For the first few hours of Silksong, Hornet's Needle damage can feel somewhat lacking. Enemies take a lot of hits to defeat, bosses can feel like damage sponges, and after making it through several zones without any hint of an upgrade, players may be left wondering if it is possible to upgrade Needle damage in Silksong at all.
Hollow Knight: Silksong - Interactive Map (Pharloom)
Our interactive map for Pharloom in Hollow Knight: Silksong. All the skills, tools, benches, and more found in the game.
Thankfully, it is possible to upgrade Needle damage in Silksong. You'll have to get through the majority of the early to mid-game without a Needle upgrade, but once you defeat Moorwing in Greymoor and reach Bellhart, it's right around the corner. This guide explains how to increase Needle damage in Silksong and where to go to find the Pinmaster who can upgrade Hornet's Needle.
How to Increase Needle Damage in Silksong
To upgrade the Needle, Silksong players must seek the aid of Pinmaster Plinney, who can sharpen Hornet's needle to increase its damage. Pinmaster Plinney lives in Bellhart, but you can't interact with him until you free the town from the Widow.
Fortunately, it doesn't cost Hornet anything to upgrade Needle damage. Silksong players can get more upgrades and sharpen Hornet's weapon further after acquiring the first upgrade, but you'll have to get special items for Pinmaster Plinney – like the Pinmaster's Oil, which can only be found in the Citadel.
Silksong Needle Upgrade #1
To get the first Needle upgrade, Silksong players must remove the silk from Haunted Bellhart by defeating the Widow. Get to Haunted Bellhart by going left from the Moorwing boss, then continue left and navigate through the Shellwood area until you reach the Sister Splinter boss.
Defeat Sister Splinter, then follow the path to the left of its boss room until you find another Weaver statue.
Binding in front of this statue will unlock the Cling Grip art, which gives Hornet the ability to grab and jump up walls. Use Cling Grip to navigate through the rest of Shellwood, heading generally to the right.
The entrance to the Widow boss fight is directly above Bellhart, to the right of the upper elevator exit near the central Bellhart bench.
Beat Widow to free Bellhart's residents (and get the Needolin ability), then return to the town to find all the town's bugs have returned back to normal. All of the vendors and NPCs in Bellhart will unlock at this point – jump up to the buildings above and look for one with a Pin sign above its door.
As thanks for saving Bellhart, Pinmaster Plinney offers to sharpen Hornet's needle for free. After a brief and hilarious cutscene of Plinney sharpening the Needle, you will have received your first Needle upgrade in Silksong!
Where to Get More Needle Upgrades in Silksong
After Plinney sharpens Hornet's Needle for the first time, talk to the Pinmaster again to learn that it is possible to increase Needle damage further – however, he lacks a particular material. Plinney reveals that if Hornet can find the Pinmaster's Oil within the Citadel above, he could upgrade Hornet's Needle again.
Hornet can find more than one Pale Oil in the Citadel. Once you acquire one, return to Pinmaster Plinney to sharpen the Needle and increase its damage even more!
- Follow our guide to all Pale Oil locations in Silksong to find out where to get every Pale Oil and upgrade Hornet's Needle to its maximum damage!
Hollow Knight: Silksong
- Released
- September 4, 2025
WHERE TO PLAY
- Developer(s)
- Team Cherry
- Engine
- Unity
- Franchise
- Hollow Knight
- Number of Players
- Single-player
- PC Release Date
- September 4, 2025
- Platform(s)
- PlayStation 5, PlayStation 4, Xbox Series X, Xbox Series S, Xbox One, Nintendo Switch 2, Nintendo Switch, PC
