Last updated: 30 October 2026

Hollow Knight: Silksong Beginner's Guide & Tips

Play Hornet aggressively: hitting enemies builds the Silk you heal with, Bind restores three masks for 9 strands of Silk, and a hit mid-heal empties your spool, so heal only once you have made space. Silk replaces Soul, Bind replaces Focus, and Crests and Tools replace Charms, swapped only at Benches. When you die, your Rosaries wait in the cocoon Hornet leaves behind until you break it.

01Hornet Plays Differently to the Knight

If you are coming from Hollow Knight, the biggest adjustment is Hornet's speed and aggression. She is built to attack:

• Faster movement and a longer Needle reach than the Knight — you can poke from further out.
• Ledge-clamber and a Thread grapple open up traversal early; use them constantly.
• A parry: hitting certain enemy attacks (white-trailed swings) with your Needle parries them, granting a brief window of invincibility and resetting the enemy combo.
• Lean into aggression — Hornet rewards staying close and pressuring enemies far more than playing defensively.

02Silk Is Your Healing AND Your Power

The single most important system to understand is Silk, which fuels both healing and special attacks:

• You build Silk by hitting enemies with your Needle — roughly one strand per hit. It does not regenerate on its own early on.
• Bind (your heal) spends 9 strands of Silk at once to restore three masks — it is all-or-nothing, not a partial heal.
• Silk Skills (special attacks) also cost Silk, so every strand you spend on offense is a strand you cannot heal with.
• The core tension: attack to build Silk, then decide whether to spend it healing or fighting. Hoarding it makes you safe but weak; spending it all leaves you unable to heal.

03How Bind (Healing) Works

Bind is fast but punishing if you misjudge it:

• It takes about 1.4 seconds and can be performed in mid-air, unlike the Knight's grounded Focus.
• If you are hit during the animation, you lose the entire Silk spool and heal nothing — so only Bind when you have created space.
• Heal during gaps: after a boss's big attack, while it is recovering, or after a parry.
• Some Crests change Bind entirely — the Beast Crest swaps it for lifesteal, for example — so your healing can feel different depending on your loadout.

04Crests & Tools: Set Up at Benches

Silksong replaces Charms with two layered systems — Crests and Tools — and you can only change them at a Bench:

• Crests define Hornet's attack style and which Tool slots you have. Each Crest changes her moveset, so try a few and pick one that suits you.
• Tools are equippable items in colour-coded slots: Red (active attacks with limited charges), Blue (passive combat buffs), and Yellow (passive exploration aids).
• Red Tool charges refill at Benches using Shell Shards — so rest often.
• You cannot swap Crests or Tools mid-area — plan your loadout at the Bench before a tough room or boss.

05Protect Your Rosaries & Rest Often

A few economy and survival habits will save you a lot of frustration:

• Rosaries are the main currency, used for items, map fragments, and unlocking fast-travel. They are at risk when you die, so do not hoard a huge amount on you.
• Bank your Rosaries by buying Rosary Strings from vendors to keep currency safe between risky runs.
• Buy maps from Shakra, Silksong's wandering cartographer (the equivalent of Hollow Knight's Cornifer) — exploring blind is much harder without them.
• Rest at Benches to save, refill Red Tool charges, and change loadouts — they are your hub for everything.
• Activate Bellway fast-travel stations (they cost Rosaries) to cut down on backtracking across Pharloom.