Why Is Gehrman Waiting for Laurence?
Bloodborne never says. Gehrman asks Laurence "what's taking you so long" in his sleep, and later begs him to unshackle him from the dream, but the game never explains what Laurence was meant to do. It does show why he never comes: Laurence became a beast.
Bloodborne never explains why Gehrman is waiting for Laurence. All it gives is two lines he mutters in his sleep, asking Laurence what's taking so long and begging him to unshackle him from the Hunter's Dream. What the game does make clear is why Laurence never arrives: he became the first cleric beast and is lost in the Nightmare. Why Gehrman expected him is interpretation. (Bloodborne; Bloodborne: The Old Hunters)
What Gehrman actually says#
Gehrman has rare lines he only speaks while dozing in his wheelchair in the garden behind the workshop. After the player beats Vicar Amelia, he mumbles: "Oh, Laurence... what's taking you so long... I've grown too old for this, of little use now, I'm afraid..." (Bloodborne)
After Rom, it's worse: "Oh, Laurence... Master Willem... Somebody help me... Unshackle me please, anybody... I've had enough of this dream... The night blocks all sight... Oh, somebody, please..." (Bloodborne)
That's everything the released game has him say about Laurence. He sounds like a man who was told someone would come for him, and has waited far too long. (Bloodborne)
Who Laurence was#
Laurence studied at Byrgenwerth under Willem. A vision in the Grand Cathedral shows him taking his leave of his master and promising not to forget their adage, before the two say together: "Fear the old blood." He went on to become the first vicar of the Healing Church, which built its faith on blood ministration. (Bloodborne; Bloodborne: The Old Hunters)
He is also tied to the Dream's origins. A Lecture Building note reads: "The nameless moon presence beckoned by Laurence and his associates. Paleblood." The Third Umbilical Cord says the pale moon "beckoned the hunters and conceived the Hunter's Dream." (Bloodborne)
Why he never comes#
The Old Hunters answers that part. Laurence's Skull reads: "Skull of Laurence, first vicar of the Healing Church. In reality he became the first cleric beast, and his human skull only exists within the Nightmare." It adds that even if he found his skull, it could never restore his memories. (Bloodborne: The Old Hunters)
In the Nightmare Grand Cathedral, a burning cleric beast waits until the player brings that skull back, then rises as Laurence, the First Vicar. Interpretation: so the man Gehrman calls for has long since lost his mind to the blood he preached. Gehrman is waiting for someone who no longer exists, and who wouldn't remember him if he did. (Bloodborne: The Old Hunters)
What players think he's waiting for#
These are readings, not stated facts.
- To be released. The most common view. Gehrman calls on Laurence and Willem in the same breath as "unshackle me", and the note names Laurence's group as the ones who summoned the moon presence. On this reading Gehrman was one of those associates, bound to the Dream by the summoning, and expected Laurence to return and free him. (Bloodborne)
- For Laurence's plan to pay off. Dialogue cut from the final game, still found in its files, has Gehrman say "Farewell, Laurence. I await the realization of your ministration..." and speak of a promise to a dear friend and of honouring their vows. That points to a shared plan, with Gehrman keeping the Dream until Laurence's work bore fruit. Cut lines are hints at the developers' early ideas, not part of the game. (Bloodborne)
- Because he's lost track of time. Gehrman says himself that he's grown too old and is of little use. Some players read the line simply as an old man, centuries into a dream, still waiting on a friend who's been gone for generations. (Bloodborne)
These can all be true at once, and the game seems happy to leave them tangled. (Bloodborne)
A small mercy#
The one moment of peace Gehrman gets is unrelated to Laurence. After the player kills the Orphan of Kos in The Old Hunters, the Doll says she can hear Gehrman sleeping, calm for once, as if something had eased his suffering. (Bloodborne: The Old Hunters)
Read more#
Why Gehrman made a deal with the Moon Presence looks at the pact itself, and Laurence covers the first vicar's whole story, including his boss fight. (Bloodborne; Bloodborne: The Old Hunters)
Frequently asked questions
- What does Gehrman say about Laurence?
- Two sleep-talk lines in the Hunter's Dream garden. After Vicar Amelia: "Oh, Laurence... what's taking you so long... I've grown too old for this, of little use now, I'm afraid..." After Rom, he begs Laurence and Master Willem to unshackle him.
- Were Gehrman and Laurence friends?
- The game implies they knew each other well, since Gehrman calls on Laurence by name, but it never describes their friendship. Lines cut from the game have Gehrman speak of a promise to a dear friend.
- What happened to Laurence?
- He became the first cleric beast. In The Old Hunters he is a burning beast in the Nightmare Grand Cathedral, and his skull says his human skull only exists within the Nightmare.
- How do you hear Gehrman talk in his sleep?
- Visit the garden behind the workshop in the Hunter's Dream after beating Vicar Amelia, and again after Rom. He has to be dozing in his wheelchair outside, not in the workshop.
Sources
- GameBloodborne, FromSoftware, 2015
- GameBloodborne: The Old Hunters, FromSoftware, 2015 (expansion)
Spotted a factual error or a primary source we missed? Email a correction. Every flagged claim gets reviewed.
Followed from this entry
Why Did Gehrman Make a Deal With the Moon Presence?
Bloodborne never shows Gehrman making a deal, and never gives him a reason. The pact is a fan reading built from his sleep talk, an umbilical cord and one note. Here's what the game actually states, and the three main explanations players give for why he did it.
Gehrman, the First Hunter: the Old Man Bound to the Hunter's Dream
Gehrman is the old man in the wheelchair who greets you in the Hunter's Dream, and the first hunter of Yharnam. He built the first workshop, trained the first hunters, and at the end of the night offers to free you, or fights you. Here is what the game states and where the theories start.
Laurence, the First Vicar: Founder of the Healing Church and the First Cleric Beast
Laurence was a scholar of Byrgenwerth who left his master, founded the Healing Church and became its first vicar. He also became the first cleric beast. In The Old Hunters he burns in the Nightmare, looking for a skull that can never give him back his memories.
Master Willem: the Provost of Byrgenwerth Who Feared the Old Blood
Master Willem is the blindfolded old scholar in a rocking chair at Byrgenwerth. He led the college that found the old blood, warned against it, and went looking for eyes instead. Here is what the game states about him and what players infer.
Vicar Amelia: the Healing Church Vicar Who Became a Beast
Vicar Amelia heads the Healing Church on the night of the hunt. The hunter finds her praying in the Grand Cathedral before a beast's skull, and she turns into a beast herself. Her pendant holds the words that open the way to Byrgenwerth.
Byrgenwerth: the College Where Bloodborne's Story Began
Byrgenwerth is the ruined lakeside college where Master Willem's scholars first found the Great Ones and the Old Blood. The Healing Church, the Choir and the School of Mensis all came from it. Here is what the game says, and what it leaves open.
Mentioned in3 entries
Gehrman, the First Hunter: the Old Man Bound to the Hunter's Dream
Gehrman is the old man in the wheelchair who greets you in the Hunter's Dream, and the first hunter of Yharnam. He built the first workshop, trained the first hunters, and at the end of the night offers to free you, or fights you. Here is what the game states and where the theories start.
Laurence, the First Vicar: Founder of the Healing Church and the First Cleric Beast
Laurence was a scholar of Byrgenwerth who left his master, founded the Healing Church and became its first vicar. He also became the first cleric beast. In The Old Hunters he burns in the Nightmare, looking for a skull that can never give him back his memories.
Why Did Gehrman Make a Deal With the Moon Presence?
Bloodborne never shows Gehrman making a deal, and never gives him a reason. The pact is a fan reading built from his sleep talk, an umbilical cord and one note. Here's what the game actually states, and the three main explanations players give for why he did it.
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