I assume you are familiar with this sight. Also of course if there’s on optimisation please say so, but I will not be changing the route to someone’s specific need, or making multiple paths. This is my first guide ever so if something needs clarification please say so. Also if you are the kind of player that wants to get absolutely everything and leave no nook and cranny unsearched, even those without upgrades, I wouldn’t recommend any Steel Soul run, because you *will* die even after all that effort. If you want the fastest route or even a route that gets to the final boss safely without wasting any time at all, this guide is not for you, though I might recommend fireb0rn’s no damage speedrun for a route. This route also keeps in mind that you might want to 100% this savefile or use charms usually considered unviable. This route is in no way the fastest route, or the safest route, or the single most optimal route (though I try!!). This means grubs are not a priority, which means that we won’t be going out of our way to collect it on our first run through a region unless it’s on our path, but we will if we visit the region later on. Other than that they give geo, which is nice, but since we know what to spend we don’t need that much geo anyway. I also delay specific parts or bosses, mostly the entirety of Deepnest or the Watcher Knights, until we are more powerful, because I don’t think I could consistently beat those without upgrades.Īlso grubs, while nice, don’t usually give significant upgrades, other than a mask shard at grub 5 and a pale ore at grub 31, though the charm Grubsong might be nice. If an item does not make you stronger immediately (like an amount of geo or items that unlock specific late-game locations like King’s Brand) and require significant detour and if we will return to this general area later, I will delay it. This route assumes you are decently good at Hollow Knight, since you’ve probably beaten the game before attempting a Steel Soul run.
This route prioritises speed over difficulty, aka if something is hard but easy this route will probably take it with some exceptions.
This guide describes a specific route through the game intended for Steel Soul mode that tries to pick up every upgrade along the way.