Out of all the many items that can be collected in Hollow Knight, the Mothwing Cloak is one of the most essential. It grants a familiar ability — a dash &m💛dash; which comes in extremely handy when getting out of the way of speedy bosses, or exploring the vast world of Hallownest.
Once obtained, the Mothwing Cloak is permanently equipped, allowing the player to integrate the dash ability into their playstyle for the remainder of the game. Without the Mothwing Cloak, the bulk of the map, along with its lore, bosses, and new challenges, remain inaccessible — but that doesn't mean it's an easy item to acquire!
Updated September 20th, 2021 by Russ Boswell: Hollow Knight continues to captivate fans thanks to its amazing story, characters, DLC, and intense Metroidvania-style gameplay. Even now, new players are hopping into Hollow Knight for the first time, especially those that are anticipating the release of Silksong. But as fun as Hollow Knight is, it's definitely a bit ambiguous. A lot of players may find themselves stuck on where to go or what to look for during their playthrough. One of the biggest hurdles to overcome in the early game is how to find dash in Hollow Knight. In order to better help players discover when you get dash in Hollow Knight, how to use it, and where to go after, the following article has been updated.
Ability Granted: Dash
The Mothwing Cloak grants you the ability to dash horizontally in the direction the Knight is facing. This is useful for getting out of range of an enemy's attack quickly, or for dashing across acid pits or spikes, and into otherwise unreachable areas.
There is a cool-off period of 0.6 seconds between when the dash can be used in succession. This can be minimized to 0.4 seconds by equipping the Dashmaster Charm.
Tips For Using The Mothwing Cloak
The Mothwing Cloak is an incredibly important item that Hollow Knight players will want to get closely accustomed to. The dash ability should never be overlooked and it's incredibly important for players to master this ability early on if they plan on tackling some of Hollow Knight's more challenging end-game content.
It's important to note that the Mothwing Cloak has a Dash Cooldown that is resettable, depending on what actions the player takes. Here are the instances in which the Dash cooldown for Mothwing Cloak resets:
- When the Knight lands upon the ground or an object.
- When the Knight bounces off an enemy or object with their nail.
- When the Knight takes damage from an enemy or source.
- When the Knight clings to a wall or jumps off of it using the Mantis Claws.
The Mothwing Cloak will be upgraded later on 🌟into t𝓡he Shadow Cloak, furthering enhancing the Dash ability.
Location Of The Mothwing Cloak
The Mothwing Cloak can be found in the Greenpath, toward the left of the section. This is one of the first locations that the player can open up in the game; the Mothwing Cloak should be an early acquisition in any Hollow Knight playthrough.
Battle Requirements: Hornet
Before the Knight can get access to the Mothwing Cloak, you must first battle Hallownest's premier defender. Hornet is one of the most memorable of the many bosses and characters in Hollow Knight, and she is 🐽a formidable foeꦑ.
To beat Hornet, reserve your jump as an emergency evasive maneuver. Try to keep continuously moving away from her, so her aimed attacks never connect. Hornet's attack will generally bring her close to the Knight, after which you can easily attack her before she moves away to begin her next attack.
Hornet uses a needle as her weapon for some quick ranged attacks and has five mꦰoves, all of which damage the Knight for one mask of health:
- Horizontal Dash Attack: Hornet will crouch down and look in the Knight's direction, holding her needle parallel to the ground. She will dash straight across the ground towards the Knight. This attack covers approximately half of the length of the battle screen and is easy to dodge once you recognize her beginning stance. Either walk the Knight out of range or jump over her as she dashes if you're too close to get away in time.
- Diagonal Dash Attack: Hornet will jump high in the air with her needle poised behind her back in the same position as her Horizontal Dash Attack. She will then dash straight at the Knight. To avoid this attack, simply keep walking once she has jumped in the air, as her aim is locked in once she is in the air. Once she has attacked the area where the Knight was previously, you will likely be in a position close enough to get in a counter-attack before she moves away.
- Needle Attack: Hornet will pull her needle back, and then launch it at the Knight for a ranged attack. This attack covers approximately two-thirds of the length of the battle screen, although only the location of the needle is dangerous, not the area where her silk thread connects to the needle. You can jump into the area between her and the needle, but you must jump away again quickly to avoid getting hit by her needle when she recalls it. If possible, it is better to jump completely out of range or time the jump so the Knight is in the air when the needle reaches your location.
- Needle Whip: Hornet will jump to a location anywhere on the battle screen, on the ground or in the air, and whip her needle around her. She will often use this attack when the Knight is positioned close to her. This is a 360-degree attack, but only damages the area close to Hornet and is easy to avoid. Try not to react with a jump, as it is easy to end up jumping into this attack by mistake.
- Jump Attack: This is not so much an attack as it is just a jump, but Hornet will do damage all the same if she touches the Knight. Hornet will frequently jump to reposition herself slightly closer or farther away from the Knight. Try to keep moving, but not reacting too much to this attack, to avoid accidentally jumping or running into her.
Hornet will stop her attack at three points: when the player has done 25%, 50%, and 75% damage (it requires 11 hits to damage each "quarter" of her health). These are excellent opportuniti▨es 🙈to heal, but be wary of attacking her, as she will resume her attack patterns if hit. Once she is through resting, Hornet will often jump close to the Knight to begin attacking again.
Once you've defeated Hornet, collect the Mothwing Cloak from the bug corpse on the ground. You're all set to dash!
WARNING. The section below contains spoilers for those that are progressing through Hollow Knight and should only b🍰e seen if players are stuck on where to♕ go after obtaining the Mothwing Cloak.
Where Players Should Go After Obtaining The Mothwing Cloak
Once players obtain the Mothwing Cloak, they'll be able to access certain areas and collectibles they couldn't previously. Although the dodge is useful for escaping enemy attacks and projectiles, it's also capable of propelling the Knight into new areas otherwise inaccessible.
Once players have their hands on the Mothwing Cloak, they'll be able to travel to a new area and progress further through the Hollow Nest. Those that are curious about where to go can follow the map above, heading down through The Fog Canyon and then into the Fungal Wastes to chase down another ability.