C18: Old Yharnam PT 2, How could I let this happen.
A small heads up: When I began this part in the game and ran past every single item and enemy to make sure I had concrete details of enemies and items. Even got lost momentarily and activated the shortcut near Djura by accident (the ladder and door which leads to just outside the top of the cathedral where you face hundreds of beast patients and get your first ritual blood).
still only at c23 on patreon but c24 will be released shortly after this.
pub: 12/6/2025
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Not caring much for the tedious travel that would have taken me to the bottom of old Yharnam I chose to head inside the newly unlocked tower. Walking in front, I find nothing here except stairs leading either up or down. I know that there is not much else up so I check there first and find a corpse with 2 fire paper.
Coming down, I go down a level from where I had originally started from and took a side path where I found a blood stone shard x 1 and then just barely dodged a claw swipe from another beast patient (male). I took it down in three hits before making my way down again.
The next level had nothing except a hole in the center platform which I did not want to go into so I just kept walking down and arrived at the first floor.
On the steps I took out another beast patient and then found a scourge beast (werewolf, look-reminder). I openly stepped out and the beast for some reason charged into the door, breaking it open instead of towards me.
"Is it dumber than the rest?" I question, not paying it too much mind as I rush in and begin to wail on it. It does unfortunately get a lucky bite on me and it does cause me to recoil in the enhanced 120% pain sensation I currently had due to my pain resistance skill being at level 4 and taking out 80% from the doubled pain sensation.
Thankfully the beast didn't continue it's attack after the initial bite into my left arm which forced me to drop my gun. Thankfully my body recovered automatically and I simply finished off this beast to recover my health. Gaining a very hefty fine from the beast. I immediately spot the other just down the street, to my left, and charge at it.
Taking down the side beast, I go down the side path on my right from the main road that would have taken me back to upper Old Yharnam. Walking past a few very densely barricaded buildings, I find another corpse and this one has 6 beast blood pellets.
My game knowledge on them is quite shallow, I know they increase damage but nothing really else, no clue on it's timer, how much of an increase but frankly, it feels like a trap to even touch them as my curse title also mentions beasthood a bunch. I feel it's the same situation as my blood vials so I cant use them either. Though I also know that these pills cost alot, so should the case be that I am able to get rid of my curse, I will not sell them like the vials.
Making my way back to the main road, I go down the intended path and take care of another scourge beast as well as another patient that scared me from some pretty obvious fog.
The fog gave me a new idea, So I look up my total echoes and it has risen to a crispy 10.9k. Up till now, with my harvest to reach Old Yharnam and the initial exploration. I faced my bad luck and lost a handful of echoes due to the curse affecting the first chunk and leaving me around 3200 and then the few beasts I hunted in the tower and street landed me another 4398 after a happy double positive from my curse.
I choose to look through the skill store and find what Im looking for after a few minutes.
[Target Lock: 4k BE- Allows the user to target onto creatures based on proximity rather than vision. Can only target one creature at a time.]
"Sucks that I have to buy a basic game mechanic but it makes sense. Though I do wonder, could this turn into some sort of radar skill if I evolve it?" I get into the deep of it as my imagination runs wild about the possible implications of this skill leveling up, if at all.
With barely a tear in my eye, I pay the 4k and get the skill. Leaving me with just 6,957 echoes. Just barely enough for one level in my current state. Though at this point, it's cheaper for me to just pay 3k for each minor boost and then 7k for a whole stat, for manually upgrading my physique skill than to pay for levels that are unknown if i would even get.
The loss of 8 whole levels into the unknown void which is my curse is truly tearing at my heart but it's best I press on before a beast physically tears at me.
Walking down the main road, I collect a sack of 10 bullets as well as another set of antidotes. Walking up the stairs. I find another set leading down now but I barely catch a glimpse of a right side side-path. Walking through it, I nearly bust again as I collect another 2 bold hunters marks.
If anyone was to question his 'proclivities' then please understand that with each one he is getting a strategic resource on the level of nukes as these can be extremely useful for farming or escaping at no cost. Especially since he is just randomly picking them up.
Walking back, I head down the stairs into a field of trees and burning stakes releasing tons of smoke rising up into the night sky. I find a dull red glowing sigil on the floor. Approaching it, I find words hovering above the ground.
[Summon Albert?] I get a system prompt as i shrug and do so by taking out my beckoning bell and ringing it while standing over the sigil.
[-1 insight for summoning a hunter to your location]
"Wait what, this shit uses insight. No one I was always low on insight in my playthrough, the god damned dungeons drained me dry" I explode in confusion and then revelation as I learned the truth of the matter. Im still pissed but at least I know that it wasnt some bug or glitch. Regardless Ill see if I try to do this again in the future since insight is a valuable resource for buying cheap skills and other items due to Nugget man.
-sigh-. I look around and find a glowing spot, for the sake of testing out my new skill. I activate it and automatically lock onto a figure hidden in behind a burning corpse on a stake.
I rush in and deal with the beast patient before collecting the blood dew (3). In the meantime, Alred appears with a KirkHammer in hand, He begins to follow me but soon gets side tracked.
In confusion, I activate the targeting skill again and get redirected to another hidden beast patient, two of them in fact and another glowing item set up behind the cover of rocks and smoke.
Alfred gets hit a bit as he was in front of me but I quickly take care of the second one while the first was stuck on Alfred. I then collect the item and it's another cold blood dew (3). Finding nothing else amongst the smoke.
[Dark vision level 1 has gained enough experience, level 2 achieved]
I'm nearly flash banged as my vision brightens up, allowing me to take in more of my environment, I can even slightly see through the smoke. It seems to enhance my vision in general rather than a single usage skill for being able to see in darkness.
[Challenge mode activated: What level up to NG+ x 100 would you like to set as the following bosses level?]
I ponder, This boss is also optional like the cleric beast but I want the chalices, would serve as resource management as well as an echo farm. Thinking this through, I realize that if the challenge mode applies to all bosses then I can farm the easy ones from the dungeons. With that in mind, I select the difficulty.
"NG +1" I proclaim and the fog wall rises as the world shifts once more. I still want better rewards though if it's not obvious, I just can't learn my lesson. My only issue would be limited resources such as the blood cocktails since im not sure if I can even buy them for echoes or not but they are as usual, too expensive in the system store, even by my infinite insight measures as it costs 15k which equals 15 insight…for one cocktail.
Alfred doesnt say much as we move into the cathedral. I spot a beast at the distant altar but neither of us rush in. We take slow and measured steps as we quickly check our gear to make sure everything is fine. I also keep the blood cocktails in my quick slot. But before the fight properly starts, I apply the fire paper to my weapon.
In my playthrough, I never used the blood cocktail and just bulldozed through the boss with Alfred but as a hunter, I now know that its power is the same as the Alluring Skull in the dark soul series.
As we approach, I get a better look at the beast, Quadrupedal like the scourge beast but it's head seems to be missing, at least at first glance but it is actually hidden underneath a large amount of melted flesh flaps dripping with viscous liquid. It's whole body slimy like it took a bath in a swamp though it might just be pus due to ya know, the skin melting, it certainly smells like a swamp though so it's a 50-50 toss at which you choose as the right answer.
As we near the beast, the Blood Starved Beast senses our presence, it locks onto me immediately due to my 'presence', but I redirect its attention as I throw out one blood cocktail at the nearby wall. It stops its charge at me to begin sniffing towards the wall. I follow up with a molotov cocktail which does cause it to recoil but it remains infatuated with where the bottle spilled and doesnt seem to pay it any attention as it continues towards the scent of blood.
Click.
I extend my weapon and charge up a heavy blow as I also lock on, the attack lands smack dab on its ass, knocking it on its belly as it's stunned.
"Aim for its legs. Crush them, lest it enters a frenzy and chases us" I command Alfred who simply nods as he wields his hammer and is about to land blow after blow while I shove my fist up the slimy beast's burnt crispy ass.
[Visceral attack has leveled up. Level 4 -> level 5]
SHEESH Click
Moving on, I retract my blade to increase my speed as I deliver at least 3 strikes against it's left leg while Alfred goes for the right one. As Alfred was the last to hit it, the beast finally snaps out of it's revere and lands a few hefty blows on the summoned hunter but he isn't down for the count just yet.
I toss another bottle in the meantime which re-attracts it's attention once more. I knock it down with a visceral and then we both wail on it until Alfred breaks it's leg in two. Causing it's every step to now stumble which has a chance to cause it to recoil in pain.
I toss a molotov and then a blood cocktail which does momentarily attract it's attention but thankfully not before I tossed the second cocktail which got its attention again.
Together, we were able to get the beasts other leg broken and stumbling, essentially forcing it to jump via its knees or crawl towards us which certainly slowed it down greatly.
SCREEE
Yet it was all for naught as what looks like an oil spill of pus began to be ejected from its back/skin flaps. I backed off while Alfred continued the charge and got poisoned as a result. I momentarily didn't use the blood cocktails as I only had three left by now. Not sure how effective they would be while the beast was in a rage.
Crack crack.
I paled as I saw both legs snap back into place. Hiding behind a pillar, and activating my scent masking, I use up my remaining 6k echoes and 2 insight to buy Lesser Stealth Steps.
With this skill, I am now able to 'walk' unhurriedly with less sound. With both skills combined, I am able to momentarily sneak up behind the aggrieved beast and heavily smack its bum.
It collapses like before but with the few drops landing on me already making me feel horribly sick but I don't feel the hollow sensation in my chest rising at all so I assume Im not afflicted yet.
As such, With great disagreement between my body and mind, I fist the beast of pestilence, up it's ass….again.
I then choose to just 'walk' away, very slowly, very quietly, and most importantly, unseen.
[Minor Stealth Steps level 1 has gained the necessary experience. Level 1 -> level 2, current effect, -20% noise when walking]
Hiding behind a pillar, I find the brave Alfred still charging at the beast and getting it's attention. At this point, i do notice the poison volume greatly decreasing as the blood starved beast's rage seemed to lessen after being stunned.
'Wait, blood starved?' I pause as the nugget man title seems to let it's true passive ability activate, making me brain dead.
I raise my blade and cut my hand a bit which I grunt at but I can feel a change in the atmosphere. The beast stopped, it's moves seemingly mechanical as it slowly turned towards me. I caught sight of its tiny head compared to the flaps over it. It's eyes locking onto me with complete ease as my skills for scent masking and stealth steps are invalidated.
It begins to stumble towards me and I towards it. As we reach close enough together, I show my bloodied hand and it lowers it's head towards my hand but as a hunter, and gamer, my body moves instinctively again as I don't just openly feed the beast that was moments ago trying to kill me and the ghost of Alfred.
No, I attempt to actively initiate a Visceral attack even when the situation would typically allow it.
As such, my bloodied hand is shoved into the slightly enlarged mouth of the BSB. Mentally, I swap to the vileblood title.
At first, the beast seems to squirm in the inconceivable interruption but as the blood enters it's system, it's placated. Then something interesting happens.
The beasts wounds gradually heal. No, not just the ones me and Alfred gave it but it's very melted flesh. It gradually reattaches itself to it's body and then even bulks up a bit. I pull my hand out finally as I watch the results.
[Warning, Blood Starved Beast has consumed cursed blood and gained strength as a result. Increasing Difficulty to NG +3.]
'Fuck you skipping over two like that. But what is actually going on with it? The cleric beast didn't change its appearance like this.'
[Ding]
[Congratulations Host, You have obtained a Title and New achievement. Beast Tamer & Successful Beast Tamer]
"Say what now"
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Word Count = 2765
Enjoy
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