Character control now shifts from Nero to Dante. Luckily you retain all of the Proud Souls and Red Orbs acquired while playing as Nero, as well as your health bar and D.T. gauge. Dante is much different than Nero in terms of gameplay; his move list is a lot larger for one thing, and he lacks the Devil Bringer, but his combat style is much more diverse. This transition might be tough to adapt to at first, but you'll likely find that the sheer amount of skills available to Dante makes him both powerful and quite fun to use. In other words, if you were getting by fine with Nero, you should have no problem slaying demons as Dante.
 Dante |
Test out each of Dante's combat styles on the Scarecrows in this room. You'll find that Dante has several moves that are similar to Nero's (Stinger/Streak, Helm Breaker/Split, High Time/High Roller), so he isn't entirely different when it comes to swordplay. Pause the game and open up the Skill List for a complete rundown of the moves currently available to you. Once the Scarecrows have been dealt with, head through the door at the north end of the room.
A new type of enemy is encountered here; a larger, more powerful Scarecrow. The Mega Scarecrows can take more of a beating than the standard Scarecrow, deal more damage, and have a projectile attack added to the mix. They're still one of the lesser enemies, though, so they aren't too difficult to defeat this far into the game. Once the enemies have been dealt with, proceed through the door at the north end of the room.
Approach the lift and examine it to retrieve the Wing Talisman key item that Nero left behind. When the lift reaches the first floor, an ominous message appears on screen; the HQ is about to collapse! You have less than 10 minutes to escape.
 Lift |  Wing Talisman |
 Wheel |  Frosts |
As soon as you step into the corridor, the ledge collapses and Dante falls to the floor below. You'll face three Mephisto on the lower level. While Dante lacks Nero's Devil Bringer (and thus the Snatch and Buster skills), a few rapid shots from the Coyote-A does a nice job of removing a Mephisto's cloak. Follow up with a barrage of attacks to quickly eliminate the weakened Mephisto.
 Mephisto |
 Time-slow Machine |  Key of Cronus |
Eliminate the Angelos that spawn in the hall to remove the red mesh blocking the door. Afterwards, either exit to the Gran Album Bridge using the door at the north end of the hall to safety, or, if you have time to spare, head through the door on the east side of the room to the Key Chamber.
Blue Orb Fragment -- Hit the time-slow machine in the Key Chamber, ignore the Gladius creatures, and slip through the lasers at the far end of the room to reach the Gauntlet. Search for the Combat Adjudicator here and attain a style grade of B by attacking it to receive some Red Orbs and the fragment. Now quickly make your way back to the Grand Hall!
 Combat Adjudicator |  Blue Orb Fragment |
 Gran Album Bridge |
