Bloodborne’s first expansion, The Old Hunters, wastes absolutely no time throwing a challenging boss fight at players returning from a much deserved vacation. About an hour into the affair (this is assuming you can get past all of the hunters, golems, and beasts blocking your path with ease) you’ll be treated to your first major encounter.
Making your way through what was once the Cathedral Ward then through a stream of blood (we kid you not), and past some debris, you’ll find a pile of bodies cast about as if they were trash. Guarding over these rotting bodies, some still barely clinging to life mind you, is Ludwig, the Holy Blade. Ludwig is a huge beast similar to those you’ve dealt with in the main Bloodborne story, only somehow even deadlier.
You’ll have to beat this guy if you want to continue, so let’s get down to business. For preparation you’ll want plenty of Blood Vials, Bolt Paper (not 100% necessary but definitely helpful), and, if you have it, the Hunter’s Bone. These will help out a lot due to Ludwig’s speed and power. Molotovs didn’t seem to make a dent at all, so don’t waste your time, or your inventory.
Ludwig has two phases, so we’ll cover those separately since they employ different attacks and strategies. You can also recruit an NPC, which also mixes up how the fight plays out, so we’ll cover that for you as well.
