How to Learn the Great Slash Nail Art in Hollow Knight

Learn how to get the Great Slash Nail Art in Hollow Knight!

Team Cherry’s Metroidvania action-adventure game, Hollow Knight, follows the journey of a nameless warrior called the Knight as he travels through Hallownest, now a kingdom ruined by a supernatural disease. As the Knight journeys through Hallownest, he can unlock new abilities, spells, and charms that will help him traverse through different areas of Hallownest and defeat enemies.

In the game, there are special abilities, which the Nailmasters of Hallownest teach, that involve the Knight’s Nail called Nail Arts. In this guide, we’ll learn about the Great Slash Nail Art.

Great Slash

With the Great Slash Nail Art, the Knight will unleash a very powerful slash that will inflict 2.5x the damage output of the Knight’s Nail. The Cyclone Slash Nail Art can be performed by holding the assigned ATTACK button until it is fully charged, then releasing it without holding the UP or DOWN button or not while dashing. If, however, the Great Slash Nail Art is the first Nail Art that the Knight has learned and has not learned any other Nail Art, the Great Slash Nail Art can be performed even if the UP or DOWN button is held upon releasing the ATTACK button but still not while

The range of the Great Slash Nail Art can reach slightly below the Knight and then up to two times the Knight’s height above, which means that the Great Slash Nail Art can reach a little bit farther than a normal attack that is lengthened with the help of the Longnail charm or even the Mark of Pride charm.

The Great Slash Nail Art can be perfect for situations when it is hard to perform continuous Nail attacks, like in bosses where there are small windows to attack and deal damage because of the Great Slash Nail Art’s ability to deal a huge amount of damage in such a short amount of time, and for flying bosses and enemies because, as mentioned above, the Great Slash Nail Art can reach high above the Knight. The Great Slash Nail Art can also deal huge damage when attacking staggered bosses instead of using the regular attack with the Nail or even Spells.

Like the other Nail Arts, the Great Slash Nail Art’s damage output depends on the Nail the Knight is using. The Great Slash Nail Art will deal 12 damage if performed with the Old Nail, 22 damage if performed with the Sharpened Nail, 32 damage if with the Channelled Nail, 42 damage if with the Coiled Nail, and 52 damage if performed with the Pure Nail.

The Fury of the Fallen Charm, a charm the Knight can use to increase the Knight’s Nail damage by 75% when on one Mask of health remaining, can boost the effects of the Great Slash Nail Art. With this charm equipped and with one Mask remaining (which is when the charm takes effect), The Great Slash Nail Art will deal 22 damage if performed with the Old Nail, 39 damage if performed with the Sharpened Nail, 57 damage if with the Channelled Nail, 74 damage if with the Coiled Nail, and 92 damage if performed with the Pure Nail.

Some Charms, like the Fragile Strength Charm, will not affect the Cyclone Slash Nail Art or Unbreakable Strength Charm. The Mark of Pride Charm or Longnail Charm also does not affect its range.

Nailmaster Sheo

The Knight will be able to learn the Great Slash Nail Art from Nailmaster Sheo in his hut in the westernmost part of the Greenpath.

In Greenpath, the Knight will encounter different kinds of enemies. However, the Knight will encounter these enemies on the way to Nailmaster Sheo: Squits, Volatile Mosskins, Fool Eaters, Mosscreeps, and many Durandas.

Before the Knight can find Nailmaster Sheo in Greenpath, it is required that the Knight has the Mantis Claw ability, which allows the Knight to cling to walls and jump off of them, the Mothwing Cloak ability, which allows the Knight to perform a horizontal dash forward, and the Crystal Heart ability, which allows the Knight to fly and dash continuously and horizontally until the Knight hits a wall, hits an enemy that was not killed by the hit, or if the player intentionally stops the dash.

Although it is possible to find Nailmaster Sheo with only the Monarch Wings ability, the ability that allows the Knight to perform a secondary jump in mid-air would be difficult to achieve as it would require the player to be efficient at performing Nail-bounce on enemies. Finding Nailmaster Sheo in Greenpath will be no challenge with the abilities mentioned.

To find Nailmaster Sheo in Greenpath and learn the Great Slash Nail Art, this is what the Knight must do:

1. Starting from the Bench in the Greenpath Stagway Station, head to the right and exit the room, head to the right and head down to the bottom of the room where the Knight will encounter a couple of Squits, Volatile Mosskins, Fool Eaters, Mosscreeps on the way down.
   
2. Near the bottom of the room, you will see that part of the path will be closed. To open it, simply hit the lever on the left side, where a Fool Eater will appear once the Knight stands on the lever. After that, drop down and take the exit at the bottom left of the room.
   
3. Next, upon entering the next room, drop down the gap on the right, drop down the next gap on the left, head to the left, jump across the gap, then take the exit on the left.
   
4. Then, head to the left, where the Knight will encounter a Duranda, which the Knight can only defeat by attacking its face. Beyond the platform that the Knight is on is a small platform and a very large gap with thorns below. To cross this, use the Crystal Heart ability to dash and fly across the gap.
   
5. The Knight will then hit the side of a platform with thorns below. Thorns at the top, so jump up the side of the platform with the help of the Mantis Claw ability, jump above the thorns at the top of the platform (but not too much as there are also thorns at the ceiling of the room), dash above the thorns with the help of the Mothwing Cloak ability, fall back down while heading back to cling on the opposite side of the platform with the help of the Mantis Claw ability, then, at the middle part of the side of the platform, start charging the Crystal Heart ability again.
   
6. The Knight will not fall while the Knight is clung to the wall, and the Crystal Heart ability is charged, giving the player time. On the left is another Duranda moving vertically. Wait for the Duranda to be at the bottom of its path, then quickly release the Crystal Heart ability to dash and fly across the Duranda and another gap.
   
7. After that, the Knight will once again hit the side of another platform with thorns down below and thorns at the top, so jump up the side of the platform with the help of the Mantis Claw ability, jump above the thorns at the top of the platform, dash above the thorns with the help of the Mothwing Cloak ability, fall back down while heading back to cling on the opposite side of the platform with the help of the Mantis Claw ability, then, at the middle part of the side of the platform, start charging the Crystal Heart ability again.
   
8. Again, the Knight will not fall while the Knight is clung to the wall, and the Crystal Heart ability is charged. On the left are two more Durandas moving vertically in opposite directions. Wait for the Durandas to be at the bottom and the top of its path, then quickly release the Crystal Heart ability to dash and fly between the Durandas and another gap. The Knight will once again hit the side of another platform, but this time, there are no thorns at the top of the platform. Head to the top of the platform with the help of the Mantis Claw ability.
   
9. Next, the following must be done quickly: drop down the center of the shaft on the left with thorns on the left and right side; once the Knight is clear of the thorns on the left, quickly dash to the left towards the side of another platform with the help of the Mothwing Cloak ability, head up the platform with the help of the Mantis Claw ability, jump above the thorns at the top of the platform but not too much as there are also thorns at the ceiling of the room, dash in between the thorns using the Mothwing Cloak ability, cling to the side of another platform on the left, then head up the top of the platform with the help of the Mantis Claw ability. 
   
10. After that, on the left are seven Durandas on the gap below, moving vertically. Use the Crystal Heart ability from the platform that the Knight is on; on the path of the Knight are thorns blocking the path, so quickly cancel the Crystal Heart ability just before the Knight hits the thorns; then, as the Knight is dropping down, dash to the left with the help of the Mothwing Cloak ability to dash over the last Duranda and on to the platform on the left of the last Duranda.
    
11. Then, head up to the platform’s top on the left and use the Crystal Heart ability to cross the gap where the Knight will pass between three Durandas at the top and four Durandas below. The Knight will then hit a wall with a safe platform below. Drop down the safe platform, then take the exit on the left.
    
12. Next, head to the left, jump towards the platform on the left, jump towards the next small platform on the left with the help of the Mothwing Cloak ability or the Mothwing Cloak ability, jump towards another small platform on the left, jump up the small but tall platform on the left with thorns on its sides, then jump and dash to the ledge on the left with the help of the Mothwing Cloak ability.
    
13. After that, head up the path with the help of the Mantis Claw ability, jump towards the platform on the right before the Knight reaches the thorns above on the wall, and head to the right by jumping up the platforms.
    
14. Then, the path to continue will be narrow, surrounded by thorns. Jump and dash towards the ledge above on the left, head to the top of the ledge, face the right and use the Crystal Heart ability to dash and fly in between the narrow path surrounded by thorns.
    
15. Just after the narrow path is a hut with a Bench outside. Cancel the Crystal Heart ability and sit on the Bench to heal and save your progress, then enter the hut.
    
16. Finally, inside the hut, the Knight will find Nailmaster Sheo’s painting on the right side of the room!

Talk to Nailmaster Sheo, and he will introduce himself and say that he was a Nailmaster whose goal was to become stronger and hone his skills with a nail. He will continue saying that he thought it was his calling, but that feeling faded away, so now he is looking for a new calling that speaks to his soul and compels him forward, so he spends his time secluded and trying to master painting and sculpting.

Then, as he thinks that the Knight was not moved by what he said, he will doubt if he is who the Knight is looking for and if the Knight came to learn a Nail Art. Confirm on the prompt to learn the master’s Nail Art, and Nailmaster Sheo will teach the Knight the Great Slash Nail Art!

To leave this area, simply exit Nailmaster Sheo’s hut, head to the right, drop down the gap on the right (be careful not to hit the thorns on the wall below and the floor below slightly on the left), then exit the room on the right. After that, head up the path above with the help of the Mantis Claw ability, jump towards the ledge on the right, jump up the platforms on the right, then head to the right.

Then, at the end of the path is a shaft filled with thorns on the left on the right and a platform in the middle being held up by a vine or a rope. Strike the rope to break it and drop the platform down the shaft without hitting the thorns, and the Knight will be back at the entrance where the Knight encountered the first Duranda.

Now that the Knight has learned the Great Slash Nail Art, the Knight can attack enemies and bosses in a new and powerful way!