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Hollow Knight: Silksong Beginner Tips: What to Know Before You Explore

New to Silksong? Make smarter Silk decisions, find your way with Shakra’s maps, and use benches and equipment to prepare for Pharloom’s challenges.
Length4 min Posted Quest giverVGSources Team
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In Hollow Knight: Silksong, Silk is both Hornet’s healing resource and fuel for special actions. Build it by fighting, then choose whether to spend a full spool on Bind’s three-point heal or save it for another ability. That decision—and learning when it is safe to make it—matters more than attacking constantly.

Use Silk deliberately: Bind is a heal, not a panic button

Hitting enemies builds Silk. When the spool is full, Bind restores three health points and consumes all of that Silk. Because Silk also powers special actions, healing has an opportunity cost: the right choice depends on your health, the encounter, and whether you have a safe moment to recover. The PlayStation Blog gameplay overview notes that Bind can be used even in mid-air, but it still takes commitment.

  • Look for an opening. Try Bind after an enemy’s attack or from a safe distance, rather than while an enemy is about to hit you.
  • Choose between healing and offense. If you expect to need a Silk-powered action soon, consider keeping the spool; if another hit could end the attempt, healing may be more valuable.
  • Learn the fight before trading blows. Enemies can feint, guard, or counter. Watch their patterns and use Hornet’s quick movement and ledge-grabbing to reposition instead of treating every exchange as a damage race.

Learn Hornet’s movement as part of combat

Hornet’s mobility helps you avoid attacks and find openings, not just cross platforms. Practice ledge-grabbing and moving between platforms in safer areas so those actions feel natural when a fight gets hectic. If an enemy changes its timing or guards, pause long enough to observe what triggers its response; repeated attacks are not always the safest way to make progress.

Buy map help from Shakra when it suits your exploration style

Maps and navigation items can make it easier to understand where you are and which paths you have already explored. When you meet Shakra, consider prioritizing a region map and the orientation aids that help you track your position. PC Gamer’s 2025 guide recommends early map items including the Quill and Compass, but its stated total of 320 Rosaries applies to the items and early-game context covered there—not a guaranteed current price for every player.

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#1 Best Overall
Hollow Knight: Silksong Standard - Nintendo Switch [Digital Code]
  • Discover the fallen insect kingdom of Pharloom! Explore mossy grottos, gilded cities and misted moors as you ascend to the shining citadel at the top of the world.
  • Engage in lethal acrobatic action! Wield a huge suite of deadly moves as you dance between foes in swift, beautiful combat.
  • Craft powerful tools! Master an ever-expanding arsenal of weapons, traps, and mechanisms to vanquish your enemies and explore new heights.
  • Solve shocking quests! Hunt down rare beasts and solve ancient mysteries to grant the wishes of the downtrodden and restore the kingdom’s hope.
  • Face over 200 ferocious foes! Beasts and hunters, monsters and knights. Defeat them all with bravery and skill!
  • When currency is tight: Favor the map and basic orientation help you will use often before optional markers or combat purchases.
  • When you prefer discovery: You can delay some navigation purchases and explore by memory; getting lost is a play-style choice, not a mistake.
  • When a route is blocked: Mark it on your map or make a note if the current version offers those options, then revisit after finding new movement abilities.

Map prices, stock, and available items can depend on your progress and game version, so check Shakra’s current inventory rather than relying on a guide’s old total.

Use benches to reset and adjust your plan

Make benches natural checkpoints in your route. Resting gives you a chance to assess your health, check your equipment, and decide where to go next. Before a difficult stretch, use the pause to review your Crest and Tools and change your setup if another approach seems more comfortable. Team Cherry’s Help page warns that selecting a prior autosave overwrites the current save, so take care when using that option.

Rank #2
Hollow Knight: Silksong | Standard Edition | Xbox Digital
  • Hollow Knight: Silksong is the epic sequel to Hollow Knight, the award winning action-adventure.
  • Journey to all-new lands, discover new powers, battle vast hordes of bugs and beasts and uncover secrets tied to your nature and your past.

Experiment with Crests and Tools instead of chasing a universal build

Crests shape how Hornet plays, while Tools offer different functions. There is no single setup that is best for every player or encounter. Try the combinations you have available, learn what their slots allow, and adjust at a bench if a boss or route is exposing a weakness in your current approach.

When choosing equipment, ask what you need most: a setup that feels comfortable with Hornet’s moveset, or different tool options for a particular challenge. Treat a difficult attempt as information about what to change, not proof that you must follow a fixed build.

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Rank #3
Hollow Knight (Nintendo Switch)
  • Classic side-scrolling action, with all the modern trimmings.
  • Tightly tuned 2D controls. Dodge, dash and slash your way through even the most deadly adversaries.
  • Explore a vast interconnected world of forgotten highways, overgrown wilds and ruined cities.
  • Forge your own path! The world of Hallownest is expansive and open. Choose which paths you take, which enemies you face and find your own way forward.
  • Evolve with powerful new skills and abilities! Gain spells, strength and speed. Leap to new heights on ethereal wings. Dash forward in a blazing flash. Blast foes with fiery Soul!.Equip Charms! Ancient relics that offer bizarre new powers and abilities. Choose your favourites and make your journey unique!.An enormous cast of cute and creepy characters all brought to life with traditional 2D frame-by-frame animation..

Spend Rosaries with a purpose and keep quests in view

Rosaries are used for purchases, including map-related items. If you are carrying a lot through a risky stretch, consider spending on something useful first—but check the current game’s death and recovery rules before assuming what you might lose. A September 2026 independent guide discusses Rosary risk and Rosary Strings; verify those details in your own game rather than treating a fan guide as definitive documentation.

NPCs can offer side quests, and the official gameplay overview says quests are tracked in the menu. Check that log when you are unsure what you have agreed to do, and talk to characters again as your journey progresses. You do not need to chase every task immediately; it can be useful to pursue another branch and return later.

Rank #4
Hollow Knight - Nintendo Switch [Digital Code]
  • Classic side-scrolling action, with all the modern trimmings.
  • Forge your own path! The world of Hallownest is expansive and open. Choose which paths you take, which enemies you face and find your own way forward.
  • Evolve with powerful new skills and abilities! Gain spells, strength and speed. Leap to new heights on ethereal wings. Dash forward in a blazing flash. Blast foes with fiery Soul!
  • Equip Charms! Ancient relics that offer bizarre new powers and abilities. Choose your favorites and make your journey unique!
  • An enormous cast of cute and creepy characters all brought to life with traditional 2D frame-by-frame animation.
Independent reader supportYour contribution helps us test, update, and keep practical guides available for everyone.Support on Ko-Fi

Check current patch and input information when advice does not match your game

Precise tool strength, boss tuning, and input support can change. Team Cherry’s official blog lists Silksong patches and an expansion announcement, so older launch-era advice should not automatically be treated as current. If a tactic or control instruction seems wrong, check the game’s version and current support information.

Team Cherry’s Help page also says the game was updated to Unity’s new Input System, notes that some PC controller setups remain unsupported, and points PC players to additional Advanced Settings. A controller is optional; if your controls are not behaving as expected, consult those support notes and the in-game settings rather than assuming a particular model is required.

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Quick Recap

Bestseller No. 3
Hollow Knight (Nintendo Switch)
Hollow Knight (Nintendo Switch)
Classic side-scrolling action, with all the modern trimmings.
$38.49
Bestseller No. 4
Hollow Knight - Nintendo Switch [Digital Code]
Hollow Knight - Nintendo Switch [Digital Code]
Classic side-scrolling action, with all the modern trimmings.
$14.99

Product prices and availability are accurate as of the date/time indicated and are subject to change. Any price and availability information displayed on Amazon at the time of purchase will apply.

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