[Castlevania] [Vampire Killer] [Haunted Castle] [Castlevania II: Simon's Quest] [Castlevania: The Adventure] [Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse] [Super Castlevania IV] [Castlevania II: Belmont's Revenge] [Dracula X: Rondo of Blood] [Akumajou Dracula X68000] [Castlevania: Bloodlines] [Castlevania: Dracula X] [Castlevania: Symphony of the Night] [Castlevania Legends] [Castlevania 64] [Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness] [Castlevania: Circle of the Moon] [Castlevania: Harmony of Dissonance] [Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow] [Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow] [Castlevania: Curse of Darkness] [Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin] [Castlevania: Order of Shadows] [Castlevania: The Dracula X Chronicles] [Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia] [Castlevania: The Arcade] [Castlevania: The Adventure Rebirth] [Castlevania: Harmony of Despair] [Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate]

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Castlevania: Curse of Darkness
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The again-risen-early Count is hardly in poor condition. Though, his first form represents a traditional Dracula with thrown in a few new tricks: (1) He'll command spikes to rise up from the ground and in a wave of rubble chase the nimble Hector. (2) He'll release at close range three orange orbs, which explode seconds later. (3) He'll rise into the air, channel dark energy, and for a short period unleash outward, all around, a volcanic eruption. Or (4) he'll attempt to "cut Hector to pieces" by teleporting out and reappearing for a surprise grab-attack, which if successful will see the Count suck the blood out of Hector and in the process heal himself. To frustrate Hector and force him to run about, Dracula will sometimes use his normal teleport--he'll break into a swarm of bats and fly to a location across the way. When he teleports near the throne area, he'll reveal one last attack: Using his ring, he'll fire toward the ground a laser, with it etching a random pattern; seconds later, bursting flames will rise up from the carved crevices. Hector's best bet is to stay back, dodge the attacks, and let his Innocent Devils wail on the distracted Count.

Now here's arguably the supreme Dracula form, which is reminiscent of Ultimate Dracula from Legacy of Darkness. Hector is relegated to a small stone platform that hovers in the middle of nothingness. Dracula will shift between two planes--up-close and far away. When in the distance, Dracula has a couple of special moves: He can fire a series of heat-seeking, arrow-shaped projectiles; he can from his chest expel across the area a large laser, an attack he'll hold while he circles the platform (thus, two well-timed dodges will be crucial); he can unleash over the whole area a deadly seismic air-wave; or he can come flying in with a devastating punch. After one or a combination of the aforementioned, he'll get up-close, which is precisely the time to strike. Though, it won't be easy because Dracula has some formidable offense, too, on this plane: He'll repeatedly throw single or quake-inducing hammer punches whose very motions leave behind a residual trails of poison mist, or he'll execute a grabbing swipe with which he can grab onto Hector and through a number of squeezes drain the life out of him. This form is as tough as it is large, so an insane amount of effort will be required, both from Hector and the assisting Innocent Devils; a large number of energy-replenishing items won't hurt.

 
 
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