White Defender

The White Defender is a hidden boss in Hollow Knight introduced in Hidden Dreams. It is the Dream form of the Dung Defender, at the peak of his past glory.

Behaviour and Tactics
He can be fought up to a maximum of five times, but after each victory, he will deal an additional mask of damage (one mask on the first fight, two masks on the second, etc.)

White Defender will no longer stagger nor will Desolate Dive or Descending Dark for him out of the ground.

For damage output, Nail-based Charms work very well; Fragile Strength, Quick Slash and Mark of Pride/Longnail are helpful.

Spells are incredibly useful against White Defender. A well-timed Shade Soul can destroy a dung ball before it's tossed and damage White Defender at the same time. Abyss Shriek can deal maximum damage when White Defender is returning to the ground after a Ground Burst (provided the Knight is standing just to the left or right of White Defender). As with all spell-focused builds, the charms Shaman Stone and Spell Twister are very helpful.

It is possible to keep White Defender in his ball form until he is defeated so long as you never let him hit the ground 3 times. This can be accomplished with well-timed upward slashes and quick movements. Dashmaster and Sprintmaster help with this tactic.

As with the other Dream Bosses, the Knight does not die when they lose all their health during this battle, but simply wakes up next to the Dung Defender. This means that Fragile Strength and Fragile Heart can be used continually without breaking.

The left and right corners are generally safe for healing due to White Defender's attacks rarely reaching there.



Location
To reach the White Defender, both the Dung Defender and all three Dreamers have to be defeated first

Use Desolate Dive/Descending Dark on the floor at the far right end of his boss room directly underneath the floating platform to access a hidden room beneath. Here the player will find the Defender sleeping in the room on the left. Use the Dream Nail on him to enter the dream and initiate combat.

Trivia

 * In the background of the arena, the white silhouettes of the Great Knights (minus Ogrim) and The Pale King can be seen in this order: Hegemol, Ze'mer, Dryya, Isma, and the Pale King.
 * The White Defender can be beaten a total of 5 times on each save file, though he can be challenged indefinitely in Godhome.
 * After defeating the White Defender 5 times and hearing Dung Defender's extra dialogue, when The Knight leaves and returns there will be a seventh dung statue made in their image.
 * Upon defeat, the White Defender will reach toward the background silhouettes as they dissolve before hanging his head dejectedly.
 * White Defender appearing in white armour may imply that all five of the Great Knights dressed in white while serving the King.
 * White Defender can be unlocked in Godhome either by defeating him in Dung Defender's dreams or by beating Dung Defender in Godhome once, either in the  Pantheon of the Master or in the  Hall of Gods.
 * White Defender's journal entry mentions an event called "The Battle of the Blackwyrm". This event is never mentioned in the game and, there is little information on the subject.
 * There is a glitch where a dung ball could be stuck in one of the corners of the room, which could be potentially detrimental as the hit-box for the dung ball is still active. However, it can still be destroyed by spells.

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