A Bloodborne Frustration Thread

[Pirate Bae]

Just wanted to say thanks for all the advice in here. Really good stuff. Love this community!!!

The cat knew I was frustrated and cane to snuggle. I'm better now.

 

[Pirate Bae]

Oh, okay. Sounds like you're good.

The deal with Gascoigne is that you'll get overwhelmed if you play defensively. Punish him, stay active, don't let him corner you, try to parry.

I've had protracted, intense fights I won and lost, and fights where one of us was dead in 50 seconds.

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Yeah. Sounds like I need to play more aggressively and stop rolling backwards. Parry too.

 

[Chaos2Frozen]

I do. And it's upgraded or whatever

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I just saw your other post. Use the Threaded Cane to cheese him through the graves, during the beast mode phase you want to get out of the graveyard because all the little nook and cranny is going to get you killed dodging around. I remember running up the stairs to fight in a clearer zone.

Unfortunately this does mean you need to get good with the parry.

 

[Deleted member 3058]

Don't play defensively. Don't dodge backwards. If he attacks from your left, dodge left - through his attack, and fuck him up.
If he hits you, hit him back to heal.
While it's not essential, learning to parry will help you through the entire game. Once you get the timing down you'll feel unstoppable.
I always get hit when I use the music box. It's a cool gimmick and a nice bit of lore, but you don't need it.
Don't be too proud to summon help.

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This is the advice that I would give.

Don't dodge backwards, dodge toward him and angled to the side of the attack. Try to get just slightly behind him after an attack and punish.

And practice on parrying on the big fat bois leading to his room + the werewolves right outside his room. Really get used to that parrying timing.

And keep using the cane. Best weapon in any FROM game.

Edit: Also, I'm sure you knew this but the Threaded Cane is a Skill weapon, not a Strength weapon. That means that, while it will still deal more damage if you increase your Strength stat, it will deal substantially more damage if you prioritize the Skill stat.

 

[Korigama]

Though I used Threaded Cane plenty when I first started out (still have a good deal to go in the game after neglecting it for some time now, DLC included), it felt like that was making the game harder than it needed it be by making it my main weapon. Lots of Hunter's Axe and Ludwig's Holy Blade later for me for reach and impact, along with Boom Hammer once I got that. I'm probably going to suck again for a bit after how long it's been.

 

[Verelios]

Threaded cane and shotgun felt just right since I had speed and safety with parrying. Maybe practice parrying on the werewolves so you have a fast enemy reference.

 

[vestan]

Yeah, I concur with the others here. Always sidestep into the enemy instead of back, you're almost certain to get hit if you do. Abuse those I-frames by sidestepping into your enemies and you should be good.

Also worth mentioning that if you dodge while not locked on, you'll perform a roll instead. Locking on and dodging gets you side stepping.

 

[Cess007]

I can't wait to read your post once you've beaten him :)

As I am sure some people have mentioned, the best strategies are: learn to parry, fight in the upper part of the arena, and stock on Molotov and oil (if you just wanna get done with him, throw oil urn and some molotovs when he enters his final phase, and he will be done). Good luck!

 

[CM_Ace]

The fat dudes that drop vials are a great way to practice your visceral attacks.

 

[cgatto]

I just went through a run of the game last week to finish my platinum. It was my third time through and Father Gascoigne still gave me the most trouble out of any boss.

I've never used the music box for what it's worth. Parrying definitely helps against him. Keep trying, man. Jason Schreier just posted an article about this exact point in the game a few weeks ago. It's a turning point, once you finally conquer him.

 

[SteamyPunk]

Find the hunter outfit in the sewers or buy the one in the shop. That ups your defense a lot. Also, the molotovs are very effective.

 

[Korigama]

The fat dudes that drop vials are a great way to practice your visceral attacks.

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This factored into how I learned as well.

 

[Koddas]

Keep some distance between him and use the music box. Once he's down just smack the crap out of him, and rinse and repeat.

Similar to you I was getting my ass handed to me but after some levelling up I actually found he was super easy to beat. Currently struggling to get past the blood-starved beast at the moment.

 

[Deleted member 23046]

The game has a "save on quit" function that let you copy your save on an USB key or online, so to keep a "fresh & filled" char facing the fog door with all consumables and ammunition.

If you die during the last (beast) phase, try to use (oil &) molotov. What is really dangerous with him is his horrible jump combo. The moment you stay not too far, he will move ""normally"" with a predictive window that let you parry (in general, parry is useful with humanoid).

The "blunderbuss" (can't remember the name, it's the "shotgun" opposed to the the pistol) can be easier to find the parry windows when you are close due to bullets spread (and there is no need to upgrade your pistols for now).

But, the stairs can be also used to cheese him, as the jump on wagon. Just take the encounter as a level to of explore. After the that, the game will appear "easier" so you should keep on.

 

[gattotimo]

It has been the hardest boss in the game for me. If you're really stuck there's a way to cheese him by having him following you up the stairs, jumping down and then, before he finds his way down, attacking him while he is on the stair. He'll keep trying to attack you from the stairs instead of coming down first and you can cheese bothof his forms this way. Do it if it that's what it takes to avoid from giving up. There's a WONDERFUL game after that

 

[mnemonicj]

My younger cousin described the game as "a dance between you and your enemy", you just need to remember to not get greedy and have patience.
The satisfaction will come soon enough. Also, remember to roll.

 

[Deleted member 16908]

I'm not sure if anyone else has mentioned this yet but you can also parry him by shooting him while he's rolling. This is considerably easier than trying to shoot him when he's about to land a hit on you.

 

[super-famicom]

Yeah. Sounds like I need to play more aggressively and stop rolling backwards. Parry too.

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It's usually best to dodge into enemy attacks rather than away from them. And I'm glad to read that you're using the cane. That's my favorite weapon, and what I used on my first run. It took me a few tries to beat Gascoigne. Good luck, Hunter!

 

[Sideswipe]

I just started playing this a month or so ago and it took me a few tries to beat him. I stocked up on blood vials, bullets and then found the hunter set in the sewer area (I believe) and then I steamrolled him. Be a little more aggressive than you might think, dodge towards him and abuse the gravestones for some cheap hits if you get the chance.

I haven't played the game since I beat him though. I want to go back to it some day but it just feels like a lot of repeated content...but it feels so good to win...

 

[Tibarn]

Practice your parry and be aggressive. It will make one of the next bossfights (optional though) far more easy. But yeah, Gascoigne is one of the bosses that are hard for begginers, if you can beat him the following sections are easier.

 

[Samanosuke Akechi]

You can do it OP. It's not a race. When you beat him, you will have beaten Bloodborne: he is the hardest boss in the game.

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Really? My fiancé beat him on her second try. Took me probably 6-8 tries. Lol

I had by far the toughest time on the final boss. Took me probably around 20 tries or so. :(

 

[NightShift]

I'm kind of mad they didn't teach anything about parrying beforehand but also I'm not mad because I like it when games make me figure stuff out.

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There are tutorial messages in the Hunter's Dream that give you a general description on what you can do if you haven't noticed. Not the best way to introduce certain mechanics but they do let you figure out the specifics on your own which is nice.

 

[Tibarn]

Really? My fiancé beat him on her second try. Took me probably 6-8 tries. Lol

I had by far the toughest time on the final boss. Took me probably around 20 tries or so. :(

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It depends on the player. I struggled a lot with the Shadows, Amelia and Rom, but defeated Gherman in 2 tries or so. I'm bad with multi-enemy fights or big enemies with massive attack hitboxes, while other players struggle against fast and vicious enemies.

I remember defeating the Orphan at my first try and I consider the fight one of the easiest in BB, but most people think that is the hardest boss for some reason. So each player has a really different experience.

 

[keith]

I've been using it during his last phase.

I don't use it before that.

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OP, you have to use it during his early, human phases. It's when he turns into a beast that it becomes basically useless. During the human phases, using the music box *near* him will stun him, and leave him open to a charged R2 backstab. You can then visceral attack him by pressing R1 right up on him.

 

[IIFloodyII]

Use the grave stones to keep some distance if you need too. It doesn't work in phase 2, but makes Phase 1 easy enough. Phase 2 Music Box him once and throw all your molotovs at him.

 

[Guppeth]

OP, you have to use it during his early, human phases. It's when he turns into a beast that it becomes basically useless. During the human phases, using the music box *near* him will stun him, and leave him open to a charged R2 backstab. You can then visceral attack him by pressing R1 right up on him.

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No, it works during his beast phase and that is when it's most useful.

 

[Samanosuke Akechi]

It depends on the player. I struggled a lot with the Shadows, Amelia and Rom, but defeated Gherman in 2 tries or so. I'm bad with multi-enemy fights or big enemies with massive attack hitboxes, while other players struggle against fast and vicious enemies.

I remember defeating the Orphan at my first try and I consider the fight one of the easiest in BB, but most people think that is the hardest boss for some reason. So each player has a really different experience.

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You're very right. I've read some players have trouble with the three boss, can't remember it's name. I think I beat him in 3 tries.

I also had trouble with ROM. He took me about 10 tries.

 

[Roshin]

Father Gascoigne is admittedly a bastard. He's fast, aggressive, and he hits hard.

I'll suggest that you try to fight him on stairs, where you have some room to move around. Focus on dodging and parrying. Roll into him, not away from him. If you want to cheese him, then try to get him caught on the scenery. There are several videos on Youtube about this. Also, take your time. Chip away at him and don't get greedy. :D

I can't remember if there's a NPC summon for this fight, but if not, then maybe try to summon a player.

 

[Dante316]

This thread makes me wanna play bloodborne again but I want the pro support version!..come on Sony

 

[TheCthultist]

Not sure how much it helps but when the game came out I got real deep into it and recorded all the boss fights and how I went about beating them. They're by no means the most optimized ways to win, but they may help give you some extra ideas for tackling the mechanics.

Keep in mind these were all during the first week or two the game was out, so there are ABSOLUTELY better ways to beat them and much better gear than what I went with. Switching it up may help. The advice others have already given you is probably way more useful.

 

[Tibarn]

You're very right. I've read some players have trouble with the three boss, can't remember it's name. I think I beat him in 3 tries.

I also had trouble with ROM. He took me about 10 tries.

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The three bosses are Shadow of Yharnam, it was one of the hardest for me in my first run mostly because the Snakes BS and how they keep it safe most of the time. On my second run I only struggled against 2 DLC bosses (it was my first time playing the DLC): Ludwig aka massive hitboxes and Lawrence aka infinite health pool.

 

[Deleted member 4494]

Really? My fiancé beat him on her second try. Took me probably 6-8 tries. Lol

I had by far the toughest time on the final boss. Took me probably around 20 tries or so. :(

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If there is any boss in the game capable of making a player question whether or not they are even capable of finishing the game, I personally believe yes. The reasoning is relatively simple: it's not expected, nor should it be so early in the game, that a player has developed some amount of mastery with the game systems. If you've never played a From game before, you will almost certainly struggle with the systems and the fact that it is an unconventional boss fight / introductory fight (assuming one didn't fight Cleric beast as their first encounter), and even if you have, Bloodborne is, frankly, different. That being said, beginners luck is a thing: many people I know have killed Father Gascoigne without issue, finished the game, went back for a replay and struggled for an hour on the same fight.

I certainly expect OP will struggle on other bosses in Bloodborne, but it won't cross their mind at that point that beating it is a matter of "if", but "when."

 

[keith]

No, it works during his beast phase and that is when it's most useful.

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I guess it depends on your style; you can't use it more than two or three times against human Gascoigne without it transforming him prematurely, but I've always gotten the most use out of it in his first and second phases. Let's me combo/visceral him into beast form faster, and I can just spam molotovs right as he changes for a quick kill.
I really only recommended using the box during the first half because OP said it wasn't working consistently for them, and that they were only trying in his later phase.

 

[Snormy]

I've leveled up, I (was) stocked on blood vials, I've got my weapon upgraded. I've tried beating him with several weapons, in fact.

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For the most part armor isn't all that useful however the clothes you start out with are horrible compared to pretty much anything else in the game. There is free armor set you can loot but you can also buy some from the shop.

The key is to not be greedy. Read his moves, gauge the window between his movements/attacks and work on positioning closer so you can land a hit or two before escaping again. If you have any fire bombs, they might also help you. Familiarising with parry will go a long way in the game but isn't strictly necessary to beat the game either.

 

[Cess007]

You're very right. I've read some players have trouble with the three boss, can't remember it's name. I think I beat him in 3 tries.

I also had trouble with ROM. He took me about 10 tries.

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You mean Shadows of Yharnam? I beat him on my first try. Vicar Amelia on the other hand took me around 20 tries lol

 

[Tirisfal]

You can do it OP. It's not a race. When you beat him, you will have beaten Bloodborne: he is the hardest boss in the game.

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I know it's good to give hope but saying he is the hardest in the game is just false, by a huge degree.

OP, the boss is very aggressive but he does leave himself open a lot. Parrying will make him a lot easier to deal with but it's not necessary to beat him. Just watch lots of YouTube vids to see how others handle him, then go in with your own game plan.

Good luck, I hope you make it to the end of one of the best games ever made!

 

[Deleted member 4494]

I know it's good to give hope but saying he is the hardest in the game is just false, by a huge degree.

OP, the boss is very aggressive but he does leave himself open a lot. Parrying will make him a lot easier to deal with but it's not necessary to beat him. Just watch lots of YouTube vids to see how others handle him, then go in with your own game plan.

Good luck, I hope you make it to the end of one of the best games ever made!

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When you're struggling in the way OP is, the battle isn't just one of execution; the boss is firmly in their head at the moment, and the amount of crushing insecurity that produces is a part of the larger war that is conquering the game. Setting aside the fact that, for me, it was indeed the hardest boss, and accepting that different people will struggle on different things, I suspect that OP will find that once they beat this boss, the others will come easier, and this early experience will teach them more than any of the other bosses about how to be successful at the game.

 

[VanDoughnut]

Such a good boss. This one's a matter of "clicking" and yeah I died a lot getting stuck on gravestones too, you gotta keep your surroundings in mind.
The last phase is tricky, but once you get the hang of it you'll be surprised how fast you're able to react to things.
You can do it OP, hang in there.

 

[Laughing Banana]

Just started Bloodborne for the first time. I have been trying to fucking beat Father whatever his fuck his name is and I can't do it. Probably like four hours worth of me preparing and losing. I've leveled up, I (was) stocked on blood vials, I've got my weapon upgraded. I've tried beating him with several weapons, in fact.

I can get him down to his last fucking phase but then he just....ughufhfhushdhddh. I can't even move. I keep getting stuck between the fucking gravestones and it honestly makes me want to break my game disk.

Am I doing something wrong? Do I just suck? Should I give up now? The game is fine. I'm just convinced that I'm garbage.


(I'll be updating this thread as I play through the game as I'm sure to continue to be pissed off)

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Here's how I did the fight, OP, maybe there's a thing or two that you can gleam from this.

 

[poptire]

I look forward to OP going to bed tonight and waking up and the game just "clicks", then Gasc goes down on the first attempt.

 

[dom]

This is blatantly false. OP learn to parry. It will make your life SO much easier in this game. Especially end game.

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That is absolutely true and the basis of Souls combat.

 

[AlexBasch]

Uninstall the game or ask for a refund if you can't beat him on your second try, you're bad OP.

(I say this as someone who took like fucking days to beat the boss at the bridge
but Gascoigne was like a walk in the park for me. I tried to do a Bloodborne replay and can't beat that bridge beast again lol)

 

[Rafroel]

OP, I was on the same boat as you two years ago. Parry, use the Music Box, and run up the stairs to avoid getting caught in the gravestones.
If you get past this, you'll love the rest! Game of the generation for me.

 

[Cavsfan767]

Any luck? You will get eventually, stay strong.

 

[Melchiah]

I can get him down to his last fucking phase but then he just....ughufhfhushdhddh. I can't even move. I keep getting stuck between the fucking gravestones and it honestly makes me want to break my game disk.

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Move to the upper level during the last phase, learn to parry, and/or use molotovs. You can even cheese him by throwing a molotov when he follows you up there, then return to the lower level from the other side, run up the stairs again, rinse & repeat. It's not that hard.

Here's how I did it at level 17, using the parry method:

 

[Donos]

Warms my heart that Father G is still teaching fools to git gud :)

 

[Tirisfal]

When you're struggling in the way OP is, the battle isn't just one of execution; the boss is firmly in their head at the moment, and the amount of crushing insecurity that produces is a part of the larger war that is conquering the game. Setting aside the fact that, for me, it was indeed the hardest boss, and accepting that different people will struggle on different things, I suspect that OP will find that once they beat this boss, the others will come easier, and this early experience will teach them more than any of the other bosses about how to be successful at the game.

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Oh I agree for sure that once this boss can be beaten, you've definitely learned all you need to destroy the game but in my opinion the challenge is still there.

Orphan of kos. In no world can I see anyone but extreme outliers saying this boss is easier than father. This is under the assumption we are doing these bosses at the appropriate stage and not overleveled to shit.

Heck, forget bosses, even the bloody crow of cainhurst is way harder.

 

[TheCthultist]

Warms my heart that Father G is still teaching fools to git gud :)

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It's part of what makes these my absolute favorite threads on gaming side. We get at least one a year now and every time it winds up going from frustration to love of the game as the community shows how much fun it can be to have a bunch of people cheering you on as you go through this game. And every time, it's Papa G that kicks things off.

 

[Marble]

Just gid gud, use the music box, use fire and use parry. The first time he took me 30 tries. In NG++++ he took me about 30 seconds and I wasn't even happy with this fight. Very sloppy.

 

[super-famicom]

Uninstall the game or ask for a refund if you can't beat him on your second try, you're bad OP.

(I say this as someone who took like fucking days to beat the boss at the bridge
but Gascoigne was like a walk in the park for me. I tried to do a Bloodborne replay and can't beat that bridge beast again lol)

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What an unhelpful post. You're joking, right?