Everyone who has played a FromSoftware game will be able to identify at least a few obscure or less-explained mechanics that can influence crucial parts of a game, and Bloodborne is arguably the title released by this legendary game developer that contains the most secrets and mysteries.
When exploring the beast and vermin-infested landscape, brave hunters will slowly accumulate an enigmatic resource called Insight, which can do a wide variety of things, the most important of which is the effect gained by obtaining a single Insight, which allows one's perception of Hunter's Dream, the player's in-game home, to shift.
Because of this, and what happens after gaining more and more Insight, hunters will want to seek out as much of it as possible as early as possible. However, before going into the best early-game places to harvest this ethereal mental currency, here's a rundown of how the different thresholds of Insight affect the gameplay.
All Insight Effects In Bloodborne By Total Insight Level
1 Insight
- The Insight Bath Messengers become available in Hunter's Dream
- The Plain Doll comes to Life in Hunter's Dream
- A group of Messengers will spawn next to the Plain Doll in Hunter's Dream and will give the player the Beckoning Bell and Silencing Blank items
- Mad Ones will spawn in the boss fight with the Witch of Hemwick (unavoidable, since discovering this boss is guaranteed to grant 1 Insight to the player)
15 Insight
- The Church Doctors with lamps in the Cathedral Ward area will now be able to shoot projectiles
- The Church Doctors with scythes and crosses in the Cathedral Ward area will now possess a buff on their weapons
- Gehrman can be heard sleeptalking in Hunter's Dream
- Mad Ones may spawn in the Hemwick Carnal Lane area
30 Insight
- Winter Lantern enemies can be heard from further away
40 Insight
- Lesser Amygdala will become visible in all areas where they naturally live
50 Insight
- There will be audio and visual changes in Hunter's Dream
60 Insight
- In all areas except Hunter's Dream, the player will now occasionally hear the crying of a baby
How To Gain Early Insight From Madman's Knowledge
The most controlled way to gain Insight without farming particular enemies and areas is to consume Madman's Knowledge items, which each grant 1 Insight after destroying the skull leaking cosmic secrets. The early areas with the most Madman's Knowledge to be looted are Central Yarnham and Cathedral Ward.
Locations Of All Madman's Knowledge In Central Yarnham
- 1 Found in the sewer area by some boats and rat enemies
- 1 Found on a corpse surrounded by crow enemies near the fountain plaza sub-area after climbing up a ladder from the sewers
Locations Of All Madman's Knowledge In Cathedral Ward
- 1 Found in the plaza near the first Lamp of the area just outside Oedon Chapel
- 2 Found near the lever opening the tomb
- 5 Found on corpses and debris in the circular plaza housing 2 Chapel Giant enemies
How To Gain Early Insight From Bosses
Reason To Farm Chalice Dungeon Bosses For Insight
Most of the time, players will gain 1 or more Insight both when they discover and defeat a boss. This guaranteed way to find Insight will be useful, however, since the main game bosses can only be discovered and defeated once each, this severely limits any farming potential.
How To Get The First Chalice
That is until hunters defeat the Blood-Starved Beast and acquire the first Chalice in the game, where, upon placing it in Hunter's Dream, one will be able to explore infinitely randomized areas. In these Chalice Dungeons, players can repeatedly farm the same bosses over and over to gain Blood Echoes, Blood Gems, as well as precious Insight.
Tips For Defeating The Undead Giant Boss In Chalice Dungeons
Despite being a bit tricky to deal with due to high damage output, the Undead Giant is one of the least deadly bosses to be found in any Chalice Dungeon. Their predictable attacks, while powerful, are telegraphed more than that of most other enemies, so dodging them will become easier after a few tries, especially if one decides to stay being the big brute as much as possible. Furthermore, this large foe has 3 lumpy growths on its body (1 on each leg and 1 on its left shoulder) which can be exploded after a few hits each to deal great damage to the Undead Giant.
The Most Efficient Yet Masochistic Way To Farm Insight
Just outside of Oedon Chapel, through the left exit from this area's Lamp, most players may not realize that the nearly invisible force that harms the player and inflicts them with the frenzy status near the beginning of the Cathedral Ward area is actually a Lesser Amygdala grabbing them. While this can definitely be classified as an area trap more than an enemy interaction (the hunter cannot hurt this Lesser Amygdala, even after gaining enough Insight to see it), one can still use it to their advantage.
Every time that this Lesser Amygdala grabs the player, in addition to hurting them and inflicting the frenzy status effect, it also gives them 1 Insight. Hunters can willingly subject themselves to this cosmic torment before heading back into the nearby Oedon Chapel to heal before they repeat the process by returning to the same bit of fence next to the tombstones near the right of the spot beneath the stairs leading upward. Oddly, yet aptly, this is not unlike what it seems some NPCs and enemies have done to gain more knowledge and power.