Tips for the Bosses of Silksong: Part 1 – The First 5 Bosses You’ll Probably Meet

As with Hollow Knight before it, Silksong boasts a collection engaging, creative, and sometimes frustrating bosses. While these first 5 are far from the most complex, some of them can provide a touch of difficulty when you are just starting out. Here are a few tips to help you conquer your foes as you climb to the heights of Pharloom.

Moss Mother: The Forgettable First Boss

The difficulty of this boss comes not from it, but from the fact that, as it is the first boss of the game, you don’t really have much to work with. That said, she’s not terribly complicated. When she dips down to charge at you, just jump over her. If you’ve already mastered the Hunter Crest Down-slash, you can use it to deal so damage while you’re at it.

She does summon adds/drop boulders, but their trajectory is fairly telegraphed. Just move out of the way and kill adds quickly after they spawn (should only take 2 strikes).

Bell Beast: Spot the Difference

While more of a challenge than Moss Mother, this boss isn’t too bad either. Only really has 3 abilities (2 of which get Enhanced in Phase 2), and they all have tells.

1. Small bit of rumble dirt on the side of the map means she’ll surface and then charge. Just jump over him. If you are good at pogoing, go ahead and do so for some extra damage.
2. Wide patch of rumbling dirt on the side of the map means she’s going to Free Willy jump across the screen. Wait until she jumps and then move in the direction she’s jumping from to avoid the damage. You can turn and deal at least 2 strikes of damage to her if you are fast enough.
3. Small bit of rumbling dirt towards the middle of the room means she’s going to burst up out of the ground and drop 2 bells, 1 on either side of her. Back up and then jump over the bell that’s coming at you. Don’t try to jump immediately. They bounce when they hit the ground. Wait until they level out.

After reaching half health, the Bell Beast will pop up in the middle of the room, roar, drop 8 bells from the ceiling, and then start Phase 2. These bells bounce once before disappearing, and their initial falling trajectories are telegraphed. Just keep an eye out, and you should be able to avoid them.

In phase 2, both the Bell Burst and Free Willy jump will also drop a bell from the ceiling. They aren’t really that much of an issue, but they will occasionally interfere with your attack window so just watch out for them if you don’t want to get hit.

Lace: That Escalated Quickly

This boss is a significant upgrade from the first 2. Not only is she hyper mobile, but she also has an annoying counterattack that you have to watch out for. If you head to the area below her arena and open up the Forge Daughter, you can get the String Shard Red Tool, which is very helpful for this fight since Lace will almost always run into it.

Apparent from that, the best way to deal with her there is to take your time, keep your distance, and use guerrilla tactics. If you see an opening, take it, but immediately move backwards after you strike. This will keep you safe in case the opening turns out to be fake and she tries to counterattack you. The more space between you and her, the more time you have to react to her abilities. Having Swift Step helps considerably.

Also, if she jumps to the top of the map and a pillar of white light appears over you, GET OUT OF IT IMMEDIATELY!

Fourth Chorus: The Floor is Lava!

This is another boss that String Shard is very useful for. If you jump up before you throw it, you are pretty much guaranteed to get full damage. The only part of this boss you can hit is its head, so this gives you a good opportunity to work on your jump attacks.

This boss can give you some pretty cruddy RNG from time to time, which can cause you to fall into the lava. To help with this, grab the Magma Bell Blue Tool from the Forge Daughter. With it equipped, you’ll only lose 1 Mask instead of 2 if you fall in.

This boss is all about patience and watching where you’re standing. Don’t try to jump up and dodge its hand slams. That will only get you hit (trust me). Just move sideways or jump sideways if there is no floor. If you need to Heal, do so while you jump over its hand sweep. You should be safe to do so. The falling rocks have very small hit boxes, so you can dodge them by a pretty thin margin without issue.

Moorwing: Honestly, Just Skip it for Now

This boss is a bother, but if you rescue Garmond and Zaza, then talk to them below their prison, they will help you. The main issue with this boss is that you have a large area to work with, which is ironically a disadvantage. Its attacks are fast enough that, if Moorwing is off-screen, you might not see them coming until it’s too late. You need to keep it in your sights as much as possible.

Like with Moss Mother, when it dips down and charges, you have an excellent opportunity to pogo off it for easy damage. During Phase 2, watch out when it creates spinning blades with its feet. After they curve downwards, they continue rolling across the ground until they reach the other side of the area. Don’t try to outrun them, just jump over them.

Alternatively, you can skip this boss for a time by finding 5 fleas and riding with the Flea Cavern. They will take up residence in the boss area and open up the door to Bellhart. If you do this, the boss can be fought in Act 2. It can be found in the first 2^nd map to the left of the Halfway Home. It should retain its original HP, so it will be somewhat easier to take down, though you won’t have Garmond and Zaza to help you.

If you don’t kill it in Acts 1 or 2, you can fight it in Act 3, but it will have increased HP. I’d suggest against that.