Eight permanent traversal upgrades that gate every region in Hallownest, from the Greenpath dash to the Dream Realm boss roster.
Eight permanent abilities gate every corner of Hallownest. According to the wiki, six are movement upgrades that unlock new regions and platforming routes, and two are dream abilities that open the Essence economy and the Dream Realm boss roster.
Per the wiki, abilities are distinct from charms. They occupy no notch slot, cannot be removed once unlocked, and stay active across every save state including Pantheon and Steel Soul runs. Every ability is found, not bought; even the Dream Nail starts with a free 0-Essence pickup at the Seer.
The wiki notes the canonical progression order is Mothwing Cloak, Mantis Claw, Crystal Heart, Monarch Wings, Isma's Tear, and Shade Cloak for traversal, with Dream Nail dropped in mid-game and the Awoken Dream Nail upgrade saved for the true-ending route. Skipping or reordering changes which regions open first; the suggested order matches the natural loop through the kingdom.
This guide covers every ability in pickup order: the region that holds it, the boss or NPC that gates it, the mechanic it introduces, and the regions it unlocks. Spell-type abilities like Vengeful Spirit and Howling Wraiths get their own spoke and are referenced where they intersect.
8 abilities across 6 movement + 2 dream categories.
Mothwing Cloak in Greenpath (dash), gated by the Mothwing Cloak Ghost platform sequence.
Shade Cloak in the Abyss, gated by King's Brand and the Birthplace descent.
Dream Nail + Awoken upgrade from Seer; opens Warrior Dreams and the true ending route.Per the wiki, the canonical first-time order tracks the natural exploration loop through Hallownest. Returning saves can pull Crystal Heart or Monarch Wings earlier with sequence-breaks, but the ordered route below requires no skips.
| # | Ability | Region | Gate | Unlocks |
|---|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | Mothwing Cloak | Greenpath | Hornet (first fight) | Forward dash + Greenpath west |
| 2 | Mantis Claw | Mantis Village (Fungal Wastes) | Mantis Lords | Wall cling + jump; opens Deepnest + most vertical shafts |
| 3 | Dream Nail | Resting Grounds | The Seer NPC | Essence harvesting + Warrior Dream access |
| 4 | Crystal Heart | Crystal Peak | Crystal Guardian boss | Super Dash; opens Royal Waterways + many shortcuts |
| 5 | Monarch Wings | Ancient Basin | Broken Vessel | Double jump; opens Ancient Basin west + Kingdom's Edge |
| 6 | Isma's Tear | Royal Waterways | Dung Defender + acid pool | Acid immunity; opens Queen's Gardens + Isma's Grove |
| 7 | Awoken Dream Nail | Resting Grounds | Seer + 1,800 Essence | Dream Realm boss versions (Failed Champion, Lost Kin, Soul Tyrant) |
| 8 | Shade Cloak | The Abyss | King's Brand + Birthplace | Shadow dash through shade gates; opens White Palace + endgame |
According to the wiki, Dreamgate is an optional 9th unlock from the Seer at 900 Essence. It allows teleportation to any set marker and is one-way; most players pick it up alongside the Awoken Dream Nail upgrade. The 8-ability core above covers every gated region; Dreamgate is a quality-of-life tool, not a progression block.
Per the wiki, every ability is announced by a brief cutscene and a visual change on the Knight's sprite (Mothwing Cloak adds the trailing cloak, Monarch Wings adds feathered wings on jump). Returning to a save after a long break, glance at the Knight's idle stance to confirm which abilities are already in inventory.
Mothwing Cloak is the first traversal upgrade and the dash that defines combat spacing. Per the wiki, it sits in a small chamber east of Greenpath, gated by the first Hornet boss fight on a shellwood platform near the chamber.
According to the wiki, the cloak provides a forward dash on the ground or in mid-air with a 0.6-second cooldown. The dash grants 4 invincibility frames during the active window, which makes it the canonical dodge for spike attacks and projectiles. Dashmaster cuts the cooldown to ~0.4s and unlocks the downward dash variant.
The wiki notes the Shade Cloak upgrade (item 6 in this list) replaces the standard cloak with shadow-dash invulnerability through shade gates and certain enemy attacks. The base Mothwing Cloak stays visually the same on the Knight; the upgrade extends the dash, not the wardrobe.
Mantis Claw is the wall-cling upgrade that opens roughly 60% of the map. Per the wiki, the claw sits past the Mantis Lords arena in Mantis Village, deep in Fungal Wastes.
According to the wiki, the claw allows the Knight to cling to any vertical wall by pressing into it mid-air. From a wall cling, JUMP fires a wall-jump that arcs away and refreshes Monarch Wings (if already unlocked). The two abilities combine for the chained aerial sequences in Path of Pain and the Pantheon Markoth fight.
The wiki specifies Mantis Claw is the progression unlock for Deepnest, City of Tears, Crystal Peak, the Royal Waterways overflow, and almost every vertical shaft in Hallownest. Saves without the claw are effectively trapped in the early Crossroads loop; the Mantis Lords fight is the single most pivotal boss in the game.
Crystal Heart is the Super Dash ability that opens long-distance traversal and breakable-wall shortcuts. The wiki notes the heart sits at the top of Crystal Peak, past the Crystal Guardian boss in a chamber sealed by a 3-second charge mechanism.
Per the wiki, the Super Dash holds momentum until the Knight hits a wall or obstacle. It cannot turn, stops on damage, and ignores the standard 4-frame i-frames from Mothwing Cloak. The unique trait is horizontal range; no other ability covers more screen distance per second.
According to the wiki, Crystal Heart is the gate for the Royal Waterways entrance (Dung Defender alcove), several Hallownest shortcut tunnels, and the Kingdom's Edge wind sequence. The dedicated spoke covers the charge-up mechanic, the no-mid-air-turn limitation, and the canonical breakable-wall route.
Monarch Wings is the double jump ability and the platforming unlock that opens the final third of the map. Per the wiki, the wings drop in a chamber west of the Broken Vessel arena in Ancient Basin.
According to the wiki, the second jump fires at the same height as the ground jump and refreshes on three triggers: landing on solid ground, nail-bouncing off an enemy or breakable object with a Down Slash, or wall-clinging via Mantis Claw. The nail-bounce refresh is the core mechanic of Path of Pain.
The wiki specifies Monarch Wings is the progression unlock for Kingdom's Edge (via the wind sequence), the Royal Waterways upper levels, and the Resting Grounds Dream Realm rematches. The double jump spoke covers the 1-frame manifest delay quirk and the canonical refresh chain.
Isma's Tear grants acid immunity and opens the only path to Queen's Gardens and Isma's Grove. Per the wiki, the tear sits at the bottom of the Royal Waterways acid pool, past the Dung Defender arena and a flooded chamber.
According to the wiki, Isma's Tear is the unique acid-immunity pickup; no charm or other ability substitutes. Saves without the tear cannot survive the pools in Royal Waterways, the Queen's Gardens entry corridor, or the King's Pass acid trap path. The pickup itself is a brief swim-and-grab past Flukemarm-style enemies, not a boss fight.
The wiki notes Isma's Grove (one screen west of the pickup) contains the optional Isma corpse encounter that unlocks the Isma achievement and provides lore on the Pale King's court. The grove is missable; players who pick up the tear and immediately bench-warp can lock themselves out until the next exploration pass.
Shade Cloak is the dash upgrade that passes through shadow gates and ignores certain enemy attacks. Per the wiki, the cloak sits at the bottom of the Abyss, past the King's Brand pickup platform sequence and a tide-of-shade descent.
According to the wiki, the cloak upgrades the existing Mothwing Cloak with 8 invincibility frames during the dash (up from 4) and passes through shade gates in White Palace, the Abyss, and the Birthplace chamber. The cooldown stays at 0.6 seconds; Dashmaster still reduces it.
The wiki specifies the Shade Cloak pickup is the final progression unlock before White Palace opens. Saves with both Awoken Dream Nail and Shade Cloak are at the true-ending threshold; only the Kingsoul + Void Heart conversion stand between the Knight and the Dream No More route.
Dream Nail is the Essence-harvesting ability that opens the Warrior Dreams roster. Per the wiki, the nail comes from the Seer in Resting Grounds; the pickup is free and gated only by reaching the Seer's shrine via the Crypts.
According to the wiki, charging the Dream Nail (hold the cast button) reads enemy minds, harvests Essence from Whispering Roots and Dream Warriors, and opens the bench-style Dreamers cinematic. Charged strikes on living enemies also instantly refill the SOUL meter, which turns Dream Nail into the canonical SOUL top-up between fights.
The wiki notes the Awoken Dream Nail upgrade requires 1,800 Essence handed to the Seer. Awoken upgrades the standard Dream Nail to access the Dream Realm boss versions: Failed Champion (False Knight), Lost Kin (Broken Vessel), Soul Tyrant (Soul Master), and Grey Prince Zote. The upgrade also opens the Kingsoul right-half pickup from the Pale King's corpse in Path of Pain.
Per the wiki, Dreamgate (1-way teleport to a set marker) is the optional 9th ability from the Seer at 900 Essence. It is purely a quality-of-life tool; no region or boss gates on it. Most players pick it up alongside the Awoken upgrade since both come from the same NPC and the Essence spend stacks.
The abilities directory ties to the individual ability spokes, the bosses that gate each pickup, and the Dream Realm Essence economy. These spokes pick up the threads.
Game data and screenshots adapted from hollowknight.fandom.com, used under CC BY-SA 3.0. Original content remains the property of the wiki contributors and Team Cherry.