Hollow Knight Silksong – How to beat Bell Beast
Hollow Knight Silksong is home to dozens of terrifying bosses that will knock you flat on your shell. These boss fights range from large, slow creatures to hit hard to fast little creatures that will keep you on your feet while nipping at your ankles in a test of endurance and patience.
The second among these bosses that you’re likely to come across – the first being the Moss Mother – is the Bell Beast, a trapped creature who lashes out at you after you free it from the spider’s silk. Defeating the Bell Beast is mandatory to progress in the game, and gives you a handy traversal option upon its defeat, so taking it down is absolutely necessary.
In this guide we’ll go over how to defeat Bell Beast in Hollow Knight Silksong, as well as what rewards you get for taking it down.
How to defeat Bell Beast – HK: Silksong
Defeating the Bell Beast in Silksong is not too difficult, as long as you learn its attack patterns and take your time.
At the start of the fight, Bell Beast can do two different attacks. The first is a rushing attack, which is telegraphed by some rumbling on the ground and small jets of air on the left and right side of the screen. These jets of air will reach to about halfway up the screen, not to the ceiling.
When the Bell Beast exits from the ground, it will rush from one side of the screen to the other. To combat this, you’ll want to needle dive (down + attack) into it, which will deal a point of damage and give you enough air to land on the other side of it.
Its second attack is telegraphed by jets of air that reach the ceiling, after which the Bell Beast will leap into the air. Your best bet here is to stay central, so that the Bell Beast goes soaring above your head, and then hit it when it lands on the other side of you. You can easily get three or four hits in after it lands, so this is your best opportunity to deal damage.
Halfway through the fight, Bell Beast will start roaring in the centre of the room, during which you can get in a few sneaky hits. After this, two more attacks are added to its arsenal.
The first sees it tunnelling underground and shaking bells from the ceiling. You’ll be able to see a stream of dust falling from the ceiling before the bell drops, and they will always bounce once in a random direction after landing. These are fairly easy to avoid, as long as you keep a fair distance away from them.
The second attack sees the Bell Beast pop up in the centre of the room, with jets of air coming from below like with other attacks. Once it pops up, it will throw two bells or moss ball creatures into the arena. They’re relatively easy to avoid, and the moss balls can be used to regenerate your silk for healing if needed.
Just keep at it, slowly picking away at its health while dodging its attacks, and you should get through the fight fairly easily.
Bell Beast rewards – HK: Silksong
Defeating the Bell Beast unlocks two things. The first is the unimpeded ability to move into the next area, The Marrow, which is where the game continues. Obviously this is the best reward, as it lets you progress through the game and onto more challenging bosses.
The second is the ability to fast travel between certain stations in specific areas, much like the stations in the first game. We won’t spoil how you travel between these stations, but it’s absolutely delightful, so it’s well worth doing, especially since it lets you easily return to the starting town to visit vendors of various types and pick up more quests.