r/HollowKnight

Source: https://x.com/i/status/2057217504322244625

Day 18 drawn in 2 hours. WE YES WE LOVE GARMOND AND ZAZA! ZENZIBOOO!!!!

These are the games I played and love of course there are more but that from what I played and experience

XD they looks so cute together.

It's been such a long journey and finally it came to an end, it has been a really nice game and I really enjoyed it :)
Up next: Silksong

Art by me :3

running time 2 minutes 13 seconds

Nosk is a boss found in the hidden corners of Deepnest, showing itself once outside of its hidden lair to lure players/give a mental note that there is something within the region that looks like the player.

Eventually, players will run into Nosk; a creepy, slender creature with a glowing bulb sac of infection. Waiting in a lair with multiple vessels and other creatures (presumably past prey) hanging from the ceiling, in addition to a wake of corpses left behind on the path.

But... What exactly IS Nosk? Is it a bug? Is it a monster...? A new type of organism...?

Well, Hornet best describes what Nosk could be when speaking in regards of the Shadow Charger: "They seem such simple bugs... but I suspect they are not truly our cousins."

The true nature of Nosk: One of The Abyss's many monstrosities.

Nosk, in my observation, is simply just another creature that originates from the abyss. Whether it is a unique creature or just part of a group of species is unknown, but there is in my opinion enough observable evidence to be able to confidently assume Nosk is just part of this environment.

To begin with — The proximity between The Abyss and Deepnest. Nosk's lair is the second deepest and closest region to the basin/abyss layer in Hollow Knight. This is evident by the fact that there are multiple vessels bodies located in Nosk's lair. Evidently, this lair is a (popular) exit from the Abyss. Nosk being a creature of higher intelligence (or instinct?) simply took camp here and swiped off any vessels escaping through is what one can conclude.

Putting aside the obvious geographical connection, this being that The Abyss is next door from Deepnest and Nosk's lair, you also have the visual cues that this is another creature likely originating from this underworld.

• Nosk's "silk" is black. No other silk in either Silksong or Hollow Knight have a black appearance; the only instance we see blackened silk is in Pharloom when the void calamity occurs.
• Nosk's body assumes a hostile and dangerous form. I choose the word "assumes" carefully because Nosk is a shape shifter. When Nosk takes off its disguise, this is the form it assumes. A form that is barbed with spikes on its back, slender and eerie extremities, and a cage around the infection heart. Similarly, Hornet has some things to say about the Void Tendrils, another form of "sentience" located within The Abyss, "In the barbed forms it chooses its nature can be seen clear.". Both Nosk and Void Tendrils choose a form that is barbed and hostile, both share a similar nature.
• Nosk has no dream nail dialogue. Additionally, no other "bug" originating from The Abyss has any dream nail dialogue. It is unknown exactly what causes this and how Nosk exactly "thinks" to ambush its prey and have the intelligence it does to do the things it does (or if it's by instinct), but Nosk, like all other Abyss bugs, has no discernible mind to read.

Conclusion

I think this long enigma within the community has come to an end. Is Nosk void? No. Is Nosk however a creature from The Abyss? In my opinion, there is ample evidence that this is the case. There is no other instance of a creature like this existing in Hallownest. If anything, there are instead instances of creatures with similar features and nature from the abyss than anywhere else.

There is also something interesting the Hunter's Journal notes: "In the deepest darkness, there are beasts who wear faces stolen from your memories and pluck at the strings in your heart. Know yourself, and stay strong." Note the terms "deepest darkness". In this case, a being coming from the deepest darkness in a world that does, quite literally, have the deepest darkness (known as The Abyss) to me quite literally reads that Nosk is a creature found within this place. It's not even just the speculative aspect of this, but it is known that void has the ability to psychologically manipulate and alter other bugs. We see evidence of this in the Hallownest's Abyss Lighthouse, where the lighthouse keeper is manipulated, or better worded, "called by the sea" into turning off the lighthouse.

Finally, the Hall of Gods refers to Nosk as "Everchanging god of the faceless". While this could be q literal description of Nosk, The Abyss does have a reputation of housing other faceless sentient forms (gloom bugs, tendrils), Nosk wouldn't stand out here either.

>!So I'm on my 2nd playthrough of silksong, in my first one after I compelted the skull tyrant wish another one invaded bone bottom killing pilby.!<

>!I later found out that If we speak to him enough and don't trigger the 2nd skull tyrant, he moves into pilgrim's rest, where he can die if the mechanism of the door is broken and rhinogrund is alive!<

>!But in this playthrough, I accidentally turned in the wish while checking the wishwall :(!<

>!Somehow the tyrant took real long time to spawn this time, after I transitioned into act 2, pilby was replaced by quiet pilgrim but I could see a pilgrim who looks similar to pilby in the background!<

>!I checked pilgrim's rest where the rhinogrund had invaded and was bullying mort but there was no pilby!<

>!And after the skull tyrant invaded there still is that pilgrim who looks similar to pilby!<

Used the same charm setup the whole way