Whether it’s extra inventory slots, costumes, or even pets, the world of Black Desert Online is chalked full of items to purchase along your travels.
Yet, with so much to purchase and invest in, silver and pearls aren’t the only options to go about your business.
Instead, Black Desert Online offers players another option in contribution points. What are contribution points? How do players acquire them, and what can they be used for in the game?
Contribution points are a point-based currency that players can earn by completing quests or farming for byproducts in Black Desert Online.
They can be used to rent items, invest with, and collect and craft various resources.
Table of contents
Completing quests
The main questline in Black Desert Online is the first place players can start earning contribution points in the game.
Virtually every questline assigned by the Black Spirit awards you with a varying number of contribution points upon completion.
This includes the game’s side quests to rank up your equipment and weapons, some of which can even be repeated to gain double the points.
Outside of the game’s main questline, players can also earn contribution points by completing daily quests throughout Black Desert.
Unlike the main questline, these refresh every 24 hours and are typically clustered together throughout the game’s major cities and nodes like Mansha Forest and Calpheon City.
Daily quests range from sweeping chimneys to capturing vagabonds, making them quick and easy to complete to rack up extra contribution points.
Finally, players can also gain contribution points by exploring new areas throughout Black Desert.
This will inevitably be achieved while completing the game’s main questline and daily quests spread out from Valencia to Kamasylvia.
Farming for byproducts
Another option outside of the game’s questlines is farming for byproducts in Black Desert.
Farming covers three different methods players can choose from to acquire contribution points:
- Crafting and gathering resources
- Cooking
- Alchemy
Depending on which you prefer, each offers a viable reward.
Crafting/Gathering
Gathering and crafting resources is an essential part of Black Desert and is heavily reliant on investing in nodes throughout the game world.
Essentially players will hire workers to manage the nodes they have invested in, who will, in turn, collect resources from them to then be crafted.
Nodes can hold a variety of resources ranging from timber and iron to barley.
Gathering and crafting are highly effective given that they can be done AFK and bring in a large number of contribution points in the process.
Cooking
Cooking is a multi-purpose asset in Black Desert that is fairly easy to master and can reward players with a decent number of CP while being AFK all the while.
It’s split into two categories – simple and advanced cooking.
The first requires no utensils and only two ingredients, while the second requires utensils as well as residence to execute.
Beer is by far the easiest and most effective cooking option.
With only four ingredients, it can be mass-produced, making it a viable option to replenish your node worker’s stamina as well.
Alchemy
Alchemy is another option to gain contribution points by collecting or purchasing ingredients to turn into potions.
However, alchemy is usually not the best way to gather CP.
Recipes often require rare ingredients that are difficult to find and expensive to purchase, making cooking the cheaper and more readily available of the two.
Best way to spend contribution points
In Black Desert Online, contribution points are a pivotal part of gaining resources, which is crucial for ranking up your gear and classes.
With this in mind, the most common use for CP is investing in nodes to gather those valuable resources.
Nodes can feel daunting at first, but at their core, they are various trade routes and economic niches that can be interconnected across the world of Black Desert Online.
Investing in nodes will increase the number of rare loot drops in the surrounding area.
Furthermore, players can gather valuable resources like iron ore and crude oil.
Depending on the node and the area, almost any resource can be farmed and collected.
The essential concept behind nodes is the more contribution points you invest in your nodes, the more contribution points you will earn back in return.
Keep in mind that managing your node empire will require you to hire workers, buy housing for them, and invest in workshops to teach them to build armor and weapons.
Outside of nodes, players can also use contribution points to rent items such as armor and weapons and buy housing to expand their overall storage.
Contribution points are a great way to begin building your resource pool and improve your gear, and while it can feel like a grind to collect at times, the reward is well worth the effort!
That’s how to get contribution points in Black Desert Online as well as how you should spend them!
Have any input or suggestions for this guide? Let us know in the comment section below.
