- "All were taken in by that church. They were promised salvation and eternal life. But there was nothing they could promise that I couldn't take away..."
- ―Ruvik describing the Cedar Hill Church
The Trauma is an enemy encountered in The Evil Within and its downloadable content The Assignment.
Appearance
A tall, naked humanoid creature with drooping flesh where a face would normally be, and a severe gaunt caused by the massive wooden beam on it's back, which it's left arm is also chained to. It lacks any hands, and instead possesses a large clawed gauntlet attached to it's right arm, which it uses as it's primary method of attack, slashing or plowing the ground as it runs. As they lack any discernible facial features aside from sagging flesh, it relies strictly on sound to find it's enemies. If it is damaged enough, it will angrily tear the wood plank off it's back, and use the chained hook attached to it to snag Sebastian from great distances and impale him on their gauntlet. If killed while frozen, they will die without tearing the plank free.
Symbolism
It is a manifestation of the resentment Ruvik held for his father's religion that was forced upon him, and his subsequent concept of death and rebirth, potentially even a mockery of it. This is possibly symbolized by how it is burdened by the wooden beam on its back.
Tactics
The Trauma moves slowly but it is capable of sudden bursts of speed if it detects Sebastian. Although its attacks are relatively easy to evade, the player tends to encounter the monster in confined rooms which can make escaping it difficult. Unless the player has plenty of shotgun shells, it is not advised to fight it with standard firearms as it can absorb a huge amount of damage. Explosive bolts and grenades can be very effective
When confronting the enemy, moving slowly and making little noise will allow you to safely move around the monster without alerting it. If you do attract its attention, it will eventually return to its "patrol mode" if you can find a place to hide.
Traumas can be lured away using Bottles, only it takes them a while to start to investigate the distraction. It may take them 30-40 seconds before they actually go to investigate the distraction.
Traumas are often encountered in pairs and will attempt to double-team the player if they corner them. It is recommended to use Freeze or Shock bolts to stun one of the creatures as they can inflict a huge amount of damage if they both attack the player at the same time
The player can perform sneak kill from behind, but it will not die in one hit.
In The Assignment side story for the game, Juli will enter a room that has several Traumas in what appear to be test tubes. One breaks out of the glass and patrols the area. Juli must sneak around in the nearby hiding spots and time her movements to bypass the Trauma and get into the next room. If the Trauma reaches Juli, it has a one-hit kill move.
Trivia
- A lone Trauma can briefly appear in Chapter 9: The Cruelest Intentions, before their formal introduction in Chapter 10. It can be spotted rounding a corner just after exiting Ruvik's parents' bedroom.
Gallery
.png "Trauma (full body).png (1.07 MB)")
.gif "Giphy (1).gif (1.71 MB)")
