Hollow Knight Silksong combat explained

The Hollow Knight Silksong combat system takes the difficulty factors that made the original game challenging and turns them into something faster, sharper, and more aggressive in terms of playstyle. Unlike the Knight, Hornet has not been designed to be played defensively; instead, her combat style provides openings through keeping pressure, quickly weaving in attacks with agile movement, and juggling resources in real-time.

Here's more on the Hollow Knight Silksong combat system.

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Hollow Knight Silksong combat system, explained

In Crafting Kit, crafting by claw alone produces inferior results (Image via Team Cherry)

Hornet’s combat revolves around applying constant pressure. Her weapon still delivers the familiar slash patterns players remember from Hollow Knight, but the way she chains them with her mobility makes battles feel completely different. With dashes, flips, and aerial dives built into her movement, she can attack from sharper angles, punish enemies quickly, and stay on top of them without giving them much breathing room.

This design choice encourages players to remain nearby and aggressive rather than maintaining a distance from foes. Enemies are also more nimble this time, with quicker movements that coincide with Hornet’s speed, so the pace and rhythm of each fight feels quicker and more punishing if the player hesitates. Here are a few things to keep in mind:

1) Shell Shards and resource management

At the core of Hornet’s combat is the use of Shell Shards, which fuel her tools. These shards are crucial and can be obtained in the following ways:

• Defeating enemies repeatedly in heavy spawn areas, farming them by re-entering locations.
• Finding Shell Shard Deposits scattered throughout the world. These statue-like nodes can be struck to yield large amounts of shards on the spot.

Managing shards is vital, as while tools keep you in the fight, Silk should be saved for healing or emergencies.

2) The Silk loop and Bind healing

Silk itself is integrated into Hornet’s main combat loop. You can use basic attacks to gather Silk. Use tools (R + direction) for sustained or crowd damage, and spend Silk on abilities or healing when it’s safe.

Hornet's healing method, called Bind, is performed by holding A on PC or Xbox. She can even heal while moving or mid-air. However, that consumes the entire Silk spool at once. If she’s interrupted during the Bind animation, she loses all her Silk, leaving her vulnerable until she can build it back up.

This risk-reward setup forces careful timing. Binding can swing a fight in your favor with three masks restored at once, but a mistimed attempt can cost all your resources instantly.

3) Death and the Silk Cocoon

When Hornet dies, she respawns at the last bench used. Rosaries are dropped unless secured with a Rosary String, and a Silk Cocoon is left behind at the death spot, which can be broken to restore Silk for recovery instantly.

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How to customize attacks in Hollow Knight Silksong

Hollow Knight Silksong combat brings a sharper, faster, and more dynamic edge to every encounter (Image via Team Cherry)

Another layer to Silksong’s combat comes from Crests, which change how some of Hornet’s moves behave. Equipping them can alter attack angles, adjust animations, or even modify how dives, dashes, or pogo strikes work.

This system adds more variation to her combat approach, letting players fine-tune how she handles specific enemy types or bosses.

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Why does Hollow Knight Silksong's combat feel different?

Unlike the first title, where battles often turned into waiting for opportunities to heal safely, Hollow Knight Silksong combat pushes players into aggressiveness, allowing mobility to be their defense. With tools being based on shards, Silk devoted toward healing and burst abilities, and enemies designed to focus on Hornet’s speed, every encounter feels closer and more relentless in this long game.

The result is a Hollow Knight Silksong combat system that rewards momentum and resource discipline.

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This concludes our guide on the Hollow Knight Silksong combat system. For more gaming-related content, make sure to follow Sportskeeda.