Spells - Hollow Knight Guide - IGN (2024)

This IGN wiki guide page contains information on where to find all 3 Spells in Hollow Knight and their upgardes. For a complete guide on how to make it through Hollow Knight, be sure to check out our Walkthrough.

To learn how to obtain the various other Collectibles Hollow Knight has to offer, visit our pages on Charms, Mask Shards, and Vessel Fragments.

There are three different Spells to obtain in Hollow Knight. Each one consumes a small amount of Soul to deal damage in a specific direction. One Spell can even grant access to new areas, and every Spell has an upgrade which can be obtained to increase the power, duration, or area of effect of the Spell.

Spells will always be available once obtained, and cannot be unequipped. While the various attributes of the Spells will be augmented by obtaining their upgrade, the cost always stays the same, so there is no downside to upgrading them.

Vengeful Spirit is a powerful Spell which consumes a small amount of Soul to conjure a large, fast-moving ball of energy which moves in a straight line away from the Knight, damaging any enemies in its path. It can be used on the ground or while in the air.

The Vengeful Spirit Spell can be obtained after completing the False Knight boss encounter in the Forgotten Crossroads. Head left from the boss arena and climb up through the tunnels to arrive at the Ancestral Mound sub-area. Head inside and talk to the Snail Shaman to obtain the Vengeful Spirit spell.

The Vengeful Spirit Spell upgrade, Shade Soul, is located in the City of Tears sub-area, Soul Sanctum. It can be obtained once the player has obtained the Elegant Key, which can be purchased from Sly in Dirthmouth after the player has found both Sly (located in the bottom-right section of Forgotten Crossroads) and the Shopkeeper’s Key (located in the northern section of Crystal Peaks).

With the Elegant Key in hand, head north from Relic Seeker Lemm’s shop, then head right once you reach the top of the path. Follow the path up and to the left and you’ll soon arrive at a locked door. Use the Elegant Key to open it. Follow the path and defeat the Soul Warrior miniboss encounter and you’ll find a device. Activate the device to obtain the Shade Soul Spell.

Desolate Dive is a powerful Spell which consumes a small amount of Soul to initiate a dive attack. It can be used on the ground or while in the air, and is able to break shaking sections of ground, or various shaky items (such as the casket in Resting Grounds, etc.). Desolate Dive grants the Knight a small window of invincibility during the attack, so it can be used to avoid skyward strikes while dashing, to deal significant damage to strong grounded enemies, or to land safely amidst a swarm of weaker enemies.

The Desolate Dive Spell can be obtained by defeating Soul Master in the upper left region of the City of Tears, at the top of the Soul Sanctum sub-area. After defeating the Soul Master’s second phase, the Desolate Dive Spell will appear in the air at the center of the arena.

The Desolate Dive upgrade, Descending Dark, can be obtained in the Crystallized Mound sub-area, located in the eastern region of Crystal Peak. It can be obtained once the player has access to the Crystal Heart.

Enter the Crystallized Mound and proceed through the various spiked switch platforms and you’ll find a crystallized Snail Shaman. Attack and shatter the crystal prison and the Void will erupt in the area, suffusing the Knight will dark energy and empowering the Desolate Dive Spell, turning it into Descending Dark.

Howling Wraiths is a powerful Spell which consumes a small amount of Soul to deal damage in a large cone above the Knight. It is extremely useful for taking out aerial threats and dealing with dive-bombing enemies, especially while navigating tricky platforming sections. It can be used on the ground or while in the air.

The Howling Wraiths Spell can be found in the far left section of Fog Canyon, in a sub-area called the Overgrown Mound. Enter the Overgrown Mound and head right, and you’ll soon be locked in an arena with a swarm of Squits. Dispatch then, then head right and you’ll find the Howling Wraiths Spell hovering in the air next to the corpse of a Snail Shaman.

Once you have obtained the Howling Wraiths Spell, and have branded yourself with the Kingsbrand in Kingdom’s Edge, you can obtain the Abyss Shriek upgrade in The Abyss. At the bottom of the main shaft, head left through the long corridor and you’ll find a small platform, surrounded by shrieking stone faces which resemble the forms created by the Howling Wraiths Spell.

Stand on the platform and cast Howling Wraiths and the Void will emerge and suffuse The Knight, who will then obtain the Abyss Shriek Spell.