Players can collect three Nail Arts in Hollow Knight; powerful Nail attacks that scale with the Nail upgrades. The Knight’s Nail can be upgraded by visiting the Nailsmith in the City of Tears. He will charge 250 Geo the first time that players visit him, though will require both Geo and Pale Ore for any subsequent upgrades.
To obtain all three Nail Arts in Hollow Knight, players must find and interact with three NPCs that are hidden away in different corners of Hallownest. Each Nailmaster will teach a different technique with its own advantages and damage scaling. Players can also boost the Nail Arts by equipping certain Charms to increase their damage output or reduce the charge time to execute the Nail Art. Here are the locations where each of the Nailmasters can be found in Hallownest.
Cyclone Slash
When players run into Cornifer in the Howling Cliffs, he will mention having seen an imposing bug atop the cliffs and that his home is not far.
Nailmaster Mato can be found when the player first enters the Howling Cliffs by traveling to the left and heading down until reaching a spike pit with a narrow passage leading to the right. Nails can be seen sticking out of the ground at the entrance and players will come across Mato’s hut as they continue right. There is a bench in the first room of Mato’s hut and players will find him resting inside, and eager to teach the attack to the Knight.
Cyclone Slash will allow the Knight to spin with their Nail while attacking continuously, and repeatedly pressing the attack button will slightly extend the duration of the spin.
Dash Slash
Unlike his brothers, Nailmaster Oro is reluctant to share his teachings, but he will agree if the player parts with 800 Geo to learn the Dash Slash.
As the most solitary of the Nailmasters, Oro resides in the far southeast of Kingdom’s Edge. Along the way to his home, players will need to fight off various enemies such as Primal Aspids and Great Hoppers. Players can rest assured that there is a bench outside of Oro’s hut that they can rest on if they have sustained damage on their way to meet the Nailmaster.
After obtaining Dash Slash, players can execute a long-ranged melee attack that reaches in front of the Knight and a little behind them too.
Great Slash
Sheo is the most difficult of the three Nailmasters to reach, and players will require the Mothwing/Shade Cloak, Mantis Claw, the Crystal Heart and/or the Monarch Wings to make traversal easier. Isma’s Tear would also be helpful, but it's not essential, especially if players are careful.
South of the arena where players fought Hornet in Greenpath, players will find a tunnel filled with numerous hazards, such as acid pools, spikes, and Durandas. Players must travel to the far left of this tunnel to reach Nailmaster Sheo’s hut, which, thankfully, also has a bench outside and a safe route back to the other side after the player has learned the Great Slash.
This slash will reach further than the Knight’s usual attack and deals greater damage. Great Slash is especially helpful when consecutive hits aren’t ideal, but the player has a chance to get one good hit in.
Nailmaster's Glory
While this is not technically a Nail Art, players will receive this reward after obtaining all three Nail Arts. Players must return to Dirtmouth and pay Sly a visit in his shop. They will find that a secret passage has opened inside the shop and that Sly is not behind his counter as usual.
Entering this new room will lead players into an otherwise inaccessible lower ground area of the shop. Here, players can find Sly, who will reward the Knight with the Nailmaster’s Glory Charm in recognition of the player’s combat prowess and skill. When equipped, this Charm will reduce the amount of time needed to charge Nail Arts, making them much easier to use during combat.
Hollow Knight is available on PC, Linux, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.