How to beat Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong: Location, tips and tricks, and more

The Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong are a pair of bosses encountered in The Citadel. You must defeat them to move to Act 2's main quest. The two enemies work in sync to attack you, and most of their attacks can be predicted easily because of visual cues that make it obvious where they will strike next.

This article will explain how you can fight the Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong and provide some tips and tricks to help you defeat them.

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Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong: Location and attacks

As mentioned earlier, the Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong are located in The Citadel, specifically, in the intersection of Cogwork Core and Choral Chambers. The two dancers undergo multiple phases during which their attack patterns change and shift slightly.

Here's a look at their attack patterns and their different phases.

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Attacks

1) Phase One

The Cogwork Dancers move in straight lines, indicating their path in advance (Image via Team Cherry || YouTube/@VideoGameDataBank)

The attacks of the Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong are easy to predict. The two move in sync with one another. Whichever way they face, they create a line; this line indicates exactly where they will attack. So pay attention to the line and avoid the area it points towards.

For instance, if one or both of them look downwards, the white line will indicate their path, and then they will land on the floor and engage in a slashing attack. They can use these timed and synced attacks in all directions.

At times, they will also create an AOE circle mid-air and release a barrage of slashes as they come together. This is a good time to heal Hornet and keep your distance from them.

Finally, they will also divide the whole arena into different sections, indicating that they will go slashing through the air diagonally. There are spaces between the lines that indicate their path, jump in the air if necessary, and reach the safe space. Float back downwards until they're done with their arena-wide attack. It's quick and somewhat easy to dodge.

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2) Phase 2

The arena-wide attack (Image via Team Cherry || YouTube/@VideoGameDataBank)

The next phase starts after you successfully deal enough damage to stun one of the Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong. They will go back into their fixed positions and restart their attack.

Their attacks remain the same. They look in a certain direction with the line indicating their path, and then proceed with a slashing attack. The difference in Phase 2 is that they now move a lot faster, so you must be quicker.

Throughout their phases, prioritize Hornet's simple and standard attacks. Hit them when they are stationary for a quick second as they execute their attack. Then move away and dodge their attack. Rinse and repeat. Use ranged attacks when they come together in the center to dance.

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3) Phase 3

The Cogwork Dancers are out of sync (Image via Team Cherry || YouTube/@VideoGameDataBank)

In this phase, their attacks and patterns are unchanged. However, the Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong now start to move out of sync. It's almost as if they are taking turns.

After the line appears for one dancer, it will take a second before it appears for the other dancer. This means it gets more and more difficult to predict where the second dancer will land. Target the dancer situated away from you every single time with a Threefold Pin or Simple Pin.

Keep an eye on the other dancer at all times and use your standard attack whenever possible.

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4) Phase 4

Only one dancer is left in the last phase (Image via Team Cherry || YouTube/@VideoGameDataBank)

By the time you reach this phase, you will have eliminated one of the dancers. This leaves only one of the Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong behind to fight you. The solo dancer will move slowly and will be easy to attack. You won't have trouble dodging most of their attacks and can chip away at the boss's health with both simple and ranged attacks.

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Tips and tricks to defeat the Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong

Defeating the Cogwork Dancers is easy if you're able to manage your distance well. Predicting their moves is easy because they quite literally tell you where they will strike next. The challenge now is simply to avoid their path and not get ahead of yourself in doing so.

Having the right arsenal can be crucial to winning this fight. Here are some tips to follow:

• Threadstorm: Equip the Threadstorm. This ability will help you deal with the dancers faster, especially in the last phase.
• Warding Bell: Use the Warding Bell to ensure you heal safely.
• Pins: Use the Threefold Pin for ranged attacks.
• Reaper Crest: Use the Reaper Crest to gain more silk and deal more damage.
• Distance: Manage distance by quickly moving right after their white lines appear. Watch their path and then move; don't try to guess their movement before the lines even appear.
• Attacking: Once the dancers execute their attacks, they become stationary for a split second before they attack again. Strike the one closest to you during this time and then move away if necessary.

These are some tips and tricks that can help you deal damage to the Cogwork Dancers in Hollow Knight Silksong. Follow this guide, and you'll be able to defeat this boss in Silksong with ease and move to the other half of The Citadel.