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Running out of Blood Vials is a common problem for new players of Bloodborne. The best places to get more changes depending on where you are in the game:
For early or mid-game characters: Central Yharnam
For late-game characters: The Nightmare of Mensis + Hunter’s Dream
We’ll explain how to prepare and carry out these farms below. Be sure to pick the farm that’s most suited for the level of your character.
Setting up the Central Yharnam Farm
Before you can begin this farm, you’ll first need to open the left gate by the Central Yharnam Lamp.
If you already have this gate open, skip ahead to the next section to begin farming Blood Vials.
The opened shortcut gate by the Central Yharnam Lamp
You’ll eventually unlock this shortcut as you naturally explore the area, but the journey to unlocking it can be sped up if you know how.
Start from the Central Yharnam Lamp, and head down the stairs to the right. Cross the small bridge here, and look to your left for a gap in the railing.
The gap in the railing, with Yharnam Main Street below
Roll off of this ledge to avoid some enemies on the main path. Deal with the enemy next to the well, and get ready for the next section.
Up ahead is the main street bonfire, surrounded by enemies. If you’re fast enough, you can avoid fighting these enemies altogether.
Your goal is to run to the left of the bonfire, up the stairs and along the catwalk until you pass under a small archway.
The stairs that lead to safety from the horde of enemies by the bonfire
Do not stop running during this section. If you slow down, you’ll have to fight your way out of the horde of enemies.
With enough speed, the Villagers won’t even have time to react to your presence before you’re already gone.
Once you’ve passed under the archway, keep running until you pass two trees. Once you reach this point, the enemies from the bonfire will no longer chase you.
An enemy stuck under the archway, viewed from the safe point past the trees
Ahead, there’ll be a huge pile of coffins, boxes, and other assorted destructible items.
Roll through these until you discover a hole in the railing behind them.
The pile of destructible items that hide the gap in the railings
Drop down through this hole and quickly kill the dogs that are locked up before they escape and attack you.
With the dogs taken care of, walk around to the left of the building to find yourself at a crossroads between two sets of stairs and a wide tunnel.
The fork in the road that leads to the tunnel and two sets of stairs
Head through the tunnel and open the door at the end to enter a darkened building.
Take care of the enemy inside and open the door opposite to where you came in to find the final area before the shortcut gate.
Walk up the steps here to finally find yourself on the other side of the Central Yharnam Lamp gate.
The shortcut gate, viewed from the side that unlocks it
You’ve done it! You’re ready to begin the farm.
Central Yharnam Blood Vial Farming
From the Central Yharnam Lamp, head through the shortcut gate to the left, walk down the stairs and kill the Villager below.
Each Villager has a decent chance to drop a couple of Blood Vials, so make sure to clear them out as you travel anywhere in Central Yharnam.
The first Villager on the farming route
Once you’re at the bottom of the stairs, walk to the left of the entrance to the darkened house, and under a viaduct that’s inhabited by two Trolls.
Walk forward carefully to (hopefully) draw the attention of only one of these Trolls, and fire a bullet as it swings its fist back to parry it.
Riposte it for an easy kill.
Each of these Trolls has a very high chance to drop 2 Blood Vials, so it’s vital that you get consistent at safely dealing with them.
2 Blood Vials, the likely reward for killing a Troll
With both Trolls dead, backtrack and enter the darkened house, taking care of the Villagers inside.
It can be hard to see them in the darkness, but you’ll know they’re all gone once you’ve defeated two on each floor.
With the residents of the house cleared out, step outside through the upstairs door, and take the steps up to the Great Bridge.
The exit that leads to the Great Bridge
Kill the Villager at the top of the stairs, then turn right to find two Werewolves roaming the bridge.
Destroy some nearby scenery to get their attention, then run back through the doorway of the darkened house.
The Werewolves will attempt to follow you into the house, getting stuck in the doorway in the process.
The Werewolves trapped in the doorway
This doorway trap will let you take care of them safely, netting you a guaranteed 3 Blood Vials for each kill.
Once you’ve killed the Werewolves, return to the Great Bridge and turn left to spot another Troll.
Inch closer until the Troll and the Crows surrounding it become aggressive, then quickly retreat to separate the enemies and make them easier to deal with.
The Troll on the Great Bridge
With the final Troll dead, walk back to the Lamp or use a Bold Hunter’s Mark to teleport there.
From the Lamp, warp to the Hunter’s Dream and back again to respawn the enemies ready for another run of the farming route.
This farm will net you about 14 Blood Vials on average – a very good number for the 5 minutes it takes to complete a run and reset the farm.
The Nightmare of Mensis + Hunter’s Dream Farm
If you find yourself running out of Blood Vials in the late-game, you may prefer to buy Blood Vials instead.
An infinite number of Blood Vials are available for purchase from the Hunter’s Dream Store, for 720 Blood Echoes each.
The Hunter’s Dream Store
To get the Blood Echoes you’ll need to pay a steep price. So for those, I recommend carrying out the famous Nightmare of Mensis Pig farm.
You can find a detailed breakdown on how to perform this farm in our Blood Echoes Farming Guide, but I’ll give you a basic overview here:
Start from the Mergo’s Loft: Middle Lamp in the Nightmare of Mensis
Follow the main path ascending through the Loft
Take out the Shadows of Yharnam
Sneak up on the giant Pig and do a charged R2 to stagger it
Quickly finish it off before it becomes dangerous
Hide behind nearby brickwork until the next two Pigs turn their backs on you
Once the Pigs split up, repeat the method you used on the first Pig on each of them
The Frenzied Pigs, the target of the Echo farm
This route gets you around 35,000 Blood Echoes a run, for a total of 48 Blood Vials each time you complete the farm.
Jack is a writer from the UK that spends too much time Nuzlocking the Pokémon series. After a crushing defeat, he relaxes by rewatching Attack On Titan in the hope that it'll make the final season come out sooner - It never does.
