| “ | I've heard whispers that the secret these fools were searching for was immortality. To live forever... I've never heard of anything so obscene! | „ |
| ~ The Hunter mocking the Soul Sanctum's Scholars. |
| “ | The mind still limits us so. How to break past its constraints? To attain a pure focus, is it even possible? |
„ |
| ~ Record "Aba" of the Soul Sanctum. |
| “ | Spare thought for those consumed. Through their grace we are evolved. No plague of mind shall overcome us now. |
„ |
| ~ Record "Cenda" of the Soul Sanctum. |
The Soul Sanctum's Scholars are major antagonists in the 2017 indie Metroidvania video game Hollow Knight. They were highly intelligent bugs who once served the Kingdom of Hallownest as its intellectual elite, until they betrayed the Kingdom's interests in favor of using the power of the Soul to immortalize themselves to live through the Infection.
During the outbreak of the Infection, they initially conducted experiments on Soul under the belief that it could produce a cure and secure the kingdom’s salvation. Over time, however, they shifted their goals toward living through the plague and attaining immortality. In doing so, the scholars ultimately betrayed Hallownest, abandoning their duty to its eternal perpetuation in favor of their own preservation.
Biography[]
When the Infection began to plague the minds of the kingdom’s inhabitants, the scholars turned their studies toward finding a cure. Under the leadership of the Soul Master, they became convinced that Soul itself held the solution, theorizing that sufficient accumulation and refinement of Soul could grant immunity to the Infection and even transcendence beyond mortality. The Pale King strongly opposed this line of research, though this obstacle ended with the Pale King’s disappearance and the vanishing of the White Palace. With the kingdom left without its ruler, the scholars ultimately disregarded their prior royal orders and continued their experiments. Unbeknownst to them, the Radiance had already begun influencing their thoughts, subtly warping their judgment while leaving their intellects largely intact.
As their obsession deepened, the scholars began kidnapping citizens to harvest their Souls, convinced it would lead them to immortality. Their experiments were brutal and reckless, harvesting Soul from countless bugs throughout the City of Tears. Many attempts ended in catastrophic failure, twisting them into unstable abominations known as Mistakes and Follies. Others retained their physical integrity, becoming Soul Twisters and Soul Warriors, though at the cost of their sanity.
Even as Hallownest collapsed, the infected scholars continued hoarding Soul. The chambers of the Sanctum were repurposed into dumping grounds filled with the corpses of their victims. At some point, they even captured a Snail Shaman and forcibly extracted its Soul abilities to further their research. By this stage, their "research" had devolved into systematic slaughter driven by delusions of immortality.
Unlike most of Hallownest’s inhabitants, the scholars survived through the Infection. Some remained within the Soul Sanctum and continued their work long after its original purpose was lost. The Soul Master himself clung desperately to the Radiance's false promise of immortality. Others became Volt Twisters and left the Sanctum to find new purpose in the Colosseum of Fools, where they fought for glory or meditated in isolation.
Their work would finally come to an end when the Knight arrived at the Soul Sanctum during their journey through the City of Tears. By then, the Sanctum had been fully overrun by the Infection, its scholars reduced to hostile but still somewhat lucid remnants of their former selves. The Knight cut through the remaining scholars before reaching the Sanctum's peak, where the Soul Master himself confronted the intruder. After a fierce duel, the Knight defeated him, ending the Soul Sanctum's research for good.
Members[]
Soul Master[]
Main article: Soul Master
| “ | The King falls, but I live forever! My dreams are eternal and so am I! I can hear it... The whispering of their souls… |
„ |
| ~ The Soul Master's Dream Nail dialogue |
The Soul Master is the head of the Soul Sanctum and the most powerful of its scholars. Unlike most infected bugs, he remains highly lucid, retaining his intelligence and self-awareness even after succumbing to the Infection. He is fully aware that his power is derived from the stolen souls of other bugs and shows no confusion regarding the cost of his immortality-seeking experiments.
Despite his confidence, the Soul Master is an unwitting pawn of the Radiance. The prophetic dreams that guided his research and promised salvation through Soul were, in truth, manipulations by the Radiance herself. Believing these visions to be his own revelations, he followed her influence unquestioningly, carrying out her will in the hope of achieving eternal life, never realizing that he was being used to further her spread of destruction.
Soul Twisters[]
| “ | ...I feel them within me... ...Power... Light... Rage... ...Mind swells... Mind aches... |
„ |
| ~ The Soul Twisters' Dream Nail dialogue. |
Soul Twisters are scholars of the Soul Sanctum who learned to actively harness and manipulate Soul, twisting it into volatile spells and teleportation techniques. They appear suddenly within their territory, often materializing already protected by a conjured Soul orb or summoning one immediately upon entering combat. These orbs can serve both as shields and as homing projectiles used to assault intruders.
Soul Warriors[]
| “ | This soul... Is it my own? ...This power... What did it cost? These skills... No training I recall... |
„ |
| ~ The Soul Warriors' Dream Nail dialogue. |
Soul Warriors are scholars of the Soul Sanctum who enhanced their physical combat abilities through the consumption of stolen Soul. Unlike the Soul Master, they display a fragmented understanding of their condition, showing uncertainty about the origins of their power and gaps in their memories. Suggesting that their minds have been heavily compromised by the Infection.
They fight using a combination of teleportation and close-quarters combat, always ambushing opponents by warping directly above them and striking downward as the battle begins.
Mistakes & Follies[]
| “ | ...Why... Why...? ...Light... Soul... Light! ...Did it work...? |
„ |
| ~ Mistakes & Follies' Dream Nail dialogue. |
Mistakes and Follies are scholars of the Soul Sanctum whose bodies were catastrophically deformed as a result of the misuse of Soul. Unlike the more successful scholars who retained their physical integrity, these bugs suffered severe bodily inflation and loss of form after attempting to absorb or manipulate Soul beyond their limits.
Volt Twisters[]
Volt Twisters are former scholars of the Soul Sanctum who adapted its teachings into a unique combat discipline centered on electrical attacks. Unlike most Sanctum members, they no longer reside within the Soul Sanctum, instead spending their lives fighting in the Colosseum of Fools or meditating alone in isolation. Their combat style revolves around bursts of electricity not observed in other members of the Soul Sanctum, suggesting an evolution of the Sanctum’s principles rather than strict adherence to them. They have the same Dream Nail dialogue as Soul Twisters.
Gallery[]
Images[]
Videos[]
External Links[]
[]
 Villains
| ||
|
Hallownest The Infected Grimm Troupe Others Pharloom The Citadel Caste and its associates Silk Beings Others | ||