The umbilical cord is the tether by which all of us are born into this world – a universal personification of birth that transcends any cultural differences. In a game that thematically centers itself on the cycle of life and theme (a theme present in most of FromSoftware’s games,) it’s only fitting umbilical cords likewise play an integral role in Bloodborne’s narrative.

Described as “One Third of Umbilical Cord” in-game, Bloodborne’s hidden umbilical cords play a vital role in not only understanding the game’s lore but fighting the actual final boss & triggering the true ending. While only three umbilical cords are needed to fight the final boss, there are four total to find hidden throughout Bloodborne.

Updated January 17, 2024, by Sean Murray: The true ending requires a few gruesome items to consume, but once you've found Bloodborne's umbilical cords, then you'll be in for the fight of your life. We've given this guide a fresh formatting pass and also a few more links to other helpful Bloodborne topics.

Workshop’s Cord

Finding the Workshop’s Cord requires entering the Abandoned Old Workshop, an incredibly revealing area regarding Bloodborne’s lore. The Workshop itself is only available after you defeat the Blood-Starved Beast in Old Yharnam. Once the beast is killed, head to Cathedral Ward’s Oedon Chapel.

• Go through the right doorway and go up the elevator.
• Kill the Wheelchair Huntsman in the next room.
• Instead of entering the building, go around to the right.
• Drop onto the broken walkway below and follow the path into the building.
• To the immediate left of the rickety bridge is a platform down below. Drop down.
• Walk right off and land in front of the Workshop entrance.

The fall is steep, so heal before falling and after dropping off the rickety bridge.

Inside, you'll find an exact replica of the Hunter’s Dream complete with its own Doll. This Dream has been long abandoned, however. The Workshop’s Cord can be found on the Memory Altar. Its description reads:

Along with the Workshop’s Cords, Hunters can find the Doll Set, a Small Hair Ornament, and an Old Hunter Bone. The Small Hair Ornament in particular can be given to the real Doll in exchange for a Tear Stone and new dialogue.

Arianna’s Cord

Getting Arianna’s Cord isn’t as involved as the Workshop’s, but it’s still a bit of a process (and requires keeping Arianna alive after the fact). Upon defeating three bosses or killing any boss from Cathedral Ward, Old Yharnam, Hemwick Charnel Lane, or Yahar’ Gul, Arianna can be directed from her home in Cathedral Ward to Oedon Chapel. There, she’ll offer you her blood.

Be careful, however. If Adella is also at Oedon Chapel, she’ll get jealous after Arianna gives away three vials of her blood, killing the woman by the time you next return. To keep Arianna alive, either avoid saving Adella or simply don’t accept her blood more than twice.

After Micolash is defeated near the end of the game, Arianna will leave Oedon Chapel and head to the aqueduct in Cathedral Ward where she’ll give birth. Kill both the baby and Arianna to receive the cord:

Alternatively, Arianna can be sent to and killed at Iosefka’s Clinic. She won’t be able to give you her blood, but she also isn’t at risk of dying at the hands of Adella (or the Suspicious Beggar).

Iosefka’s Cord

Iosefka’s Clinic plays a key role in what is arguably Bloodborne’s most morbid side quest. Running parallel to the Oedon Chapel questline, you can send potential survivors to Iosefka’s Clinic for safety. Unfortunately, “Iosefka” is nothing but an imposter whose only motivation is experimenting on any NPCs you send her way.

While the clinic’s entrance is locked, it’s possible to enter through the back by cutting through the caverns in the Forbidden Woods. The fake Iosefka will drop her umbilical cord when killed, but only after Rom has been defeated and the Blood Moon has fallen over Yharnam. Iosefka’s cord reads:

Iosfeka won’t be hostile during the Blood Moon, instead hunched over in pain on a table. Be wary of any Celestial Mobs in the vicinity, though, especially if any survivors were sent to the Clinic earlier in the game.

Mergo’s Cord

The only umbilical cord dropped by a boss, Mergo’s Cord is found by defeating Mergo’s Wet Nurse at the end of the Nightmare of Mensis – specifically past Mergo’s Loft. Despite being fought near the very end, Mergo’s Wet Nurse is one of Bloodborne’s easiest bosses. Patiently dodge her telegraphs and she’ll go down in a few combos, dropping her cord:

It should be pointed out that Mergo’s Wet Nurse is a mandatory boss, meaning Mergo’s Cord will be the only umbilical cord you're guaranteed to unlock.

Upon finding at least three umbilical cords, consume them and proceed through the story as normal. So long as three umbilical cords are consumed and Gehrman’s offer is refused, you'll automatically transition into the true final boss & ending.

Showdown With Gehrman, The First Hunter

Before getting to the true final boss, you need to face off against the First Hunter: Gehrman. An extremely aggressive boss, Gehrman is the hardest part of actually getting to the real ending. Gehrman is an incredibly fast and heavy-hitting boss, but he also leaves himself open to parrying.

Take the time to study his telegraphs and treat the battle like you would a proper PvP duel. Gehrman can be stunned, staggered, and interrupted – but only if you know his telegraphs.

If Gehrman is rushing towards you, dodge backwards and let him exhaust himself. Use your gun to stop him mid-combo and then go in for a parry. With enough patience, Gehrman will go down.

Upon being killed, Gehrman does the Make Contact Gesture, heralding the true final boss’ coming. Keep in mind that the next fight will trigger immediately after Gehrman dies, with no opportunity to restock on Blood Vials, so be prepared for an uphill battle if you run out.

Descent Of The Moon Presence

The hardest part about the Moon Presence is making sure you still have enough Blood Vials on hand. Worse, the boss can actually lock your healing with its ranged attacks. Even if you manage to save up your Blood Vials, there's a chance you won't have the opportunity to use them.

Fortunately, the Moon Presence is actually easier than Gehrman if you know what to do and hold your ground. The Moon Presence hits reasonably hard, but telegraphs all its attacks clearly and doesn’t have too much health. You mainly want to avoid any projectiles, but you're otherwise safe to rush in and bash the Moon Presence with combos.

Try to strafe around the boss until you're behind them, jumping between attacking and recharging stamina. Worse case scenario, you don't need to defeat Gehrman again if the Moon presence kills you. Once you've defeated the final boss, sit back and enjoy one of the strangest endings in video game history.