If any of the following scenarios apply to you, then this guide is for you:

• You've awoken an Abyss Wanderer (when you hear a deep, booming demon voice gleefully boasts, "I live again!").
  
  
• Witches, worse yet if they're Rotten, are on the prowl and want to cook you in their cauldron(s).
  
  
• You have a large horde to deal with, worse yet if many or all of them are Rotten.
  
  
• You are low on resources.
  
  
• You've started a fight among the demons or intend to, and wish to hold out while the fun is taking place.
  
  
• You are in a multiplayer match and need to use the john. (Warning: not all spots in the guide can afford you this luxury!)
  
  
• You are playing by your antisocial lonesome (like I do most of the time, touché) and maybe you're waiting for something to happen or finish, like a massive infighting spree, or for an Abyss Wanderer to show up because he's late for work.
  
  
• You're just a straight-up coward and are heavily reconsidering ever buying & installing this game because it scares the pants off of you for some reason and you can't handle it because WHAT THE HECK WHERE DID THAT GUY COME FROM DA F--.

Keep in mind that almost every single item on the list can apply to you. But if you care enough to consider reading this guide for the sake of helping you grow in the game, then the last point in the list likely doesn't apply to you so kudos to you, stranger.

If you want the low-down on how to hunker-down while the crap is going down, then keep reading!

By far the most popular option for cowards like you, this spot can give you a lot of breathing room and make it a pinch to kill enemies without reprisal. You can even kill an Abyss Wanderer entirely by standing in the right place, and, even better, if his lesser friends dubiously block him in the room with you.

Without further ado, let's refresh your memory on where to go:



Make like a tree and go up the flight of stairs. After gathering your labored breaths, hopefully not too long an ordeal in itself, go into the room.



Wow! It's a bathroom! You must be feeling clean as a whistle already! Next up:



See that filthy looking bathtub you forgot to clean? Or maybe you indulge in some rather 'criminal' activity in your spare time and you're not genre-savvy enough to put your victims' bodies elsewhere? Well, you need to jump onto it. Giddy up!



See the curtain in front of you? Situate yourself right up against it. This will now be your safe haven; it is arguably the safest 'hiding spot' of them all. You can even fit two people in here! Mind you, whomever is not nestled in this very part of the hiding place is at risk of getting attacked by enemies who decide to cop a look into the far end of the bathtub. Those perverts. Those fireballs that inevitably follow. Those potential instances of death by witch, rotten or no.

Here's a strategy that allows you to get a better look at what's on the other side of the curtain: crouch-jumping on top of the curtain! It's a bit difficult if you're not good at timing your key presses, but if you manage it, then it's a rather half-useful strategy that you really don't have to utilize here! Have fun.

If this were any other FPS game, let alone realistic ones, then the curtain wouldn't be akin to solid steel and probably wouldn't provide you the cover that it does here. In fact, knifing the curtain itself produces a sort of, "clang!" sound. Whodathunkthat? Fabric, when completely petrified or completely solidified otherwise, is no different than a wall of metal, apparently. UNLOVED, you so funny.

This is spot can be missed by those who aren't paying attention, and isn't fool-proof in preventing the enemy from getting at you. Demon speed tends to do that to people. Anyway, I'll start with a good point of reference in order to find the room you want to go into.

Notice the picture below:



Get in there quickly, then turn around. You should be seeing the following architecture:



Sometimes that door directly in front is open, other times it isn't. It won't be rusted shut like in some other rooms that would otherwise have them. Go in; it's a bathroom, with a tub. Very cramped. I don't know how anyone could tolerate it plus it's just nasty.



Pin yourself against the wall adjacent to the door while you do the same with the wall behind you. While you're doing this, enemies will only come in if they use demon speed, otherwise their AI gets confused and won't follow you all the way in most of the time. In the event that an enemy does wander inside, violating your privacy as they are so eager to do, then you're vulnerable and you'll have to defend yourself.

Sounds confusing, don't it? It's the distinct area of the Apartment tileset that has a kitchen in the center, with several head-level windows that leave you exposed quite often. Well, in one of the corners of the outer area is a leisure room, complete with TV. It, as the title suggests, has two doors connected to it, plus that lower hallway with the two wall-mounted shelves. Anyway, here's the point of reference:



Notice, against the wall and with a table nearby, is a lounge chair? You can tuck yourself in between these two objects.

When you turn around to where events will surely be taking place, you'll have a similar view as the following:



Blocks most attacks from roughly 70% of the screen, beginning from the center-left all the way to the right. This is provided that you are crouching the whole time. Confuses the AI of monsters so that they won't move to your physical location.

Everyone should know of this section, and the spot within it sticks out like a sore thumb. It's that TV that's placed in the corner at an angle, with a candle on top of it. I must warn readers, however, that this spot is difficult to master for the sake of actually taking cover. I'll explain later but here's the visual reference:



You get even closer, and lo, you see that you can go behind it. So do it!



You turn around after doing so, then crouch (maximizes the effectiveness of this spot), and you'll see something like this:



Try to keep in mind that enemies can still get at you from the location visible in the picture below, so you may have to adjust how you're sitting in this little corner to compensate:



You can fidget around in order to try to avoid getting smacked around, but then on the opposite end of the TV is a similar weakspot. You can stand up in this corner and the enemies that end up surrounding the TV for a marathon session of Friends won't be able to attack you with fireballs or anything. Instead, you'll have to pay attention to the odd fireballs thrown from the upper flooring of the hall, particularly from Rotten variants of monsters. You certainly don't want a Rotten, good for nothing witch eyeing you up and down while you're possibly surrounded by TV-obsessed Americans denizens of the abyss.

We all know this place: a foreboding, deadly place that leaves you quite the easy target for...WITCHES! How can anything good come of this room? Well, there's two hiding places here, one more useful than the other. Let's start with that ominous structure in the center of it all. It may be mostly destroyed with only a bed and some furniture, but to you it's potentially a life-saver. It's also tricky to get to and won't be accessible to characters with movement penalties.



You see that arch that's leaning at an angle away from the structure in this picture? You're going to have to do a sprinting jump to get on top of it in any comfortable length of time. Those with movement speed bonuses may land on the structure instead, which is basically the whole point. Anyone else who isn't being slowed down will land on top of this object.



If you situate yourself in the middle of the roof of this building then enemies that are already on the ground will swarm beneath you. However, this doesn't entirely confuse the AI; they will dart around the room once in a while, and enemies that are coming your way, especially from any of the doors, will be able to easily target you. Witches are the worst offenders. In that case? Be offensive to them! Call them names! Grab your trusty double-barreled shotgun and empty a 12-gauge round into their bony behinds!

Not the most useful "hiding" place in the guide but one of the more unique for sure. It's best to avoid this room as much as you can, though.

We're still in the gauntlet of UNLOVED, and it still has almost no breathing room for you, the player, to take advantage of. However, unlike the previous "hiding spot" in which you're a sitting duck to anything above ground level, this one isn't nearly as dangerous to utilize. So, without further ado!



If you can orient yourself in the fashion visible in the picture below, then you're off to a good start. Move toward those coffins I am aiming at, specifically the stack of two. Then jump behind them, right in the corner of the staircase and the wall.



The only way for this to work properly is to crouch, and stick as close as you possibly can to the coffins, as is seen below:



The image below shows the weakness of this hiding spot:



What is going to happen, however, is that enemies will get...

*drumroll*

*drumroll*

*drumroll*

More confused than a fish-out-of-water old person with full-on dementia; the monsters mostly will not come to you while you're in the weak spot, as the AI doesn't seem to recognize that you're there. Instead, you'll have enemies all around the room who will refuse to move for the most part. But for those who are aware that this happens, sometimes enemies show up on the edge of each stairway (on either side of them), right above you, and they can't move but can still shoot at you. Vigilance and respect for your elders (not in my case anymore because they all died) will get you a long way while you use this hiding spot.

Some people ignore this little area of the room entirely, since it's not the focal point. Also, this won't necessarily protect you from attacks like some other areas will, but enemies won't move toward you if you're tucked away all proper, either. Look for that partially destroyed hut on the ground level; this little spot is the subject of this section.



This coffin, as seen above, is in the far corner of the little hut. There is a door to the right, as is visible next to the shotgun. Sometimes it can be opened, sometimes it cannot. For the sake of this working as it has for me, don't open it.



You may have to jump into this corner to be able to tuck yourself in there, safe and sound. Mind, enemies that have chased you inside of this hut while you were looking for this spot will likely be in a position from where they can still attack you. In the above picture there are indeed two rotten sons-of-guns that tried to tickle my feet or something. But I was too sneaky-deaky and quick for them and took full advantage of this spot post-haste. Anyway, same thing may happen to you, so get in the corner, repent for your sins, and attack them if you must. Then you can likely down a cookie or two. Bakery-fresh only!

Keep in mind that enemies can still attack you in some circumstances, such as if they use demon speed when tracking you, because they may then appear right in front of you, but otherwise their AI doesn't recognize a path to get to you while you're in this spot. That's nice!

This room can spell your doom if you're dealing with a horde, but I know of a great place here that can serve you well in your endeavors.

If you don't know what I'm referring to, then it's the "hut" section in the corner of the graveyard. You know how there's a coffin next to the "hut"? Well, that's the little building you want to go into. Do eet, do eet now.



There's three coffins placed haphazardly in the back-right corner of this here room. There's almost always an item on top of the one coffin, as well as on top of the two-stack that you'll be tucking yourself behind, as is visible in the above picture. There's also a coffin leaning against the wall, which will help make this cover work for you. So, what are you waiting for?



Yes, I'm aware that my reloading shotgun has obscured a bit of the image but have patience why don't you?! Anyway, make sure your feet are planted firmly onto the ground, that you're crouching, and not on the bottom coffin of the two-stack, otherwise your head will arouse the angry fireballs and death gazes of the horde. Enemies can sometimes stop right next to the single coffin that's to your left (not visible in the picture, but otherwise it's where the hand is); this is bad. Normally, however, enemies tend go right next to the coffin that's leaning against the wall to your right. This is good.

Keep in mind that you need to be crouching for this to work. You can shoot at enemies just fine from this spot, even while crouched. Plus, you can easily start a massive infighting spree amongst the delinquents outside, made ever more possible by jumping in place like the attention-seeking child that you are. Or maybe you're hurt and need medical attention. Or maybe you're just trying to goad the monsters into attacking one another. It's really up to you...

This room is part of the area with long-winded, dimly-lit hallways lined with coffins. There are usually two to three doors that open up into this area. Refresh your memory with the picture below:



Go to the very back of the room beyond the destroyed wall. It has a couch that's placed at an angle and a table lined up against the wall. You can wedge yourself in-between the two objects, like so:



Try to place yourself, while crouching mind you (this makes the spot most effective), so that the couch blocks a sizeable angle. Things should be looking like this:



Like with the Apartments: Kitchen & Canteen spot, this manages to confuse AI so that they won't come to you. They can still attack you with ranged attacks, however, at least if you're not crouching, but otherwise you're pretty safe here.

I think everyone who has played this enough can picture which area this is. You'll also know which office I'm talking about. It's connected to the waiting area with the group seating.

In case you aren't aware of what I'm talking about, here it is:



When you go in, you'll see the following:



The spot is strange if only because it doesn't look like it could classify as one. Well, hate to break it to you, but it does.

In order for this to work, and this makes the spot tricky (it might not work at all if you don't position yourself absolutely right), you should try to copy exactly what you see in the next picture:



If you do it all prim & proper-like then monsters will, at most, go right into the doorframe and no further than that. Even the slightest deviation from the sweet-spot, which is very hard to get a bead on if I must say so, will see monsters coming to you as if nothing changed. They'll be confused if you get this right. What's great about this spot is that the room has two windows that protect you completely, with one of them at your backside. You can thus see everything going on outside, unless there's a large enough wall obscuring your vision. You can then time a moment to flee into safer territory. Neat, aye?

Lots of cover in this area, including this spot I'm going to show you.

If you know of the area I'm talking about, then this should be recognizable. Otherwise, you'll know it's the right spot when you have the large building that contains a reception office, a place that looks like a chapel, and a small building with a number of crosses & gravestones along its outer perimeter. That building is the subject of this section.



You will always be able to open the door for the building, provided it isn't open already. Go in.

You'll immediately, before anything else, notice two bloody saw tables, as seen below:



You'll be going to the table on the left. Huddle against the table and to the wall in the back. See the following for the right orientation:



Now, keep in mind that enemies can sometimes take shots at you here. The worst case scenario is that those dastardly witches and dare I say the rotten Abyss Wanderer (that's the gray one, the guy who also casts the death gaze spell) will try to attack you as well. For the most part, though, they'll likely just run around the building and dart past the door a bunch of times well before they attempt to kill you. It happens less often when you're in the perfect orientation in this spot.

In case the worst comes to fruition, then you do have a means of avoiding taking damage, or, in the case of Rotten witches, certain death: the leg of the table! See the next picture for how to orient yourself when this happens:



Be aware that if you're too close to the table then you won't be able to stand up. You'll then need to back up a tiny bit to do so again. Basically, the table leg will obscure the vision of a witch or wanderer just enough that it'll nullify the death gaze. Clint Eastwood would then go on to castigate those who attempted to kill you, because he knows how to weaponize a death gaze (or death glare).

Want to see where enemies go when you do this properly? It's how this ends up working so well. Take note of this for when you play this on multiplayer and one of the other players, or you, takes advantage of this spot. It'll be a great place to bag & tag a large group of vociferous monsters, or tenacious paparazzi.

This area actually has two spots that can be taken advantage of, though this one in particular is not quite as useful. In spite of that, it's still a place to avoid taking (some, anyway) damage!

Look for this arrangement of boxes:



Now pay attention to where my crosshair is pointing:



You're going to then crouch-jump over top of the stack of boxes in the center. You'll end up like this if you do it right:



Witches, oh those lovely witches, can still attack you if you're here. Same goes for servants, both the normal & the rotten varieties, seeing as their attacks are hitscan. Doesn't sound so useful? It can be somewhat useful in slower-paced games (if a horde isn't too overwhelming, or better yet you don't have to deal with witches at the very least). You may find that you won't be able to get out. Don't fret! All it takes is a bit of panicky crouch-jumping your way back out of this little spot so you can be on your merry way.

This is the more useful spot to take advantage of in this area. Plus, you get a nice, wide view of the place. Useful for taking cheap shots at enemies while hardly ever, at worst, getting attacked yourself.

Opposite of the collapsed main entry (I assume it was a double-door) to the restaurant you can find these boxes:



Take notice of where I am aiming:



Jump behind the small box that is seen wedged between the two larger ones. You can guarantee your entry with a handy crouch-jump. A non-crouching jump should do work as well. Keep in mind that if you move too quickly, you won't drop down to the ground as easily. Until you are kissing concrete again, you are not safe.



For this spot to be made more effective for you, situate yourself similarly to how I do it in the above picture. This spot does have a weak point if you're not nestled in here properly, as seen below:



In other words, that little box doesn't obscure enough of the enemy vision so as to prevent a possible death by witch. Standing, as well, may see you getting attacked by larger monsters, such as Rotten doctors, Rotten faceless, Rotten servants, and worst of all, Rotten witches. So it's best to keep your head down while you spray the horde with righteous lead. Or maybe you're out of ammo and your sadistic side deems it necessary to invoke infighting among the hungry masses trying to get to you.

At least that's what I like to call this area. It has a building that serves to be a morgue, a house with a hallway that has gurneys in it, and finally this one.

The building in question is seen below:



Go inside. You'll see an assortment of chairs arranged at various angles.



See where I am aiming in the above picture? Jump there and crouch. If you are in the right spot, you should see things like this if you turn around:



Funny thing is, most enemies won't be able to successfully attack you, though not for want of trying. The only thing that can theoretically get you is, again, the witch. Enemies will try to get to you all around the chairs here. If they are to the left of the chair on the left side of the picture, then they have a chance of attacking you (only really hits you if their attack is hitscan or a death gaze). If to the right of the same chair, they will at least attempt to attack you, only for it to miss almost all the time. Again, only a scant few attacks can actually connect with you here (hitscan and death gaze). Otherwise this location is great.

Beware, however, of very large hordes spawning in this area. Enemies can spawn on the pallets nearby, thus granting them the ability to fully attack you as they please. And I'm pretty sure that one or more of the chairs actually support an enemy spawning on top of them, though that rarely happens at all to be mentioned as a risk anyway. Plus if you're dealing with hordes that cause enemies to spawn in such places, then you're probably playing the game wrong to begin with.

Remember the area of the Town tileset where you find a small hallway that leads downstairs into a dimly-lit room with a torture apparatus or two? Well, there's another building across the street, between two double doors. Up against the outside wall of the building are several coffins placed near each other.

In this area you're not focusing on the platform with the cages and the lynch pole, instead you're going to look for a little corner in which a box and another lynch pole is placed.

In case you're not aware of what I'm talking about, here she is in all her glory:



As you can see, behind the box is an ample amount of room for you to squeeze into. Do that, between the box and the lynch pole. Refer to the next picture for the right way to do it:



If you do it right, you'll find yourself with the same or similar perspective as the following:



Situating yourself in the right place here will, like many of these hiding spots, confuse the AI. You're still vulnerable to getting killed by the STARE OF DEATH but otherwise, you're safe here.

I didn't know what else to call this area, as it's just another bunch of houses and buildings. What stands out about this area is that it has a raised area that overlooks the immediate region. It's also a decent spot to hold the line against a horde, unless you're close enough to be seen by those below. Anyway, moving on:



You'll want to climb those stairs. I know, I know, you're sweating just thinking about the effort required, but it'll be brief I assure you ;)



When you reach the top, look at the two lynch poles and the cage that rests between them. The space between the closest lynch pole and the cage is where we'll be going.

As you can see below:



The lynch pole will obscure the left-side of the screen, but nothing comes from there anyway. This situation should result in the AI getting confused as always. This may mean for you that enemies won't even bother trying to attack you while you're in there. It worked for me and it should work for you.



I'll be honest and admit that I don't know if this blocks ranged attacks, or at the very least most of them (like fireballs). But confusing the AI is good enough for me so it should be for you, too!

Well? Go on, be the coward that you were meant to be! We've all been through it, and many of us are cowards at one point or another. Why would you think yourself any different?

Should any other "hiding spots" be found, they may be added. Technically, a lot of what was included in this guide are places that either confuse enemy AI when you're in them, block enemy attacks (most of the time, anyway), or both. Some places that have been brought up to me either didn't work (one location only works if the map generation glitches when deploying the railings of staircases and balconies), or kept you so wide-open to attack and enemy movement that they ended up being disqualified for this list.

Have fun.