Grub

Grubs are creatures found trapped in glass jars throughout Hallownest. They can be freed from their jar after which Grubfather grants a reward for each Grub that is saved.

Grubs
Description	Save all 46 Grubs
Requires	Various Defeating the Collector
Given by	Grubfather
Starts at	Grubhome
Reward(s)	Various Grubsong Grubberfly's Elegy
Achiev.	Grubfriend Metamorphosis

When close enough to their location, a faint crying noise can be heard in their general direction. The Grubs talk in high-pitched babbles and cannot be listened to.

They can be freed by breaking the jar with the Nail, after which the Grub burrows into the ground and returns to Grubfather. Obtaining the Collector's Map after beating the Collector shows the locations of unfreed Grubs on purchased Maps.

There are 46 Grubs to be found in total. Rescuing 23 or more Grubs rewards the Grubfriend achievement, while rescuing all 46 Grubs rewards the Metamorphosis achievement.

Rewards and locations

Trapped Grubs can be found all across Hallownest. Rewards are based on the total number of Grubs saved, not which Grubs have been saved.

Grubs' rewards and locations
#	Location	Map	Requires	Reward
1	Forgotten Crossroads		Defeat Husk Guard	10
2	Forgotten Crossroads		-	20
3	Forgotten Crossroads		Breakable wall	30
4	Forgotten Crossroads		Nail-bounce	40
5	Forgotten Crossroads		Mothwing Cloak (or Nail-bounce)	Mask Shard
6	Greenpath		Throw off a moss block	50
7	Greenpath		-	60
8	Greenpath		Defeat Moss Knight	70
9	Greenpath		-	80
10	Fungal Wastes		Mothwing Cloak	Grubsong
11	Fungal Wastes		Mantis Claw	90
12	City of Tears		-	100
13	City of Tears		Defeat Great Husk Sentry	110
14	City of Tears		Desolate Dive	120
15	City of Tears		-	120
16	City of Tears		Mantis Claw Monarch Wings (or Nail-bounce)	Rancid Egg
17	Crystal Peak		Mantis Claw Crystal Heart	140
18	Crystal Peak		Mothwing Cloak Mantis Claw	150
19	Crystal Peak		Mantis Claw Crystal Heart/Monarch Wings	160
20	Crystal Peak		Mothwing Cloak Monarch Wings (or Nail-bounce)	165
21	Crystal Peak		Mothwing Cloak Mantis Claw	170
22	Crystal Peak		Mothwing Cloak	180
23	Crystal Peak		Mothwing Cloak Mantis Claw Desolate Dive	Hallownest Seal
24	Resting Grounds		Desolate Dive	200
25	Royal Waterways		-	200
26	Royal Waterways		Crystal Heart Monarch Wings (or Nail-bounce)	205
27	Royal Waterways		Isma's Tear	210
28	Howling Cliffs		Mantis Claw	215
29	Kingdom's Edge		Desolate Dive	220
30	Kingdom's Edge		Mantis Claw	220
31	Fog Canyon		Crystal Heart	Pale Ore
32	Queen's Gardens		-	230
33	Queen's Gardens		Mantis Claw Crystal Heart Monarch Wings (or Nail-bounce)	235
34	Queen's Gardens		Mantis Claw	240
35	Deepnest		Mantis Claw Breakable wall	245
36	Deepnest		Mantis Claw Crystal Heart (or Nail-bounce)	250
37	Deepnest		Breakable Wall Monarch Wings/Crystal Heart	255
38	Deepnest		Mothwing Cloak Mantis Claw	King's Idol
39	Deepnest		Mothwing Cloak Mantis Claw	260
40	Ancient Basin		Mothwing Cloak Monarch Wings	265
41	Ancient Basin		Desolate Dive	270
42	The Hive		Desolate Dive Isma's Tear	280
43	The Hive		Crystal Heart Monarch Wings (or Nail-bounce)	290
44	Tower of Love		Love Key	295
45	Tower of Love		Love Key	300
46	Tower of Love		Love Key	Grubberfly's Elegy

Dream Nail Dialogue

• ...Home...

Achievements

	Grubfriend
	Rescue half of the imprisoned grubs. 5G

	Metamorphosis
	Rescue all of the imprisoned grubs. 15G

Gallery

• 

  A trapped Grub

• 

  A freed Grub

• 

  Grubhome with all Grubs

Trivia

The Vitruvian Grub

Grub Care Instructions

• It is possible to come across a Grub Mimic trapped in a glass jar that transforms and becomes hostile when freed. The easiest way to check if it is an actual Grub is to Dream Nail them. Grubs always say "...Home..." but Grub Mimics say "...Kill...", "...Empty..." or "...Other...".
• Within the Tower of Love, there is a secret area that can be accessed by jumping into a hidden gap within the ceiling along the hallway of the Grubs. This reveals a mysterious piece of art known only as the "Vitruvian Grub" in the game's files. This is likely a reference to the Leonardo da Vinci's famous drawing “The Vitruvian Man”, which represents the ideal human body proportions.
• Grubs were designed by Makoto Koji, the voice actress of Hornet and various other female characters. The Grubs were voiced by William Pellen. The Grubs' sounds are based on the Pikmin creatures' sounds from Pikmin.
• The 2017 Collector's Edition of Hollow Knight included "Grub Care Instructions", a document written by Team Cherry that included more information about Grubs.

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