you also must press space again to hold onto the surface you are climbing before you fall to the ground to prevent a death fall.

You can also use this method to jump from one cliff to another by jumping, holding forward, then pressing the climb button in the air. This takes practice, which I recommend doing on a short surface that won’t hurt you if you fall to the ground from the top.

How to get Climbing Gear

To get Climbing Gear in Conan Exiles, you have to travel to Fingerfang Rock. On top of a the rock, an NPC called Mountaineer is standing. He will teach you the first Mountaineer knowledge for free.

If you give him one Fragment of Power, he will give you Expert Mountaineer knowledge. His dialogue is interesting enough as he talks about the joys of rock climbing and great philosophies to share so casually.

Every Piece of Climbing Gear

There are only five technical “climbing gear” pieces in Conan Exiles. They are all learned from the Mountaineer knowledge and made in the Armorer’s Bench. Any of the Armorer’s Benches will do.

Climbing Gloves

Armor: 3
Durability: 190
Weight: 1.58
Ingredients: 1x Light Gauntlets, 5x Twine, 12x Iron Bar
Stamina Burn Reduction (while climbing): 25%

Climbing Boots

Armor: 3
Durability: 190
Weight: 1.58
Ingredients: 1x Light Boots, 5x Twine, 12x Iron Bar
Stamina Burn Reduction (while climbing): 25%

Reinforced Climbing Boots

Armor: 8
Durability: 480
Weight: 1.58
Ingredients: 1x Light Boots (Epic), 10x Twine, 4x Star Metal Bar
Stamina Burn Reduction (while climbing): 25%

Reinforced Climbing Gloves

Armor: 8
Durability: 480
Weight: 1.58
Ingredients: 1x Light Gauntlets (Epic), 10x Twine, 4x Star Metal Bar
Stamina Burn Reduction (while climbing): 25%

Spiderclimb Boots

Armor: 5
Durability: 215
Weight: 1.50
Ingredients: 1x Light Boots, 7x Twine, 23x Iron Bars
Stamina Burn Reduction (while climbing): 25%

Spiderlcimb Boots are amazing because they also grant you an additional 20 stamina.

Other Ways to Climb Better

There are plenty of other ways to climb better in Conan Exiles. Most of them revolve around stamina increase and control. But even then, not all of them are straightforward or easy to find.

Basics

Stay warm – staying a good temperature is one of the best ways to improve climbing skills.
Have good stamina – the better your stamina, the better you will be at climbing.
Keep armor light – light armor is by far the best for climbing.
Get grit – this gives 3 stamina per point but also gives the perks Endurance or Stout and Tenacity, all of which give you better stamina
Get agility – this gives 1 stamina per point but also has the perk Quickfooted, which grants you 20% climbing speed and use 10% less stamina when climbing.

Flexibility Kits

Tinker Flex Kits Conan Exiles — Image by Emily Medlock

Flexibility kits are special upgrades you can get in Conan Exiles; most of the knowledge comes from the basic ones you learn. They’re all made in the Tinker’s Bench and will reduce stamina used when climbing.

Simple Armor Flexibility Kit

Knowledge: Apprentice Armorsmith
Level: 26
Ingredients: 10x Iron Bars, 10x Plant Fiber
Stamina reduction while climbing: 5%

This is the basic flexibility kit. The stamina reduction is so low that it’s more efficient to take the armor off than to attach this to apply it to heavy armor. In most cases, this is only worth it if you put it on every piece of armor you are wearing.

Armor Flexibility Kit

Knowledge: Armorsmith
Level: 39
Ingredients: 10x Steel Bars, 10x Leather
Stamina reduction while climbing: 10%

When applied to every piece of armor, this kit gives you a 50% stamina reduction when climbing. That is a substantial amount. Since this takes simple ingredients, it’s one of the best flexibility kits overall.

Advanced Armor Flexibility Kit

Knowledge: Master Armorsmith
Level: 51
Ingredients: 10x Hardened Steel Bars, 10x Thick Leather
Stamina reduction while climbing: 15%

In my opinion, this is the worst flexibility kit. It gives a total of 75% stamina reduction but uses more difficult ingredients than the previous kit and requires you to be level 51. By level 51, you might as well get Gliding Joints.

Gliding Joints

Knowledge: Grandmaster Armorsmith
Level: 0
Ingredients: 6x Star metal bars, 15x Layered Fur
Stamina reduction while climbing: 40%

To unlock this recipe, you must get the knowledge from a stele at the Warkmaker’s Sanctuary. Because the cap for stamina reduction is 90%, you only need two of these and one regular Armor Flexibility Kit.

Food and Beverage

Foods and potions in Conan Exiles are a great way to gain temporary stats. Although there are plenty of options for stamina and stamina reduction, the best bang for your buck are these.

Jungle Rum

Ingredients: 1x Purified Water, 20x Leavening Agent, 5x Plant Fiber, 10x Spice
Thirst Quenched: 25
Knowledge: Primitive Cook
Expires: No
Bonus: +21 Stamina and keeps you cool

Cooked Moray Eel

Ingredients: 1x Moray Eel
Hunger Satiated: 77
Knowledge: none
Expires: 1 hour
Bonus: +21 Stamina and 7/HP over 3 seconds

Frost Lotus Potion

Ingredients: 1x Water-filled Flask, 2x Frost Lotus Flowers, 1x Alchemical Base
Knowledge: Potionmaker
Expires: No
Bonus: +21 Stamina, 45 Carry Weight, 50 Armor, 15% agility weapon damage

Hanuman’s Gift

Ingredients: Purchased at Hanuman’s Grotto
Expires: No
Bonus: gives a random buff, which could be 21 stamina

Hanuman’s Gift is a risky choice, but all of the buffs it gives are good. So I wouldn’t get it in hopes of getting the stamina buff but it is worth it to pay Hanuman because if you’re lucky, you’ll get the ape pet instead.

Armor

Light armor is the best for climbing in Conan Exiles because it is lightweight and thus uses less stamina when climbing. But there are ideal sets of armor that make climbing even easier.

Blackwater

Total Base Armor: 160
Total Stamina: 50
Total Cold Resistance: 5
Total Heat Resistance: 5
Total Ingredients: 5x Perfected Light Padding, 150x Thick Hide, 60x Layered Silk

To get Blackwater armor, you must defeat the Avatar of Bokrug, a random boss that was a possible encounter during the Blowback event. Otherwise, it’s only available on the Isle of Siptah.

Khari Overseer

Total Base Armor: 80
Total Stamina: 25
Total Cold Resistance: 6
Total Heat Resistance: 6
Total Ingredients: 5x Perfected Light Padding, 75x Khari Steel

This is a decent set of armor that you can only get by collecting the recipe in the Wine Cellar when it drops from the boss Thag. You also must collect the Khari Steel from chests and enemies in that dungeon.

Mitraen

Total Base Armor: 71
Total Stamina: 20
Total Cold Resistance: 4
Total Heat Resistance: 8
Total Ingredients: 5x Light Padding, 25x Lingering Essence

To unlock this armor, you need the Priest of Mitra knowledge, which will teach you the armor and the sanctuary necessary to make it. The armor looks like a blue version of the basic cloth armor.

Silent Legion Light

Total Base Armor: 160
Total Stamina: 10 (and other bonuses)
Total Cold Resistance: 5
Total Heat Resistance: 12
Total Ingredients: 5x Perfected Light Padding, 90x Star Metal Bars, 30 Layered Silk

To learn how to make Silent Legion Light armor you must first learn Star Metal Tools. Then, all you have to do is visit the Kinscourge’s room at the Black Keep, which is where you will learn all three Silent Legion sets.

Voidforged Dragonhide

Total Base Armor: 160
Total Stamina: 10
Total Cold Resistance: 8
Total Heat Resistance: 7
Total Ingredients: 5x Perfected Light Padding, 60x Layered Silk, 30x Dragonbone

The Voidforged Dragonhide armor looks amazing to me. It’s easy to learn as you can drop in the Sinkhole and read the stele there. You don’t have to go any further or fight the dragon in the pit.

How to Stop Climbers

This isn’t necessary in PvE, but in PvP, stopping or slowing down climbers can save your base and possessions. Since Conan Exiles was released, there have been multiple additions that can help you keep out those pesky alpinists.

Spikes

Spike
Simple Palisade
Stygian Palisade
Wall Palisade
Reinforced Stone Crenelated Wall
Aquilonian Crenelated Wall
Black Ice Crenelated Wall

Spikes and crenelated walls will make it impossible to climb over where they are placed. Just put them in front of any wall you don’t want to be climbed and on top for optimum performance. There are also DLC crenelated walls, such as the Flotsam Crenelated Wall.

Some building structures, like Spike Traps, are in the game’s coding, but they aren’t available yet. You can see them in dungeons, which gives you a good idea as to what to expect.

Guards

Guards are one of the best ways to both surprise and ward off invaders. Your best bet for climbers is a row of archers because they can attack as soon as the player makes it to the top of the wall.

Thralls and pets are both good options, though. The problem is that if the pet can’t reach to attack the player, then the player can take the guards out before they get a chance to defend themselves or the base.

Wacky Builds

There are unique ways to keep out climbers with a good build. Of course, hiding your base is one option, but if you want a base out in the open or another layer of protection, consider making your entrance so confusing that no one wants to bother.

I’ve seen people build towers, surround their walls with pillars, and make secret holes to trap invaders in. So it can be fun to get creative with your base using yourself or a friend to test your builds.

FAQs

Question: Can I Get Climbing Gear at Level 1?

Answer: No. Although the Mountaineer recipes are level 0, you must be level 10 to make the items needed to make climbing gear. However, level 10 will likely arrive before you make it to the Mountaineer knowledge.

Question: Why Do I Keep Falling In Conan Exiles?

Answer: This is probably because you run out of stamina. You must control stamina use and pay attention when you get low, or else you will fall to your death before you reach the top of some cliffs.

Question: What is the Max Stamina Use Reduction in Conan Exiles?

Answer: The stamina reduction cap is -90%. So there’s no point wasting resources after you reach this cap. It’s best to start working on carry capacity, durability, and other perks instead.

Climbing is a Superpower

The climbing system in Conan Exiles is one of the best I’ve seen. It’s super fun once you get used to it, is fairly balanced, and is useful in PvP as well as PvE. It really is the little things in games that make them special.

If you can master the climb, you can save so much time, be a better infiltrator, and have more fun. Of course, there are areas where climbing is disabled, but every superhero has his kryptonite.

Conan Exiles Climbing Gear Guide: Become The World’s Best Rock Climber