Where is Pharloom? Silksong city lore explained

At this point, Hollow Knight fans know the map of Hallownest like the back of their hands. The sprawling map has been picked apart and analyzed since the game’s release in 2017, with elaborate lore trails to follow and theories to get lost in.

But what about Pharloom? The region that Silksong takes place in is still relatively new, but that hasn’t stopped fans from theorizing about the lore. Here’s what we know about Pharloom so far, including both facts and theories. Spoilers for Silksong are included throughout. 

The Escapist recaps

• Unlike the previous game in the Hollow Knight series, Hollow Knight: Silksong does not take place in Hallownest. It’s set in Pharloom, a strangely haunted kingdom with an entirely new set of characters and locations to explore.
• The kingdom is heavily religious, which is immediately made obvious once starting the game, thanks to the currency of choice and introductory poem. Even elements like the benches and some boss fights feel drenched in religious imagery. 
• The Citadel at the top of Pharloom plays a crucial role in the story from the get-go, acting as the pinnacle of hope for pilgrims but serving a darker purpose.
• The Weavers are at the core of Pharloom, meaning that Hornet has ancestral ties to the land due to her mother being Herrah. 

Pharloom is far away from Hallownest

While some fans had theorized that Silksong may partially dip back into the Hallownest map, the second game in the Hollow Knight series takes place far, far away.

Pharlom isn’t close to Hallownest in the slightest, to the point where residents in Hallownest may not have known about its existence. 

Hallownest was referred to as the “last and only civilization” in Hollow Knight – admittedly, this comes from a lore tablet written by an untrustworthy character who may have been lying for dramatic effect, but it’s a worthwhile snippet that still ties into the story of Pharloom.

Pharloom is referred to as a “distant land” and “vast, unfamiliar kingdom” on the game’s official site. Additionally, the opening cutscene with Hornet being kidnapped shows a long, difficult journey, traversing through a number of different biomes, indicating the distance between Hallownest and Pharloom.

The distance between the kingdoms may seem like a small thing to focus on, but it could serve as an explanation for why the two are so strikingly different and why different problems are plaguing Pharloom.

The kingdom is deeply religious

Silksong has a smattering of religious imagery throughout its Acts, with the game kicking off by showing a beautiful if morbid poem about “faith and toil.”

The Citadel sits at the peak of Pharloom, acting as Hornet’s main aim for the game and seemingly acting as a beacon for a slew of pilgrims she encounters along the way. These pilgrims dream of getting to the Shining Citadel to honor their faith, but things are not as they seem in this holy space.

The Citadel is revealed to have a rotten core through Hornet’s travels and key cutscenes, with the higher-ups taking advantage of the devout pilgrims and abusing their trust. It has a glittering facade but a murky, disgusting underbelly.

Other key elements indicate the importance of religion within Pharloom, like the use of rosaries as one of the core currencies, the gospel-esque music in several boss fights, and the art style for important items like the benches. 

The Weavers are at the core of Pharloom

It is believed that the Weavers – the spider tribe first introduced in Hollow Knight — originated from Pharloom. Despite residing in Deepnest during the first game, it was made clear there that Hallownest was not their home, indicated by elements like the Weaversong flavor text.

The masks of the Weavers pop up sporadically throughout Silksong, as spotted for the first time in the original announcement trailer. The heavy importance placed on silk throughout the game also knits the land of Pharloom closely together with the Weavers.

This means that Hornet seemingly has close ties to Pharloom due to her ancestry. Hornet’s mother is Herrah the Beast, one of the Dreamers who was originally the Queen of the spider tribe.

This is apparent in the game’s description too, as the Team Cherry site notes that Hornet is “Bound by her lineage and guided by echoes of her past.”

Pharloom is a vast and ominous land, with a veritable mountain of lore and secrets to unpack. It’s far away from Hallownest, despite having some similarities in place, and it has a gloriously eerie Citadel at its peak. With ties to the land and the Weavers, there couldn’t have been a better protagonist pick than Hornet for this beautifully difficult game.  

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References

1. Hollow Knight: Silksong (Hollow Knight)
2. Hollow Knight: Silksong – Announcement Trailer – Nintendo Switch (YouTube)