You've finally reached the City of Tears, the music swells, and suddenly a massive beetle with a soul-infused spear is teleporting on top of your head. Welcome to Hallownest. If you're looking for a hollow knight boss list, you probably realized pretty quickly that this game doesn't just have "a few" big enemies. It has an army of them.
Honestly, the numbers are kind of a mess depending on who you ask. Some say there are 28 bosses. Others swear it's 47. If you count the Godhome variants from the Godmaster DLC, you're looking at a roster that feels endless. But here’s the thing: most players obsess over the difficulty while totally missing the patterns that make these fights actually winnable.
The Mandatory Gauntlet: Who You Actually Have To Kill
Believe it or not, you can skip a huge chunk of the game. You don't have to fight the Mantis Lords. You don't even have to fight the Dung Defender if you're clever enough. But if you want to see the credits roll, there is a core "hit list" that is basically unavoidable.
The first real roadblock is the False Knight. He’s the gatekeeper of the Forgotten Crossroads. Most people panic here, but he’s just a training dummy for the "hit and run" tactic. After him, you're hunting the Dreamers. To get to them, you usually have to go through:
- Hornet Protector: Your first real skill check in Greenpath.
- Soul Master: The teleporting nightmare in the Soul Sanctum.
- Watcher Knights: Probably the most hated mandatory fight because there are six of them, and they love to roll over your dreams.
- Uumuu: The jellyfish in Teacher’s Archives that requires an assist from Quirrel.
Then you have the Hollow Knight himself. He’s the "final" boss, but if you’ve been paying attention to the lore, you know he’s just the beginning of the end.
The Hidden Killers: Optional Bosses That Break Players
Some of the best content in the game is tucked away in corners you’d never find without a guide. Take Nosk for example. You follow a copy of yourself into a deep, dark hole in Deepnest, and suddenly the walls start crawling. It’s creepy as hell.
Then there are the Warrior Dreams. These are ghosts of fallen heroes like Elder Hu, Gorb, and Markoth. Markoth is particularly notorious. In the base game, he’s fine. In the Pantheons? He’s a run-killer. He floats around with a shield and spawns nails out of thin air while you're trying to balance on tiny platforms. It's frustrating. Truly.
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Don't forget the DLC additions. The Grimm Troupe introduced Troupe Master Grimm and his much angrier version, Nightmare King Grimm (NKG). NKG is widely considered one of the hardest fights in gaming history. It’s not a fight; it’s a dance. If you miss one beat, you’re dead.
Every Boss in Hollow Knight (The Breakdown)
I’ve spent way too many hours in the Hall of Gods. Here is the reality of the roster, categorized by how they actually function in the game.
The Early Game Starters
These guys are meant to teach you. Gruz Mother teaches you to look up. Vengefly King teaches you to wait for an opening. Brooding Mawlek? Well, he mostly just teaches you that you shouldn't have gone that way without a dash.
The Dream Variants
Hollow Knight loves a good rematch. When you get the Dream Nail, you can revisit the corpses of bosses you've already killed to fight their "idealized" versions.
- Failed Champion (False Knight but faster and hits for two masks)
- Soul Tyrant (Soul Master on caffeine)
- Lost Kin (Broken Vessel but with way more ghosts)
- White Defender (The Dung Defender in his prime)
- Grey Prince Zote (A figment of Bretta's imagination and a total klutz)
The Pantheon Exclusives
If you’re brave enough to tackle the Godmaster content, you’ll find bosses that don't exist anywhere else. Brothers Oro and Mato fight you at the same time. Great Nailsage Sly is basically Yoda with a giant sword. And then there is the Sisters of Battle, which is just the Mantis Lords fight but with all three sisters attacking at once. It is arguably the best-designed fight in the entire genre.
Why the "Absolute" Version Changes Everything
Eventually, you’ll hear about Absolute Radiance. If the regular Radiance is the sun, this version is a supernova. She is the final boss of the fifth Pantheon. To even see her, you have to beat 42 other bosses in a row without dying. One mistake at the very end means you start back at the beginning. It’s brutal.
The community generally ranks the difficulty like this:
- Absolute Radiance (The undisputed queen of pain)
- Nightmare King Grimm (The ultimate rhythm test)
- Pure Vessel (The Hollow Knight in his absolute peak form)
- Markoth (Specifically the floorless version)
- Grey Prince Zote (Because he's unpredictable and annoying)
How to Actually Beat Them
Stop jumping so much. That’s the secret.
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Most bosses in Hallownest are designed to catch you mid-air. When you jump, you lose your ability to change direction quickly unless you have the double jump. Keep your feet on the ground. Dash through attacks using the Shade Cloak (the black dash).
Also, your charm loadout matters more than your nail level. Shaman Stone makes your spells hit like a truck. Quick Slash lets you get two hits in when you should only get one. If you’re struggling, swap out your charms. Don't just keep throwing yourself at the wall with the same build.
If a boss is dealing two masks of damage, use Fragile Strength (or Unbreakable if you’ve paid Divine). In dream fights, Fragile charms don't break, so you get a massive damage boost for free.
Hallownest is a graveyard, and most of these bosses are just trying to keep it that way. Whether you're hunting for the 112% completion or just trying to get past Hornet, remember that every boss has a "tell." Watch their eyes. Watch their stance. Once you see the pattern, the "impossible" becomes easy.
Start by practicing against the Mantis Lords in the Fungal Wastes. They are the perfect example of fair, telegraphed combat that rewards precision over luck. Once you beat them, you'll have the confidence to take on the rest of the list.