---
title: "Getting Started in Crimson Moon — First Run"
description: "Your first hour in Crimson Moon: what the official Steam description tells you about the core loop, and what to do when you start playing."
publishedAt: 2026-09-01
updatedAt: 2026-09-01
difficulty: "beginner"
tags: ["beginner", "official-info"]
---

Getting Started — Your First Run

Crimson Moon launched September 1, 2026. Here is what the official sources tell you to expect in your first hour.

What the game actually is

Per the Steam store page ↗, Crimson Moon is:

A melée combat game — described as "Blood-soaked Melée Combat"

Run-based — "Every successful run presents new missions, modifiers, and skill achievements"

Single player or 2-player co-op — "Crusade solo or slay together"

High risk, high reward — missions have dynamic difficulty scaling

The core loop

Every run in Crimson Moon follows this pattern:

1. Leave The Church — your home base (formerly called Sanctus Clypeus in pre-release materials)
2. Enter Gildenarch — the fallen city overrun with demons, undead, vampires, and Hellgrowth abominations
3. Complete missions — clear objectives, kill Dead God bosses, find loot
4. Return to The Church — bank your loot, upgrade, talk to NPCs, plan the next run at the War Table

What you actually control

The official description is sparse on mechanics — this wiki will fill in detail as the community discovers it. What we know for certain:

You play as a Nephilim — "a human-angel hybrid forged to defend the world from Hell"

You have access to supernatural powers — "Evolving Nephilim powers bestow temporary abilities for devastating attacks"

You have angelic transformations — implied by the description's reference to supernatural transformation

You can use weapons, melée combat, and supernatural powers — explicitly listed

You face boss encounters with the Dead Gods — explicit phrase from the Steam description

What we do not yet know (as of September 1, 2026 launch)

The community is still discovering:

Specific Dead God names and their attack patterns

Specific NPC names at The Church

War Table mission types

Nephilim transformation forms

Specific weapon types and their movesets

This page will be updated as official sources publish more detail or as the community cross-verifies discoveries.

Related

[Gildenarch](/regions/gildenarch/) — where you hunt

[The Church](/regions/the-church/) — where you rest

[Updates](/updates/) — official news with more mechanics detail