In the highly anticipated game Hollow Knight: Silksong, players are tasked with gathering essential Mask Shards to bolster protagonist Hornet's vitality. Given the formidable damage dealt by adversaries in Pharloom, collecting these shards is paramount for survival. This comprehensive guide outlines the precise locations of all 20 Mask Shards, enabling players to enhance Hornet's health capacity to a maximum of ten masks. The acquisition of these shards ranges from straightforward purchases to intricate platforming challenges and quest completions, making strategic exploration and skill mastery key to their retrieval.
The journey begins with the first Mask Shard, available for purchase from Pebb in Bone Bottom for a modest sum of 300 rosaries. Following this, the second shard is located in Wormways, necessitating the acquisition of the Swift Step ability from Deep Docks. Players must navigate a perilous corridor, dash-jumping across gaps and breaking through hidden walls to uncover this valuable item. The third shard awaits in the Far Fields, accessible after completing the 'Flexile Spines' quest and obtaining the Drifter's Cloak. This involves riding air currents, manipulating explosive rocks, and gliding across treacherous sections to reveal the shard embedded in the ground.
Further into the adventure, the fourth Mask Shard can be found in Shellwood. Starting from the Shellwood Bellway station, players must glide to the right-hand path and enter a hidden exit. Inside, a series of pogo jumps across enemies and plants will lead to the shard. The fifth shard is situated in the Deep Docks, visible early on but only obtainable after unlocking the Cling Grip ability. This requires starting from The Marrow, climbing a vertical wall, and conquering a gauntlet of enemies before reaching the shard on the right. In Weavenest Alta, the sixth shard becomes available after acquiring the Needolin. Players must power up Weavenest Alta, utilize Cling Grip to scale walls, and overcome a lava-filled pogo challenge to claim their reward.
The seventh shard resides within the Cogwork Core. After defeating the Cogwork Dancers, players must meticulously descend through spinning cogs, find a hidden exit on the left, and brave a gauntlet of robots. Activating a switch and following the path upward will lead to the shard. Mask Shard number eight can be acquired from Jubliana at the First Shrine in Songclave for 750 rosaries, but only after completing 'The Wandering Merchant' quest. The ninth shard is a reward for completing the 'Savage Beastfly Grand Hunt' quest, which requires fulfilling several prerequisites including specific quest completions and boss defeats, culminating in a battle against the Savage Beastfly. Mask Shard ten is tucked away in the Whispering Vaults, where players must manipulate a suspicious ceiling object, push a wooden block, and jump their way to the top of a hidden shaft.
The eleventh Mask Shard in Far Fields presents a formidable jumping challenge. Players must grapple to hanging rings, navigate a collapsing house, and skillfully glide through a spike-filled hole. A subsequent encounter with a gauntlet of enemies over lava, followed by an escape from rising lava, culminates in finding this shard. Mount Fay holds the twelfth shard, accessible after unlocking the Faydown Cloak. Sliding down a snowy mountainside and double-jumping into a hollow pillar will reveal its hiding spot. Mask Shard thirteen, located in Blasted Steps, demands the combined use of Clawline and Faydown Cloak. Players must execute precise sprint jumps, grapple mid-air, and glide across platforms, then cautiously navigate a room filled with hazards to retrieve it.
Mask Shard fourteen is nestled in the Wisp Thicket, requiring the Faydown Cloak for access. Upon entering, players must break open a sac to reveal a bench, then pogo off red balloons and use Clawline to ascend, bypassing fire-spewing enemies to reach the shard. In Bilewater, the fifteenth shard demands careful platforming over treacherous waters teeming with grubs. With Clawline and Faydown Cloak, players must zigzag up a tall chamber, dodging bile-spewing bloatroaches and slubberlugs before reaching their goal. The sixteenth shard, found in The Slab, requires the Key of Apostate from the Putrified Ducts. Unlocking a door with this key leads to a room where players must pogo off a moving gear to reach the shard at the top.
The final four Mask Shards are part of Act 3. Shard seventeen is a reward for completing the 'Fastest in Pharloom' wish in Far Fields, where players must defeat Sprintmaster Swift in three races of increasing difficulty. Mask Shard eighteen is tied to the 'Dark Hearts' wish in Bellhart, tasking players with destroying 12 void masses scattered across Pharloom. The nineteenth shard is hidden in Mount Fay Act 3, requiring players to use Silk Soar to access a secret area, navigate a challenging platforming section involving grappling onto mnemonords and ice crystals, and finally use Silk Soar again to locate the shard. The twentieth and final Mask Shard is obtained by completing 'The Hidden Hunter' quest in Bellhart Act 3, which involves tracking down and defeating Gurr the Outcast, then returning a Grass Doll to the wish board.
