FromSoftware titles are famous for having deep, somewhat ambiguous lore, and Bloodborne is no exception. The story given to players barely scratches the surface, and uncovering the truth of what's happening in Yharnam requires a lot of extra work. Item descriptions and scraps of dialogue throughout Bloodborne are the major tools at fans' disposal for piecing together the full narrative. One element where this is especially true is the nature of what players came to Yharnam in search of: the Paleblood.
Bloodborne is fueled by speculation and rumor. Even five years after its release, there isn't a concrete answer to what everything in the game actually means. That said, it's still worth noting that massive spoilers for Bloodborne are required to discuss Paleblood. This trend is common in FromSoftware games and starts off early in Bloodborne. After the mysterious blood ministration contract is signed and sealed, players wakes on a medical cot in Iosefka's Clinic. There, among the scattered notes and medical equipment, is a handwritten note that references the search for Paleblood. It's especially confusing for Western audiences because of a translation error that doesn't make it obvious this note was written by the player character.
Seeking the Paleblood in Bloodborne
Players are then thrust into the streets of Yharnam, and usually begin their journey in Bloodborne by dying before choosing a weapon in the Hunter's Dream. Continuing into Central Yharnam for answers becomes a battle for survival as the twisted citizens atttack on sight, accusing the player of being the source of a plague. The first clue as to where to find Paleblood, or even what it is, comes from interacting with an NPC often referred to as Gilbert through a window. The man is clearly ill, but points players toward the Healing Church. While he doesn't know what Paleblood is, he suggests that the Healing Church would know given their studies in blood ministration.
Much like the player, Gilbert is an outsider, so his ignorance about Paleblood is understandable. It's a long time before any more answers about the Paleblood can be obtained beyond the note in the first room suggesting to, "Seek the Paleblood to transcend the hunt." The hunt itself is something players find themselves embroiled in, and with each death they return to the Hunter's Dream before forging out into the "waking world." This is one of the religious/mystical allegories used throughout Bloodborne, with the idea of rebirth and ascension to godhood mirroring some of the key themes in Kabbalah and other traditions of Western mysticism.
The next mention of Paleblood isn't until later in the game, but small inferences can still be drawn from what players learns up to that point. It becomes clear that the Healing Church, whose feud with the hosts at Castle Cainhurst is central to Bloodborne, was focused on ascending to the same status of the Great Ones. It's theorized by some that Paleblood is the purest form of a Great One's blood, something that would be useful to the Healing Church, but this doesn't square up with some of the Healing Church's endeavors. As it becomes clear that the elders of the Healing Church had come to "fear the old blood," it's possible that Paleblood was a reference to the same substances that had driven so many members of the Healing Church mad. Again, this seems less likely than Paleblood being a distinct substance or entity as other clues point toward.
What the Paleblood Could Be in Bloodborne
Another big point of contention online around Paleblood is the nature of Formless Oedon. As its name suggests, Oedon is without a form in the material world, but a central component of the greater cosmic horror in Bloodborne is that the Great Ones are still organisms who wish to procreate in order to propagate their existence. Oedon is no exception. Oedon's Chapel is a safe place, as safe as anywhere in Bloodborne can be, where players can send certain NPCs in order to weather the night of the hunt. It's here that an NPC named Annalise ends up meeting her end after apparently being impregnated by Formless Oedon.
Later stages of the game can have players discover the NPC away from her normal seat in the chapel by following a trail of blood, and at her feet rests a dead infant Great One. This leads to the idea that Paleblood might be the blood of Oedon, as he was able to cross the veil enough to conceive a child; or that Annalise is tied to a bloodline going back to Queen Yharnam which is able to conceive the child of a Great One. These are solid contenders for the true nature of Paleblood, especially given the Healing Church, Byrgenwerth College, and (seemingly) the Vilebloods of Cainhurst all aim to bring an infant Great One into the world.
After defeating Rom the Vacuous Spider, who is a failed attempt to transform a mortal into a Great One, a major clue as to the nature of Paleblood is revealed. Rom was maintaining a secret ritual that blinded the player and other NPCs throughout Yharnam to the true horrors around them. After one of Bloodborne's more difficult boss fights, the moon pulls closer to the Earth before seeming to drain the color from the sky with a note reading, "Behold! A Paleblood sky!" Enemy patterns change yet again, and now the previously invisible Amygdalas are seen to have been towering over the player throughout the entire game. This is generally pointed to as one of the two best interpretations of Paleblood. The idea is that in order to transcend (and put an end to) the hunt, one had to uncover the secret ritual and expose the truth.
The other major theory about Paleblood comes with the main game's final boss. Much like with Bloodborne's rarest items, an easy-to-miss note in the Nightmare Lecture Hall reveals the closest thing there is to a direct explanation of Paleblood. The note reads, "The nameless moon presence beckoned by Laurence and his associates. Paleblood." Laurence was one of the first Healing Church members to lose himself to the old blood and become a beast. He and his subordinates sought out the Great One referred to as Flora the Moon Presence. The way the note is written leaves room for interpretation, but it seems the scholar who had left the note was referring to the Moon Presence as Paleblood. Like everything else in Bloodborne, there's still mystery around Paleblood, but enough diligent players have sought the Paleblood to give others some solid clues.
Bloodborne is available now on PS4.
