The Pantheon of Hallownest variant of the Mantis Lords, where all three sisters fight together in Phase 2 with new combo patterns.
Sisters of Battle is what happens when the Mantis Lords stop taking turns. Per the wiki, "the Sisters of Battle are a quest boss in Hollow Knight introduced in Godmaster. First encountered in the Pantheon of Hallownest, they are a form of the Mantis Lords where all three sisters battle together instead of separately."
According to the wiki, Phase 1 stays identical to the base game fight. "Phase 1 of Sisters of Battle is exactly like Phase 1 of Mantis Lords. In Phase 2, all three Sisters emit a battle cry and drop in to fight. The Sisters of Battle use all attacks of the 2nd Phase of the Mantis Lords, but with an additional attack from a 3rd Sister." Three simultaneous attackers replace the two-Lord Phase 2.
The wiki specifies the Dash & Drop combo. "All three Sisters combine their patterns into fluid combinations... two Sisters still follow the patterns of Mantis Lords Phase 2, and one Sister still follows their original pattern like in Mantis Lords Phase 1. The single Sister's attack is staggered to happen just after her two Sisters start their attacks." Two-and-one staggering replaces the two-and-two paired patterns.
This guide covers the Pantheon of Hallownest exclusive location, the Phase 1 = Mantis Lords baseline, the Phase 2 three-sister patterns (Dash & Drop combo, expanded Boomerang arrangements), the post-shout heal window, the Shade-Cloak corner-escape, and the gradual fall-back to Mantis Lords Phase 1 as sisters die.
The Pantheon Mantis Lords variant, all three sisters attacking in Phase 2 instead of two.
Pantheon of Hallownest only, plus the Hall of Gods statue once unlocked.
Identical to Mantis Lords Phase 1, one sister, three attacks (Lance Dash, Lance Drop, Blade Boomerang).
The battle cry shout does not stagger the Knight; bank a heal at the transition.Sisters of Battle is the Mantis Lords fought as one unit. Per the wiki, "they are a form of the Mantis Lords where all three sisters battle together instead of separately." The base game has Phase 1 as one sister and Phase 2 as two; Sisters of Battle has Phase 1 as one and Phase 2 as three. The fight tests the same skills the Mantis Lords teach, but at higher density.
According to the wiki, the introduction happens in Godmaster. "Introduced in Godmaster. First encountered in the Pantheon of Hallownest." Players never see them outside the Pantheon of Hallownest unless they unlock the Hall of Gods statue, which requires defeating the Sisters in the Pantheon at least once.
The wiki specifies the Mantis Village arena reuse. The arena layout matches the Mantis Village throne room, with three Lord-thrones visible. In Godhome, the same arena renders with cleaner lighting; the visual continuity tells the player they are fighting the same sisters at full force.
Sisters of Battle only appears in the Pantheon of Hallownest. Per the wiki, the fight is "first encountered in the Pantheon of Hallownest." There is no overworld encounter; defeating Mantis Lords in the Fungal Wastes during the main story does not trigger Sisters of Battle anywhere.
According to the wiki, the Hall of Gods statue unlocks after the Pantheon encounter. Once the Sisters appear in the Hall, the Knight can reattempt them at Attuned, Ascended, or Radiant difficulty. The Hall of Gods is the practice arena; the Pantheon is the canonical fight.
The wiki notes the Mantis Lords name inheritance. In the Pantheon of the Artist (the lower-tier Pantheon), the Mantis Lords appear as the standard two-Lord Phase 2 fight. The Sisters of Battle slot is only in the highest Pantheon. Players who clear Pantheon of the Artist fight Mantis Lords; Pantheon of Hallownest replaces that slot with Sisters of Battle.
The Phase 2 moveset is the differentiator. Per the wiki, "the Sisters of Battle use all attacks of the 2nd Phase of the Mantis Lords, but with an additional attack from a 3rd Sister." Three sisters mean three concurrent attacks; the combinations are wider than the base Mantis Lords fight.
Per the wiki: "All three Sisters combine their patterns into fluid combinations. The pattern these attacks follow loosely comes from the patterns of the original Mantis Lords fight. With all three Sisters attacking: two Sisters still follow the patterns of Mantis Lords Phase 2, and one Sister still follows their original pattern like in Mantis Lords Phase 1. The single Sister's attack is staggered to happen just after her two Sisters start their attacks." The staggered third Sister is the new difficulty layer.
The wiki specifies four expanded patterns. Two Sisters simultaneously throw spears in a wide arc that meets at centre. Two Sisters throw a short arc that meets mid-arena and slides down. Two Sisters throw one short and one wide arc that meet at the far ends. One Sister throws solo while the third performs a Drop attack just after. The previous pattern can be followed by the other Sister on the opposing wall.
The wiki notes the partial fall-back. "When two Sisters are left, the Dash and the Drop attacks resume as if it were the Mantis Lords Phase 2, but the Boomerang patterns with the single Sister remain despite the lack of a follow-up Drop attack. The normal both-short and both-wide Boomerang patterns occur as regular." Mid-fight pattern simplification rewards focus-killing.
Per the wiki, "one major point where healing is possible is at the end of Phase 1 and the transition to Phase 2, where there is a large window of time to heal, as the Sisters of Battle's shout does not stagger the Knight." In actual play, this is the single biggest heal window in the fight; commit to it before Phase 2 begins.
The cleanest Sisters of Battle route uses Shade Cloak phase-throughs and ranged spells. Per the wiki, "the Shade Cloak is useful for this fight, as the continuous barrage from the Sisters often leads to the Knight getting cornered. The ability to phase through said attacks is practically needed to avoid damage at times." Without Shade Cloak, corner-sandwich deaths stack quickly.
Shade Cloak (ability: phases through Dash and Boomerang patterns) Quick Focus (fits a heal in the Phase 1 transition window)According to the wiki, "the Vengeful Spirit / Shade Soul Spell is also very helpful to deal damage to the Sisters, as they can move fast, and normal Nail strikes are only able to hit them a few times before they retreat. As such, these ranged Spells are good to catch one of them during the short recovery window after an attack."
The wiki specifies a Descending Dark invincibility option. "Descending Dark / Desolate Dive can also be useful to both deal and possibly negate damage done by the 3 Sisters when they use their Dash & Drop attack." The i-frames from the cast cover the multi-Sister overlap windows.
The wiki notes the Dreamshield Boomerang block. "When the Sisters of Battle use the Boomerang attack, it should be noted that the Dreamshield Charm, if positioned correctly, absorbs the boomerangs, causing the 2 Sisters to recall the Boomerangs sooner." Pre-positioned Dreamshield removes one whole attack pattern.
The Sisters fight regresses as they die. Per the wiki, "when one Sister remains the fight continues like Mantis Lords Phase 1." The Knight goes from fighting three sisters to two (Mantis Lords Phase 2 patterns) to one (Mantis Lords Phase 1 patterns). Each kill is a difficulty drop.
According to the wiki, the two-Sister phase is the transition layer. "When two Sisters are left, the Dash and the Drop attacks resume as if it were the Mantis Lords Phase 2." The Boomerang special patterns persist but the standard wide-and-short pairs return. The fight's pressure eases noticeably with the first kill.
The wiki specifies the focus-kill payoff. Concentrating damage on a single Sister (rather than chipping all three evenly) transitions to the easier two-Sister phase sooner. Spread damage means all three sisters keep their patterns active until the end of the kill window.
Sisters of Battle is the upgraded Mantis Lords from the Pantheon of Hallownest. 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.
