You've spent hours wandering the damp, claustrophobic corridors of Forgotten Crossroads and the lush, deceptive greenery of Greenpath. You've beaten the False Knight. You’ve probably died to a Primal Aspid more times than you'd care to admit on Reddit. But then you realize something is off. You see people talking about different endings, about a "true" final boss, and about a black, pulsing charm that changes everything. They're talking about the Hollow Knight Void Heart, and honestly, if you don't know where to look, you're going to miss the best part of the game.
Getting this item isn't just about a stat boost. In fact, it's the only charm in the entire game that takes up zero notches. It's permanent. It's heavy with lore. It literally changes the DNA of your save file.
The Long Road to the Abyss
Before you even think about the Void Heart, you have to deal with the King’s Soul. This is where most players get stuck. You can't just find the Void Heart sitting in a chest. You have to earn it through a series of tasks that are, frankly, some of the hardest platforming and combat challenges in Hallownest.
First, you need two halves of a different charm. One half is held by the White Lady in the Queen’s Gardens. Reaching her is a nightmare of thorns and Traitor Lords. The second half is locked away in the White Palace. To even get into the White Palace, you need 1,800 Essence to awaken your Dream Nail. This means hunting down Warrior Dreams and Dream Bosses like Lost Kin or Failed Champion.
The White Palace is a gauntlet of buzzsaws. It's grueling. It's frustrating. You’ll hear that music in your sleep. But once you reach the Pale King’s throne and grab that second half, the King’s Soul is yours. It slowly regenerates Soul. It's useful, sure, but it's just a placeholder for the real prize.
Turning White to Black
Once you have the King’s Soul equipped—and it must be equipped—you have to descend. All the way down. Past the Ancient Basin. Into the birthplace of the vessels.
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There’s a floor in the Abyss that opens only when you’re wearing that golden charm. You’ll drop into a pit of shadows and memories. This is where the narrative weight of Hollow Knight hits the hardest. You see the reflection of the Knight’s past. You see the siblings.
At the very bottom, you find a large, egg-shaped object. Hit it with the Awakened Dream Nail.
What happens next is a cutscene that defines the game's lore. You see the Pale King and the original Hollow Knight. You see your own failure to climb out of the Abyss. And then, the King’s Soul breaks. It is replaced by the Hollow Knight Void Heart.
Why the Void Heart Changes Everything
The mechanical shifts are immediate. You can no longer unequip this charm. It is part of you. But more importantly, the Siblings and Void Tendrils in the Abyss no longer attack you. You are their lord. You have unified the Void under your will.
From a gameplay perspective, this is the "Point of No Return" for endings. If you kill the Hollow Knight without this charm, you get the standard ending. You replace him. You become the vessel. It's a bleak, cycle-continuing conclusion.
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With the Void Heart, everything changes.
When you fight the Hollow Knight now, Hornet will eventually intervene. She cracks his shell. This is your window. If you keep hitting the Hollow Knight, you still get a variation of the first ending. But if you Dream Nail him while Hornet is holding him down? That’s when you go to the real final boss: The Radiance.
Technical Details and Requirements
- Cost: 0 Notches (Once acquired, it stays on forever).
- Location: The Birthplace (Bottom of the Abyss).
- Prerequisite: King’s Soul Charm (Equipped).
- Key Items Needed: Awakened Dream Nail (1,800 Essence).
Some players think you can "lose" the King’s Soul benefits. You kind of do. You lose the passive Soul generation. However, the trade-off is access to the Godmaster content and the Pantheon of Hallownest. You literally cannot finish the game's ultimate challenges without this black heart.
Common Misconceptions About the Void
I see a lot of people asking if they can "undo" getting the Void Heart. The short answer? No. Once you dive into the Birthplace and trigger that sequence, your save file is permanently locked out of the first ending (The Hollow Knight ending). If you’re a completionist who wants every achievement, make sure you beat the Hollow Knight before you go down into the Abyss to get the heart.
Another weird myth is that the Void Heart makes you stronger in regular combat. It doesn't. Aside from making the Abyss enemies passive, it’s purely a "key" item disguised as a charm. It doesn't increase your nail damage or make your spells hit harder. It just gives you the right to face the sun.
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The Lore Implications
Team Cherry didn't just throw this in for flavor. The Void Heart represents the Knight acknowledging its identity. Or lack thereof. By "unifying the void under the bearer's will," you aren't just a mindless tool of the Pale King anymore. You are something else. Something capable of actually consuming the infection rather than just containing it.
It highlights the tragedy of the Pale King's plan. He tried to use the Void as a mindless substance, but the Void Heart suggests that it required a specific type of consciousness—or perhaps a perfect lack of it—to actually function.
Actionable Steps for Completion
If you're currently staring at your inventory wondering how to progress, follow this sequence. Don't skip steps or you'll just end up wandering the Deepnest for three hours out of frustration.
- Farm Essence: Go fight the Grave Keepers and the Dream Warriors. Don't sleep on the Whispering Roots; they add up quickly. You need that 1,800 for the Seer to upgrade your nail.
- The Queen's Gardens: Navigate to the top left of the map. Beat the Traitor Lord (use Cloth's help if you've followed her questline). Talk to the White Lady.
- The White Palace: Go to the Ancient Basin, find the corpse of the Kingsmould, and Dream Nail it. Prepare for pain. Use the Hiveblood charm here—it's a lifesaver for regenerating health during the platforming sections.
- The Abyss: Equip the full King's Soul. Go to the very bottom of the Abyss. The ground will literally shake and open up.
- The Birthplace: Follow the path to the end, Dream Nail the reflection, and watch the transformation.
Once you have it, go back to the Black Egg Temple. Your fight with the Hollow Knight will be the same until the final phase, where the presence of the Hollow Knight Void Heart triggers Hornet's arrival. This is your chance to finish the story properly.
Don't overthink the Soul loss from the King's Soul. By this point in the game, you should have enough Grubsong or Spell Twister synergy that the passive regen isn't missed. The access to the Radiance and the various Pantheon endings far outweighs a slow Soul tick. You've become the Lord of Shades; act like it.