Ranking the Hollow Knight Bosses from Worst to Best

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Hollow Knight is my favorite Soulslike, one of my favorite Metroidvania, and the Hollow Knight bosses are collectively some of the greatest ever made. I'll detail it all in my Hollow Knight Boss Ranking from Worst to Best.
I'll be ranking the Hollow Knight Bosses on their quality, including the Nightmare King Grimm boss fight, Pure Vessel, Absolute Radiance, Sisters of Battle, Soul Tyrant, Lost Kin, Failed Champion, The Radiance, Hollow Knight, Hornet, Hornet Sentinel, Nailmaster Sly, Nailmaster Oro and Mato, Paintmaster Sheo, and the Grey Prince Zote boss battle. I hope you enjoy today's video, and if you do, be sure to subscribe for more boss rankings. Also check out the video essay up top where I discuss the escapism in games, a timely topic with many of us shuttered indoors.
Credits:
Video Edited by Tion: / dillan_dave
Music from the Hollow Night OST and Artlist
HOME - Sleep: • HOME - Sleep [Synthwav...
License: Creative Commons Attribution-ShareAlike 3.0 - bit.ly/RFP_CCSAlicense

[@willhb6399]

Give us a reaction to the Demon Souls remake

[@theDeModcracy]

Already working on a video for this, though it'll be more than a reaction so it's taking time to edit. Should be up early this upcoming week!

[@willhb6399]

Yesssss bro can’t wait

[@isaiahhackett7187]

@@theDeModcracy I need it in my life.

[@justanotherpiccplayer3511]

Good thing my brother is gonna buy a ps5 I can steal to play it, although in more exciting news, that means he won't be playing his ps4 which means I can play bloodborne 🤩

[@doolenny9458]

theDeModcracy hype

[@pilotjones1019]

The hardest boss is fog canyon's layout without a map

[@shapshapshapshap2829]

another reason why wayward compass is the most powerful charm in the game

[@xthax9718]

@@shapshapshapshap2829 *without a map*

[@arcanonn]

*Flashbacks*

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

Lol what? It's three vertical rooms with a few corridors between them, one of them has the teacher archive, then there is also the bank and the two queen's gardens entrances. Pretty simple.

[@sand7861]

*deepnest

[@alexsturrock9602]

God Tamer: Ornstien and Smough Oro and Mato: Smough and Smough Watcher Knights: Smough, Smough, Smough, Smough, Smough, and Smough.

[@ldeeevs1747]

Hornet first time: Ornstein Hornet second time: Freide False knight: Almost exactly smough Failed Champion: Smough but with Ornsteins agility. Just imagine all Hollow knight bosses as Dark souls bosses. Who would be compared to Wolnir, or Yhorm, or Midir?

[@alexsturrock9602]

There's really no Wolnir, Yhorm or Midir. There simply aren't any giant-like or or dragon-like bosses.

[@adamtapparo2168]

This made me laugh out loud 😂

[@firenze6478]

Traitor lord is ranked way too low

[@alexsturrock9602]

@@firenze6478 I agree.

[@Rusty._]

flukemarm below pure vessel wtf do u even play dark souls

[@timothytosser288]

Rusty

[@maddoxsaccucci1123]

Didn't expect to see you here, but hi!

[@scorchingflametoashes907]

Hi RUSTY!

[@doolenny9458]

Flukemarm sucks flukemilf is top tier

[@undyingsymphonies1019]

Flukemarm was literally my least favorite boss....

[@slumpy__7023]

The traitor lord ranking lower than massive moss charger made me laugh harder than it should have

[@Eclipsed_Embers]

I like the fact that the Traitor Lord was rated as the second worst boss while the other three Mantis Lords were rated as the second best

[@crazyfriend50]

MASSIVE MISERABLE CUCCUMBER

[@imppunkdv4175]

I didnt think i could watch the rest of the video after that part

[@Ravington]

Wym mmc is the best boss in the game

[@bluesleeper8677]

Freaking hated that boss though, tbh XD

[@nicholast.4933]

HE DIDN’T BOW TO THE NAILMASTERS, THIS IS UNACCEPTABLE!!!!

[@danieladamczyk4024]

disgracfull!

[@imppunkdv4175]

*UNACCEPTABLE!*

[@ldeeevs1747]

Crap I didn't either. I completed that a few days ago. I don't deserve my nail arts now.

[@cashbanooka5642]

i never do

[@joeltehguy]

@@cashbanooka5642 how disrespectful

[@crosspat4978]

We all know the worst Boss: Primal Aspid. And he is the hardest...

[@fishqueen1702]

Actually it’s the crystal flying thing. The Aspid is a close second tho

[@mohammadripan337]

No, it's bed of chaos

[@isaiahhackett7187]

Isn't the real hardest boss the final one.... Wayward Compass?

[@ldeeevs1747]

Enraged Guardian makes Crystal Hunter, Primal aspid, and Wayward compass all jokes.

[@crisygu1502]

No I disagree, it's actually quick slash

[@jellodaddy3902]

I like how zotes move set is “if I don’t know what I’m doing you sure as hell don’t either”

[@66ALDARIS]

He's so unpredictable, definitely in my top 3 hardest fights.

[@noahstobbe9814]

facts

[@VulpineFox7]

Same for the loodles

[@EaterOfGeese]

Then the vessels know where you're gonna be before YOU know where you're gonna be

[@TheActualMrLink]

12:40 “Spam is of course viable here with the right charms and wrong level of restraint.” *Brilliant.*

[@pizza_tony374]

You gave me a time stamp for an ad dude

[@probablymeep8426]

i just saw this comment when i was on that time

[@khajiitimanus7432]

Hehe

[@MikinMikinovec]

I like how he's taking in consideration the healing windows of bosses while radiant mode be like "Healing? *We* *won't* *need* *that* *where* *we're* *going* "

[@matteofinazzi5087]

Best way to play the game

[@squidlump]

Since I spent so long grinding at bosses in radiant mode and ascended, I was actually taken aback by how many hits he was able to take. Fuck obblobble

[@electroshock1021]

@@squidlump all my homies hate radiant obbloble

[@totallynotabot5880]

I've beaten everything but abs rad in radiant

[@Mothbean]

"Where we're going, we don't need eyes to see..."

[@gowary]

As Hornet wisely says: "Git Gud!!!"

[@theDeModcracy]

It kills me every time I hear that lol

[@osurpless]

As much as I like that, the Nailsmith’s “Ah run nostanya” is my favorite, as his voice makes it sound quite ethereal.

[@isaiahhackett7187]

Y'all are sleeping on the classic, _"Ah, Bapanada"_

[@thefunkyfish5640]

Quirrel screaming "Croissant!" always gets me

[@vireperilous4163]

She Told Me To Git Gud After Failing To Beat The Radiance 12 Times

[@legends501pat8]

I think you forgot zote in the Coliseum of fools. That ok thought, we can just move everyone down a rank and put him at the top.

[@firefi1960]

Agreed, I needed to equip Wayward Compass to even damage him

[@andrewthegametrainer8704]

@@firefi1960 dear lord, im screwed for sure then

[@firefi1960]

@@andrewthegametrainer8704 You're a god at the game if you manage to defeat him

[@mobiletaskforceepsilon1172]

Seriously? He doesn't do any damage at all in the Colosseum.

[@cheshirekatzz72]

@@mobiletaskforceepsilon1172 You missed the joke bro

[@DennGreenIII]

I'm so glad NKG was number 1. Never before have i failed so many times to a boss in any game, only to be able to see my own small progress after each attempt. From the pitiful first try where you don't hit him a single time and say "this is impossible, no one can be expected to beat this guy", to the 20th attempt where you finally get to his first "pufferfish" animation and you realize "it's possible, i just have to focus", to the 50th attempt, where you can now consistently get him to 75% HP or less every time, and then all of a sudden, after countless attempts, you experience it. Out of nowhere your body starts reacting perfectly to his attacks. You understand the mechanics now. In all the excitement you die several more times to your nerves, but you're not mad. You are now certain that winning is within your grasp, and soon. You're confident now. All of a sudden you're dodging and dashing perfectly. He can't even touch you. He's 50% health and you haven't lost a single mask. This could be 'the one'. Your nerves are starting to overwhelm you, this is the best run you've had by far, you can't blunder it. You get hit, sending you into a panic, but you stagger him with your next couple strikes. It's enough for you to compose yourself and steel your nerves. You heal up your two masks while you wait for him to exit his stagger. You're doing well. He's at 25% HP. You go into a trance, with all your moves being fluid and precise, you're playing purely on muscle memory and instinct. You're hit again, but it doesn't matter. Your next strike takes him down. The several hours in a row you took to beat him is immediately worth it. Your satisfaction is unrivaled. You breathe a sigh of relief because it's finally over. You don't hate this fight anymore, you loved it. You just beat one of the hardest, most well designed boss fights you've ever had the pleasure of playing, and you feel amazing. That's how my story with NKG went. Incredible and memorable, it doesn't get any better.

[@pinealdreams1064]

Mine wasn't quite as long, but the time line is spot on. First five tries - instant death Next five tries - few smecks, learn to dodge a little Next five tries - master each individual dodge while dying stupidly because you can't quite string them together Next ten tries - get slightly closer each time and end with 'the one'. Drop controller and scream 'fuck yeah, I am a beast'.

[@goldentwister888]

Same

[@MrPonthus]

I beat him for the first time yesterday and i instantly screamed:"I AM A GOD". I wonder what my dad thought of that one haha

[@legrandliseurtri7495]

Nah, my first time with NKG was hell and not fun. This describes my experience with Pure vessel.

[@chargetrick]

yeah and then you find him in the hall of gods and now regularly fight him as a warm-up because he's so fun

[@cameroncooper5941]

Quirrel: "Alright listen. I've got one more attack that should do it. Upside is that I can make him vulnerable with just one hit." Knight: "And what's the downside?" Quirrel: "You'll have to distract him while I charge it..." Knight: "That's not too bad-" Quirrel: "...for five minutes. And considering he'll be filling the room with projectiles... Ah nevermind, I'm sure you can handle it."

[@AlcyonEldara]

i understood that reference

[@LunaroseClaire]

I love this.

[@arthurmorgan835]

Did you just hold a grudge

[@rongpirson5250]

You really did traitor lord a disservice. His attacks are perfectly timed to the recharge of your shadow dash, which is genius in my opinion, and was one of the few bosses that genuinely challenged me in the mid-game.

[@asdergold1]

he probably got salty about it so he put it lower.

[@jakeread9668]

@@asdergold1 yeah it's certainly better than a big moving plant that you can literally kill in one combo.

[@ldeeevs1747]

Traitor Lord was fun for me. I beat him almost two weeks ago. Memorable as it was unexpected. I thought I'd fight him in Deepnest(the other lords sealing it off). But when I found Mantises in the Gardens, I thought, "Is he here?". And in that day I found him. And his attacks were perfectly timed. I also liked Cloth being there, too. What I liked most was that you could pogo off of him easily, and that he eventually punished for pogoing for too long.

[@vegitoblue3613]

@@asdergold1 or maybe he just didn't like him. Who would've thunk.

[@baglespelledwrong8159]

@@ldeeevs1747 i feel he doesnt really punish you all that much for pogoing, ive beaten him without ever touching the ground and it was alot easier then when i did

[@ShikuQuaza]

“Next entry: Uumuu” *plays Metroid music* I see what you did there

[@xdan-]

And he inmediately says "metroidvania".

[@pizza_tony374]

I noticed that too

[@AlfonsoSRT]

I mean he literally mentions it.

[@paichni3474]

Idk what he’s talking about, this Metroid game thing totally stole from Uumuu. They should sue smh

[@william7781]

ASCEND WITH G O R B

[@sherma98]

ASCEND

[@dakotadonde2432]

ASCEND ASCEND ASCEND

[@IHateNumbersOnNames]

*gently marmuuu mu-mu-mu-mu-mus away*

[@crazyfriend50]

Did we watch rusty stream Nk gorb

[@kyleg1912]

Ascend

[@savageteddybear7440]

Most people when hearing the collector’s creepy laugh, warbled sound track and his odd mannerisms: Weird.. that’s creepy The demodcracy: Ha ha funny void man go laugh

[@zebrom7994]

he’s less creepy and more just fun and lighthearted imo

[@haydeng3316]

I think most people find it funny, even though it is a bit creepy

[@triangletriangle4520]

there was a grub gagging while he was laughing

[@oxyidiot1275]

Funni void go: 👁👁

[@Diaisdumb]

@Oliver Zemanek *GET IN THE JAR, GRUB.*

[@swapbell]

honestly every boss in this game is so good that it’s really hard to rank the worst ones

[@idioteque6823]

Except Markoth

[@swapbell]

Louis Scott i actually enjoy markoth, it’s a love it or hate it kind of boss. winged nosk is the only boss in the game i consider bad and the worst boss i’ve ever fought in a game.

[@theDeModcracy]

Agreed. It's more of "adequete to best"

[@slowhite1706]

Absolute Radiance is absolute bullish!t though. I love every other boss though and this game as a whole.

[@toshal22]

@@slowhite1706 I always read absolute radiance as absolute fu**ing radiance just because I hate that boss(it's still a good boss though).

[@marcodragon4995]

Loved the countdown but hearing you call God Tamer "he" wounded my nitpicky lore aficionado within

[@jon9828]

I think that technically all the characters except for Hornet are nongendered. To the point that Hornet is, in the lore, sometimes referred to only as "the gendered child". Blew my mind first time I realised. Lots of it is just us, the audience, jumping to conclusions based on voices (among other things).

[@thestormwizard6447]

@@jon9828 It's only the vessels that are genderless. Hornet is called the gendered child because she's the only one of the Pale King's children that isn't a vessel.

[@Dinoman972]

@@jon9828 Interesting theoey, but the God Tamer's journal entry calls her a she. Like Thestormwizard said, all bugs seem to have genders except for the void-based beings (Vessels, Collector, Kingsmoulds, etc.)

[@haydeng3316]

@@Dinoman972 which makes sense considering. You know, void lol. I don't know how to explain it but I think you know what I mean lol

[@rowdowg]

Same with the Radiance haha.

[@AlexPerez-tv1zg]

I never thought the collector was silly, the music, the lore, the location and his design made me think he was really creepy, and the giggling sounded more like he was insane rather than something funny

[@adnanhammedsadiq8665]

He makes me extremely uncomfortable

[@AbdullahKhan-el6xw]

The giggling combined with the fact that he is in the tower of love is very sus

[@yankokassinof6710]

@@adnanhammedsadiq8665 i dont get extremely, but pretty uncomfortable

[@nightlight5516]

The fact that he puts bugs in jars made me reaaaally uncomfortable. Plus he's found at the tower of love soooo....

[@bintavi7034]

One cool thing is that the sly fight was actually designed specifically so that you could use nail arts effectively. With the charm, you can charge a great slash in between all of his attacks and release them during the very limited damage windows for better burst dps

[@philippnagelstrasser9831]

I mostly agree with your list although I would shift some bosses around. The only placment I absoluty dont agree is the traiter lord. In my opinion he is definatly not the best boss, but at least better than god tamer. Still great video

[@haydeng3316]

Yeah Traitor Lord is way lower than I would have put it

[@barry4293]

Nah its lame and in the right spot

[@korokseed1619]

bazil cheill Lamed than Massive Moss Charger though?

[@barry4293]

@@korokseed1619 good point. Still think its definitely around the right spot.

[@slambotv1334]

I *hate* Traitor Lord, but probably not below the Boring Bunch. And also how is God Tamer bad I enjoyed it a little bit

[@DrEggs-lt7lc]

25:41 the void just went "fine I'll do it myself"

[@14thbattlegroupcommander]

Grey prince zote is in the top ten. Do you realize this goes against the geneva convention?

[@jackmesrel4933]

Fucking hate that you can't never 100% predict his attacks, all of them have like 5 variants that he can use without any pattern so it's really easy to get hit because fuck you. To those that have beated his radiant form, congrats, but unless I feel like torturing myself I'll never even try it

[@Its_Luk]

@@jackmesrel4933 i tried the 3. pantheon a few days ago and managed to get to the checkpoint (and then i got killed by galien bruh). Afterwards i thought "why not look which boss come after galien?". And of course zote is there. Time for me to give up

[@KompadoodleLEL]

gpz isnt even that hard, and actually quite fun, the “you cant predict his attacks” is true, but but thats the fun, the fight is fair and you need to learn hoe to react to those attacks

[@necroprogaming6851]

@@Its_Luk Read and react, like hornet sentinel, only more frustrating.

[@Vernafveik]

Everyone always talking about who's the best Waifu. But something we can all agree on is that The Knight is the _cutest_ husbando in the game.

[@isaiahhackett7187]

Factual.

[@duxghost3985]

And Grimm is the hottest

[@thefunkyfish5640]

You have a choice Quirrel: the polite one Ghost: the cute one Grimm: the fancy one

[@salgen1319]

They don't have a gender, so... Waibando?

[@nightrain1121]

The knight doesn’t have a gender though...

[@thehatmaster1390]

"The Boring Bunch", huh? Interesting that Crystal Guardian not withstanding, those bosses did feel like they were better off as mini-bosses.

[@chargetrick]

I did actually think that soul warrior was intended as a miniboss until I got to godhome and found the statue in the hall of gods

[@mreevee7785]

@@chargetrick same lmao

[@nikel-]

@@chargetrick Same, the build up towards that segment on Soul Sanctuary is abysmal compared to the other boss. That's being said, Soul Warrior slapped my ass multiple times before I worked out its pattern

[@sidney9796]

@@chargetrick i didnt even know it was a miniboss, i first found it in colo 3 and thought it was specific to the colussem lol

[@samurai3718]

Haven’t watched the video but if GORB ain’t number one i’m unsubscribing

[@swapbell]

i am gorb -gorb

[@lilixpictures6128]

"ASCEND! ASCEND, ASCEND, ASCEND WITH GORB!" - Gorb

[@chrisdouglas1082]

ASCEND!!!!!

[@Bam_Bizzler]

We must all bow before the great mind of gorb

[@liamthesquirrel]

ASCEND

[@rashaadali7380]

I will never forget the first time I walked into Nightmare King Grimm's arena thinking it to be the same fight as regular Grimm only to be absolutely destroyed in less than 10 seconds!! I easily died the most number of times to him and yet, I never got mad. One of the best fights I've ever had throughout my gaming experience.

[@joost0133]

Me before watching: ''I bet Flukemarm is in the top 3, definitely the hottest boss'' 1 minute in: ''I'm outraged''

[@joost0133]

@@br34kout82 absolutely gross, just like milf flukemarm.

[@that1cat999]

Ew

[@dessaelizabeth9676]

i geniuenly had so much trouble with flukemarm before i got spell upgrades and could just destroy her in a few hits

[@zestycrunchman602]

Traitor Lord is in my top 5 favorite bosses and I am crying about his placement. WHY!

[@slambotv1334]

ZestyCrunchMan he’s always been *my* least favourite but that’s fine if it’s ur opinion

[@zestycrunchman602]

@@slambotv1334 I find him really good as long as I stay close and use sharp shadow.

[@spinyslasher6586]

@@zestycrunchman602 that's not good, that's just boring.

[@MrPatrickbuit]

Traitor lord is alright, but not nearly top 5.

[@freezinghat5688]

@@MrPatrickbuit **opinions**

[@PickleFeasting]

Pure Vessel, Sisters of Battle, and NKG are definitely in the top three yet it is incredibly difficult to rank them in order because they're all so amazing.

[@kranbabushka7887]

Your insight on souls like boss mechanics is always so interesting to listen to. Like I could see someone watching these videos to study what bosses should look like in their games.

[@justanotherfool8896]

Lost kin on radiant, is like Abyss watchers on NG+7 NO-hit

[@Father_of_Kos]

Wtf abyss watchers are a super easy boss

[@sawcleavertransformationat4728]

gothicvampire2 just backstab lmao

[@justanotherfool8896]

@@sawcleavertransformationat4728 I mean stress level, after all parrying is easier (Just turn off the music and do perfect NG+7 aproach)

[@unbreakableroad9294]

not really, oro and mato and obblobbles were soooo much harder on radiant

[@Father_of_Kos]

@@unbreakableroad9294 the hardest bosses in radiant are markoth and by a billion miles absolute radiance that you need god skills plus fucking insane good rng to have a chance

[@jadenmolloy4830]

actual pog seeing this in my recommended

[@tahaghassan6004]

What does pog stands for

[@scottchance1476]

taha ghassan poggers

[@gu3z185]

@@tahaghassan6004 Pogs is a game where you move around Pogs.

[@theDeModcracy]

This video was edited by my friend, Tion: twitter.com/Dillan_Dave. I've considered outsourcing 20-30% of my editing to increase my upload frequency for some time. Only hesitation has been losing creative control and ensuring it meets my quality standards. I think he did an excellent job, but I'd like to hear your feedback. Did you think this video was up to par with my other uploads? Thanks for taking the time to respond. I hope you are all safe and well :) See you very soon in another video!

[@zyron4190]

Looks great so far.

[@philbaxter1348]

Your doing great man, but I have a question... What are your thoughts on the DEMON SOULS REMAKE?

[@theDeModcracy]

Video on Demon's Souls Remake is coming early this week! I was in the middle of working on a few other projects and want to make sure what I upload is quality.

[@teamvlcn6820]

I honestly couldn't tell the difference. I'd have to see more of your future videos to know whether or not this system will work, but so far, so good.

[@vrageanalyst2931]

I noticed a few differences in editing style but nothing that made me go "ugh it's not the same." I think their editing style worked extremely well for this video. I will say, I would need to see more from them to give feedback that's not "yeah looks chill.". So I look forward to seeing what your editor can do if you do decide to go through with this idea. Honestly, it blows my mind how much time you spend on writing and editing and uploading consistently. I did an analysis video not long ago and it takes quite a while (heck editing itself takes a hot minute unless you spend a full day doing it without getting burned out) so I think it would be awesome if you had more help to get your videos out a bit more consistently. ^_^ sorry, I hope this wasnt too drawn out.

[@83rdgec17]

Hey demod, there's a new system on KZbin, pretty sure it's called chapters. These kinds of videos would benefit from implementing the feature greatly in my opinion

[@uccisora]

DOOM!

[@lucass1603]

DOOM, are you pondering what i'm pondering?

[@83rdgec17]

@@lucass1603 yes, but why would the darn thing be wondering

[@bradencosier80]

Ahhhh, the radiance darkness glitch, wish I got to see that in the stream. It got me a few times too

[@TheZestologist]

Fighting the Watcher Knights in the midgame is brutal

[@shermanater7494]

I just got there and I hate them

[@threecheeseburrito]

"Traitorous Beefcake" love it. Haven't fought him yet, but am working my way towards him. After finally releasing the seals on the black egg, I'm ready to buckle down on the rest of my adventure through Hallownest and get the awakened dream nail. So far, I'm doing just as good as my boyfriend, who's had this game longer than I have, and I've done nearly the same amount in a couple months as he has in a year. ...is it safe to say that I'm better than him at Hollow Knight? Considering he rages every time he plays and I was absolutely joyous, giggling and all, as I fought Xero for the second time, exclaimed how fun it was, and won.

[@carloslazcano98]

Nightmare King used to be my favorite boss of Hollow Knight, but after the last expansion came out and I played against Pure Vessel, it took the first place, it's just so hard and fun. Also, beating the bosses on radiant difficulty really makes you see them other way, so here's my top 5: 1. Pure Vessel / Hollow Knight 2. Nightmare King Grimm / Grimm 3. Sisters of Battle / Lord Mantis 4. Absolute Radiance / Radiance 5. Sly

[@that1cat999]

For me that list is a bit changed and sly is nosk. To be exact it’s Grimm/Nightmare King Grimm Mantis Lords/Sisters of Battle Pure Vessel/Hollow Knight Nosk Radiance/AbsRad

[@lucas_lipp]

Honestly, I mostly agree with almost all of these placements and on those that I'd have ranked differently your reasoning made total sense to me and I'm just really glad that we agree on the best two bosses. I think it might have been better to not combine dream/pantheon and normal versions as it was sometimes hard to tell which one you were talking about and sometimes these varients are so drastically different, in my opinion, that I think it would have been worth it to discuss them individually. But this list would have probably been to long, if they all had individual placements, so I understand that decision. I haven't beaten all of the bosses yet as I'm currently too lazy to practice them all to perfection for the pantheons (I'm currently in the third one) so I, sadly, don't really have an opinion on all of them that you reach afterwards.

[@barry4293]

U gotta get to sisters of battle they are too good and completely worth it

[@TheActualMrLink]

Y’know, I’ll be honest: Grimm’s pretty hot!

[@brummwiththedrip5397]

You what?

[@TheActualMrLink]

brumm his temperature. It’s incredibly high.

[@brummwiththedrip5397]

xXMr0LinkXx understandable have a great day

[@TheActualMrLink]

brumm thanks.

[@remington14]

He's a strawberry pimp.

[@Apolleh]

As much as I love the Mantis Lords/Sisters of Battle, I def agree that NKG is the best fight in the game. It very challenging and puts your skills to the limit, yet at the same time it feels VERY fair despite how it feels initially. Like, it's initially extremely imposing with how fast Grimm runs around the arena, so much so the player likely is filled with a sense of dread about the upcoming hell they'll have to endure. But once you finally start to adjust to his level of sheer speed, you realize that the once seemingly impossible to avoid attacks actually have a lot more room for error than at first glance. One of the attacks I had trouble with most, the uppercut into fire rain, I just recently found myself consistently avoiding with ease. What once seemed like a near impossible fight actually ends up being a much more fun fight that keeps you on your feet and pushes your skills to the limits without neccessarily forcing you to exceed those limits. Plus at least in terms of the story fight and not Pantheon of Hollownest a loss becomes much less frustrating when you can quickly run back and try again. It felt so satisfying to finally dethrone the Nightmare King.

[@thefunkyfish5640]

Damn seeing my favourite fights again just gets me more stoked for silksong. Team Cherry please...

[@largemonkey]

Hell yeah! Been waiting for this for a while, keep up the good work!

[@DonPasquale_]

30:02 "flawless" at the exact moment you get hit, nice touch lmao

[@Cdv3_]

Best: NKG because duh. (Pure Vessel as a runner up because of the amazing lore and extremely challenging fight) Worst: Watcher Knights because it gives me flashbacks to some of the awful DS II gank fights (Collector as a runner up because fuck Aspids, and the variant in PoH is pretty awful)

[@nicholasfolk5582]

I just hate watcher knights all around. After finishing the whole game they're still the only one where I genuinely felt frustrated and there was no fun element to the fight imo

[@shapshapshapshap2829]

I put watcher knights at the very bottom as well, they aren’t interesting, provide almost nothing to the lore, are downright annoying, and difficult in the cheap non enjoyable way that makes you want to smash your face in and when you finally complete it you get no satisfaction other than “freaking finally, now I can enjoy the game again”

[@dad6765]

I have never been more excited for an upload. Also damn Tion did great with the editing

[@oodanna500]

you know its an amazing game when rewatching a video makes you want to replay and enjoy it again

[@RCmetal11]

No lie watcher knight is my least favorite boss in the game. The moveset and stuff are fine, but when the knights get desynced and start doing different rolls at the same time it crosses that line right into frustrating. The only way I do this boss now is full magic and burn through it ASAP

[@teddyrichard1488]

get shadow dash.

[@chargetrick]

watching how some speedrunners deal with watchers actually really helped me figure them out tbh

[@1v1mecaestusmateillreku9]

YES! So glad this project saw the light of day, I appreciate the commitment Dmod

[@uryenatienza4093]

I've been waiting for this video for awhile!

[@munchychips9366]

I've watched this video countless times now, and I really wish your boss rankings of games that aren't the souls series got the same love, its clear you put the same effort into them.

[@pastiebros]

As others have said, Ive been waiting for this video for so long. Good on you DMod!

[@riley4767]

I've watched a few of these "ranking hollow knight bosses" videos and it's lovely to see someone talk about them all so positively! Thanks for an entertaining watch :)

[@MrPink-qf1xi]

Sisters of Battle theme is one my favorite boss themes ever.

[@John_Notmylastname]

I had Cloth with me when I fought Traitor Lord. How that fight ended caught me off guard and was thoroughly enjoyable.

[@giantdad9481]

It’s about time for this boss ranking to happen, seriously I’ve been waiting since you’ve started playing this game.

[@shelbybabcock8779]

Woohoo! Finally! I remember I think you did a “top 5” or “top 10” list, but I was sad there wasn’t a full boss ranking. Now there is! Yay!

[@ratquesadillamayonnaise7409]

Also here is a tip for the pure vessels swords from the ground attack, jump when he does the attack to have a better chance of not getting hit as the hitbox is much more generous near the tip of the blade than the hilt of the blade

[@newconscript_5671]

The gorb Ascension! But in all seriousness i love this vid! Amazing work

[@vrageanalyst2931]

I've been waiting for this!!! Thanks for the upload!!!!

[@venom-wb3du]

I want to say thank you DeModcracy. I used some of the tips, mainly the pogo the last phase of Abs. Rad. and I FINALLY beat the Pantheon of Hallownest. My hands are still shaking. Thank you!

[@ZzirDeadlyx]

Never got round to facing Nightmare King Grimm sadly but I can see why it's the top pick! Will definitely need to go back to try it out. My favourite has got to be the Hornet fights personally. Loved both of them! Can't wait to see what you have in store for us next! 😁

[@unbreakableroad9294]

you should it’s a very good boss

[@koiminaru1057]

12:17 he called God Tamer a "He" when she is canonically female. :(

[@spinyslasher6586]

Who cares I just call them bugs like they are.

[@Moon-Archive]

@@spinyslasher6586 You see, these are bugs with a proved conscious and emotions. Tis, why it matters to most.

[@spinyslasher6586]

@@Moon-Archive Doesn't matter to me, they're bugs.

[@zweihanderpancakes1855]

@@spinyslasher6586 Bugs have genders.

[@spinyslasher6586]

@@zweihanderpancakes1855 incorrect. Bugs have sex. Gender is a purely human social construct. In fact the term wasn't that popular until very recently. Societally speaking, bugs have a very different societal structure to humans, the structure itself can wildly differ between different species. Thus it would be wrong to impose human standards and societal norms on a bug.

[@davidclark765]

I absolutely adore Hollow Knight, and in fact I'm working through my 5th playthrough right now - about to begin the Godmaster DLC content. I'm so glad you enjoyed it so much, and have been looking forward to this ranking for a while! Absolute hype! And thanks for the consistent, quality content, DeMod!

[@finnawoke1242]

I’ve been wanting so long for this thank you so much

[@grahamross889]

I love the mantis Lord boss fight. It felt sooooo rewarding when I beat them. But I have not gotten to the hoarder version yet. Hope fully it will be fun and challenging

[@mr.irrelevent8956]

“gargantuan thickness”

[@tomassantos8410]

great video!! was really looking forward to a ranking of hollow knight bosses, thank you!!

[@AsH-qg1dr]

I am so happy you put NKG in first place. It is one of the few fights that gives me pure joy, and the only one that even after countless attempts, I still wanted to hear the soundtrack full-volume

[@kabkabkab]

radiance is just someone who finally found a viable miracle build

[@Mortomi]

By the way, you can slam to stun the dung beetle when he’s underground.

[@osurpless]

Thanks for those helpful tips on Absolute Radiance, as while I’ve yet to fight her, I’ll make it there sooner or later. One good tip to know for the Sisters of Battle is to use the Shape of Unn charm, as it makes for easy healing when they do the horizontal dash, as the smaller hit box can dash right under them while healing. Add in Deep focus and you can practically tank your way through this otherwise difficult fight. Unn is also quite helpful on Nightmare King Grimm and Pure Vessel, as it ensures you can outrun their tracking flame and white aura attacks, while also getting good opportunities to heal.

[@zachdalton9361]

In my past I used to love my boss rankings, you alone have made me fall in love with them again

[@drkspnova]

you just told me how to avoid Mr. Purple Pot monster’s acid rain. You fool, now I am invincible

[@raikkel9516]

I pretty much agree with everything, except the traitor lord is way low, and nkg should be switched with pure vessel.

[@haydeng3316]

100%

[@plugshirt1684]

Nkg and pure vessel are pretty much equal on being the two best bosses though pure vessel was harder than absolute radiance for me

[@brokenhomebob34]

Great vid as always! Keep up the great work Demod

[@uhobme2028]

Just finished this game myself recently, so the timing of this video is just too perfect.

[@samowen9717]

I love the video, really well put together. Personally, I would swap Traitor Lord with Zote. Traitor Lord is a really solid fight that serves as an excellent checkup in thr later midgame, and is still one of my favorites to replay. Zote, on the other hand, is irritating.

[@commanderxbox3606]

I personally really love the Zote fight but Traitor Lord really shouldn’t have been that low.

[@electroshockgamer2733]

I freaking love both Grimm and the Dung Defender. They're easily some of the most fun fights I have ever had in any game, and while you're fighting the Dung Defender, you just can't help but laugh along with him because of how ridiculous and fun the fight is. I usually get pretty frustrated when I die over and over to the same boss. I can't do that with these two. I just have too much fun with their fights to get mad when I lose them.

[@Dani-tt3rj]

I love how we can hear dung defender laughing even when staggered, it's a great addition and shows that he's enjoying himself during the fight

[@zyvan3179]

I have recently played this game about a month or 2 ago and when you said you were making this video it made me giddy with excitement. I love this game and is definitely one of the best out there especially for its price. Im currently trying to make it through the pantheon and made it to Knightmare King Grimm on my last attempt so Im getting close. So happy to see this vid

[@JacobPDeIiNoNi]

I genuinely cannot understand your ranking of Traitor Lord. You say it's too fast for a fight that does double damage. But you rank Pure Vessel, NKG, and Absolute Radiance, all fights that also have double damage and are MUCH faster, very highly. I think before the update a valid criticism would have been that the fight is boring, but now he has a fully fleshed out moveset. He also has cool lore and design, and is tied in with an NPC questline. In my opinion the only real flaw with the fight is the lack of a unique music track, otherwise it's a great fight to teach you how to time shadow dash.

[@CarlGonzaga867]

Wanna rank Demons Souls remake after their release? I know you will do it.

[@khajiitimanus7432]

Okay, that Bob Ross interjection at Paintmaster Sheo was downright glorious.

[@itztonii7218]

Ive been waiting for this forever!

[@zantheman1791]

I’m still waiting for Ranking the Waifus in the Souls Series from Worst to Best Demod

[@miyazakisimping]

If Andre ain't no.1, we riot.

[@zantheman1791]

I’m fine with that as long as Solaire is no. waifu

[@miyazakisimping]

@@zantheman1791Fair enough

[@Starphoenix]

How about Ranking Waifus in Hollow Knight? (puts in vote for Fluke Hermit)

[@kyleg1912]

Stockpile Thomas best waifu

[@brady2277]

When demod doesn’t rank tiso:(

[@soudiepop9757]

This is an awesome study tool. As someone who’s trying to finish my first playthrough, I find that studying the bosses and hearing other opinions helps me appreciate the fight more than I would if I stumbled upon it by accident and couldn’t beat it in the first few tries. I have a looooong way to go, but I’m excited to better my platforming and combat/strategy skills as I explore all of Hallownest! Wish me luck guys, I’ll need it. ^^”

[@ithuriel128]

One note- these videos often trivialize early bosses. Don't feel bad about struggling early! You have far less tools at your disposal early, and far less practice. I went from almost ragequitting over the Mantis Lords in my first playthrough to being about to do NKG hitless! (It's on my profile and I'm crazy proud)

[@malikhendricks4389]

Great video dmod, Sheo ranking was the best part

[@Infammo]

You went overboard with the combining. Ranking Markoth and Marmu as the same quality boss is absurd.

[@juwe7143]

Exactly, comparing Marmu to Markoth is like comparing NKG to Flukenest. And Markoth would not be NKG here

[@mellontanamar7950]

Well then: The long awaited full Hollow Knight boss ranking. God I love this game so frikin much xD As for my top 10: 10. Grey Prince Zote Well it's Zote xD I knew a few people who absolutely despise him and I can see why, but personally I really like his charakter and as you said, this battle reflects him perfectly. It's absolutely hilarious that this boss sucks at fighting and is still killing you. 9. Traitor Lord I was kinda surprised that this one was so low on your list honestly. I love this fight because it allows for a full offensive assault that few other battles provide and the double damage is something I really enjoy here as it discourages mindless spamming (will be a trend on my list) 8. Nightmare King Grimm Ok so here is the thing: Nightmare King Grimm is a damn good boss, BUT if you learn him once, you basically have already mastered him and there isn't that much more to gain from the battle in my experience. This is obviously not NKGs fault as it was not designed to be fought in the hall of gods, but it holds him back enough to land on 8th place on my ranking as I don't like that you can't mix up the dance of death with him. There is 1 response to every attack and it becomes a bit tedious after a while if you mastered the responses to every attack. Still the road to get there is absolutely worth it, especially with his godly soundtrack. 7. Absolute Radiance Quite happy to see that I'm not the only one that enjoys the buffed up Radiance. And holy hell what a buff up that was. It took me by far the longest to beat on Radiance mode and I still die to her on regular from time to time which practically no other boss can do anymore, which is exactly the reason why I love it so much. Contrary to Grimm, this was a boss I had to learn to like, but I can safely say that it was worth it. 6. Dung Defender Specifically Dung Defender as I don't really like bosses that are invulnerable for a longer time and White Defender loves to be underground sometimes (but the fight against White Defender is still better than against Dung Defender). The real reason why Dung Defender is this high is how laughable you can make him with Descending Dark specifically when the battle begins. You groundsmash him out of the ground and he just stands back up and still does his intro scream trying so hard to still be intimidating and it just makes me laugh every time xD 5. Watcher Knights The hardest fight in the bare minimum main story and quite an enjoyable one. It rewards quick reflexes and decision making more than most bosses in Hollow Knight and it really feels like you are fighting the city's army. I actually don't have much to talk about it, the Watcher Knights just work for me. 4. Soul Tyrant Ok so this is one is only that high because of my first playthrough. As I was pretty bad at navigation I somehow ended up having the Dream Nail before entering the city of tears for the first time and while fighting Soul Master was cool, I beat him first try. But when I discovered that there was a stronger version of him that I could fight right after, I spend the next 2 hours on getting past him and these 2 hours solidified my opinion on that the entry to city of tears to the battle with the Soul Master/Tyrant is the best part of the game. I got to see myself getting better and better with every attempt even though I was way underpowered which made the victory all the more sweet. I'll never forget that journey. 3. Pure Vessel Pure Vessel for me is simply put NKG but you have 2 responses instead of one, which makes that fight a lot more replayable for me. The lore for the Pure Vessel/Hollow Knight is also fantastic and really makes you evaluate who is the actual bad guy/bug in Hallow Nest. 2. Hornet No, it's not because Hornet is number 1 bug waifu x) I just really enjoy the battle since you can decide here how to fight and as you get better and better you can really style on her like on no other boss. I also happened to have some really epic finishers against Hornet (for example Sharp Shadow her in the air, staggering her and killing her with a downstrike before either touched the ground) which made the fight even better for me 1. Sisters of battle This fight is just art, even more so then sheos. As you said it's not really something you can describe, one has to experience it to understand. Perfectly weaving through the onslaught of attacks for more than 5 seconds makes you feel more invincible than anything I have ever experienced. The dance with the Sisters of battle is by far the most fun I had in the game AND THAT IS SAYING SO MUCH. Honorable mentions: Gorb for being Gorb, Massive Moss Charger for being the funniest boss to cheese with Heavy Blow, Quickslash and Grubberfly's Elegy, and brooding Mawlek for the best early game challenge if you played through the game too often x) Dishonorable mentions: Ascended Markoth for being the only thing that has made me ragequitting the game trying to defeat him on Radiant, and Collector and Grey Prince Zote on binding runs (not being able to Onehit the minions is hell in these fights, especially on Collector with Primal Aspids)

[@JacobPDeIiNoNi]

I hate fighting GPZ because his telegraphs can range from limited to nonexistent with tons of RNG, shockwaves, and minion spawning But I do love his design and moveset conceptually, easily one of the funniest, and fits very well into the Zote/Bretta plotline.

[@zotethedead7779]

Vengefly king is the best boss in the game. He has a heavy amount of leadership to his people and gets sad when they are slain. He attacks elegantly and doesn't want to fight, so he screeches at you. He wants his people to thrive and live their best life. He teaches the player the pogo technique. He also can even trifle the great zote, showing that he is a God among bugs. He holds back the infection because he knows that you are the vessel that will save him and his people. Vengefly king is the best boss in the game.

[@MilesWilliams88]

Your voice work in these videos has improved so much since you're old Souls ranking. Keep it up!:)

[@christopheroram4318]

Even though I didn't think much of it when I first did the fight, Lost Kin is now actually in my top 5. It is easy if you just spam through it, but if you restrain yourself to just using your nail then it becomes a seriously fun dual with someone around your same size with slightly higher agility! Especially once you start parrying his attacks, it just feels amazing to me.

[@nova-tm4sg]

Amazing video! Any chances of us getting a community ranking on hardest Hollow Knight bosses?

[@kyozm4909]

Wow, just beat NKG yesterday and today you upload this, needless to say I knew #1 before the video even started

[@Skykayava]

same but I just recently defeated NKG on Radiant, and that was hard.

[@felix-antoinesauvageau9500]

I was waiting for this vid. Didn’t watch it yet but I know it will be a quality vid