Bloodborne: Lecture Building and Nightmare Frontier

Our Bloodborne walkthrough continues through the Lecture Building hub to an optional but lucrative zone.

Bloodborne contains several optional bosses and zones but if you're powerful enough to take them on the rewards are worth the effort. We'll be visiting one of these in this section of the guide.

We start in The One Reborn boss arena; if you took a side trip to defeat the Darkbeast Paarl, you'll need to return to the Advent Plaza Lantern. Go up the stairs here and examine the dead body at the top to be transported to the Lecture Building.

Lecture Building

Hopefully you've never been here before; you can actually be transported here if you're caught in a Giant Being's portal, but you should have avoided that fate following this guide. The Lecture Building features two paths. One leads to the final zone and end boss, while the other takes you to optional zone Nightmare Frontier (also accessible via the Tonsil Stone). That's where we're headed today - after we've scoped out the local sights, eh?

Light the Lecture Building 2nd Floor Lantern, then take the nearby door to face some Graduate enemies. These are the local grunts, and while they have long reach, a projectile attack and high stun resistance, they're not a bother otherwise and are pretty slow.

Cross to the far end of the hall to fight a Reaper, then head right and take out another couple of Graduates, who will fire on you at range. they're guarding a Blood Stone Chunk.

There are a bunch of doors here so pay attention to directions. The first door you want is directly opposite the door to the Lantern; here you'll find six Sedatives and a Graduate who ambushes you from above when you move to leave; a Pebble or gun shot will bring him down on your schedule.

The next door we want is clockwise of the doorway to the Lantern; take the first passage to the left and through the door at the end. There's another Graduate hanging out on a ceiling to your right, as well as another Graduate further along the balcony, along with a note. Go through the door here and then the next to return to the main hall.

From where you entered the hall again, turn clockwise again and take the next door on the left to find a note on a table and the door to the Nightmare of Mensis, which we'll come to later. Don't worry, you'll know this path when you see it; the door is glowing purple.

Go to the end of the hall where you fought the Reaper and look to the right to see another door, which you should pass through. Go through the next door too, then across the balcony and through another door to a chest with a Communion Rune.

Back in the Reaper's territory, take the ladder down. There's a Mutant Spider here (whyyyyyy) which you need to be very careful of. Approach it and give it one quick smack then back the heck off to avoid the portal. You can then talk to it to receive a gesture, and if you keep chatting and tell him you don't think he;s so bad he'll give you a decent Anti-Clockwise Metamorphosis Rune.

Take the next door and continue through to the following one. Open it and go very cautiously in, backpedalling like a champ when the portal starts to open. You can then get to the Lecture Building Lantern. Nothing else to do here for now, so go back out and continue along the corridor.

Go through the first door on the left and then the next one ahead of you. There's a Graduate in this room, as well as the Lecture Theatre Key and another Student Uniform attire set.

Take the door at the other end of the room and you'll be back in familiar territory. Bit of a warren, innit? Turn right and go about halfway along the hall, locating the first doorway on the left. As soon as you open this you'll be attacked by a bunch of Graduates, and it's best to take them out in the choke point of the door. When they're down, go inside to find a few more Graduates on the right, in front of the door you want to take. There's a chest here with the Augur of Ebrietas. the door to the right of the chest will take you back to the main hall. Thankfully we're done here; just go on down to the far end of the hall and take the other glowing purple door.

Nightmare Frontier

Passing through the door delivers you to the Nightmare Frontier. Welcome! Light the Nightmare Frontier Lantern immediately.

Go through the opening ahead and move to the edge of the cliff to spot an Imp running away on the left, which you should murder for its sweet upgrade materials. Once it is down, go up the hill on the left, grabbing a Madman's Knowledge on the left near the top, before the Werebeast. Sneak up on this guy for a Charged Attack and Backstrike. When it's dead, go a little to the right and drop down to score two Lead Elixirs - these are currently a hot item in PvP meta, so hold on to them.

On the path ahead you'll meet two more Werebeasts; you can sneak up on the stationary one if you let the patrolling one move away. Keep going forwards, passing a green lantern on your way up the hill on the left to fight two Hunters.

As ever these are formidable foes. Try to pull one away so you can fight them individually, but if they both rush you run all the way back to the starting Lantern then cautiously return to help split them up. Once they're down (well done) return to the area you first encountered them and take the path up the hill to find a Fading Lake Rune before returning to the lower area.

On the left path here is a Bell-ringer Woman; don't murder her just yet, instead picking your way around to the lower area to fight an Undead Beast and collect two Blood Vials. Ignore the path to the right for now; take the route back to the upper level to dispatch two Octosquids; lure them out of the poisoned water before engaging. Watch for their projectile attacks and the area of effect attack the bigger one can do.

Head around the right side of the toxic water to find a cave leading to the Bell-ringer Woman. Once she's down, you should return to where the lone Undead Beast was and take the path on the right, heading through another cave.

Outside again you'll be attacked by two Fur Giants throwing boulders. Take them down before engaging the nearby Werebeast and approaching the stone bridge. Don't cross; go right to find a Giant Imp. Stay on this side of the bridge, looking on the right side for a stone ramp beneath you. Walk onto it and it will tip you down into a new area below, opening a shortcut.

Return to the bridge and cross it this time, entering the cave beyond. A Fur Giant awaits you; as soon as it is dead, look back the way you came to spot a path on the left, where you'll find a Clockwise Metamorphosis Rune. Back where the Fur Giant battle took place, take the path on the right to grab a very valuable Stunning Deep Sea Rune.

In the next cavern you'll face an Octosquid, then several more Octosquids just a little further ahead. Once the room is clear, grab the nearby Frenzied Coldblood. Go down the path to the lower area to face more Octosquids, staying clear of the boulders thrown by the nearby two Fur Giants.

When everything's dead - or you give up in disgust and just roll across the arena - head into the green light and kill the Fur Giant waiting for you before heading into the next room. The path to the right will bring you to a Brain Trust which you do not want to get involved with. The only way to take these guys down is by Charged Attack and Backstrike combos; if you let them see you, they'll inflict Frenzy immediately, just by looking at you. This first one is best dispatched by hiding around the corner until it turns around at the end of its patrol closest to you.

Hey, remember the useless Wooden Shield you got in the Cathedral Ward? it can be used to block Frenzy, apparently. Give it a go. Hold it up to shield your eyes.

Follow the path down the kill and around to the left, dashing forward to kill another Giant Imp. Further up the path is a Frenzied Coldblood. At the opposite end of this side path is a Madman's Knowledge.

Take the path to the left and find two Imps down below. Continue on around the left side of the toxic water and grab a Madman's Knowledge.

Progressing further will dump you into a boss battle with Amygdala.

Back to Bloodborne guide and walkthrough.