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This Article Contains Spoilers -
WARNING: This article contains major spoilers. If you do not wish to know vital information on plot / character elements in a story, you may not wish to read beyond this warning: We hold no responsibility for any negative effects these facts may have on your enjoyment of said media should you continue. That is all. |
| “ | The red-shells, hiding through the fields, stalking the boney beasts. They are part of it, somehow, the life that flourishes here. Even haunted, they seem to lose less of themselves... What anchor allows them to retain such strength? | „ |
| ~ Gilly on the mental fortitude of the Skarrs. |
| “ | ...How we hunted... How we sang... My children, I saw you glorious... | „ |
| ~ Skarrsinger Karmelita lamenting her tribe's decline. |
The Skarrs are major antagonists in the 2025 indie metroidvania Hollow Knight: Silksong.
They are a tribe of territorial and brutish red ants that rule the Hunter's March, with several making their home in the Far Fields as well. Once ruled by the mighty Skarrsinger Karmelita, their queen's waning strength has allowed them to be partially claimed by the Haunting, though they still retain more mental faculties than most bugs afflicted.
Biography[]
Background[]
The Skarrs are one of the indigenous groups that inhabited the lands of Pharloom before Grand Mother Silk's arrival, being a warring faction of hunter-gatherers. The Snail Shamans suggest that they were once divided tribes until they were united by Skarrsinger Karmelita, an exceptionally strong, yet graceful, warrior Skarr who became the queen of their faction. Karmelita was beloved for her gorgeous singing, with the Skarrs building stadiums to listen to her songs and obeying her every command. As such, the Skarrs' devotion to Karmelita gave them the strength to completely resist Grand Mother Silk's influence when the Haunting began.
However, Karmelita would gradually begin to age and lose her power, particularly her powerful singing voice. So too, was her influence lost on the Skarrs as they began to lose themselves to the Haunting. Despite this, their loyalty to her would never fade and the Skarrs still retain much of their mental faculties, though they still exhibit the incredibly overt aggression of the Haunted. The Skarrs would construct a statue of Karmelita to remember her as she was in her youth, and Needolin dialogue indicates that many are still anticipating her return, though others indicate that they may have mistaken Grand Mother Silk's cries for Karmelita's song, questioning why it sounds so unfamiliar. The Skarr also appear to have a tradition of trapping animals to worship or use later, as seen from the Chapel of the Beast, though when this practice started is uncertain.
The Skarr appear to exhibit hostility to members of their tribe that are mottled, hunting them down and killing them whenever possible. This has caused mottled individuals such as the Mottled Skarr and Gurr the Outcast to isolate themselves away from the rest of their tribe, with the Mottled Skarr and Mottled Skarr Scout even assisting individuals opposed to the Skarr such as Hornet. Why this prejudice exists is unknown, but seeing as the Mottled Skarr has a noticeably sickly demeanour, it's likely that Skarr become mottled after contracting an infectious, and likely fatal, disease, causing the Skarr to kill them to prevent the disease's spread as real ants do. Despite the attempts on his life, Gurr would never be slain and even has a bunch of Last Claws, Karmelita's elite guards, strung up as taxidermies in his lair. Curiously, none of these Mottled Skarr appear Haunted and display a more lucid connection to Karmelita, implying that their isolation from the rest of the tribe has safeguarded them from Silk's cursed threads.
Hollow Knight: Silksong[]
The Skarrs continue to guard their territory, attacking Hornet and other pilgrims that venture into their territory, as evidenced by the pilgrim corpses scattered throughout the land. Their territory, the Hunter's March, is guarded by a hulking Skarrgard and full of traps meant to ensnare and damage unsuspecting travellers. The Skarrs seem to be going about their regular lives, with several of them being seen resting at small encampments around the area. At one point, the Skarrs ambush Hornet in a room, during which Shakra joins her in to fend them off. The Mottled Skarr is also found nearby the main bench and will sell items to Hornet.
During Act II, the Mottled Skarr is killed, presumably by the other Skarr thanks to the Skarr weapons sticking out of his back. The Fractured Mask he sells can be picked off the floor near him, while the Curveclaw is found in another room nearby. During the "Great Taste of Pharloom" wish questline, several Skarr break into Creige's cellar in the Halfway Home in an attempt to steal his vintage nectar, something he seems aware they were planning to do as he sheepishly hints he sent Hornet down there to take care of his intruders.
During Act III, the Skarr, like all of the other Haunted, are infected by the Void, granting them incredible durability and the ability to manipulate it. The room with targets in the Far Fields will feature more targets which, if all hit with a single shot of the Curveclaw, causes the Mottled Skarr Scout to appear and receive Hornet's Curveclaw, converting it to the Curvesickle later. Additionally, Hornet will not only get a wish to track down Gurr, but also be able to enter the elderly Karmelita's chambers with the Silk Soar ability. From there, Hornet can use the Elegy of the Deep to challenge Karmelita to a battle as she was in her glory days, claiming her heart which is needed for the Snail Shamans' spell.
Members[]
Haunted members[]
As a result of the Haunting, many of the Skarrs in the Hunter's March are driven to madness, making them belligerent and hostile to everyone. Despite this, they still retain some of their faculties and their society still functions mostly normally.
A Skarrlid.
Skarrlids[]
The most diminutive of the Skarr tribe, Skarrlids are small red ants that function mainly as the tribe's gatherers or assistants to other warriors. They pace back and forth, rushing towards Hornet when they see her.
Skarrwings[]
A Skarrwing.
Skarrwings are small, winged red ants that possess white abdomens and thoraxes. They are found sticking to walls and take off to rush at Hornet. Like the Skarrlids, they're too small to fight alone and usually accompany their kin.
Skarr Scouts[]
A Skarr Scout.
The basic foot soldiers of the Skarr tribe, Skarr Scouts are young ants with bright red shells and brown ruffs. They wield sickles carved from teeth which they use to slash at Hornet or throw at her. Skarr Scouts will usher a battle cry when they spot Hornet and can only move with their attacks, though they can also burrow for extra mobility. They also tend to be found nearby other, more experienced and powerful Skarrs.
Skarr Stalkers[]
Skarr Stalkers are the more experienced warriors of the Skarr tribe, wearing skull helmets and wielding blades made of jagged bone. They are capable of burrowing underground, slashing at Hornet with their clubs, leaping great distances and even parrying attacks. Like the Skarr Scouts they tend to be found resting and will engage Hornet with a battle cry.
A Skarr Stalker.
Spear Skarrs[]
A Spear Skarr.
Spear Skarrs serve as the aerial assault forces of the Skarr tribe, possessing four wings, bone lances and skulls that make up their helmet and chestplate. They can be found resting and engage Hornet when attacked or another Skarr is hurt, slashing at Hornet with their lances or throwing spears at her. They're thankfully rarer than most Skarrs, being a more regular occurrence in arena gauntlets.
Skarrgards
A Skarrgard.
Elite warriors of the Skarr tribe, responsible for guarding its treasures, the Skarrgard are huge, muscular red ants wearing skull helmets and wielding jawbone clubs. They attack by slashing at Hornet, jumping up to hit her or burrowing underground to pursue her. There are four Skarrgards in total and unlike their brethren, they do not respawn.
Non-haunted members[]
Several of the Skarr are not Haunted and as such, retain their mental faculties. All of them appear to have distanced herself from the other Skarr, resulting in the Haunting not spreading to them.
Skarrsinger Karmelita[]
Main article: Skarrsinger Karmelita
Skarrsinger Karmelita in her prime.
The matriarch and leader of the Skarr, Skarrsinger Karmelita was their undisputed ruler who held their loyalty with her beautiful singing and gracefully deadly fighting style. In recent years, her power has waned significantly from age, allowing the Haunting to overtake her kin and forcing her to hide herself in the Far Fields. Karmelita is one of the four bosses whose hearts can be claimed via a boss fight with a version of herself in her prime.
Last Claws[]
A Last Claw.
The Last Claws were the most skilled and powerful warriors in the Skarr tribe, second to only Karmelita herself and her personal bodyguards. Possessing four wings, intricate bone armour and bone spears, they attack with a flurry of swipes or charges with their spears. Seeing as the Last Claws are completely absent from the Hunter's March today, sans a corpse found strung up in Gurr's lair, it's safe to say they're extinct, though whether Gurr was the culprit for all of their deaths is unknown.
Gurr the Outcast[]
Main article: Gurr the Outcast
Gurr the Outcast
A towering, mottled Skarr wearing a skull mask and a cloak of leaves, Gurr is an exiled Skarr that dwells in the Far Fields, possessing a grisly collection of taxidermied victims. He attacks by hurling traps at Hornet or lunging at her, and can only be fought in Act III. Seeing as he lacks threads in his defeat animation and doesn't respond to the Needolin, Gurr appears to be the only hostile Skarr not to be Haunted. While the circumstances of his exile are unclear, he was probably exiled for killing other Skarr for trophies.
Mottled Skarr[]
The Mottled Skarr.
The Mottled Skarr is a red ant found sitting in a hidden room near the main bench of Hunter's March. He doesn't speak the common tongue of Pharloom but can be coaxed into singing in it using the Needolin. He sells the Fractured Mask, Curveclaw and Shard Bundles for Rosaries. The Mottled Skarr is later found dead with Skarr weapons lodged into his back, leaving his first two wares lying on the floor for collection.
Mottled Skarr Scout[]
An unnamed Skarr Scout appears in the target room of the Far Fields in Act III, emerging once Hornet hits all targets in one shot with the Curveclaw. They offer to convert her Curveclaw to a Curvesickle, seemingly out of respect for her skills. Their Needolin dialogue expresses their loyalty to Karmelita which still holds firm.
Trivia[]
- Prior to the full release of Silksong, the Skarrs were referred to as the "Hunter Ants" in promotional material.
- All of the lesser Skarr enemies share the same Needolin dialogue.
- In the Hunter's March, the ground is covered in small red ants which carry away Skarr corpses and whatever materials are lying on the ground. Whether these ants are allied to them is unknown.
- In early trailers for the game, it seems that more of the Skarrs' lands were supposed to have well developed infrastructure, as seen from a section where Hornet confronts a Skarrgard and Skarr Stalker over a bone bridge. This was probably scrapped to emphasise their decline.
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 Villains
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Hallownest The Infected Grimm Troupe Other Pharloom The Citadel Caste and its associates Silk Beings Others | ||