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Silksong Act 3 is by far and away the darkest and most difficult section of the game, and in fact is a secret outcome that can only be unlocked if you fulfil certain criteria. Hollow Knight Silksong can actually end after the second act, and probably will for players who aren't aware of what they have to do to unlock the third. To help you get the full experience, I'll explain everything you need to do to unlock Act 3 of Silksong, including how to complete the Silk and Soul quest that gates it off.
How to get to Act 3 in Hollow Knight Silksong
To get to Act 3 in Silksong, rather than having the game end after Act 2, you need to take the following steps (we'll go into more detail on the specifics further down).
- Complete ALL Notice Board Wishes in all three major settlements: Bone Bottom, Bellhart, and Songclave. Completing some Wishes may cause others to appear, which also need to be completed – you effectively need to 100% these settlements.
- Find enough of the Silksong fleas (as well as the NPC Vog) to prompt the Flea Caravan to move to the Putrified Ducts. This will be around 20 Fleas in.
- Progress with the main story until you complete the second boss fight with Lace in the Cradle. Do not go further and fight the boss further in!
- Return to Songclave and speak with the Caretaker. If you've completed all the steps so far, he'll give you the Silk and Soul Wish.
- Go to Bilewater and defeat Groal the Great to get the Seeker's Soul.
- Go to Bellhart and speak with the Bell Hermit beneath the fast travel station to get the Hermit's Soul.
- Go to Bone Bottom and head left to speak with the Chapel Maid, to get the Maiden's Soul.
- Use the Needolin to open the door on the east side of Moss Grotto and access Weavenest Alta. A secret cellar in the corridor above the bench has the Snare Setter you need.
- Take all four pieces back to the Caretaker in Songclave to complete the Silk and Soul quest and obtain the Soul Snare.
- Go back to the Cradle and speak with the Caretaker on the way up, then defeat final boss Grand Mother Silk.
- After the boss fight is done, you'll have two choices: to Bind Grand Mother Silk or to use your Needolin. Use the Needolin!
- A cutscene and then credits will play before you're sent back to the main menu.
- Try to reopen your save and you'll have to rapidly select it to clear… something off the option. However, it'll be removed – and then you reenter the game in Act 3.
Keep in mind that Act 3 makes significant changes to the game. Without spoiling, the layout of certain areas and methods of fast travel will no longer be available, and regular enemies will be significantly more difficult. If you're looking to do other content like collect all the Silksong needle upgrades and Pale Oil, it's definitely better to do them before Act 3 begins.
All Quests and Wishes you need to complete for Act 3 in Silksong
The following is a simple list of every side quest and wish that you need to complete in Silksong to activate the Silk and Soul mission, broken up by what settlement you'll find them in. They should all be accessible via the notice board/Wishwall in each town! However, some won't appear until certain conditions are met.
- Bone Bottom
- Bone Bottom Repairs
- Garb of the Pilgrims
- Volatile Flintbeetles
- A Lifesaving Bridge
- The Terrible Tyrant
- An Icon of Hope
- Bellhart
- Silver Bells
- My Missing Courier
- My Missing Brother
- Crawbug Clearing
- Restoration of Bellhart
- Bellhart's Glory
- Savage Beastfly
- Trail's End
- Songclave
- Fine Pins
- Cloaks of the Choir
- The Wandering Merchant
- The Lost Merchant
- Balm for the Wounded
- The Wailing Mother
- Final Audience
We've heard some accounts from other players claiming you don't have to complete all of these quests and it's more about reaching a particular number overall, but can't confirm that specifically. However, we can say that if you do manage to complete all of the above, then the Silk and Soul quest at Songclave should become available to you.
Keep in mind that some of these quests will have requirements to activate. For example, Trail's End won't trigger until late in the game, after you've bought all maps from Shakra and obtained the Silksong double jump ability.
Moving the Flea Caravan to Putrified Ducts
To get Fleamaster Mooshka and the flea caravan to the Putrified Ducts, you need to uncover that region for yourself first (it's found above Bilewater and east of Songclave). You also need to find the NPC Vog, who will then join the caravan, and then find around 20 or so Fleas. This is actually much easier to do after you find Vog, as she sells you maps with Flea locations. We've marked her location on the map above.
Once you've found enough Fleas, talk to Mooshka and eventually he'll decide to relocate. Hornet will mention the Putrified Ducts, leading him to found "Fleatopia" (no, really).
Silk and Soul walkthrough for Silksong
If you've completed the above steps and progressed with the main story to the point where you've fought Lace for a second time, you should be able to go back to Songclave and speak with the Caretaker. He'll give you a new quest: Silk and Soul. The objective here is to build a Soul Snare, which requires the following four components:
- Seeker's Soul
- Hermit's Soul
- Maiden's Soul
- Snare Setter
They're all at different locations, as I'll lay out in detail here.
Seeker's Soul location
The Seeker's Soul is in upper Bilewater, but you'll need to defeat the boss Groal the Great to access the small building in which it's kept, and might do yourself a favor by finding the Silksong Bilewater map first. Groal is an infamously brutal fight and runback where players will have to be extremely careful, as the poison water and explosive attacks used by Groal are no joke. I heavily recommend leaning into traps and tools, to damage Groal passively while you focus on evasion. Make sure you have the Silksong Shell Shards to fuel all these killing devices.
Hermit's Soul location
The Hermit's Soul is much easier to find: head to the Silksong Bellhart settlement, and down into the tunnels accessible through the right side of the fast travel station. Here you'll find the Bell Hermit. Simply talk to him and he'll give you the Hermit's Soul.
Maiden's Soul location
The Maiden's Soul is another easy one to find. Go to Bone Bottom and simply head left until you see a little huddled NPC: the Chapel Maid. Talk to her, and she'll give you the Maiden's Soul.
Snare Setter location
From the Chapel Maid it's not far to the Snare Setter. Follow the route on the map above to head down into Weavenest Alta, using your Needolin to open the door. Take the weird teleporting escalator down, and the corridor on your upper left has a secret hole in the roof that'll take you to the Snare Setter.
How to trigger Act 3
Once you've taken all these pieces back to the Caretaker and gotten the Soul Snare, head to the final boss Grand Mother Silk, and when you defeat her, the screen above will be displayed. At this point make sure you trigger the Needolin, as attempting to Bind will simply end the game with a cutscene.
Once you use the Needolin, a cutscene will play, followed by the credits. At this point, trying to reopen your save will show the file covered in black goo. Keep trying to select it, and the goo will be removed – leaving you free to enter the game again, now in Act 3.
Best of luck to you. Of course, why not explore a bit while you're still in the relative safety of Act 2: find out the secrets of the Silksong The Mist region, or check out our walkthrough for the Silksong Hunter's March area if you haven't explored it completely yet.
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