Hollow Knight: Silksong is a difficult metroidvania, and traveling through the perilous realm without any beginner’s tips can lead to disaster. However, as Silksong can feel like an entirely new game, returning players can use a refresher while newcomers can use a hand for their journey. Whether you’re a veteran or a newcomer, you’ll all face off against hard-hitting enemies and tricky obstacles that will send you straight back to your last bench. However, with our tips, you can hold onto your rosaries for just a bit longer.
Here’s a list of our best Hollow Knight: Silksong tips and tricks.
Find Shakra to get your map
The kingdom of Pharloom isn’t the easiest place to navigate, but it gets better once you’ve obtained a map. While each region comes with a separate map to unlock, you can buy the first two in the northwestern corner of The Marrow, from a vendor called Shakra. She sells both the Mosslands map and The Marrow map for 40 and 50 rosaries, respectively.
Keep in mind that this is Shakra’s first location, but not a permanent spot. So, as a bonus map-related tip, be sure to buy the Compass, Quill, and Bench Markers as well before you move on. This will track your position, update your map after you rest, and add bench markers.
Practice your downward attacks
For Hollow Knight veterans, the downward attack being diagonal will require you to rewire your brain because, well, you’re not attacking straight down anymore. For Silksong newcomers, the attack is still fairly difficult to hit. Mastering the downward attack will allow you to bounce off enemies to reach higher ground, avoid oncoming attacks, and trek through the aggravating obstacle courses in Hunter’s March. At the end of it all, you’ll also just look cool, and that’s what really matters.
Look out for the signs
As you explore, you’ll most likely get lost and wonder about what you should do next. Try to look out for any visible signs to give you an inkling about which direction you should head. Whether it’s a literal wooden board with a picture of a bench or golden rings scattered across the ground, these signs lead you to important points of interest.
Wait for the opportune time to heal
Healing, also known as binding in Silksong, uses up all of your silk spool and regenerates three health points. It’s very easy to panic when you’re at one health and use your heal, but make sure to wait until your enemies have already attacked or until you’re away from danger. You’re not invulnerable while healing (unless you have the Warding Bell), so you will just be a sitting duck waiting to get hit. Either stagger the enemy or dodge, duck, dip, dive, and dodge your way to a safe spot.
Hunt down other pilgrims for rosaries
Rosaries, the main currency in Hollow Knight: Silksong, may seem very rare, but they’re not. Don’t stress about rosaries at the start of your game, and don’t hesitate to spend them, as you’ll soon be able to farm more.
Once you’ve found map vendor Shakra (as mentioned in the previous tip), walk a bit further to the left and jump upwards, then turn left again. See the large, almost humanoid grubs? If you defeat them, they’ll drop +5 rosaries. Even better, if you continue to the left, use the switch on the wall, drop down, and turn right, you will find a resting bench. You can use this bench to respawn the rosary-dropping enemies and thus obtain more.
Talk to NPCs more than once
NPCs will give you valuable information and possibly some hints on how to progress in Silksong, but they don’t get out everything they want to say in one go. You’ll need to pry their words out of them by talking to them until they start to repeat their dialogue. Additionally, some NPCs will have even more dialogue for you after you progress further into the story, so make sure to revisit previous villages and let them know about your adventure.
Beware of traps!
Upon entering a new area, always be wary of falling rocks, spike traps, and unexpected boss fights. Here’s an overview of the sort of unpleasant surprises to watch out for in the early game:
- Falling rocks — A light tremble accompanied by a dust cloud will serve as a warning sign, but only if you get very close. If you’re running underneath a low ceiling in an unexplored area, it’s best to proceed either slowly or be prepared to sprint through when the rocks start falling.
- Spike traps — Spike traps function a little differently when compared to falling rocks because you will need to set them off. If you look closely at the environment, you’ll notice raised tiles hidden in the grass and tripwires strung from the floor to the ceiling. Try to avoid these as much as possible, but if you do set off a trap, make sure to sprint or jump away or else you’ll lose some health.
- Boss fights — If you see an open area with a distinct look, flat ground, and walls on both sides, you’ll likely get jumped by a boss as soon as you enter. This isn’t necessarily an issue, but you may want to switch some tools, spend your rosaries, find a nearby resting bench, and stack up on silk before heading in there.
Look out for suspicious walls
Hollow Knight: Silksong is full of hidden pathways, and many of them are found by jumping through secret openings in walls or breaking porous walls with your weapon. So, even if a wall seems solid, be sure to inspect and whack it before moving on.