Silksong refines Hollow Knight’s formula around Hornet’s speed, aerial options and the new Silk resource. This page summarises the core systems you’ll interact with during the ascent, with examples of tools, crests and materials.
Silk, Bind and skills
- Generating Silk: Striking enemies fills your Silk spool. Collect Spool Fragments hidden throughout Pharloom to increase the bar’s capacity.
- Bind (healing): Hold the Bind button to consume Silk and heal a mask. Bind is fast but locks you in place; heal after baiting a whiff or during a safe window.
- Silk skills: Offensive or utility abilities activated via button combinations. Examples include Thread Storm (fires a spinning thread projectile) and Needle Strike (charged thrust). Skills share the Silk bar with healing, so choose between damage and survivability.
Tools and crests
Tools are equippable items that modify Hornet’s offence, defence or exploration. They come in three colour‑coded categories:
- Red tools are offensive weapons with limited ammunition. Examples include the Sting Shard, which deploys an exploding cluster of blades useful against aerial foes, and the Cogwork Fly, a trio of homing flies. Red ammo refills when resting on a bench or via certain crests.
- Blue tools provide passive defensive or supportive effects. Druid’s Eye grants bonus Silk when Hornet takes damage, Fractured Mask absorbs a lethal hit, Pollip Pouch coats your red tools in venom for extra damage, and Spool Extender adds four notches to your Silk bar.
- Yellow tools aid exploration and resource gathering. Compass displays your position on the map, Magnetite Brooch and Magnetite Dice attract and occasionally negate Rosary loss, Shell Satchel increases tool capacity, and Ascendant’s Grip lets you cling to walls indefinitely.
Tools are slotted into crests, which determine how many red/blue/yellow tools you can equip. Some crests add special bonuses—for example the Architect Crest slowly regenerates red ammo, while the Reaper Crest increases contact damage at the cost of defence. Memory Lockets found around Pharloom or purchased from merchants unlock additional slots.
Crafting and materials
Crafting is performed at the Forge‑Daughter’s workshop in the Deep Docks. Give her the right materials and Rosaries to build new tools (e.g., Sting Shard, Magma Bell) or upgrade existing ones. You can also craft Crafting Kits that expand your available slots.
Important materials include Craftmetal, Pale Oil (for upgrading your needle), Spine Core, Flintgem, Coral Shard, Shining Cog, Liquid Lacquer and many more. These drop from specific enemies or nodes—mark rich veins on your map and plan detours accordingly.
Memory Lockets are special items that permanently add tool slots to a specific crest. They can be found in treasure rooms, purchased from vendors like Mort, or rewarded for completing quests.
Benches and checkpoints
Benches restore health, refill Silk and red tool ammo, and act as your respawn point. They also allow you to change crests and equip tools. Some benches—such as those in the Underworks West—are single‑use and disappear after you sit on them, so plan your route accordingly.
Unlock shortcuts, gates and Bellways whenever possible to shorten recovery runs. Pharloom often loops back on itself, so exploring lateral paths can dramatically ease later boss runs.
Currency and economy
Rosaries are the primary currency used to purchase maps, tools, crests and upgrades. Don’t hoard them—spend steadily on Shakra’s maps, new tools and crafting materials. You can convert loose beads into Rosary Strings to avoid losing them on death. Farming spots such as the Choral Chambers offer excellent income.
Combat rhythm
Combat in Silksong rewards patience and precision. Enemies often deal double the damage of their Hallownest cousins, so prioritise spacing and vertical movement. Downslash bounces and dash‑throughs create safe punish windows. Practice your parry—some attacks can be deflected for bonus Silk or free damage. Tools can help control space: scatter Tacks to deter ground swarms, fire a Sting Shard to catch fliers, or use Cogwork Wheel to chew through clustered foes.
Quest structure
Pharloom’s side content is organised into Wishes, which include collection runs (e.g., gathering Mossberries for the Moss Druid), Hunts (such as the Broodfeast hunt for Huntress where you must deliver seared, shredded and skewered organs) and Grand Hunts that culminate in bespoke boss fights. Completing these grants tool blueprints, crest slots, consumables and Rosaries. Some wishes change in Act 3—for instance, the Broodfeast becomes Runtfeast if left unfinished.
Character‑driven side quests follow NPCs like Shakra, Sherma, Garmond & Zaza and Trobbio across multiple regions. These threads often unlock shortcuts, new arenas or lore and should be pursued alongside the main climb.
Continue with regional specifics in World or build planning in Items & Crafting.