Hello all! I wanted to write a ongoing version of what I think is the story of Bloodborne. Of course, everything is up to conjecture as this story is anything but straightforward. I hope you enjoy.
The Hunter's Mark:
When we receive our first transfusion and finalize our contract, we awaken to the sight of messengers crawling up our body. This is when we receive our Hunter's Mark; the symbol of our, mostly unwilling, contract. This contract allows our consciousness to take corporeal form and be resurrected after death in exchange for Blood Echoes, which are the memories of the people we have slain. If not spent on reanimating our consciousness, we may use them to "embolden our sickly spirit" or gain wisdom from the deceased's memories and thus become stronger.
The Great Ones:
The most simple way to describe the Great Ones are as very mortal gods. They do not seem to be empowered by prayer nor are they unique. There are definitely "lesser" Great Ones as evidenced by Rom, who was human and is Vacuous, and the Lesser Amygdalas, who seem to be less powerful versions of Amygdala. They do exist in different dimensions and are capable of creating a "Dream" or a "Nightmare"; however, the Dreams and Nightmares can continue to exist even after their death. The Great Ones do not seem to show any particular malice towards humans, although they can be hostile towards each other, as shown by the Moon Presence wanting Mergo dead. Great Ones are also incapable of breeding and carrying a Great One child to term and must employ the use of a surrogate, most typically a person who has special blood (Arianna, Queen Annalise, and Queen Yharnam), with the exception being Iosefka.
The Hunter's Dream:
The Hunter's Dream acts as a dimensional crossroads between the many different locations in the game. Each Lamp, facilitated by the messengers, acts as an intersections between the Dream and a location in the Waking World. Within the Hunter's Dream, there are two main people with whom you can speak. The first is the Doll, who becomes animated after we gain one Insight, implying a strong connection with the Great Ones. The second is Gehrman: the Dream's unwilling caretaker and also the first hunter. Both can be interacted with, but the Doll is the only one to give special dialogue after events in the Waking World or when given special items.
The Doll:
There are two dolls in Bloodborne: the first is the Doll in the Abandoned Old Workshop, and the second is the one in the Hunter's Dream. The first doll is the original one built by Gherman in memory of his student, Lady Maria. It is inanimate. The second doll looks the same as the first one, except she has been animated by the power of a Great One. She seems to be aware of what happens outside of the Dream, especially in the case of Maria. But more on her later.
Pthumerian Society:
Initially, the world of Bloodborne was relegated to just the civilization of the Pthumerians, who dwelt underground in a series of labyrinths. They tasked themselves with taking care of the slumbering Great Ones down below, one of which, Oedon, impregnated their Queen. Eventually, the Great Ones ascended leaving behind only Ebrietas and she would become the test subject of the Pthumerians' blood ministration. Yharnam, the Pthumerian Queen, upon hearing of the blood ministration, tried to stop it, but it was too late to escape the beastly scourge. Those who had ministered the blood and survived revolted against the Queen and imprisoned her deep inside the labyrinth.
Byrgenwerth:
Many years prior to the height of Byrgenwerth's success, Willem worked on a series of experiments that lead to his sister, Rom's, partial ascension with the help of the Great One, Kos. This became Byrgenwerth's success story and drew in the multitudes of students that would fuel its research. Eventually
