Bloodborne: Byrgenwerth to Rom

Our Bloodborne guide continues through Byrgenwerth to do battle with Rom, the Vacuous Spider.

Bloodborne leads naturally down into Byrgenwerth at the end of the Shadow of Yharnam boss battle, so if you haven't been to this lantern yet, check back on our Shadow of Yharnam boss battle guide for directions.

After the last section proved to be an absolute marathon, you'll be pleased to learn that the path to the next boss is a more manageable chunk. In this section we'll find a bunch of great items, too.

Start by heading downhill from the lantern to battle a Tree Mutant. You'll be seeing a lot of these guys; try not to let them do their jump attack, which has a pretty high chance of tipping you over the buffer into Frenzy status if you get hit more than once. If you can't dodge their jump attack, equip your best resist gear and hope for the best.

Head along the path to the left towards an open area. There are two Tree Mutants here; one is in the far left and another is patrolling on the the stairs. Take them both down then go up the stairs, and then up the next set ahead on the left, too. There's an Infected up here; sneak up on it for a Charged Attack ad Backstrike. You can then grab the Arcane Lake Rune before heading back down and swinging left into the lower area.

Head on down the next set of stairs, and the move slowly and cautiously to the right. There's an item against the wall on the left, but as you get close two Tree Mutants will ambush from above. You really don't want them both jumping at once or you'll be Frenzied for sure, so back away a bit and let one jump before weighing in. When they're dead, there's a Madman's Knowledge for your pains.

Moving ahead into the next area you will encounter a Giant Insect Mutant. Don't underestimate these guys; they shoot devastating twin fireballs and have a bunch of nasty grab and slash attacks. Stay behind them as much as possible. Once you are victorious, look around and ahead for a Great One's Wisdom before moving to the far end of the area to battle a Tree Mutant near five Sedatives.

Turn back around go back, aiming for the area on the left. There's a lever here you can pull to open a shortcut through the gate. Take the doorway on the right and aggro the Hunter, pulling her off the stairs and down to the lower level where you have room to fight her without getting caught on the geometry when you dodge.

She's not easy to beat; she has a Threaded Cane, as well as a tentacle and a mist spray. This last is especially deadly; it can stun you. She does a three-hit melee combo, and she is very hard to interrupt during this, so wait for the third strike to start your own attack. However, it's her magic blast that you really need to watch out for; wait until the light beams start to move towards you before you dodge a few times in a row. If you dodge as soon as they appear, they'll track you, and you may run out of Stamina for dodging before they finish.

You can cheese this fight a little bit. Start by killing the Tree Mutant between the last two lanterns, and the one in front. When you enter the room, turn right and run to the closed, trapdoor, then as soon as you're standing on it turn around and run under the stars. Stand perfectly still in front of the chest and listen. When you hear the Hunter's footsteps stop, walk very slowly up the stairs and use a Charged Attack on her, followed by a Backstrike. Then leg it all the way back past the Lantern and the dead Tree Mutant. Wait about 30 seconds, assuming she hasn't followed you, then walk very slowly back. You can usually get her like this three times before she refuses to go back to her starting position.

Once she's down, look around the entrance to this area for a chest with a Pearl Slug, then go to the far side and open the door for another shortcut. Upstairs, go right for another chest with the Student Uniform and Student Trousers, as well as a note. On the far side of the room is another note, and further on a ladder. Climb up, grab the Lunarium Key, go up the stairs and kill the Tree Mutant. Now you can open the chest nearby for an Empty Phantasm Shell.

Now that you have the Lunarium Key you can open a door on the second floor; it's on the far side after you go back down one story. Behind the door is a friendly NPC you can talk to before jumping off the ledge. No, really; that's how you get to Moonside Lake for the Rom, the Vacuous Spider boss battle.

Note that the defeat of Rom marks a turning point in the game; make sure you've done everything you want to do in previously visited locations before proceeding. You may wish to make sure you've done everything required for the secret extra ending, if you want to see it on this playthrough.

Back to Bloodborne guide and walkthrough.