Silksong — How to Upgrade the Needle (All 4 Tiers)

Upgrading Hornet’s Needle increases basic attack damage and shortens many encounters as you progress through Pharloom. All upgrades are performed by Pinmaster Plinney in Bellhart. The first upgrade is free once the town is restored; the remaining three each require a Pale Oil obtained from specific activities later in the game, and some upgrades also cost Rosaries.

Silksong Pale Oil locations and upgrades — find all three fast

Step-by-step routes for each vial, plus how to use them for Needle upgrades.

All Things HowShivam Malani

Needle upgrades at a glance

The table below summarizes each tier, when it becomes available, what you need, and where to get it.

Prerequisites: Restore Bellhart so Plinney can work

Plinney only appears after Bellhart’s curse is lifted. You’ll need wall-jumping to reach the necessary boss and complete the town’s wish.

Step 1: Reach Shellwood and obtain Cling Grip (wall jump). You can arrive via Wormways from Bone Bottom (Simple Key required) or by following the main path through Far Fields and Greymoor, defeating area bosses en route. Cling Grip is awarded after the Shellwood boss.

Step 2: Use Cling Grip to climb Bellhart’s upper routes and defeat Widow at the town’s summit. This fulfills the “Threadspun Town” wish and lifts the curse, repopulating Bellhart.

Step 3: From Bellhart’s hub, climb to the top-right storefront marked with needle signage and meet Pinmaster Plinney. He will apply the first Needle upgrade for free.

Upgrade 2: Pale Oil from the Citadel’s Whispering Vaults

This is your first oil-based upgrade and becomes available once you can explore the Citadel in Act 2.

Step 1: Progress to the Citadel and locate the Whispering Vaults sub-zone. Players commonly access the Vaults after opening the Citadel’s haven (Songclave) and defeating the Cogwork Duo to reach the lower interior paths.

Step 2: In the Whispering Vaults, find the large crate room on the left side. Strike crates to slide them along background beam lines, building a navigable path. Continue solving crate movements until you open the exit on the left.

Step 3: Move through to Choral Chambers via the newly opened passage and pick up the Pale Oil placed beyond the puzzle (often adjacent to or within a needle shop room). Return to Bellhart and hand the oil to Plinney for your second Needle upgrade.

Upgrade 3: Complete “Great Taste of Pharloom” (Pale Oil reward)

This wish sends you across multiple regions to assemble a specialty menu. Turn-in grants a Pale Oil for the third upgrade.

Step 1: Accept the wish “Great Taste of Pharloom” and collect five ingredients:

• Mossberry Stew — found in Mosshome.
• Vintage Nectar — found in Greymoor.
• Pickled Muckmaggot — found in Sinner’s Road.
• Crustnut — found in the Sands of Karak.
• Courier’s Rasher — prepared in Bellhart and delivered to the banquet hall in Choral Chambers under a timer.

Step 2: Plan the Rasher route before you pick up the dish. Many players pre-clear tough rooms and avoid resting at benches so most defeated enemies don’t respawn. Move quickly, minimize collisions, and prioritize safe, direct lines through Blasted Steps, Sinner’s Road, or alternative connections you’ve opened. Taking damage or slamming into doors/walls reduces the delivery’s “health,” so play clean.

Step 3: Turn in the completed wish to receive a Pale Oil. Bring it to Plinney in Bellhart to upgrade the Needle again. A payment of 500 Rosaries has been reported for this tier.

Upgrade 4: Fleatopia festival in Act 3 (Pale Oil reward)

The final upgrade is tied to the Lost Fleas storyline and becomes available only in Act 3.

Step 1: Rescue all 30 Lost Fleas and advance the caravan through its locations until Fleatopia is established in the Putrefied Ducts. Act 3 content must be unlocked (players report this follows main story progress such as completing the “Silk and Soul” milestone).

Step 2: Visit Fleatopia in Act 3 and speak with Mooshka to receive the wish “Ecstasy of the End.” Win all three festival minigames to the required score threshold: Juggle, Bounce, and Dodge. Consider equipping crests that suit each activity (for example, long-reach swings to stabilize Juggle, a pogo-friendly stance for Bounce, and mobility-focused picks for Dodge).

Step 3: Claim the Pale Oil and return to Plinney. If the shop is closed with a note, find Plinney at the graves west of Bellhart (you’ll fight through short enemy waves). After he returns home, provide the Pale Oil and pay the reported 900 Rosaries to finalize the fourth and last Needle upgrade.

Where to find Pale Oils

There are three Pale Oils tied to Needle upgrades:

• Whispering Vaults (Citadel) crate puzzle leading into Choral Chambers.
• “Great Taste of Pharloom” wish reward after delivering five ingredients (includes the timed Courier’s Rasher).
• Fleatopia festival reward in Act 3 after rescuing all Fleas and winning all minigames.

Silksong Pale Oil locations and upgrades — find all three fast

Step-by-step routes for each vial, plus how to use them for Needle upgrades.

All Things HowShivam Malani

Practical tips and expectations

Damage expectations: The first upgrade often reduces early 20-HP foes from four hits to three, but not every enemy drops a hit immediately. Damage improvements are incremental and become more noticeable in Act 2–3.

Route planning: For the Courier’s Rasher, map a clean path, pre-clear difficult rooms, and avoid benches to limit respawns. Movement tools, careful dash timing, and choosing safer vertical climbs can save a run when the timer is tight.

Act gating: You cannot complete the festival Pale Oil until Act 3. If Plinney isn’t available after the festival, find him in Shellwood to restore his services before turning in the final oil.

Once all four tiers are installed, basic enemies fall faster and boss openings yield more progress per punish window. Revisit Plinney any time you pick up a new Pale Oil to keep your Needle current.