Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos

As a seasoned Hollow Knight player who has dabbled in various builds over countless hours of gameplay, I must say that these two builds are quite intriguing. The first one, with its emphasis on spells and elegant wizardry, strikes me as a choice for those who enjoy a more thoughtful, strategic approach to combat. It’s not for the faint-hearted, mind you. With its high skill ceiling and potent damage output, it demands a level of precision and finesse that only the most dedicated players can master.


Often lauded as one of the top indie games, Hollow Knight is a vast game indeed. It boasts numerous regions to explore, challenging bosses to defeat, hidden secrets to uncover, and, not surprisingly, provides numerous play styles, courtesy of its Charm system. This system grants passive advantages that your character can acquire throughout the journey, adding depth and variety to your gaming experience.

The game presents approximately 45 charms and motivates you to explore different combinations to discover the most effective ones. Finding the right synergy among certain charms can be an enjoyable process of agency and creativity, but it may feel daunting at times. If you’ve ever felt overwhelmed in your quest for the optimal set, and are looking to optimize a specific build, here are some top charm combos for Hollow Knight.

10 Solid Knight

The best attack is an annoying defense

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos

CharmNotches
Stalwart Shell◉◉
Thorns of Agony
Quick Focus◉◉◉
Spore Shroom
Defender’s Crest
Baldur Shell◉◉
Grubsong

In the game Hollow Knight, you’ll find a collection of defensive charms known as Shielding Talismans. These can be activated simultaneously. Interestingly, in this setup, taking damage is more advantageous than avoiding it. The Stalwart Shell will extend your invincibility period after receiving a blow, while Thorns of Agony inflicts harm on adversaries and Grubsong boosts your essence at the same time.

Afterward, you can employ “Quick Healing” (shielded by “Baldur’s Barrier”), concurrently as “Spore Mushroom” releases a harmful mist. This mist amplifies the damage that “Defender’s Emblem” is already inflicting on the area.

This defense strategy is particularly ideal for players finding it hard to adapt to dashing and recognizing the patterns of Hollow Knight bosses, or for those who prefer a more impulsive, immediate attacking approach.

9 Metroidvania starter pack

Exploration builds are important

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos
CharmNotches
Wayward Compass
Long Nail◉◉
Quick Focus◉◉◉
Grubsong
Thorns of Agony
Defender’s Crest
Dashmaster◉◉

Although some may underestimate it, Hollow Knight is a game where exploration carries equal significance as combat. In fact, it’s renowned as one of the top metroidvania games but also one of the most challenging. To excel, you must pay close attention to everything you encounter while navigating carefully to avoid dying and losing your Geo after extended periods without rest points.

In a situation where you’re venturing into Hallownest without concerns, the Wayward Compass is indispensable, as it consistently tracks your location on the map.

In a strategic battle, having long nails and quick focus helps maintain a safer distance. Meanwhile, Grubsong, Thorns of Agony, and Defender’s Crest serve as your defense mechanisms. Lastly, Dashmaster allows for swifter (and downward) escapes when necessary. Essentially, you’re well-equipped in all aspects.

8 Farming arc

The geo economy needs more ranchers

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos
CharmNotches
Fragile Greed◉◉
Fragile Strength◉◉◉
Gathering Swarm
Dashmaster◉◉
Quick Slash◉◉◉

In Hollow Knight, geo plays a significant role, whether you’re looking to purchase upgrades, maps, notches, or even charms themselves. It’s not a game that compels you to artificially farm resources, but your journey will inevitably require some money. At times, having the right combination of amulets can greatly aid in the tasks ahead.

Since you’ll be frequently clearing a known territory without facing significant risk, the abilities “Fragile Greed” (to boost geo) and “Fragile Strength” (for increased damage output) prove particularly beneficial, as they have lower chances of breaking compared to other more powerful skills.

Gathering Swarm simplifies the process by automatically selecting geographical locations for you, making it less laborious. With Dashmaster, you can move at a quicker pace, and Quick Slash serves to further accelerate the farming process. However, feel free to replace these with any charms that suit your preferences better.

7 Pokémon Master

A fast and portable zoo

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos
CharmNotches
Weaversong◉◉
Glowing Womb◉◉
Grimmchild◉◉
Grubsong
Sprintmaster
Sharp Shadow◉◉
Gathering Swarm

A less noticed yet enjoyable aspect in Hollow Knight is the ‘summoner’ build. This involves collecting all charms that summon minions and combining them with useful and agility amulets. Voila! You’ve created an impressive menagerie, adding some power to your gameplay.

As a gamer, I’ve discovered that Weaversong, Glowing Womb, and Grimmchild are essential companions in this game set. Weaversong helps to summon more souls, while Grimmchild is crucial for creating companions. Glowing Womb, on the other hand, seems to be the key to having these companions by my side. When it comes to moving swiftly, Sprintmaster comes in handy, allowing the Knight to run faster as minions attack. Lastly, Sharp Shadow is perfect for taking advantage of my frequent dashes, making my gameplay more efficient.

It’s certainly unusual, but it gets the objectives done, adds to the replayability of Hollow Knight, and is hilarious to see. Gathering Swarm is just for cosplay, though.

6 Lifeblood Mage

Forget about healing, just spam spells

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos
CharmNotches
Joni’s Blessing◉◉◉◉
Soul Eater◉◉◉◉
Shaman Stone◉◉◉

As a gamer, if balancing your character’s soul feels too much, here’s something that might help: First, equip Joni’s Blessing, an enchantment that boosts your Mask count by 40%, but strips you of the ability to heal.

Next up, we’ll add “Soul Eater” for all the soul energy you’ll require; and lastly, “Shaman Stone” will be added because it allows you to cast your strongest spells repeatedly before your opponent knocks you out (since you can’t heal).

Absolutely, when moving onto the next build, it’s essential that you have prior experience playing the game. Inexperienced players might find it challenging if they lose their masks during battles, as this could make the game more difficult for beginners.

5 Do not try this at home…

Try it outside

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos
CharmNotches
Fury of the Fallen◉◉
Grubberyfly’s Elegy◉◉◉
Mark of Pride◉◉◉
Fragile/Unbreakable Strength◉◉◉

As you advance in skill and the campaign, you’ll gain access to some uncommon charms such as Grubberfly’s Elegy. This charm allows you to shoot beams of intense white energy from your nail even when fully healthied, and each hit deals 50% of its original damage.

Increased Fury of the Fallen: boosts your nail damage by 75% when you’re wearing 1 Mask. Interacting Specialty: When you wear 1 Mask, both abilities become active.

At the same time, both “Grubberyfly’s Elegy” and “Mark of Pride” possess a unique ability that amplifies the size of projectiles fired from “Grubberyfly’s Elegy” by approximately 35%.

Furthermore, you can combine the abilities Fury of the Fallen and Unbreakable Strength, leading to a staggering 175% boost in nail damage and a massive 150% increase in beam damage. This powerful combo results in an overwhelming effect: absurdly high damage and sheer mayhem.

You die from one hit, though, so this is only recommended for veterans.

4 Snail Knight

The true, and squishy, maste of the nail

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos
CharmNotches
Shape of Unn◉◉
Quick Focus◉◉◉
Quick Slash◉◉◉
Long Nail◉◉
Nailmaster’s Glory

As a gamer, I’d describe the Shape of Unn as an entertaining amulet that, when activated with Focus, transforms me into a swift-moving snail, thanks to Quick Focus. This transformation isn’t just about slow speed; it also offers an advantage by reducing my hitbox, making it harder for enemies to target me effectively.

This is a pretty standard nail build with Quick Slash, Long Nail, and Nailmaster’s Glory for some Nail Arts action.

As a gamer, let me tell you that the combination of the first two abilities really amps up the excitement level. They make it more potent, definitely, but what’s even more important is their consistency. This synergy works like a charm against almost every boss, and it’s particularly effective against those who love horizontal slashes.

3 Balance in All Things

End-game equilibrium

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos
CharmNotches
Quick Slash◉◉◉
Fragile/Unbreakable Strength◉◉◉
Shaman Stone◉◉◉
Sharp Shadow◉◉

At times, it’s crucial to maintain a balanced approach. Avoid over-reliance on offensive tactics like nail attacks, and likewise, don’t get too carried away with using spells.

Consequently, using all the tools provided by Team Cherry to conquer Hollow Knight’s challenges involves swift attacks with the Quick Slash (enhanced instantly by Unbreakable Strength) and quick soul collection (further enhanced later by Shaman Stone), inflicting massive damage in a short period.

Including Sharp Shadow in your build is advantageous, as you’ll be dodging frequently to dodge attacks and conserve soul for healing purposes, similar to other builds. Moreover, having Shade Cloak, one of the top abilities in Hollow Knight, becomes nearly essential for this playstyle.

2 The ‘5 Hour Speedrun Achievement’ build

Hollow ‘Knight’?

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos
CharmNotches
Shaman Stone◉◉◉
Soul Catcher◉◉
Spell Twister◉◉
Dream Wielder
Quick Slash◉◉◉

Occasionally, you might require a bit less than an even distribution. In such cases, your focus is singularly on: the art of spellcasting. Not in a repetitive or overbearing manner, but rather with mindfulness and grace, embodying the sophisticated side of sorcery.

The Shaman Stone serves as the foundation of the construction, being essential for its structure. Meanwhile, Soulcatcher, Spell Twister, and Dream Wielder provide optimal resource management for souls, allowing you to do so without compromising your healing capabilities when necessary.

With this combination, nearly every strike offers an opportunity to cast a spell, and using Quick Slash means you’ll often find yourself in battles with your meter fully charged. This setup boasts a steep learning curve, yet it’s also the one with the highest damage potential across the entire game.

1 Pay to click

The most basic, the most powerful

Hollow Knight: 10 Best Charm Combos
CharmNotches
Fragile/Unbreakable Strength◉◉◉
Quick Slash◉◉◉
Long Nail◉◉
Quick Focus◉◉◉

On certain occasions, you might find yourself favoring close combat instead. With this build, you can go all out with the hammer-wielding style to its fullest extent.

Instead of the complex combo you’ve seen before, this one is incredibly straightforward: strike hard, strike fast, and strike at a distance. There are no spells, no Nail Arts, no summoned minions, and no intricate combinations – just plain, raw damage-dealing in Hollow Knight.

Despite being relatively straightforward, this build has historically demonstrated both accessibility and power among Hollow Knight players – a balance worth attempting. Compared to its magic-based counterpart, it inflicts less damage, but the ease of use more than compensates due to its uncomplicated nature. The quick healing provided by Quick Focus is particularly beneficial as well.

If your goal is to reach 112% completion or complete the entire game, there’s no simpler alternative.

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2024-10-03 22:09