Dirtmouth | Hollow Knight Guide
After making your way throught the King’s Pass you will arrive in Dirtmouth. Dirtmouth serves as the main hub area in Hollow Knight. You will spend a ton of time in this town during your playthrough. It contains a number of services that are essential to making your way through the game including a Stag Station, vendors, and even a few secrets.
Dirtmouth Map
Dirtmouth is a small hub area that connects to the Crystal Peak and Forgotten Crossroads. The map above shows the complete location.
Meeting the Elderbug
The first time you visit the town it is pretty empty. So, for now, simply speak to the Elderbug next to the Bench. The Elderbug acts as a sort of guide throughout the story and will give you some details on what is going on in the world.
What Do Benches Do?
Benches serve as the primary checkpoints and safe havens scattered throughout Hallownest. Resting at a bench fully restores your health Masks, refills your main SOUL meter, and updates your map with any newly explored areas (provided you own the Wayward Compass or map tools). Sitting on a bench also saves your game progress, sets your respawn point upon death, and acts as the only place where you can equip or swap your Charms. However, resting comes with a trade-off: sitting on a bench resets the game world, causing all standard defeated enemies to respawn.
I recommend sitting on the Bench at this point so we have a save. If you wish you can explore more of Dirtmouth to get a general idea of the area. There isn’t much you can do at this point until we advance the main story more.
Services in Dirtmouth
As you progress the main storyline you will unlock a few services in Dirtmouth that will help you on your journey. These services come in the form of NPCs:
- Iselda
- Sly
- Divine (The Grimm Troupe quest)
As you advance through the story (and use this guide), these characters will move into town and open up their shops/services.
How to Reach the Forgotten Crossroads
To advance the main story we need to head to the next area. This area is currently only accessible through the Well in the middle of Dirtmouth. When you are ready, drop down the Well to reach The Forgotten Crossroads.
This guide is part of our Hollow Knight guide and walkthrough hub. Check it out for guide detailing the game’s various bosses, Stagway locations, Endings, and more.
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