While Hallownest may be a civilization for insects, players will find that the map in Hollow Knight is vast. There are several ways to traverse the interconnected routes of Hallowest, but players will first need to rely on the Knight’s little legs to get around.
Eventually, it is possible to unlock fast travel such as using the Trams and even the Dreamgate once players obtain enough Essence for the Dream Nail. The earliest method of travel, however, will be the Stagways; a robust network of tunnels that run across the entirety of Hallownest that were used as trade routes and a means for travel.
Unfortunately, by the events of Hollow Knight, the Stagways have been largely abandoned, and the stations were closed. But for players that venture into the depths of Hallownest to explore, the old Stagways can be located and reopened for use.
How To Unlock The Stagways
Players will need to explore Hallownest thoroughly to discover the 11 Stag Stations dotted around the kingdom. The majority of these stations require geo to unlock them before they can be used, and almost all of them also have a bench for players to rest at if needed. When players first ring a bell at a Stag Station, they will be introduced to the Last Stag who acts as a vehicle for players to travel between the stations they have unlocked.
Additionally, he will provide information about each location if players step off the station platform to speak to him. There are two achievements associated with the Stagways. Opening half of the stations will award players with the ‘Connection’ achievement, and unlocking all 11 grants ‘Hope’.
Where To Find All Stag Stations
Ancient Basin
After players have defeated the Broken Vessel in this Ancient Basin, they will be rewarded with the Monarch Wings. This will allow players to double jump, opening to paths that can be taken for further exploration and even leading to the discovery of much-needed shortcuts.
The Monarch Wings are required to reach the Palace Grounds, which can be found at the bottom right of the main chamber in the Ancient Basin, directly below where Cornifer the mapmaker and the fountain of the Pale King are located. After double jumping to this new area, continue traveling to the right to find the Hidden Station, where players will need to pay 300 geo to unlock it.
City Of Tears - City Storerooms
The first of the Stagways in the City of Tears can be found upon first entering the area after using the City Crest and beginning the descent into the city proper. As players use an elevator to reach the ground level of the city, there will be a series of platforms that can be reached by jumping to them before the elevator touches down. Players need to continue to the right until finding an entrance and begin making their way up through a series of rooms and enemies.
At the very top, players should spot a few pages of Cornifer’s papers strewn about, but the doors will lock and a short combat encounter will begin. After defeating the enemies, continue ascending to find Cornifer and a bench over to the right. Taking the path to the left will lead to a long corridor where Zote will be if players chose to save him in Greenpath before opening up into a larger area with several platforms and enemies. The Stag Station can be found by going through the path at the top left of this room and heading over to the top right where 200 geo must be spent to unlock the station.
City Of Tears - King's Station
The King’s Station can be found in the second half of the City of Tears, but players must travel through the Royal Waterways to get there. In the room to the left of the fountain square, players can find a drain cover that requires a simple key to unlock and leads into the Royal Waterways.
Once inside, players should take the path to the left before continuing to drop down until reaching the lopsided bench. From here the path will be like a zigzag and requires players to first head to the far right, drop down, go to the far left, drop down once more before going right again. Players will require the Crystal Heart ability to progress past this point, signaled by small pink crystals on the ground where they can use it.
Upon reaching the acid pools where the Hwurmps are, players should use the platforms to head up and continue up another shaft when the green pipe is visible in the background. To the right, players can find a small opening in the wall where they can use the Mantis Claw to climb up and out into the Eternal Emilitia’s room. Exit the room using the door to the far left and head right once outside to find the King’s Station. The platform that can be unlocked is at the top right and requires 300 geo to reopen.
Dirtmouth
Unlike the others, the station in Dirtmouth cannot be opened from the outside. Instead, players must travel to Dirtmouth via the Stagways from another station that they have unlocked, where they can then unlock the door leading out into the village. Doing so will allow players to travel freely between Dirtmouth and any other station, providing a quick route to the merchants that have set up shop there.
Deepnest
In the westernmost section of Deepnest, players will find the Distant Village where one of the Dreamers resides. At the top right of this abandoned village is a Stag Station that will run players 250 geo to unlock.
Forgotten Crossroads
This Stag Station is likely to be the first one that players encounter as the Forgotten Crossroads is the first major area that players can explore. Just below the path leading to the False Knight is another that players can take leading off to the left. Inside will be the station, which costs 50 geo to open.
Fungal Wastes
The Queen’s Station is a connecting point between the Fog Canyon and the Fungal Wastes. The majority of the Fog Canyon cannot be traversed when players first arrive and instead players must descend until reaching the very bottom of the area. Turning left here will take players to Millibelle the banker, and right leads to the Queen’s Station.
When first arriving here, players can speak to Quirrel who talks about the Stagways. The platform that players can unlock can be found at the bottom left and will cost 120 geo to open it for use.
Greenpath
The station in Greenpath can be found in the central section of the area to the north, and players will need to progress through a section with Moss Knights and Moss Chargers to reach it. Along the way, players can reveal shortcuts to make this journey easier, and it is recommended to unlock the Stagways here before entering the boss battle with Hornet.
The arena will be off to the left and players can instead take a route leading down where a Stag Station sign points to enter another area with Squits and the station will be to the left. To unlock it, players must spend 140 geo.
Queen's Gardens
The Queen’s Gardens is an area of Hallownest that has several environmental hazards and blocked off paths, which can make traversal and finding the Stag Station a challenge. Players can access the Queen’s Gardens through the Fog Canyon and will require Isma’s Tear or the Shade Cloak depending on which entrance is chosen.
The path, while difficult, is quite linear due to the nature of how passages are initially closed off to the player. As players take the scenic route through the Queen’s Gardens, they will encounter various new enemies and familiar faces can be found along the way, but most notably there is a locked gate to what will eventually become the entrance to the Stag Station. Players will need to make their way towards the arena where Marmu can be fought and head to the far right. Here will be a breakable wall that players can pass through, leading them inside the station where 200 geo must be paid to unlock it.
Resting Grounds
When arriving in the Resting Grounds for the first time, players will interact with a grave where the Dreamers will attempt to seal the Knight away in a dream. Players will then be introduced to the Seer who gives them the Dream Nail, an ancient tool that can be used to collect Essence.
After leaving the Seer’s room, players should head to the second corridor on the opposite side to find the next station in the Stagways. Players do not need to spend geo to unlock this one, but instead will be required to hit a lever to open it.
Locating The Stag Nest
When players have unlocked each of the Stag Stations, the Last Stag will inform the Knight that he has discovered the location of his birthplace, the Stag Nest.
This will then prompt the player to travel with him to the nest, which will provide a new fast travel point to the Howling Cliffs and where players can find a Vessel Fragment and an egg that has hatched. Finding the Stag Nest and the egg will unlock the achievement ‘Hope’, implying that the stags will yet live on.
Hollow Knight is available on PC, Linux, PlayStation 4, Xbox One, and Nintendo Switch.