[b][u]Warning: lots of speculation[/u][/b] A Dream needs two things to remain stable. The first, is the Great One to create it, the second, a mortal to conceive it. Gehrman, the first Hunter, who once stood against the Beasts, under guidance of the Healing Church. Though on the surface they seemed to wish only for the protection of Yharnam's citizens, soon their true intentions became clear. Gehrman, and a small group of Hunters were sent to a fishing hamlet, in the middle of nowhere. The people spoke of their Mother Kos, who gave them life, and keeps them alive. They said, how great a time for the Hunters to come, as Kos' child was to be born soon. Laurence, leader of the expedition, had a thought. They knew the power of Blood.. Perhaps, then, would a Great One's umbilical cord be powerful, as well? They stayed, for the ceremony, but when Kos' child was born.. Kos was slain, her child taken, those who stood against them were either killed, or incapacitated, and left for dead.. Gehrman constantly asked.. Was it worth it? As time went on, Gehrman grew older. The Church, under Laurence's wicked rule grew more and more powerful, and even the Cainhurst Knights couldn't stand against them.. And Gehrman's beloved, Maria, died in the Executioner's wrath.. Forgotten.. Alone.. Gehrman sat in his workshop, looking over the umbilical cord they stole. Strange how something so important was forgotten. He wanted redemption.. But he was dying. The only way he could live, was by entering a Dream, as Micolash did. And so, using the umbilical cord he contacted a Great One. Flora. Flora wished to destroy Mergo, the child of Oedon, and Queen Yharnam, a halfbreed, with strength to match the gods! The cause for Yharnam's degregation.. The two struck a deal. Gehrman became Host of the Hunter's Dream, and trained his new generation of Hunters in combat, as Flora blessed them with immortality. With their ultimate warrior at their disposal, Flora would kill Mergo, and Gehrman would gain redemption by ending the beastly scourge. At least.. That was the intention.

But the thing is it's been confirmed that he's not dead, but his physical body is trapped in the dream.

Should I play Bloodborne? I love Dark Souls and have PS4.

Doesnt make sense in the fact that you [spoiler]take his place with a certain ending [/spoiler]

SPOILERS ARE IN THIS POST, DO NOT READ IF YOU WILL GET MAD. Well... In a matter of speaking, I believe you. I'm a pretty big lore-nerd for the souls/borne game. There is dialogue that you can hear the old hunter say (if you catch him asleep behind the workshop in the dream.) I don't know he exact quote, but he is crying and pleading in his sleep, begging to be released from this dream. When you consider the timeline, German is very very old, everyone even remotely close to his age is dead or indisposed (Willim.) So what keeps The Old Hunter alive? Why is he still talking? Why does he still possess the ability to stand when Willim can't even manage words anymore? Well let's think about dreams. Dreams and nightmares are one of the major themes of the game. Each "Great One" we encounter presides over its own nightmare/dream realm. Mergo's Wetnurse (possibly formless Oedon) created and rules over the Nightmare of Mensis, after being beckoned by the School of Mensis to further their own ambitions. The Hunter's Nightmare (DLC) is a horrific nightmare built on the misdeeds of the original Hunters. What specifically is it that they did? Well the popular theory is that in their greed and just for power, the Hunter's killed a great one themselves, Kos. Who was clearly with child. (The exact origin of the Orphan of Kos is a little hazy, but interestingly enough, his crying sounds, is the same sound file as our guide, Germin. Coincide? Who knows.) The Nightmare Frontier is yet another horrific realm, this one a host to quite a few strange happenings. The great one presiding over the Area is called Amygdala (which incidentally is also the part of the brain correlated to fear/fright.) the Nightmare Frontier is also where we find (outside the chalice dungeons) the Loran Silver Beasts, horrific werewolf like monsters who seem to be infected with a sort of blood parasite. We know that Loran, and all other chalice dungeons were evidently wiped out centuries ago. (Which is why they are ruins full of monsters rather then functioning societies.) I personally believe that the nightmare frontier serves as a sort of storage area for the Great Ones. Hunters cannot leave unless they contend with Amygdala, and Patches the spider even lures is here for he purpose of feeding us to these Great God-like creatures. Maybe these silver beasts are there as a trophy or relic of that old Loran society that was corrupted by these same forces that now destroy Yharnam. Anyway, to wrap this up, the last dream I would like to talk about is the Hunter's Dream. It seems like a rather benevolent place yeah? You may rest here, you will be prepared for the hunt here, you will travel the world from this dream.. But it is a dream, and dreams are the construct of a Great One. The First Hunter is trapped here, forced to shepherd Hunter after Hunter after Hunter along their way to hunt these beasts. The Great One Presiding over this dream is the Moon Presence, an odd entity in that is seems to act in sharp opposition to the other Great Ones. I won't get into why the moon presence chose Germin, and I won't get into where the whole Doll and Maria thing fits in... But suffice it to say that the Moon Presence is keeping Germin alive because he recognizes that he is the best man for the job. (Guiding Hunter's against the other Great Ones) at least... For now... Is Germin dead? Yes, he should be. For all intensive purposes he might as well be. He is trapped in a realm outside of realty with no hope of returning. If not dead, he is in some purgatory-esque confinement, dead as far as the real world is concerned.