History VideoGame / Blood

* AmbiguousTimePeriod: Guessing ''when'' these games take place is a chore – ''Blood II'' implies that ''Blood'' started out around 1928, but the presence of wall switches and outlets, jukeboxes and many other "modern" items stick out, plus the "Farewell To Arms" levels, that seems to take place during UsefulNotes/WorldWarII.

* LightmareFuel: The games can get genuinely scary. It doesn't stop Caleb from tossing out hilarious one-liners and [[ShoutOut pop culture references]], [[DeadpanSnarker dropping very appropriate sarcastic comments]] and going into cackling fits at almost everything, and making the player laugh in the process.

%% * ShoutOut: Too many, to the point [[ShoutOut/{{Blood}} it has a page]].
%% * ShoutOut: Waaaaay too many to mention, mostly to horror classics such as Creator/StephenKing's books or ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet'', gothic literature... and ''Franchise/EvilDead'' for deadpan snarkery. [[http://www.blood-wiki.org/index.php/References_in_Blood See here]] for an extensive list.
%% ** In some levels, it can be heard the mantra enchant [[Film/{{Excalibur}} "Anal nathrakh, urth vas bethud, dokhjel djenve"]].

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* SoftSpokenSadist: When he's not [[LaughingMad cackling like a madman]] or screaming in pain like most FPS protagonists do when they're hit, Caleb has a very quiet, grumbling, and almost monotone voice.

* StandardFPSGuns: Notably averted in the original game. While the shotgun and Tommy gun are typical, the pistol is a flare gun that shoots incendiary projectiles that set enemies on fire; the rocket launcher is replaced by a napalm gun that sets enemies on fire alongside the normal explosive damage, and there are bizarre weapons such as the hairspray and lighter, [[HollywoodVoodoo voodoo doll]] and the Life Leech staff. The second game pads the armory out with a few more of these, like a normal 9mm pistol, multiple varieties of bullet hoses (smaller machine pistols that can be [[GunsAkimbo paired up]] up through an assault rifle with underslung GrenadeLauncher and then a [[GatlingGood multi-barreled monstrosity]]), and a sniper rifle, but otherwise keeps most of the bizarre weapons of the first game, or replaces them with equally-odd new ones, like a pesticide sprayer with a Zippo lighter attached to make it into an impromptu flamethrower. Even better, ''Blood II'' doesn't have assigned weapon slots, so you can customize your loadout by dropping weapons you don't want or need.
* SteamVentObstacle: ''Blood II'''s [[DownTheDrain obligatory sewer level]] consists near-entirely of finding switches to turn off a series of steam vents blocking you from crossing a bridge to the exit.
* StupidityIsTheOnlyOption: "I must stop this train!" How? Just disable the safety clamps and rise the boiler temperature to critical level so it blows up.
* SuperDrowningSkills: Hellhounds die instantly when submerged in water, likely from snuffing out their vital fire abilities.
* TakeThat: ''Blood'' riffs on ''VideoGame/DukeNukem3D'' and its "VideoGame/{{doom}}ed space marine" secret by stringing up Duke's own corpse in a hidden room at the Dark Carnival, with Caleb mockingly mimicking Duke's "shake it baby" line when you interact with it.
* TenSecondFlashlight:
** The original ''Blood'' has the "Beast Vision", a magical set of glasses with funky lenses that lets you see enemies clearly in the dark and runs out in less than a minute if left on continuously.
** ''Blood II'' includes a set of crappy NightVisionGoggles that lasts exactly 50 seconds, and an angle-head flashlight that dies after 100 seconds (one minute and forty seconds) of use.
*** Inverted in the ''Extra Crispy'' GameMod for ''Blood II'', that makes the flashlight as close to {{infinite|Flashlight}} as possible, like the searchlight from ''VideoGame/{{Unreal|I}}''. The [=NVGs=] are also altered to run much longer, though they still deplete noticeably with prolonged use.
* ThisIsGonnaSuck: Upon entering the final boss's chamber in ''Cryptic Passage'':
--> '''Caleb:''' "This looks...extraordinarily bad."
* UpdatedRerelease:
** ''One Unit Whole Blood'', which contains all six episodes of the first game (original 4 episodes + Cryptic Passage + Plasma Pak) and extra features.
** ''Fresh Supply'' contains everything the OUWB pack does, but also ports the game to the Kex engine [[invoked]][[ScrewedByTheLawyers majorly because Atari is hogging the original's BUILD source code]], letting it run natively on modern Windows/Mac/Linux systems for the first time, as well as optionally adding other graphical improvements such as ambient occlusion and "true" 3D aim.
* UselessUsefulSpell: Not a spell, despite the series involving magic. The NightVisionGoggles in ''II'' paint enemies in a nice bright green hue, but they paint all of the surroundings with a ''dark'' green that, [[WhoForgotTheLights in a game where it's already dark and hard to see]], makes it damn near impossible to see ''anything''. Even worse is that this is still an upgrade over the Beast Vision glasses from the original game, which highlighted enemies in full-brightness regardless of how dark their surroundings were, but did nothing to cut through that darkness in those surroundings. It's more of a tool for taking out nuisance enemies in an environment where they're difficult to see than it is an actual navigation tool.
* VideoGameCrueltyPotential: Where do we begin?
** The most cruelty possible may involve unarmed civilians that will sometimes drop health if you kill them, or on some occasions ''must'' be killed because they carry a key.
** There's also head-soccer: in ''Blood'', you can randomly decapitate zombies on a kill and kick their heads around (it's even used as a carnival game to unlock a secret in the first game's Dark Carnival level). ''Blood II'' expands this so you can kick the head and various other gibs of ''any humanoid enemy'' around and adds it as a multiplayer mode.
** Caleb hates mimes with a passion. In fact, other than their use as impromptu platforms to reach secrets, mimes exist in this game only to be brutally killed. Even the help screen of the registered version shows a mime getting killed by some monsters!
-->'''Caleb:''' ''[after killing one mime]'' "Ugh, I hate mimes."\\
''[after killing a few more]'' "Oh, I shouldn't have done that... Wait, I'm evil! I can kill whoever I want!" ''[maniacal giggling]''
* VideoGameFlamethrowersSuck: Zig-zagged.
** The first game's AerosolFlamethrower is tricky to ignite enemies for long periods with, but when you manage that, use the "MolotovCocktail" SecondaryFire or generally against [[KillItWithFire more flammable enemies]] like Bloated Butchers, it's quite devastating. The Die Bug Die bug spray replacing it in ''II'' is [[invoked]][[ScrappyWeapon short-ranged, slow-firing and all around worthless]], only serving to check how much spray ammo you have for the assault rifle's GrenadeLauncher secondary - a function which itself was rendered unnecessary in a patch that added a second ammo counter for your spray ammo when you have the assault rifle equipped.
** The aerosol can's closest working simile, the secondary fire on the 12 Gauge Shredder from the ''Extra Crispy'' mod, lobs an arcing stream of fireballs that ignite any patch of the surface they hit on impact, dealing very good DamageOverTime to whatever stays within its area of effect, making for good area denial. However, the fire doesn't stick to enemies, so it's impractical against tough and fast enemies like Shikaris.
** The napalm launcher is a cannon of fiery murder in ''Blood'', and the secondary mode can clear out rooms in seconds. It got ''badly'' emasculated for ''Blood II'', only toting the largest SplashDamage radius in the game to its favor. ''Extra Crispy'' buffed it back to a decent level, but also altered its ammo consumption so that Caleb only has 25 shots on a full reserve.
* VillainBall: Tchernobog's plan for Caleb was to have him grow more powerful so that Tchernobog could defeat him and absorb his power, apparently not considering that a) Caleb was completely loyal to Tchernobog beforehand, and b) if Caleb's power is enough to potentially threaten him, maybe Tchernobog ''shouldn't'' make absolutely sure that Caleb will now be trying to kill him.
* VillainProtagonist: Caleb, who's not above killing bystanders that get in his way.
* ViolationOfCommonSense: To get a certain secret in [=E1M3=], you have to jump [[spoiler:off a speeding train and onto a secret door along the outer wall]]. Unless you're perfect at it, you'll either take a good chunk of damage from landing or outright die.
* VoiceOfTheLegion: The [[OminousLatinChanting ominous Domus Durbentia chanting]] in [=E1M7=]: The Great Temple is apparently spoken by one.

* VulnerableCivilians: The "innocents" in the first game do little more than run around in a panic and tend to show up in close proximity to cultists, making it difficult to either avoid accidental civilian casualties or take out the cultists in time (assuming that [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential you aren't actively gunning for the former]], anyway). Civilians in the second game tend to stay put, but are equally defenseless.

* WeaponizedOffspring: [[GiantSpider Shial]] spawns regular spiders as its only attack.
* WhamEpisode: The final level of Episode 1, "The Altar of Stone". [[spoiler:After crossing at least ten miles in one night, not to mention surviving everything his former cult is throwing at him, Caleb finally finds Ophelia...'s bloodied and crucified corpse, and furiously calls out the beast that murdered her. If Caleb's more resigned response to finding Gabriel(la)'s remains at the end of Episode 2 is any indication, then he realized right then and there that he'd lost ''all three'' of his companions.]]
* WombLevel: [=E4M7=] "In The Flesh" takes place inside some giant monster, which includes eyes and mouths ''on the walls'', pools of bile, columns of rib like bone which you use as platforms, and a four-chambered heart at the end where you have to get past the beating walls that act like crushers.
* WordSaladTitle: [=E4M6=] is called "The Ganglion Depths". The ganglion being a part of the brain. What this had to do with the level (which is just a huge temple) is a mystery, although it might be foreshadowing for the next level, [[WombLevel "In The Flesh"]].
* YouAreTooLate: The first game begins with Caleb tearing across the countryside in search of Ophelia and Gabriel(la), who (unlike Ishmael) were taken alive. [[spoiler:He doesn't reach either of them in time.]]
* ZombiePukeAttack: Bloated Butchers (the fat zombies).

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* MacGuffin: The backstory of the add-on ''Cryptic Passage'' has Caleb head out to find an ancient scroll, supposedly "capable of upsetting the balance of power in the otherworld". Not that it matters whatsoever what it is.
* MadeOfExplodium: Even by ''VideoGame/{{GoldenEye|1997}}''-era FPS standards, some rather unusual things in the second game explode in a burst of flame when damaged enough, such as vending machines, refrigerators, and even some of the ''wooden desks'' in the [=CabalCo=] offices. This is, of course, assuming it's not a machine that bursts into LudicrousGibs when destroyed... or a corpse that explodes into a shower of metal parts, because [[invoked]][[ObviousBeta this game is weird]].
* MadScientistLaboratory: Starting point of the fourth episode. The second game also has [=CabalCo=]'s Research & Development wing, in which you get to kill the MadScientist in question and steal the {{BFG}} he's tried to attack you with during various cutscenes across the game.
* ManaMeter: Focus in ''Blood II'', used to power supernatural weapons like the voodoo doll, Life Leech and [[Film/{{Phantasm}} The Orb]]. Interestingly, this caused a common belief that the Orb did not have a SecondaryFire mode - it does, but it takes more than 100 Focus, so only Ophelia and Ishmael can use it.

* MeaningfulName: Tchernobog (Чернобог) is a (German-style) rendering of the Russian for "Black God".
* MegaCorp: The Cabal becomes this between the two games, gaining control of pretty much everything on the planet by 2028.
* MirrorBoss: In ''Blood II'', you fight zombie clones of the other 3 Chosen just before the final fight with the Ancient One.
* MistakenForGranite: There are gargoyle statues that sometimes turn into live gargoyles. Much [[invoked]]ParanoiaFuel ensues when you realize even the ones that don't turn will still bleed when struck.
* MookMaker:
** The Drudge Priest in ''Blood II'' sometimes spawns more Leeches as an attack, especially if you get close or attack the host's belly.
** The giant spiders in the first game spawn smaller spiders to attack for them, as they can't attack directly.
* MultiplayerOnlyItem: The Crystal Ball allows you to spy on other human players. Since there are none in singleplayer, the Crystal Ball is not present.
* MuzzleFlashlight: ''Blood II'' has a few examples.
** Bullet-based weapons emit a big circle of orange-ish light when fired, while others produce much more negligible but still useful flashes. FiringInTheAirALot with the assault rifle is a passable way of going through a very dark section if your TenSecondFlashlight runs out.
** Thanks to the lighting mechanics of the [=LithTech=] engine, a flare makes for a fairly decent light source until it burns out, either on impact with a solid surface or after a while on an enemy. Said enemy can work as a living, moving lantern if you can get it to follow you.
* {{Nerf}}: Several weapons and enemies didn't pass from the original to the sequel unchanged.
** The SawedOffShotgun [[ShortRangeShotgun lost all of its accuracy]], fires and reloads more slowly, and requires a reload after every two shells even when [[GunsAkimbo paired up]]. As a mild compensation, it can be dual-wielded at will without a power-up, and though ammo is less common overall (particularly all but disappearing in the third chapter), Caleb's cap for it was increased by 50 shells. ''Extra Crispy'' allows you to use [[SecondaryFire the double-barrel discharge]] with dual shotguns.
** Soul Drudges, the substitute of the Zombies, are much slower and easier to juggle with your melee weapon.
** Speaking of melee weapon, the pitchfork has been replaced by a much weaker knife that has little to no use outside of killing Soul Drudges and civilians or breaking containers without wasting ammo - and even the latter is a crapshoot, as some ''very'' strange objects [[MadeOfExplodium blow up in a highly-damaging fireball]] when you break them.
** The flare gun doesn't deal a continuous stream of damage; instead, it does so per tics. Alt-fire is '''''completely''''' useless, too, due to a bug which prevents it from igniting enemies (so much so that it was re-tooled in the ''Extra Crispy'' mod to [[SpreadShot fire a big shotgun-like cluster of primary fire flares]]). However, it can be dual wielded at will, flares are more common, and weak as the projectiles are, they burn underwater now and [[MuzzleFlashlight are far better than most video-game flares at actually providing illumination]].
** The Voodoo Doll is much less harmful to anything you're targeting, and the secondary fire loses out to a double-barreled blast from the shotgun. Its ammo now recharges over time, though.
** The Life Leech is a bit of a mixed bag. You have a lot more control over the length of the bursts and can even fire it automatically, it uses Focus (the same recharging "mana" pool the Orb and the Voodoo Doll feed off of) instead of the finite and rare Trapped Souls, and it doesn't hurt you if you run out of juice. On the other hand, the "turret" secondary fire is gone and replaced by a fairly useless ShockwaveStomp that costs all of Caleb's Focus and doesn't drain health from the people you hit with it, the projectiles are a lot weaker, slower and curve in weird ways that ruin any accuracy past close range, and to top it off, [[ArsonMurderAndJaywalking the firing animation isn't nearly as visually impressive]]. It's good utility if you're low on health and faced with melee-only enemies, but doesn't compare to the arsenal you're most likely used to by the time you get it near the end of the game.
** The [[FireBreathingWeapon Napalm Launcher]] is one that got shafted the hardest, going from an aversion to VideoGameFlamethrowersSuck, to now being a proud example of it. In ''II'', it has a ''much'' slower firing rate in both modes, while the fireballs are much weaker (primary fire hurts less than a double shotgun blast - at least three shots are necessary to kill a basic enemy on Suicide difficulty), {{painfully slow|Projectile}}, and don't set the target on fire. In early versions it was still worth keeping around because [[invoked]][[GoodBadBugs a bug refilled your ammo to full with each pickup]], so it was still a spammable option, but now, after the fix that changed them to give only 10 shots per can, it's at best inventory filler.
** The Tesla Cannon in the first game is best described as "assault rifle of electric death". In ''II'', it took a good few steps back in functionality: each projectile costs double the ammo, they're fired at a slower rate (with a delay between pulling the trigger and the gun actually firing the first shot), travel more slowly, and are a lot weaker, while the secondary mode is extremely costly (at least four times the original's secondary) and only really usable against enemies that are slow or tend to stand still.
* NinjaPirateZombieRobot: Caleb is an immortal undead Wild West gunslinger.
* NintendoHard: The first game isn't very balanced in the damage department, with even the weakest of mooks dealing absurd amounts of damage, not helped by the fact that the game has a wider variety of {{hitscan}} enemies than most other shooters of the mid-nineties. Don't feel bad about playing on the lowest difficulty setting your first time through (even though [[FromBadToWorse a glitch in some versions]] makes enemies deal even ''more'' damage on that difficulty). The second game is a little better, but the default difficulty, its equivalent to a normal difficulty, is still equivalent to the HarderThanHard difficulty of many other FPS games.
* NominalHero: Caleb's end goal of killing the Cabal and Tchernobog is a positive result for humanity, and that's... about the only heroic qualifier one could give him.
* NonIndicativeName: [=E1M5=] is called "Hallowed Grounds" despite it being a large church dedicated to [[GodOfEvil Tchernobog]], and thus the ''opposite'' of a holy place.
* NoodleIncident: We never find out exactly what the scroll in ''Cryptic Passage'' does or what's written on it, though the implication seems to be it's some kind of TomeOfEldritchLore.
* NostalgiaFilter: Some of the phone calls.
-->[-When I was young we didn't have any ''Life Leeches''. We had to kill those ''Soul Drudges'' with our [=BARE HANDS=]! We had to [[ManBitesMan bite their legs off]] and they'd [[SuperPersistentPredator keep comin' back]]. Did we even care? We ''liked'' it that way.-]
* NostalgiaLevel: The expansion to ''Blood II'' begins with ''Cold, Cold Grave'', which combines at least three levels from ''Blood'''s Episode 2.
* NotHisBlood: Caleb alludes to this at the start of "The Sick Ward" ([=E3L4=]), which takes place in a hospital.
--> ''"I'm here to donate some blood. Someone else's."''
* NotQuiteDead: The axe zombies. If damage past a certain threshold, but not enough for a OneHitKill, is dealt to them, they'll just be knocked to the ground.
* OddNameOut: Caleb's, Ishmael's, and Gabriella's names all originate from the Bible[[labelnote:*]]Caleb was one of Moses' twelve spies and the only other follower of his aside from Joshua who lived to see the Promised Land, Ishmael was the man who assassinated Gedaliah, and Gabriella's old name, Gabriel, was an archangel[[/labelnote]], while Ophelia's comes from ''Hamlet''.

** A special mention goes to the [[HellIsThatNoise ambient]] [[VoiceOfTheLegion chanting]] in [=E1M7=]: The Great Temple.
* OneManArmy: Caleb can take on the likes of axe-wielding zombies, crazed cultists, gargoyles, and Grim Reapers all by himself.
* OOCIsSeriousBusiness: One of the very few times Caleb stops his constant snarking is when he sees Ophelia's strung-up corpse in the first game. Then, he is just ''pissed''. There's also a more minor example in the second game, where he has a joke or excuse lined up for everything Ishmael tells him about his responsibilities as the One that Binds - but not for the revelation that Ophelia was brought back to life the same as he and Gabriel(la) were. When Caleb finally finds her, he even asks Gideon to just leave him alone with her for a few minutes rather than threatening him like he does every other time the two converse.
* OurGargoylesRock: Flesh and stone versions, stone ones being larger, stronger, and much harder to kill, with one of them serving as the first episode's boss.
* OurZombiesAreDifferent: Notably, ''Blood'' is the UrExample of fast-running zombies in video games. The ones in the first game are mostly the typical flesh-eating zombie (since their battle cries involve calling for brains), with the manual's explanation for the Choking Hands and a later level in the game (a ''Franchise/{{Frankenstein}}''-style MadScientistLaboratory opening the fourth episode) also implying some degree of artificiality; those in the second are bog-standard parasitic zombies, created when a creature from another reality, a bone leech, takes over a human host, with stronger forms coming about as the leech has had time to evolve. The variations in both games also make use of axes and the like to attack you, rather than making do with their bare hands and teeth.

* PaletteSwap: Brown and black robed cultists. One official expansion went crazy with blue, green and maroon robed cultists.[[note]]Something interesting to note is that this trope is played almost as straight as it can be: all Cultists share the ''exact same'' game entity with superficial modifications for colors and attacks. This can be best noticed if a Fanatic/Acolyte/Zealot enters its ManOnFire phase after being lit up and falls into the water before he dies; he'll start using its gun as a shotgun no matter what it was before, and he'll throw dynamite as well.[[/note]] Besides that, red and green spiders and regular and stone gargoyles, though the latter two are also resized and use different attacks. ''Blood II'' has much less of this, focused mainly on Zealots (who come in dark green and later red variations) and, in ''The Nightmare Levels'', clown guards who are nothing more than male Cultists with clown makeup and outfits instead of CoolShades and business suits.
* PersonalSpaceInvader: Choking Hands. The sequel introduces [[PuppeteerParasite Bone Leeches]] and Thieves.
* PsychopathicManchild: Caleb has shades of this, especially in the Carnival level where he demands to see Jo-Jo walking on the rope, and when he celebrates his victory in a bottle game like a hyperactive child.
* PublicDomainCharacter: Tchernobog (usually spelled without the T) is a "real" god from Slavic mythology, although very little is known about him other than that his name means "Black god" and there was another Slavic deity named Belobog ("White god"), although whether he was his GoodCounterpart, brother, or even if the two were different facets of the same god is unknown. His appearance as a demon like GodOfEvil is likely based on his portrayal in ''WesternAnimation/{{Fantasia}}'' as a big black demon.
* RayGun: The Cabalco Death Ray. It even looks like a '60s SciFi B-movie prop you'd expect LittleGreenMen to tote.
** DeathRay: As the name says, though it shoots {{hitscan}} {{Reflecting Laser}}s. However, no one is gonna deny the "death" part, as its DPS easily rivals the assault rifle's.
* RealIsBrown: The first game uses mostly brown and grey shades, with some white in the second episode as it takes place up in the Arctic.
* RedEyesTakeWarning: Caleb's. They're red ''and'' [[GlowingEyesOfDoom they glow]]!

* {{Revenge}}: Both ways. The first game is all about Caleb's quest for revenge against Tchernobog; in the second, the main theme is the Cabal seeking revenge on Caleb [[CycleOfRevenge for taking revenge on Tchernobog]].
* SawedOffShotgun: Caleb's signature weapon throughout the series, even used as the GunsAkimbo icon in the first game. The ''Extra Crispy'' mod for the second lets him start the campaign with one.
* ScarabPower: In ''Blood II'', the armor pickups come in the form of scarab beetle talismans entitled the Ward (25 armor) and Necroward (a full 100).
* SecondaryFire: One of the earliest PC first-person shooters to feature secondary fire for many of its weapons. This feature also returns in the sequel, where everything except the Singularity Generator (which had its secondary fire mode removed in a patch) and, depending on your character, the Orb (which requires more Focus than two of the characters can have) has an alternate fire mode.
* SelectiveObliviousness: Caleb inherited Tchernobog's role as the One That Binds. You know, Tchernobog--the dark god that betrayed the Chosen as part of a [[INeedYouStronger wider]] [[GrandTheftMe plan]] to unleash Hell on Earth. Caleb's peculiar response when informed of this implies that he isn't ignorant of his powers so much as unwilling to confront that Tchernobog still haunts him:
--> '''Ishmael:''' [''after Caleb gets snarky with him''] That's not what I mean. You are the One that Binds; sooner or later, you'll have to face that.
--> '''Caleb:''' I am denial. I'll face ''nothing''.
* SetAMookToKillAMook: When fighting large crowds it is quite common that some enemies hit each other with their attacks and immediately turn on each other. In the finale it is even possible to turn Cerberus and Tchernobog onto each other and Cerberus is actually capable of beating Tchernobog for you.
* SeveredHeadSports: The game lets you kick zombie heads around. It even has a minigame in the fourth level and a deathmatch map dedicated to head football.
* ShapeshifterGuiltTrip: [[spoiler:The Ancient One]] attempts a variant of this on Caleb using undead copies of the Chosen. Caleb, who knows that it's not really his friends saying those things, isn't impressed.

* {{Shareware}}: The first game, at least.
* ShoutOut: Waaaaay too many to mention, mostly to horror classics such as Creator/StephenKing's books or ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet'', gothic literature... and ''Franchise/EvilDead'' for deadpan snarkery. [[http://www.blood-wiki.org/index.php/References_in_Blood See here]] for an extensive list.
** In some levels, it can be heard the mantra enchant [[Film/{{Excalibur}} "Anal nathrakh, urth vas bethud, dokhjel djenve"]].
* SinisterSubway: Three levels in ''Blood II'' place Caleb on a subway train. Two of the three end with the train in question crashing.
-->''[[LampshadeHanging "They just don't make 'em like they used to."]]''
* SlasherSmile: ''Blood II'''s box art is a close-up of Caleb sporting one.

* HardModeMook: A variant: the appearance of boss enemies as {{Degraded Boss}}es depends on the difficulty level. On the easier modes, the first boss, the Stone Gargoyle, reappears as a mook regularly, while the second one, Shial the giant spider, only does so once or twice and the third one, Cerberus, only appears in its boss encounter. On the harder modes, Shial becomes a regular encounter, and Cerberus makes a few appearances as a mook.
* HazyFeelTurn: Caleb is ''not'' a nice man by any stretch of the imagination, and even though he tears through the Cabal post-Disavowal (in order: to [[EvenEvilHasLovedOnes avenge his companions]], prevent the Cabal from acquiring a powerful artifact, thwart their attempt at rebuilding with a new set of "Chosen", and defeat Gideon), that's about the extent of his "face"-turn. Even if you don't play the games as a mass-murdering asshole, Caleb is indifferent to other people ''at best''.
* HeartsAreHealth: When most enemies die, sometimes they drop "life essences" in the shape of hearts, although thanks to the series tone, it's obviously the bloody and anatomically correct heart instead of the cartoony ones. And due to Caleb indulging in [[ImAHumanitarian cannibalism]], he presumably eats it and restores 20-25 HP depending on the game. The Life Seed super health pickup in ''Blood II'' is also a heart, though it floats above a sigil.
* {{Hellhound}}s: Regular ones, and the larger, twin-headed Cerberus. Both have [[BreathWeapon fiery breath]].
* HyperactiveMetabolism: There's a lot of indications that Caleb heals himself using a Life Essence by outright eating it. Additionally, one voice line in [=E1M4=] "Dark Carnival" implies he ''drinks'' the Life Seed pickup.
* IdiosyncraticDifficultyLevels:
** The first game's, from easiest to hardest, are Still Kicking, Pink on the Inside, Lightly Broiled, Well Done, and Extra Crispy. ''Fresh Supply'' adds "Made to Order" to the mix, which is a difficulty mode designed to allow [[ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin full customization]] of a ton of difficulty modifiers.
** The second game has Genocide (easy), Homicide (normal) and Suicide (hard).
* ImAHumanitarian: In the ending of the first game's second episode, [[spoiler:Caleb tears out and eats the heart of his fallen comrade while [[AsTheGoodBookSays paraphrasing the Bible]], something about eating "the flesh of the Son of Man". (He does apologize to said comrade before doing it, though.)]]. Building off of that, it can be assumed that he also consumes any heart health pickups he happens upon.
* INeedAFreakingDrink: Interacting with a counter with bottles of booze in the first game has Caleb mutter that he could use one.
* INeedYouStronger: Why Tchernobog revived Caleb instead of immediately [[spoiler:trying to take Caleb's body as his next vessel]].
* InterfaceScrew: Hands and Bone Leeches will cause the screen to darken the longer they're latched on, simulating asphyxiation. [[IntoxicationMechanic Thieves and red spiders make the screen blurry and distorted]], while also messing with the health and ammo counters in the original game due to a glitch (''Fresh Supply'' fixes that part). Green spiders make the screen flicker for a fraction of a second.
* JustTrainWrong:
** [[LocomotiveLevel E1M3: The Phantom Express]] - just about the only thing right about it is that the train runs on tracks. Let's see: Absurdly spacious? Check. Exceeds every known loading gauge worldwide? Check. No doors on the car sides to actually ''board the train''? Check. The tender having no water tank? Check. Walkways going all the way around the locomotive ''including its cab''? Check. The steam engine having no actual boiler, just a furnace in an oversized cab without any front view windows[[note]]so no way of seeing what's actually in front of the train[[/note]] and no discernible controls[[note]]so no way to actually control the train[[/note]] except a few switches only used to [[ViolationOfCommonSense overheat the furnace]] and [[invoked]][[CrossesTheLineTwice blow the whole engineering paradox up?]] Check, check, CHECK.
** The subway trains in the second game only fare slightly better. The crowner is one train running right after another with just a two meter gap. That would spell disaster in real life once the front train would began braking - as the game perfectly demonstrates [[CutAndPasteEnvironments the other two times it reuses the subway map]], both of which end with your train crashing into the one ahead of it.
* KickTheDog: Gideon allows Caleb and Ophelia to see each other again, just to forcibly separate them to keep Caleb "motivated". (Ophelia is even tied up ''exactly'' the same way Caleb [[YouAreTooLate found her]] in the first game, though it's not commented on.) Any chance that Caleb would've let Gideon off with a severe beating vanishes right then and there.
--> '''Caleb:''' "Okay, that's it--''it's time you die!''"
* KillItWithFire: Usually the best way to get rid of strong enemies like the Bloated Butcher. For that, ''Blood'' has the flare gun, the spray can and the napalm cannon. ''Blood II'' sees the return of all of these, with the exception of the spray can, which gets replaced by [[invoked]][[ScrappyWeapon the glitched and mostly useless DieBugDie sprayer]].
* KillItWithWater: Hellhounds, spiders and gargoyles die instantly if submerged in any liquid. ''Fresh Supply'' even grants an achievement for managing to dispatch a Hellhound by dunking it in the water.
* LargeAndInCharge: Tchernobog is of course a huge demon god, but even Gideon, the leader of the Cabal in ''Blood II'', looks to be a good 8 or 9 feet tall despite being a regular human.
* LaserGuidedKarma: Cerberus devoured Ishmael after [[KillItWithFire nailing him with a fireball]], and that was the only one of the Chosen's deaths that Caleb witnessed as it happened. And so, upon slaying Cerberus, Caleb slices open his gut and ''shoves in a load of remote explosives''.
* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: There's a phone call in the second level of ''Blood II'' in which a lady asks "Mr. Cal-Eeb" if he is or has ever been a character in a video game. Caleb replies "You've gotta be kidding" and hangs up.
* LegacyCharacter:
** ''The Nightmare Levels'' reveals that this was the case for "[=JoJo=] the Idiot Circus Boy", the main attraction of the first game's Dark Carnival; Ishmael states that he was once [=JoJo=], and his "nightmare" takes the form of the day when he answered Tchernobog's call and left the circus.
** In a sense, Tchernobog himself is this, although it's more like [[GrandTheftMe jacking a new body]] for the original to keep living with - the entire point of the Cabal, at least at first, was to always have people on standby to provide him with a new body if his current one ever dies. By the time of the first game, Tchernobog is into his sixteenth reincarnation, with plans to make Caleb number seventeen.
* ALighterShadeOfBlack: Caleb is about as ruthless and sadistic as one can get, and is only the "hero" because he's trying to avenge his fallen comrades and not trying to take over the world, and while he kills a whole lot of people over the course of both games, it just so happens that almost all of them are part of the Cabal.
* LightmareFuel: The games can get [[NightmareFuel/{{Blood}} genuinely scary]]. It doesn't stop Caleb from tossing out hilarious one-liners and [[ShoutOut pop culture references]], [[DeadpanSnarker dropping very appropriate sarcastic comments]] and going into cackling fits at almost everything, and making the player laugh in the process.
* LockAndKeyPuzzle: As befitting a ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' clone, the original game is chock full of them. This game in particular takes it up to eleven, as, rather than ''Doom''[='=]s two mutually-exclusive sets of three keys, ''Blood'' actually has six unique keys, and some of the larger levels actually require collecting ''all'' of them. ''Blood II'' dials it back, but still has some levels (particularly Cabalco's R&D wing and several of the Nightmare Levels) dedicated to hunting down several keys in sequence.
* LocomotiveLevel: [=E1M3=]: The Phantom Express in the first game. Several ones in the second.
* LoopholeAbuse: The "Watch out for Pedestrians" achievement in ''Fresh Supply'' requires you to beat [=E3M1=]: Ghost Town without any innocents being killed. The game will award the achievement if you beat the level on "Made to Order" difficulty without [=NPCs=], since there will be no innocents to be killed anyway.
* LoveMakesYouEvil: Subverted. Caleb had quite the taste for bloodshed long before he met Ophelia or that she died; she just added fuel to the fire by dragging him into the Cabal.
** LoveRedeems: A minor example in ''Blood II'', since he continues to be the murderous psychopath he's always been even after the "redemption". Caleb is initially only fighting the Cabal because they keep preventing him from killing Gideon, who he'd have been content to ignore if he hadn't pissed Caleb off by trying to kill him, and he doesn't give two shits about his status as the One That Binds following the death of Tchernobog or [[ApocalypseHow the ramifications such an attitude has on reality's continued existence]]. His priority more or less shifts over to rescuing Ophelia when he learns that she was brought back and hears she's being held at [=CabalCo=]'s headquarters, and getting her back presumably plays a role in the other Chosen getting him to finally start doing his new job. Notably, Caleb [[OoCIsSeriousBusiness stops snarking at Ishmael]] the very instant the latter tells him that Ophelia was brought back just like the other Chosen, and when Gideon interrupts their reunion, Caleb doesn't threaten him until he whisks Ophelia away, instead asking him to just leave them be for two minutes. Whatever his many, many other faults are, even when they're snarking at one another it's abundantly clear Caleb still loves Ophelia.
* LudicrousGibs: Plentiful. You can even attack the gibs.

A 1997 FirstPersonShooter from Creator/MonolithProductions, based on the Build engine, ''Blood'' was one of the most unusual shooters of its time. It featured a mix of horror and deadpan humor, a charismatic AntiHero, an arsenal of exotic weapons and, of course, lots and lots of the eponymous red liquid. Playing as Caleb, a former pet murderer of an evil deity who was betrayed and transformed into an undead monstrosity, you go on a quest to avenge/harvest the powers of your former TrueCompanions who did not manage to rise again and use them to wreak all kinds of unholy hell upon Tchernobog.

In 1998, a sequel was created; ''Blood II: The Chosen''. [[VideoGame3DLeap Running on the new LithTech engine]] developed in-house by Monolith, it took place exactly one century after the first game, featuring the Cabal's attempts to kill Caleb and take back the powers of Tchernobog, while Caleb's disuse of the dark god's powers accidentally summons abominations from another dimension. Unfortunately, due to being rushed out the door, it released in a very poor state, and though it does have a following (including a very active modding community), it's rarely considered on par with the first. Plus, [[OvershadowedByAwesome it had the unfortunate luck of being released in 1998]], a year with many strong contenders to Best Shooter of the Decade, such as ''VideoGame/{{Unreal|I}}'', ''VideoGame/{{SiN}}'', ''VideoGame/QuakeII'' and the eventual winner, ''VideoGame/HalfLife1''.

Both games and their expansions can now be purchased digitally from Website/GogDotCom and UsefulNotes/{{Steam}}. An UpdatedRerelease of the first ''Blood'', subtitled ''Fresh Supply'', has since released on [[https://www.gog.com/game/blood_fresh_supply GoG]] and [[https://store.steampowered.com/app/1010750/ Steam]] as well, courtesy of the folks at Creator/NightdiveStudios.

* AbsurdlySpaciousSewer: [=E3L3,=] "Raw Sewage", features an entire level of it. Before that, [=E2L2=] "The Lumber Mill" has an absurdly spacious cesspool under a latrine. ''Blood II'' likewise has [=C1L5=], "Steam Tunnels", one of the longest of the game, and [=C2L3=], "Sewage Treatment Plant", which is noticeably shorter but actually requires you to swim through part of it.
* AchillesHeel: In the first game for whatever reason the Tesla Cannon makes short work of both Hell Hounds and Cheogh / Stone Gargoyles. Shial[[note]]the "big" spider[[/note]] is incredibly allergic to napalm and fire / explosions in general. The Bloated Butchers are also severely allergic to fire.

* AffablyEvil: For an evil cultist, Ishmael seems to be quite "diplomatic" in his own way. He acts genuinely clever, polite and jovial, at least towards his fellow Chosen. Any insult towards him just slips off him like a glass sheet, and he's even capable of making fun of his own misery.
* TheAgeless: Caleb is this, according to the manual because of some unearthly link between him and Tchernobog. He can be killed as any other FPS protagonist can, but ''time'' certainly won't do it to him - given his listed year of birth as 1847, by the time of ''Blood II'' he's pushing a hundred and eighty years old.
* TheAlcoholic: Going by loading interstitials in ''Blood II'' and a few of his own lines from both games, Caleb has something of a drinking problem.
* AmusementParkOfDoom: Two of 'em in the first game and one in the second game's add-on:
** [=E1M4=] Dark Carnival is a depraved gory version of a classic amusement park run by Cabal with every single attraction being horrifically twisted. There's a freak show, a gargoyle carousel, a game where you kick disembodied zombie heads into a goal and a special feature "[=JoJo=], the Idiot Circus Boy".
** The secret level of the first episode, "House of Horrors", complete with a "fun" ride on a water slide, and caged enemies.
** In the second game's expansion, Ishmael goes on a lengthy flashback narration of how once he was coerced to take the role of the aforementioned [=JoJo=] and then struggled his way out of the abuse. It takes place in a similar Dark Carnival and you, as Ishmael, have to slaughter your way through droves of cultists while occasionally visiting your fellow freaks and [[BlackComedy spout sarcastic comments about their demise]].

* AndIMustScream: The Soul Drudges in the second game are living humans whose bodies are controlled by Bone Leeches but who are still conscious and aware of what they're doing. The trope name is taken quite literally as the leech forces its host to sew its mouth shut to ''keep'' it from screaming in horror at what it's being forced to do.
* AntiFrustrationFeatures: "Fresh Supply" has a discreet one for [=E1M4=]'s secret puzzle: if you play with the minimal HUD, [[spoiler:the keys you collected will be shown in the same order as they should be in the puzzle]].
* AntiHero: Caleb, to borderline VillainProtagonist degrees. Sure, he's fighting against an evil cult, but it's for his own personal goals at worst and he's only barely better than said cult in terms of morality, having no problem with killing innocent bystanders that just happen to [[ArtificialStupidity be in his line of fire]].
* ApatheticCitizens: ''Blood II'''s civilians often don't react to the horrific things going on around them (including half a corpse sticking out of a public washing machine) as strongly as you think they would. The manual and guidebook suggest that it's learned helplessness in regards to [=CabalCo.'s=] takeover.
* AttractMode: There's a couple of demos playing on the title screen.
* BadassLongcoat: Fitting a gunslinger and someone that probably needs deep pockets to be a walking army, Caleb wears a black one. In the second game, Ishmael, Gideon, and the new version of the Zealot also all get different varieties of long coat.
* BaldOfEvil: Ishmael is a straight example. Caleb is actually a case of OffModel in the first game[[labelnote:explanation]][[WordOfGod According to Kevin Kilstrom, lead artist and modeler]], Caleb was envisioned as having short dark hair like Ash from ''Franchise/EvilDead'' (and indeed he does in the art for ''Blood II'', though it's sometimes depicted as a long windswept mane), which he didn't care to model because it would be hidden by his FedoraOfAsskicking [[TheFaceless that also hides his face in shadow]]. When it came time to make the [=FMVs=], he just gave the 3D staff the bald model he used to sprite Caleb from, since he didn't expect Caleb to lose his hat, and once they were done, a mix of technical difficulty and lacking competence on part of the 3D animators made it too much of a hassle to change the already-finished FMV. Kevin says he really doesn't like the scene in the intro where Caleb's hat falls off his head as he's falling into darkness - and also points out that if you look closely, [[OffModel he also doesn't have ''ears'']][[/labelnote]].
* BallisticBone: Gargoyles fling them at you for a ranged attack.
* BatmanGambit: Tchernobog fully intended for Caleb to return from the grave and seek vengeance, gaining power with each kill he made along the way. The intent was to then [[GrandTheftMe take over Caleb's body and use the new power to take over all realities]], though this fails, with Caleb killing him and going on his merry way. Gideon was supposed to have his own gambit in ''Blood II'', but most of that subplot was cut before the game's release, so now he just wants Caleb dead for reasons that don't quite get explained beyond a generic revenge for the death of Tchernobog.
* {{BFG}}: Originally, the Tesla Cannon and the Life Leech were the 8-inch cannons of ''Blood''. The expansion pack added an alternate fire mode to the Incinerator (the "Rolling Thunder") that made it into the new, ultimate BFG of ''Blood''. ''Blood II'' added a new, literal BFG: the Singularity Generator.
* BigBad: In ''Blood'', Tchernobog. ''Blood II'' has Gideon, [[spoiler:though he's not the final boss]].
* BlackSpeech: The language of the Cabal, [[AllThereInTheManual Domus Durbentia]]. It's a nasty-sounding bastard child of Latin and Sanskrit. In the first game, all cultists speak it, and in some levels you also hear ominous chanting in this language. In ''Blood II'', only the Zealots and Ishmael still remember the language, though you occasionally can hear a (normally English-speaking) Fanatic spouting a familiar curse.
* BlackoutBasement: "Love Canal" in ''Blood II'' has some extremely dark sections with {{bottomless pits}} on the floor; falling into one means instant death. The game is generous enough to give you a few flashlights before those sections, so don't waste the batteries.
* BloodBath: A [[https://blood-wiki.org/images/9/99/Blood-Bathtub-Ad-Spread.jpg magazine ad]] for the first game featured a man, presumably Caleb, in a bathtub full of blood with the tagline "you're soaking in it".
* BloodyHandprint: On the game's box.
* BlownAcrossTheRoom: Common result of unloading both barrels with the shotgun, or with a well-placed dynamite toss.
* BodyHorror: ''Blood II'''s Soul Drudges and their advanced forms exhibit various levels of this. [[spoiler: The human half of Gideon's arachnoid second form not only inverts his shoulder and elbow joints, but his heart has somehow migrated out of his chest and onto his back. He wasn't kidding when he called it "something unpleasant".]]

* BoomHeadshot: Headshots exist as a mechanic in ''Blood II'', but it's janky as hell. Sometimes you can 3-shot a human with a Beretta and he'll die before a single flinch, others you might as well be hitting them in the legs, and still others you actually ''can'' hit them in the legs and they'll die instantly.
* BossRush: ''Blood'' makes you re-fight the earlier bosses before Tchernobog finally shows himself. ''Blood II'' makes you fight undead versions of the other three Chosen before fighting the Ancient One.

* BreakingTheFourthWall: In the penultimate of ''The Nightmare Levels'', one of the shot glasses you can pick up will cause Caleb to comment that "this is the best level I've been in".
* BreakOutTheMuseumPiece: Literally in the case of the second game's shotgun - you first acquire it from an exhibit in the museum level.
* CallBack: ''Blood II'' features ringing telephones that you can answer across some levels. One phone in the third level does the same [[WesternAnimation/TheSimpsons Hugh Jass]] joke a phone in the second level of the first game did. An elevator in the first chapter also has elevator music remixed from the secret level of ''Blood'''s last retail episode.
* CampfireCharacterExploration: In ''Blood II''[='=]s expansion pack "The Nightmare Levels", on their way back to Earth from another dimension, the Chosen sit around a campfire and each one tells a story from his or her past. The first four of the expansion's six levels are played out as scary stories from their respective pasts.
* CastFromHitPoints: In the original game, the Life Leech will use HP as ammo if you run out of trapped souls. Considering it also heals you for the damage you deal, it's not that bad a trade.

* CircusOfFear:
** The Dark Carnival level in the first game, with the appropriate CreepyCircusMusic (made especially creepy by the calls of the barkers and the laughter of children).
** The circus Ishmael (who was the old Jojo The Idiot Circus Boy) escapes from in his backstory, as seen in ''The Nightmare Levels''.
* CliffHanger: The four Chosen are left in an alternate reality at the end of ''Blood II'', and make no real progress towards getting out in the expansion; a cancelled second expansion would have just had Caleb, at least, back in normal reality with no explanation. The end text for ''Blood II'' lampshades this:
-->''"Does Caleb really close the rift? Does Ophelia get her two-minutes of gift? What the heck happened to [[GenderBender Gabriel... er, Gabriella]]? What if Ishmael can't get home? And, where did he get those tattoos? Tune in next time on: As 'It burns, it burns'. Enjoy these answers and more soon... we promise."''
* CorruptCorporateExecutive: Considering [=CabalCo=] is essentially a public face for the evil, mystical cult of Tchernobog, Gideon couldn't be anything else.
* CreepyCircusMusic: "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uIksYWaZKA Dark Carnival]]", to match the equally creepy carnival. The MIDI equivalent is even more somber.
* CrueltyIsTheOnlyOption: The normal exit from "Sick Ward" ([=E3M4=]) is hooked up to a switch that ''immolates a cage full of civilians'' when thrown, and there's no way to get them out first. Many walkthroughs advise you to take the secret exit to "Catacombs" instead.
* {{Cult}}: The Cabal, the cult of Tchernobog.
* CutAndPasteEnvironments: ''Blood II'' goes all out with this, with three out of four chapters reusing an individual level three separate times. The subway train is perhaps the laziest, used as the first level of the game and then reused as the first and antepenultimate levels of the second chapter, two of which even play out identically (Caleb murders everyone and gets to the front just in time for the train to crash into another one), the only differences being in enemy types (only Cultists the first time, adding Fanatics and Drudge Lords the second and a single Prophet at the end of the third). The other two, however, are the result of trying to emulate a HubLevel-style system without actually having hub levels: chapter 1 has you traverse an urban area just off of some tenements three times (exiting each time respectively by heading to a museum, going down an elevator into the sewers, and heading for a condemned church), where the first time through includes level-exit triggers for later visits - it's possible to noclip through the vents at the back of the laundromat and skip straight from the second level of the chapter to the end. Chapter 3 likewise has you traversing part of the [=CabalCo=] offices three times, sidetracking twice to circumvent locked doors by turning off their power and grabbing a keycard before you reach an elevator that takes you where you need to go).
* DarkAndTroubledPast: Implied of Caleb, who'd made a reputation for himself as a ruthless gunslinger when he was still a teenager. The Prima guidebook has him state outright that he "killed [his] first man when [he] was very young".
* DarkIsNotEvil: Well, [[BlackAndGrayMorality most]] of it [[VillainProtagonist is]], but Tchernobog is technically a neutral force who exists to separate and bind alternate realities. For the most part, Tchernobog's own will overpowers that of his new host, but there have been exceptions, such as his 5th incarnation being a Buddhist high priest who set Tchernobog to turn the Cabal into a religious cult, and the 16th incarnation, a truly evil and bitter man, turned him into the form we see him as in-game.[[spoiler:Caleb as the 17th incarnation was another case, presumably becoming so powerful that there was no trace of Tchernobog left other than his powers and duties to bind and keep separate the realities.]]
* DeadCharacterWalking: The first game has a glitch where, on occasion, enemies who are killed by being set on fire would continue to run around in their on-fire animation indefinitely, (usually) unable to damage you but also invulnerable to everything but splash damage.
* DeadWeight: Bloated Butchers. They're [[{{Kevlard}} more resilient]] and versatile than regular Axe Zombies, having two ranged attacks, but they're also a lot slower and [[KillItWithFire can be set on fire extremely easily]] with a quick spray of the AerosolFlamethrower.
* DeadpanSnarker: Caleb is more of an ''[[WorldOfPun un]]''[[WorldOfPun deadpan snarker]]. The other Chosen get in on it as well, but not nearly to the same extent.
* DeathIsNotPermanent: Ophelia, Ishmael, and Gabriel die alongside Caleb in Blood's intro. Caleb inexplicably comes back in the first game, and the other three are revived during the course of Blood II through use of the Singularity Generator. There's also Tchernobog, who due to [[GrandTheftMe the nature of his reincarnation]], had died and come back at least 15 times before Caleb somehow permanently killed him.
* DegradedBoss: The first game follows the standard example for a ''VideoGame/{{Doom}}'' clone - the stone gargoyle, giant spider, and Cerberus are first introduced as end-episode bosses before becoming regular enemies (though not any weaker than their first appearance) in later episodes. The second mostly avoids this, with only the Behemoth from the end of chapter 2 appearing more than once afterwards.
* {{Determinator}}: Even death didn't put Caleb down for good. Tchernobog, either, whose method of reincarnation meant that he came back from death sixteen times before, but when it came between him and Caleb he didn't stand a chance.
* DidntSeeThatComing: The [[{{BFG}} Singularity Generator]] manages to be unpredictable enough that it revives the rest of the Chosen, even [[GenderBender turning one from a man to a woman]]. Once the scientists who created it have it working the way it should, Caleb bursts in, kills them, and steals it.
* DifficultButAwesome: Due to the arc trajectory, necessary timing, and being just as easily able to kill the player as it is enemies, the basic TNT in ''Blood'' has a bit of a learning curve. When properly used, though, it's one of the most powerful, plentiful and versatile weapons in the game, capable of clearing whole rooms even around corners and at long distances.
* DifficultyLevels: Unlike many other Build engine games, ''Blood 1''[='=]s difficulty levels don't just determine the placements and amount of enemies on each map, they also determine various properties and the [[HitPoints vitality]] of monsters. ''Blood II''[='=]s, however, are more standard difficulty levels that primarily place more enemies and let them deal higher damage; the only noticeable difference is that your maximum health is also determined by difficulty, with the easiest allowing for 200 normal health and the hardest dropping you to just 50.
* EasterEgg: In [=E1M2=], "Wrong side of the Tracks", if the player decides to go down the train tracks at the end without entering the train, they'll eventually hear a train horn. Continue and eventually the player will be run over by an incoming train.
* EarlyGameHell: Brutally enforced. The first episode is considered the toughest episode of the game due to harsh enemy placements, a lack of resources, and the player first getting used to the game. Once the player manages to get to [=E1M3=], things get notably easier, as they have acquired enough ammunition and weapons to stand a decent chance against the enemy hordes.
* EldritchAbomination: Tchernobog in the first game, the Ancient One [[spoiler:and Gideon's second form]] in the second.
* EliteMooks: Prophets in ''Blood II'' are a lot tougher than regular [=CabalCo=] soldiers and are usually armed with heavy weapons.
* EmergencyWeapon: Caleb's trusty pitchfork that will be your best friend against lone zombies or for rushing an unaware cultist and stun-locking him, saving valuable ammo for tougher and/or more numerous foes. Being a pitchfork, its range is reasonable once you get used to it and each of its four prongs has its own little hitbox for added realism.
* EpicFail: [=CabalCo=] attempted to make a really big gun that tears holes in the fabric of reality to kill things, with the intent to use it to kill Caleb. They instead somehow made a gun which tore holes in the fabric of reality to bring the other three Chosen back from the dead.
* EveryoneHatesMimes: "Ugh, I '''hate''' mimes."
* ExpansionPack: Both games have seen one or two expansion packs after release.
** ''Blood'' has ''Cryptic Passage'' and ''Plasma Pak''. The former is a third-party expansion that adds a new "Cryptic Passage" episode and four multiplayer maps, while the latter adds another episode titled "Post Mortem" along with new multiplayer maps, new weapon modes, new enemies, and additional bug fixes.
** ''Blood II: The Chosen'' has ''The Nightmare Levels'' expansion, which adds new single-player sequences, some extra multiplayer maps, two new weapons, extra options, and new bug fixes.
* ExplodingBarrels:
** In ''Blood'', there are barrels filled with TNT and labeled as such. You can explode them with bullets or your own bombs, or set them on fire for a delayed detonation. Bizarrely, wall-mounted fire extinguishers also serve this function, despite it running counter to their usual intended purpose.
** In ''Blood II'', certain objects like soda machines, washing machines, cars, fuel pumps and closed rusted barrels explode when damaged. For electric appliances it's mostly a visual effect, but for the others, expect some SplashDamage if you're close.
* EyeBeams: Stone gargoyles have them, and they deal spirit armor damage. Tchernobog has a different variant, able to set things in his line of sight on fire.
* EverythingFades: All gibs in ''Blood II'' disappear over a short period of time, save for the heads of gibbed corpses.
* EvilLaugh: At least a third of Caleb's lines are various sinister laughs. He sometimes lets out a particularly awesome cackle when scoring a multi-kill or vandalizing the scenery with explosives.
* EvilIsVisceral: Much of the Cabal's activities, as well as Caleb's more supernatural powers, seem to involve particularly messy BloodMagic drawn from the torture and butchering of human sacrifices. Slaughtered humans can be found throughout most Cabal facilities, with some even still being alive, often posed in a manner suggesting they were exsanguinated in some profane ritual. Additionally, blood splatters are commonly seen on walls or floors even before Caleb adds a fresh coating of Cabal guts to the mix, and Caleb himself will opine upon seeing a "Employees Must Wash Hands" sign that he likes having his hands coated in blood. And then there's everything to do with the level [[WombLevel In The Flesh]], which takes place almost entirely within a massive creature that seems to serve as a living gateway to Tchernobog's temple.

* TheFaceless: Zealots in ''Blood II'' are this, by way of a CoolMask that completely covers their heads, even the eyes. The game's manual suggests that either they no longer need their eyes to see, or the process of becoming a Zealot causes them to GoMadFromTheRevelation and become afraid to see ''anything''.
* FateWorseThanDeath: Gideon is reduced to nothing but his skull after he fights Caleb. At the beginning of the ''Nightmare Levels'' expansion it's revealed his soul was trapped within it. [[invoked]][[AngstWhatAngst He's surprisingly not bitter about it]], figuring he'll [[SurrogateSoliloquy "serve as a muse]] to [[ReferencedBy/WilliamShakespeare some unfortunate playwright"]] someday, and in the meantime deciding to narrate the continuing adventures of Caleb and company to the player.
%%* FieryRedhead: Ophelia Price. (Administrivia/ZeroContextExample)
* FighterMageThief: The four Chosen have this sort of dynamic in the second game as playable characters. Caleb and Gabriella serve as the Fighters, having the highest strength to give them the most health, the most ammo, and the strongest knife attacks, but with low intelligence giving them the least Focus, not even enough to use the Orb's secondary fire, the two otherwise only differing in that Caleb is faster in return for less damage resistance; Ishmael is the Mage, having the highest intelligence to give him far more Focus for using magical weapons with, but low strength giving him next to no ammo capacity and little health (particularly no ability to overheal); and Ophelia is the Thief, having [[JackOfAllStats low-to-middling strength and higher than average intelligence]] to give her more Focus than Caleb or Gabriella while also having more health and ammo than Ishmael. The ''Extra Crispy'' mod alters Caleb to have a bit more Focus in exchange for a bit less ammo capacity, while still being slower but more resistant than Ophelia, making him more of a MagicKnight.
* FirstNameBasis: Of the four Chosen, only Ophelia's last name, Price, is made known, and even then only the manual uses it. Everyone calls everyone by their first name, which includes Gideon in ''Blood II''.
* FirstPersonPeripheralNarrator: Gideon serves the role of this for the ''Nightmare Levels'' expansion.
* FishPeople: The Gill Beasts, amphibious sea monsters that are very fast and dangerous underwater, but become somewhat slow bipedal walkers on land.
* FlareGun: One of the earliest examples in video games, the Flare Gun takes up the [[StandardFPSGuns standard pistol slot]] in the first game. On a per-shot basis, it's Caleb's second most effective incendiary weapon, and it's the best choice against foes that can TeleportSpam or turn intangible.
* FlippingTheBird: When they spot you, the Hands in ''Blood II'' will gleefully stop, "stand" on their wrists and give you the one-finger salute before giving chase.
* {{Foreshadowing}}: Even though he cast out the Chosen, Tchernobog provides Caleb with a vital hint for a puzzle in "Hallowed Grounds" ([=E1M5=])--almost as if he wants Caleb to keep going.
--> '''Tchernobog:''' You will know what to do when the time comes.
* TheFourthWallWillNotProtectYou: When a Choking Hand is stuck to you in the first game, it's actually rendered ''over'' the HUD, coming as close as it can to actually reaching out of the screen.
* GameBreakingBug: A few in the first game. Installing the [[ExpansionPack Plasma Pak]] fixes some of them.
** A glitch in earlier builds made it impossible to shake off Choking Hands once they've attached to you.
** [=E3M6=]: Monster Bait's exit door can be opened only once but closes after a while. If for whatever reason (perhaps you want to reveal some secret areas you missed) you don't immediately enter, you won't be able to proceed to the next level unless you cheat.
** [=E4M5=]: Fire and Brimstone was also missing a key in one version of the game that prevented the player from finishing the level without cheats.
* GameplayAndStorySegregation: Tchernobog notes that whenever Caleb killed someone, he would grow more powerful, possibly even eclipsing Tchernobog himself. In-game, though, Caleb's strength and durability, like in most shooters, is strictly dependent on what weapons he's carrying and how much health he has. [[ItMakesSenseInContext You can obtain health and ammo pickups by killing enemies]], as well as powerups, but powerups are temporary, and Caleb certainly can't increase his health and ammo infinitely.
* GatlingGood: The Vulcan Cannon in the second game has the highest DPS potential of any bullet-firing weapon in the game. Gabriella has it as her weapon. ''Extra Crispy'' turns the combat shotgun into one, with four barrels that revolve for a very fast (for a shotgun) rate of fire.
* GenderFlip: Gabriel somehow gets brought back to life as a woman in ''Blood II'', evidently thanks to the Singularity Generator being just that unpredictable; her only comment is that it's "a long story", and she seems to be fine with it.
* GlowingEyesOfDoom: Even before their resurrection, all of the Chosen's eyes glowed a bright red.
* GothicHorror: The first game is of the Post-Victorian type (specifically, it takes place in [[TheRoaringTwenties 1928]]). In addition to having a VillainProtagonist (who's technically undead), the game has a rather [[RealIsBrown dark and drab visual style]], along with numerous classic horror story locations, such as haunted houses and cemeteries, an AmusementParkOfDoom, and a MadScientistLaboratory.
* GrandTheftMe: Tchernobog reincarnates by allowing someone to kill his current form and then taking over the body of the one who killed him. The Cabal was formed in the first place so Tchernobog would always have a new body to reincarnate into, becoming the religious cult it is in the first game after an early incarnation passed his religious tendencies onto Tchernobog. This was the basis for his plan in the first game, betraying Caleb so he would go on a RoaringRampageOfRevenge, killing scores of the cult and making himself powerful enough for Tchernobog to "throw open the door between the worlds and inherit the Earth" upon possessing him. However, Caleb presumably [[TooSpicyForYogSothoth became even more powerful]] than [[GoneHorriblyRight even Tchernobog expected]], as Caleb kills him, inheriting his powers and status as The One That Binds, without being possessed.
** [[spoiler:The cancelled ''Revelations'' expansion pack would have had this as part of the plot again, with the reveal that the possession actually ''was'' successful, and the player after the end of the original game was controlling Tchernobog-as-Caleb rather than Caleb himself--by way of the new big bad stealing Tchernobog's essence and [[AndNowForSomeoneCompletelyDifferent leaving the player to control him]] in a boss fight between himself and Caleb. Notably, winning ''or'' losing in the resulting boss fight would have lead to an ending, since either way the player, controlling Tchernobog's essence, would still be around, regardless of who the host was. Just don't think too hard about all the havoc this twist would have played with the base game's plot and Caleb's characterization.]]
* GratuitousFrench: In the CD versions of "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=6uIksYWaZKA Dark Carnival]]" and "[[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=svzMK33PMUk Infuscomus]]", you can hear the French children's song "[[https://en.wikipedia.org/wiki/Loup_y_es-tu%3F Loup y es-tu?]]" in its original language.
* TheGrimReaper: Phantasms, miniature Grim Reapers that are only vulnerable when they become corporeal. They often [[JumpScare startle players]] by ambushing them with their persistent screaming and creepy smile.
* GuideDangIt:
** The button required to proceed further in ''Gothic Library''[[note]]Cryptic Passage add-on[[/note]] is hidden on the far side of the fallen bookshelf in the "eye door" room. It's so poorly visible you may end up stuck in the level desperately searching for a way to proceed.
** There is only one Death Ray in the second game, and it's ''very'' well-hidden. If you don't have a flashlight, you're not likely to find it without resorting to a guide.
* GunsAkimbo: The first game featured it as a power-up that only worked for about a minute; the second game let you dual-wield certain weapons indefinitely by picking up a second one, at the cost of that weapon's alternate firing mode. The ''Extra Crispy'' mod removes the alt-fire restriction and increases the number of guns that can be held akimbo to such a degree, you'd be excused for mistaking Caleb for a [[VideoGame/{{Borderlands 2}} gunzerker]].
* GunsDoNotWorkThatWay: The Beretta, MAC-10, M16 and Vulcan minigun [[UniversalAmmunition all use the same ammunition]]. The M16's GrenadeLauncher also shares ammo with the Die-Bug-Die pesticide spray, though the model at least is noticeably different from the real thing to account for this - you can see on the finished model used ingame that the grenade launcher looks noticeably different from a real M203, including the bulged-out portion at the rear, loads what look to actually be cans of pesticide through the muzzle rather than at the breech, and is taped to the M16's handguard where a real M203 has much more secure mounting clips that go around the barrel underneath the handguard.

* AntiHero: Caleb, to borderline VillainProtagonist degrees. Sure, he's fighting against an evil cult, but it's for his own personal gains at worst and he's only barely better than said cult in terms of morality, having no problem with killing innocent bystanders that just happen to [[ArtificialStupidity be in his line of fire]].

* PsychopathicManchild: Caleb has shades of this, especially in the Carnival level where he protests to see Jo-Jo walking on the rope, and when he celebrates his victory on a bottle game like a hyperactive child.

* FateWorseThanDeath: Gideon is reduced to nothing but his skull after he fights Caleb. At the beginning of the ''Nightmare Levels'' expansion it's revealed his soul was trapped within it. [[AngstWhatAngst He's surprisingly not bitter about it]], figuring he'll [[SurrogateSoliloquy "serve as a muse]] to [[ReferencedBy/WilliamShakespeare some unfortunate playwright"]] someday, and in the meantime deciding to narrate the continuing adventures of Caleb and company to the player.

** [[LocomotiveLevel E1M3: The Phantom Express]] - just about the only thing right about it is that the train runs on tracks. Let's see: Absurdly spacious? Check. Exceeds every known loading gauge worldwide? Check. No doors on the car sides to actually ''board the train''? Check. The tender having no water tank? Check. Walkways going all the way around the locomotive ''including its cab''? Check. The steam engine having no actual boiler, just a furnace in an oversized cab without any front view windows[[note]]so no way of seeing what's actually in front of the train[[/note]] and no discernible controls[[note]]so no way to actually control the train[[/note]] except a few switches only used to [[ViolationOfCommonSense overheat the furnace]] and [[CrossesTheLineTwice blow the whole engineering paradox up?]] Check, check, CHECK.

* KillItWithFire: Usually the best way to get rid of strong enemies like the Bloated Butcher. For that, ''Blood'' has the flare gun, the spray can and the napalm cannon. ''Blood II'' sees the return of all of these, with the exception of the spray can, which gets replaced by [[ScrappyWeapon the glitched and mostly useless DieBugDie sprayer]].

* MadeOfExplodium: Even by ''VideoGame/{{GoldenEye|1997}}''-era FPS standards, some rather unusual things in the second game explode in a burst of flame when damaged enough, such as vending machines, refrigerators, and even some of the ''wooden desks'' in the [=CabalCo=] offices. This is, of course, assuming it's not a machine that bursts into LudicrousGibs when destroyed... or a corpse that explodes into a shower of metal parts, because [[ObviousBeta this game is weird]].

* MistakenForGranite: There are gargoyle statues that sometimes turn into live gargoyles. Much ParanoiaFuel ensues when you realize even the ones that don't turn will still bleed when struck.

** The [[FireBreathingWeapon Napalm Launcher]] is one that got shafted the hardest, going from an aversion to VideoGameFlamethrowersSuck, to now being a proud example of it. In ''II'', it has a ''much'' slower firing rate in both modes, while the fireballs are much weaker (primary fire hurts less than a double shotgun blast - at least three shots are necessary to kill a basic enemy on Suicide difficulty), {{painfully slow|Projectile}}, and don't set the target on fire. In early versions it was still worth keeping around because [[GoodBadBugs a bug refilled your ammo to full with each pickup]], so it was still a spammable option, but now, after the fix that changed them to give only 10 shots per can, it's at best inventory filler.

** ''Fresh Supply'' contains everything the OUWB pack does, but also ports the game to the Kex engine [[ScrewedByTheLawyers majorly because Atari is hogging the original's BUILD source code]], letting it run natively on modern Windows/Mac/Linux systems for the first time, as well as optionally adding other graphical improvements such as ambient occlusion and "true" 3D aim.

** The first game's AerosolFlamethrower is tricky to ignite enemies for long periods with, but when you manage that, use the "MolotovCocktail" SecondaryFire or generally against [[KillItWithFire more flammable enemies]] like Bloated Butchers, it's quite devastating. The Die Bug Die bug spray replacing it in ''II'' is [[ScrappyWeapon short-ranged, slow-firing and all around worthless]], only serving to check how much spray ammo you have for the assault rifle's GrenadeLauncher secondary - a function which itself was rendered unnecessary in a patch that added a second ammo counter for your spray ammo when you have the assault rifle equipped.

* WhamEpisode: The final level of Episode 1, "The Altar of Stone". [[spoiler:After crossing at least ten miles in one night, not to mention surviving everything his former cult is throwing at him, Caleb finally finds Ophelia...'s bloodied and crucified corpse, and furiously calls out the beast that murdered her.]]

* AbnormalAmmo: From the relatively-speaking mundane (pesticide grenades on the M16's attached grenade launcher in Blood II) to the freaky (trapped souls for the Life Leech in the first).

* ApatheticCitizens: ''Blood 2'''s civilians often don't react to the horrific things going on around them (including half a corpse sticking out of a public washing machine) as strongly as you think they would. The manual and guidebook suggest that it's learned helplessness in regards to [=CabalCo.'s=] takeover.
* AttractMode: There's a couple of demos playing on the title screen.

* BaldOfEvil: Ishmael is a straight example. Caleb is actually a case of OffModel in the first game[[labelnote:explanation]][[WordOfGod According to Kevin Kilstrom, lead artist and modeler]], Caleb was envisioned as having short dark hair like Ash from ''Franchise/EvilDead'' (and indeed he does in the art for ''Blood II'', though it's sometimes depicted as a long windswept mane), which he didn't care to model because it would be hidden by his FedoraOfAsskicking [[TheFaceless that also hides his face in shadow]]. When it came time to make the [=FMVs=], he just gave the 3D staff the bald model he used to sprite Caleb from, since he didn't expect Caleb to lose his hat, and once they were done, a mix of technical difficulty and lacking competence on part of the 3D guys made it too much of a hassle to change the already-finished FMV. Kevin says he really doesn't like the scene in the intro where Caleb's hat falls off his head as he's falling into darkness - and also points out that if you look closely, he also doesn't have ''ears''[[/labelnote]].

* BatmanGambit: Tchernobog fully intended for Caleb to return from the grave and seek vengeance, gaining power with each kill he made along the way. The intent was to then [[GrandTheftMe take over Caleb's body and use the new power to take over all realities]], though this fails, with Caleb killing him and going on his merry way. Gideon was supposed to have his own gambit in Blood 2, but most of that subplot was cut before the game's release, so now he just wants Caleb dead for reasons that don't quite get explained beyond a generic revenge for the death of Tchernobog.

* CherryTapping: The pitchfork. Killing an opponent with it is sheer humiliation. Killing zombies with it is often necessary to save ammo.
* CircusOfFear:

* CliffHanger: The four Chosen are left in an alternate reality at the end of Blood II, and make no real progress towards getting out in the expansion; a cancelled second expansion would have just had Caleb, at least, back in normal reality with no explanation. The end text for Blood II lampshades this:

* DarkIsNotEvil: Well, [[BlackAndGrayMorality most]] of it [[VillainProtagonist is]], but Tchernobog is technically a neutral force who exists to separate and bind alternate realities. For the most part, Tchernobog's own will overpowers that of his new host, but there have been exceptions, such as his 5th incarnation being a Buddhist high priest who set Tchernobog to turn the Cabal into a religious cult, and the 16th incarnation, a truly evil and bitter man, turned him into the form we see him as in-game. [[spoiler:Caleb as the 17th incarnation was another case, presumably becoming so powerful that there was no trace of Tchernobog left other than his powers and duties to bind and keep separate the realities.]]

* DifficultyLevels: Unlike many other Build engine games, ''Blood 1''[='=]s difficulty levels don't just determine the placements and amount of enemies on each map, they also determine various properties and the [[HitPoints vitality]] of monsters. ''Blood 2''[='=]s, however, are more standard difficulty levels that primarily place more enemies and let them deal higher damage; the only noticeable difference is that your maximum health is also determined by difficulty, with the easiest allowing for 200 normal health and the hardest dropping you to just 50.

* EliteMooks: Prophets in ''Blood 2'' are a lot tougher than regular [=CabalCo=] soldiers and are usually armed with heavy weapons.

* INeedAFreakingDrink: Clicking on bottles of booze in the first game has Caleb mutter that he could use some.

* LeaningOnTheFourthWall: There's a phone call in the second level of Blood II in which a lady asks "Mr. Cal-Eeb" if he is or has ever been a character in a video game. Caleb replies "You've gotta be kidding" and hangs up.

* ManaMeter: Focus in Blood II, used to power supernatural weapons like the voodoo doll, Life Leech and [[Film/{{Phantasm}} The Orb]]. Interestingly, this caused a common belief that the Orb did not have a SecondaryFire mode - it does, but it takes more than 100 Focus, so only Ophelia and Ishmael can use it.

* MirrorBoss: In ''Blood 2'', you fight zombie clones of the other 3 Chosen just before the final fight with the Ancient One.

* ScarabPower: In ''Blood 2'', the armor pickups come in the form of scarab beetle talismans entitled the Ward (25 armor) and Necroward (a full 100).

* ShoutOut: Way way way too many to mention, mostly to horror classics such as Creator/StephenKing's books or ''Franchise/ANightmareOnElmStreet'', gothic literature... and ''Franchise/EvilDead'' for deadpan snarkery. [[http://www.blood-wiki.org/index.php/References_in_Blood See here]] for an extensive list.

* StandardFPSGuns: Notably averted in the original game. While the shotgun and Tommy gun are typical, the pistol is a flare gun that shoots incendiary projectiles that set enemies on fire; the rocket launcher is replaced by a napalm gun that sets enemies on fire alongside the normal explosive damage, and there are bizarre weapons such as the hairspray and lighter, [[HollywoodVoodoo voodoo doll]] and the Life Leech staff. The second game pads the armory out with a few more of these, like a normal 9mm pistol, multiple varieties of bullet hoses (smaller machine pistols that can be [[GunsAkimbo paired up]] up through an assault rifle with underslung GrenadeLauncher and then a [[GatlingGood multi-barreled monstrosity]]), and a sniper rifle, but otherwise keeps most of the bizarre weapons of the first game, or replaces them with equally-odd new ones, like a pesticide sprayer with a Zippo lighter attached to make it into an impromptu flamethrower. Even better, ''Blood 2'' doesn't have assigned weapon slots, so you can customize your loadout by dropping weapons you don't want or need.

** ''Fresh Supply'' contains everything the OUWB pack does, but also ports the game to the Kex engine, letting it run natively on modern Windows/Mac/Linux systems for the first time, as well as optionally adding other graphical improvements such as ambient occlusion and "true" 3D aim.

* VulnerableCivilians: The "innocents" in the first game do little more than run around in a panic and tend to show up in close proximity to cultists, making it difficult to either avoid shooting/blowing them up by accident or take out the cultists in time (assuming that [[VideoGameCrueltyPotential you aren't actively gunning for the civilians]], anyway). Civilians in the second game tend to stay put, but are equally defenseless.