How to Beat Widow in Hollow Knight Silksong

Widow is one of the main story bosses in Hollow Knight Silksong, and fighting her can feel like running into a brick wall if you can’t adapt. She might seem complex and unpredictable, but her abilities are quite simple and easy to counter. Here’s how to beat Widow in Hollow Knight Silksong.

How to Beat Widow in Hollow Knight Silksong

Widow has two phases, with the first phase having 4 attack patterns. You should get used to these early on because they get ramped up in phase 2. You can play the first phase quite aggressively.

Dash Attack

Widow hovers in the air and then dashes down towards you, and then dashes once more in your direction for a 2 Mask damage attack. Move towards her and then perform a jumping down attack to parry her second dash. Master this in the first phase, as it’s an essential tool for phase 2.

Bell Attack

Widow will stand in place, and white wires will appear, signaling the direction she is going to toss bells in. If you have good situational awareness, this is a perfect chance to deal damage to her because she’s incredibly vulnerable here. Just don’t lose track of the bell lines and think about how they will bounce.

Bell Burst Attack

Widow rushes towards you, followed by powerful bell eruptions on the floor. Either jump over her or perform a pogo attack to counter her dash. For the erupting bells, you have 2 options. The riskier option is just to perform a regular jump and hover, or you can climb the wall and safely land. You can even delay your descent with a heal.

Heavy Bell Attack

Widow performs a slightly longer animation and summons a large group of bells to slam the arena. This ability is incredibly easy to dodge, and you can punish Widow during this as well.

How to Beat Widow Phase 2 in Hollow Knight Silksong

Widow’s second phase requires you to switch to the defensive and play reactively instead of aggressively. She’ll fire a nonstop barrage of bells and weave in deadly dash attacks that make this phase incredibly hard.

Vertical Bell Attacks

These are still relatively easy to dodge, and the best punish window you will get during her second phase. Just make sure you don’t get too greedy.

Diagonal Bell Attacks

From our experience, jumping makes it more likely for the diagonal bells to hit you on the rebound. Instead, we suggest focusing on your position on the ground between the bells to dodge. This also lets you react much more quickly to incoming dash attacks.

Dash Attacks

The best way to deal with Widow’s phase 2 dash attacks is to counter them with an aerial parry attack. You need to be on the lookout for this attack’s windup at all times and then counter accordingly. It’s a devastating 2 Mask damage attack, so you can’t risk getting hit by it this late into the fight.

The game plan is to punish the vertical bell attacks, dodge the diagonal attacks, and parry the dash attacks. Once the rhythm clicks, you can beat Widow easily.

Additional Tips and Tricks

• You can deflect the bells being tossed at you if you feel you’re unable to dodge effectively.
• Getting the Poison tool charm helps shorten the second phase, but you’ll have to complete the Rite of the Pollip quest in Shellwood first.
• Be aggressive during the first phase, as Widow lets you get away with many free hits and knockdowns. Use these to replenish health as she gives generous healing windows after every attack.
• Instead of jumping over the dash attacks, it’s better to time your aerial parry counters since they are safer and consistent.

You should also check out our guides on the Skull Tyrant quest and complete the Volatile Flintbeetle quest.

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