Bloodborne: Father Gascoigne Boss Guide (Tips, Tricks, & Strategies)

After exploring Bloodborne’s Central Yharnam, the player will encounter the first mandatory boss: Father Gascoigne. Standing between the player and the Cathedral Ward, he must be defeated in order to progress to the next area. But doing so, especially for new players, is no easy task.

One of the most memorable bosses of Bloodborne, Father Gascoigne, like the player, is a hunter of beasts. However, Gascoigne has himself become more and more like a beast. If the player chooses to, they can meet a young girl living in Yharnam, who says her mother had gone out to look for her father, but has yet to return. The father happens to be Father Gascoigne, and if the player explores the arena they fight Gascoigne in, they will find the body of a woman—the girl’s mother, killed by her beastly husband.

Being a hunter himself in Bloodborne, Gascoigne shares many abilities with the player, such as wielding the Hunter’s Axe and using a firearm. His mobility, high damage, and beast form, in combination with the tombstone-littered arena, can make Gascoigne the first major roadblock for new players. Understanding his attack patterns and counter openings, exploiting the environment, and utilizing special items can help players take down Father Gascoigne with ease.

Fighting Father Gascoigne in Bloodborne

Before even entering the fight in Bloodborne, there are two items the player can collect in Central Yharnam that can be used on Father Gascoigne. The first are Molotov Cocktails. Just like the Cleric Beast, Father Gascoigne is weak to fire. While it should not be the player’s main source of damage, Molotov Cocktails can help weaken or finish off Gascoigne faster. If the player wishes, they can also collect and use Oil Urns in tandem with Molotovs. When hitting an enemy with an Oil Urn, it will increase the damage dealt by the next fire attack.

The second item is the Tiny Music Box. This item can be obtained from the young Yharnam girl. To get to her, the player has to trek to the sewers and up the tall ladder. At the top will be a Brick Troll and another ladder. Taking that ladder will lead to a lever to open the gate and to a window, through which the player can speak to the young girl. By doing so, the girl will give the player the Tiny Music Box, which can stun Father Gascoigne.

There are two general ways to fight Gascoigne in Bloodborne, and it is possible to exploit the terrain and make it hard for Gascoigne to hit the player. The arena, being the tomb of the Great One Oedon, is covered with patches of gravestones. When fighting Gascoigne normally, the player can easily get stuck on these gravestones if they are unaware of their environment. However, Gascoigne can also get stuck on them. The player can use this and exploit the long reach of certain weapons. By locking on to Gascoigne and keeping a patch of gravestones between him and them, it will be harder for Gascoigne to hit the player.

It is still possible for Gascoigne to shoot over the gravestones, but many of the bullets can be blocked by them, and the few that get over can easily be dodged. The player can then use their weapon’s second form to gain enough reach to hit Gascoigne from the other side. This method works best with the Threaded Cane, as it has the longest reach. Saw Cleaver is often a good starting weapon due to its hidden serrated damage type, but it ends up being the weakest choice for this strategy.

If the player would rather fight Gascoigne the intended way in Bloodborne, they will want to pay attention to his attack patterns. Father Gascoigne can easily overwhelm the player by dealing continuous heavy damage with his axe and gun. Thankfully, Gascoigne’s attacks are fairly well telegraphed. For example, Gascoigne will fire his gun almost always after he dashes. The player can use this knowledge to stay on top of the fight, dodging at the right moments and getting in when he is most vulnerable.

Father Gascoigne has three phases in Bloodborne. In his second phase, he extends his Hunter Axe, increasing the damage and reach. Dodging his attacks in this phase is much more difficult than in the first. It is here that the player will want to do most of their counterattacks. One of Gascoigne’s weaknesses in this phase is that his attacks are a bit slower, this slight decrease in speed gives the player a good window to shoot Gascoigne while he’s in an attack animation. When shot at the right time, the player will be able to do a visceral attack, a move many beginners may not know about. Shooting attacking enemies within the right window will stun them and cause a distinct audio cue to play. If the player runs up to the enemy and attacks, they will do a visceral attack, which does massive damage. Because Gascoigne is more dangerous in this phase, the player can exploit his slower attacks to get phase two over with quicker.

In Father Gascoigne’s third and final phase, he turns into a beast. As a beast, Gascoigne is significantly stronger, faster, and can break through the gravestones, making the exploit explained earlier useless. There is still a way to exploit this phase, however, if the player wishes to. Near the back of the arena, there is a lamppost statue and tree that stand right next to each other. The player can position the tree and statue between them and Gascoigne and use the same strategy as before.

The third phase of this Bloodborne fight is where the young girl’s side quest item, Tiny Music Box, comes in handy. The player can use the music box, causing Gascoigne to grab his head and become staggered for a bit. However, using the music box will cause Gascoigne to turn into a beast faster. By saving the Tiny Music Box for when Father Gascoigne has already turned, the player will not have to deal with his most dangerous form for longer than needed. While stunned, the player can go behind Gascoigne and hit him with a charged attack.

Hitting enemies in the back with a charged attack in Bloodborne will cause them to be vulnerable to visceral attacks, just like gunshot counters. Getting a visceral attack on Gascoigne as quickly as possible will help the player finish out the fight faster. However, the player should keep in mind that once Gascoigne is in his beast form, they can only use the Tiny Music Box to stun him once. After their one use, the best ways to finish out the fight are to look for counterattack openings and to use Molotov Cocktails. While Gascoigne generally gains more resistance in his beast form, he actually becomes even weaker to fire once transformed. The player can use this to their advantage, throwing an Oil Urn and a few Molotovs at him, and finish out the fight. With the hunter defeated, the player can reap their blood echo reward and return to the beautiful Hunter’s Dream.

Bloodborne is currently available for PlayStation 4 and PlayStation 5.