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Boss FAQ

by Berserker

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 | (__| |_| |   /\__ \ _|  | (_) | _|  | |) / _ \|   / ' <| .` | _|\__ \__ \
  \___|\___/|_|_\|___/___|  \___/|_|   |___/_/ \_\_|_\_|\_\_|\_|___|___/___/

                                   - - - -

CASTLEVANIA: CURSE OF DARKNESS

Boss FAQ

System:     Playstation 2
Written by: Berserker (aka. berserker_kev, Berserker93, or Kevin)
Started:    November 2, 2005
Email:      [email protected]

This document (c) 2005 Kevin Hall (Berserker)

Castlevania: Curse of Darkness (c) Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. 2005.

Please be advised that this FAQ contains SPOILERS (boss names).

- - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - - -

Version History

Version 0.8 - (November 7, 2005) - The main bosses are finished, but I am 
still lacking the secret bosses.  Email me if you would like to contribute 
anything.  I am missing quite a few stolen items as of now.

Version 1.0 - (November 8, 2005) - Secret bosses have been added and a few 
more stolen items from each boss have been added as well.

Version 1.1 - (November 9, 2005) - A few more items and ways of stealing have 
been added to the boss section.  I have also added a few special notes for 
areas of the game that people have the most problems with after boss fights.  
If you are stuck then look at the info after the boss fight and that might 
help.

Version 1.2 - (November 11, 2005) - Added a new section, Innocent Devil 
strategies, and every boss now has their stolen item listed with the way to 
steal except for Trevor battle 1, if there is indeed a way to steal from him.

Version 1.3 - (November 14, 2005) - Operation: "Steal from Death" has been 
looked at more closely (aka. "When to steal" has been dramatically changed for 
Death), and I have updated his boss fight strategy a bit, since I feel as if I 
know him a bit better now that I have stolen from him.  Also added an extra 
bit about stealing from Dullahan.

Version 1.4 - (January 23, 2006) - Added many alternate tips for bosses.  Also 
added each boss' weakness and tolerance.

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SECTIONS

Section I:    Introduction

Section II:   Bosses

     A: Crazy Armor

     B: Wyvern

     C: Trevor Belmont

     D: Skeleton Diver

     E: Minotaurus

     F: Isaac w/Innocent Devil (Abel)

     G: Saint Germain

     H: Trevor Belmont

     I: Dullahan

     J: Isaac

     K: Death

     L: Dracula

     M: Dracula (Demon Form)

     N: Legion (Optional Boss)

     O: Nuculais (Optional Boss)

Section III: Frequently Asked Questions

Section IV:  Copyright, Special Thanks, and Contact Info

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==============================================================================
                          > Section I - INTRODUCTION <
==============================================================================

Section I - INTRODUCTION

This FAQ is designed to help get you through each boss fight with plenty of 
tips and strategies.  I have highlighted each item that you can steal from 
each boss and the window of opportunity in which to perform the steal move.  
If this is your first time going through the game, then please be aware that 
there are SPOILERS.  Any comments, suggestions, questions, etc. are always 
welcome.  Email me at ([email protected]).  Also, if you find any errors 
in this FAQ, then please email me about it.  If you find anything that I have 
missed and you would like to add it, then by all means, email me.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

==============================================================================
                           > Section II - BOSSES <
==============================================================================

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

*****************************
WARNING: May contain SPOILERS
*****************************

-----

Boss 1 - Abandoned Castle

-----------------
>> Crazy Armor <<
-----------------

> Level 9

> HP - 1330

> Weakness: Thunder

> Tolerance: N/A

> Steal: Galtite (Boss Rush Mode ONLY)

> When to steal: When drills his head into the ground, you have to steal from 
his back.  He does this attack rarely. (Boss Rush Mode ONLY)

- First fight -

Try to have some sort of armor and helmet equipped and this battle will be a 
breeze, even if he hits you a bunch.

With the way this battle starts out you better be ready to move or block.  The 
boss will almost instantly try to hit you with a weapon strike.  He will do a 
mix of overhead and horizontal strikes throughout the battle (sometimes in a 
row).  Thankfully all of his attacks can be guarded against for the first 
battle.  Strike him after each attack and watch his arms for the next swing.  
With his vertical strikes it is better to guard rather than dodge them, since 
they clear an entire section of the room.  He also has an attack in which 
rotating gears shoot out of his mouth, which can be easily blocked as well - 
he usually does this attack up close and will pause before the attack.

- Second fight -

Now you will have to resort to avoiding his attacks altogether.  He will spew 
flames from each head that is connected with a gear - be sure to get away from 
him when he starts this attack.  As the battle progresses he will start to get 
more flame-happy and will nearly fill the whole room with flames.  He may 
eventually shoot fireballs, which can be easily avoided by running around or 
you can block them.  Hit him whenever he is not attacking and you can take him 
down the second time even faster than the first.

-----

Boss 2 - Baljhet Mountains

------------
>> Wyvern <<
------------

> Level 14

> HP - 1900

> Weakness: N/A

> Tolerance: Fire

> Steal: Shortcake

> When to steal: When the wyvern gets his head stuck in the dirt, jump on his 
back.  He will start to fly and carry you extremely far up in the air.  The 
purple marker will appear after about 7 seconds while in the air.  Steal from 
his neck and you will fall back down to the ground to continue the battle.

Be sure to equip the boiling ring if you have it, so the boss's fire attacks 
take less from you.

This boss can only be hit in his head.  Air strikes and ground strikes both 
work well for attacking him.  He has a variety of attacks, but will only pull 
some of them off after his life gauge has been taken down halfway.  At the 
start of the battle, he will mainly use his tail swipe and ground pound, both 
of which can be avoided by blocking.  He does an occasional bite every now and 
then as well (he will rare back much like the tail swipe before he does this).  
When he buries his head in the dirt, rush up to him and attack his neck.  
After you steal from him, he will no longer bury his head into the dirt.

When his life has been taken down halfway, he will become more aggressive and 
start to fly.  When he flies around in the air he will swoop by and breathe a 
trail of fire twice in a row and then land - keep running to dodge the flames.  
When he lands he will send out a slight shockwave in that area that will hit 
you if you are close.  While on the ground, he will sometimes rear his head 
back, which means he is about to breathe fire in the area around him.  To 
avoid the ground fire, be sure to run away from him (toward the screen) once 
he rears his head back.  None of his fire attacks can be blocked so you must 
avoid them.

-----

Boss 3 - Garibaldi Temple (1F)

--------------------
>> Trevor Belmont <<
--------------------

> Level ??

> HP - ????

> Weakness - ?

> Tolerance - ?

> Steal: ?

> When to steal: ?

For this boss you must learn how to dodge his attacks well.  Trevor loves to 
run up and pressure you with combos and holy water.  He will do a holy water 
attack from far, which will send a stream of white fire toward you that can be 
blocked.  When he rushes in, he will do one of two combos.  For his first 
combo he will start with his green whip and do three strikes and might end the 
combo with a circle of holy water.  It is best to roll out of the way before 
the second or (for sure) third whip strike strikes you since you, sometimes, 
cannot guard it because of staggering.  For his second combo, he will start 
out with a few punches and then move into a series of kicks.  The kicks can be 
guarded against, but not the entire combo, so you must roll out of the way as 
he starts the kick portion.  All of the hits of each combo can be guarded, but 
NOT the entire combo as Hector will start to stagger after the third hit.  
Even the circle of holy water can be guarded against at the end of the whip 
combo if it not in a series of blocked hits.  He will be left open to your 
attack after each of these combos unless he finishes with the holy water.  

His fiery charge punch cannot be guarded - you will have to time a roll or 
jump so that you move out of the way right before he does this move.  Like his 
combos, he will be left wide open to attacks after the charge punch.  It will 
seem as if you are underleveled by the little amount of life that you take 
from him while attacking, but that is the way the battle is set up.  After you 
have learned his moves, he is not hard at all.  He will cease his attack after 
you have taken about 25% of his life.

-----

Note: After you beat Trevor there is an ability that you get for your battle 
type Innocent Devil, a few rooms later, known as "Brute Force". This will let 
you open the large doors that are sealed. Stand right next to one with the 
battle-type Innocent Devil summoned and press Triangle to get him to open it.

-----

Boss 4 - Mortvia Aqueduct

--------------------
>> Skeleton Diver <<
--------------------

> Level 24

> HP - 3422

> Weakness: Fire

> Tolerance: N/A

> Steal: Sushi

> When to steal: When the fish dashes toward you while up on the platform (and 
the skeleton is on its back), roll out of its way, and steal from the 
skeleton's side.

Usually the skeleton will start out by throwing spears at you.  Guard against 
the spears or dodge them, both kinds of spears can be blocked (normal and 
fire).  It is possible to hit the fish while he is in the water, but watch for 
the spears!  If the fish comes up on the platform that you are on and races 
toward you, be sure to guard or roll to avoid its dashing attack.  If you roll 
you can get a few hits in from the fish's side before he gets to the other 
side of the platform.

The fish will eventually jump over the platform that you are on and do one of 
two things - either the skeleton will jump off and try to hit with his spear 
or the skeleton will throw down spears at you.  Immediately run up and combo 
the skeleton from behind when he jumps off for some free hits.  The skeleton's 
attacks can be easily guarded but his combo attacks will cause you to stagger 
if you block them in a row, and might result in a hit.  The skeleton's weak 
point is his back - if you can hit him in the back he will be stunned and open 
to a combo.  The best opportunity to hit him is right after his spear lunge 
when he hits the ground.  The fish may try to interrupt the fight by lunging 
out of the water directly at you - avoid him or block the attack.  When the 
fish surfaces on the platform, he will either spray water around the platform 
or stagger around the platform while on his side and move toward you.  The 
water attack can be avoided by rolling or jumping.  If the fish moves toward 
you while on his side, only the mouth will be able to hit you, so stay on 
either side of him and hit him.  Once the boss is down to only half of his 
life the skeleton will stay on the fish more often and throw spears so you 
will be forced to attack the fish.

Alternate Tip:

The Bird ID Crimson's Ignition Blow will actually KNOCKDOWN Skeleton Diver if 
he is on the platform.  Plus, it does double damage to him, as SkeleDiv is 
weak against fire.  As the fireballs are hitting him, you can get in combos. 
Fun. The fireballs will hit him as long as he is above water, but at one point 
after he takes enough damage on the platform, he will become invulnerable. 
Wait for him to get back on the fish, then resume fireballing, although he 
won't be knocked down.

(thanks to whythecynic)

-----

Boss 5 - Forest of Jigramunt

----------------
>> Minotaurus <<
----------------

> Level 30

> HP - 4200

> Weakness: Wind

> Tolerance: Earth

> Steal: Devil Iron

> When to steal:  As he comes down from his jump attack, do a backflip, then a 
forward flip and steal from his head.  Make sure to do the first jump 
extremely late in order to steal.  If you jump toward his left side, you will 
have a much greater chance since the pillar usually covers the right side of 
his head.

Dodging is the key to beating the Minotaur since he takes quite a bit of 
health every time he hits you. Throughout the battle he will tear out rock 
pillars from the sidewalls and try to hit you with them.  For the first pillar 
that he starts out with, he will strike you with it until it crumbles.  For 
the remaining pillars he will either try to hit you horizontally with them (if 
you're close) or will throw the pillar at you.  The only move of the 
Minotaur's that can be guarded against is his horizontal pillar strike.  After 
you guard the first hit, I would strongly recommend rolling just in case he 
follows up with a second hit, because if he combos any of his moves then 
Hector will be hit since the first move will always stagger him.  If you get 
far away from the Minotaur he will throw his rock pillar at you - roll quickly 
to the side to avoid this.  After he throws his rock pillar, run up to him and 
combo away.  He will walk over and get another rock pillar from the side of 
the wall.  Hit him until he turns around, then get ready to dodge.  He has 
very few moves for the first few rock pillars, so take advantage of this and 
hit him as much as you can.

When he gets down to the last rock pillar or when he only has half of his last 
bar of life, he will not throw the pillar in his hands at you, nor will it 
break.  He will have an almost entirely new set of moves for this rock pillar 
(he still has the horizontal swing).  If he holds the pillar downward and 
starts to spin in a circle GET AWAY from him.  He will spin toward you and try 
to smack you - be sure to get a few hits in when he starts to recover from 
this move.  When he jumps into the air, jump or roll away from him.  He can 
hurt you with the actual jump if you physically touch him, and he can also hit 
you with the shockwave on the ground afterward (the shockwave can be blocked).

-----

Boss 6 - Cordova Town

-----------------------------------
>> Isaac w/Innocent Devil (Abel) <<
-----------------------------------

> Level 34

> HP - 5850

> Weakness: Ice

> Tolerance: Dark

> Steal: Devil's Vein

> When to steal: At the end of his uppercut move.  He usually begins the 
battle with this move.

For this boss, you will need to roll constantly.  Both Isaac and his Innocent 
Devil will attack you at the same time.  He will shout out various commands 
for moves that you should watch out for.  Whenever he shouts out "Kill!" this 
means that his Innocent Devil will go under the ground and try to hit you from 
underneath.  Run, roll, and jump around the area to get away from the Innocent 
Devil while it is under the ground - this move is unblockable.  Isaac will 
begin to laugh whenever the Innocent Devil is underground.  If you have enough 
space between the Innocent Devil and Isaac then try to hit Isaac while he is 
laughing.  Whenever Isaac shouts out "Go!", this means that the Innocent Devil 
is about to perform a drilling attack.  If you are close enough when Isaac 
shouts out "Go!" you may be able to combo him out of the Innocent Devil's path 
or hit the Innocent Devil during the combo.  Whatever you do, DO NOT target 
the Innocent Devil during this fight.  You take only one hit point per hit, 
and the camera will go crazy trying to keep up with him.

Isaac's other moves include a ground pound (he laughs before he does this), 
flame uppercut, twister (he interrupts combos with this sometimes), and a long 
combo with his spear, all of which are blockable.  Watch for him to do a combo 
and get in close as he goes for the final hit and hit him when he goes to 
recover.  His Innocent Devil will be attacking you the entire battle so roll a 
bunch.  The Innocent Devil's normal moves are blockable, but make sure that 
Isaac does not hit you at the same time as the Innocent Devil.  Isaac will 
sometimes taunt you during the middle of the battle leaving himself wide open 
to an attack.  Use your Innocent Devils to the fullest extent during this 
battle.  Your attack and bird-type Innocent Devils can keep his Innocent Devil 
busy during the fight for a while until they are worn down.

Alternate Tip:

If you use Corpsey (Battle-type) during this fight, he may do an attack that 
will stun Abel.  If Isaac shouts out commands while Abel is stunned he will be 
able to do anything.

(thanks to whythecynic)

If you use Phoenix's (Bird-type) Big Bang attack on Abel it will remove Abel 
from the fight completely.  This will kill off Phoenix as well.

(thanks to Leviathan953)

-----

Note: After you get the mage-type Innocent Devil there are two areas ahead in 
Cordova Town where you will have to use the time stop spell to advance.

-----

Boss 7 - Eneomaos Machine Tower

-------------------
>> Saint Germain <<
-------------------

> Level 37

> HP - 4250

> Weakness: Thunder, Dark

> Tolerance: Earth, Light

> Steal: Immortal Fragment

> When to steal:  Use the mage-type Innocent Devil to freeze time as the boss 
stops time, and run up to him and steal.

If you have "Poison Powder" for your fairy-type Innocent Devil then summon her 
and she will most likely be able to poison Germain.  The poison will cause him 
to stagger during some of his moves, allowing you some free hits.

This boss is not that hard at all since most of his moves can be guarded 
against.  If you are aggressive you can take him out rather quickly.  He will 
teleport around the area and try to hit you.  He will usually do a two hit 
teleport combo or another short combo with a green glowing sword slash at the 
end.  Hit him while he recovers from each combo.  If the green sword slash 
hits you then it will poison you.  If he poisons you then he will most likely 
teleport up to the clock and speed up time, causing the poison effect to be 
unbearable - use serum or stop time yourself to counter this.  If he starts to 
teleport you may still be able to hit him while he is invisible.  When he 
stops time and freezes you in place, you can counter this by having your mage-
type Innocent Devil equipped and by using the time stop magic.  If you don't 
have the correct Innocent Devil equipped, then you better be ready to roll the 
instant that his time stop move is over.  He will either do a sword slash or 
use magic after the time stop.

When he is on his last bar of life he will teleport up to the clock tower and 
speed up time.  A thorn vine will burrow around the area while he is attacking 
you.  The vine can be blocked and it is best to wait until it goes away before 
attacking him.  He will constantly teleport up to the clock and speed up time.  
While time is sped up, the poison status will affect Hector so often that he 
cannot even attack.  You must heal yourself or stop time with the magic 
Innocent Devil to be able to move.

After he is defeated the first time, he will teleport up to the clock and 
reverse time.  He will once again get another bar of life and you must defeat 
him again.  He has just about the same attacks as the second fight except he 
will try to shoot you with his gun during this fight.  You will have to roll 
out of the way of the gunshots since they are unblockable.  He will start the 
gun attack by saying "Here we go!" - if you are close enough, then hit him 
right when says this for a few free hits.

-----

Note:  The next area you should go to is Cordova Town - Center.  There is an 
area right near the warp that will carry you to the next new area.  Near the 
end of the new stage you will be transported back to the Abandoned Castle for 
the next boss fight.

-----

Boss 8 - Abandoned Castle

--------------------
>> Trevor Belmont <<
--------------------

> Level 40

> HP - 4700

> Weakness: Dark

> Tolerance: Light

> Steal: Curry

> When to steal: During his holy cross move, when he lands there is a small 
window of opportunity to steal from him.  To do this, as he finishes his holy 
cross move, time a roll so that you roll in just before he lands and steal 
immediately.

He has basically the same moves from the first time you fought him (except for 
the holy water), but all of them have been upgraded.  He will generate a light 
shield around him, which makes him unstoppable.  You will have to hit him 
repetitively after a combo to get rid of the shield.  He will constantly make 
another light shield throughout the battle.  Like the first battle, the only 
time that you can hit him is after one of his combos or after a move.  All of 
his hits are blockable with the exception of the Holy Cross super move and the 
charge first.  He has added a second hit for the charge fist in this battle, 
so you will have to dodge twice in order to fully avoid it.  The first hit of 
his charge fist can be blocked, but you are more likely to hit him afterwards 
if you dodge both hits.  He will now do a spinning whip move at the end of his 
whip combo that you will need to roll or run to avoid.  His other new moves 
include a spinning lunge attack and he will sometimes throw his cross at you, 
both of which can be blocked.  Stay away from him and only attack him after 
his combos and you should take him down quickly.  If he has his shield, you 
will only be able to get a few hits in after his attacks, but if his shield is 
gone he will stagger for an entire combo.

-----

Boss 9 - Infinite Corridor

--------------
>> Dullahan <<
--------------

> Level 49

> HP - 7875

> Weakness: Earth, Light

> Tolerance: N/A

> Steal: Purple Glitter

> When to steal: When he goes to do his jumping attack you must steal from his 
back in the air.  You must be ready for him to do this attack, which means you 
have to stay right next to him.  As he jumps, do a normal jump and steal from 
him as he reaches the ground.  Once you have stolen, do another jump in the 
air and you might be able to avoid the shockwave attack on the ground.  He 
does his jump attack right at the beginning of each battle, so you can steal 
from him at the start of the boss fight.

The most important rule about this boss is whenever he jumps, you jump!  He 
will create an unblockable shockwave on the ground every time he lands.  He 
usually starts the battle off with this attack so be ready for it.  Try to 
prolong your jump as much as you can by doing the double jump portion only 
after a full jump.  You can hit him quite a bit while he recovers from his 
jump attack.  This boss is very slow, but his attacks are quite damaging.  He 
mainly attacks with three hit combos, either ending with a sword slash or a 
ram - if you avoid the ram, he will be left wide open to your attacks.  All of 
his physical attacks are blockable, but avoid his combos.  He will sometimes 
perform one of his unblockable moves at the end of his combos.

If he ever holds his sword up into the air upside down, then he is about to 
perform his shockwave attack where he hits the ground and a bluish glow 
surrounds him.  All you have to do is get away from him when you see the 
attack coming.  Whenever he holds his sword into the air and points it upward 
then he is about to do his beam attack.  He will shoot out a beam and then 
spin around, causing the beam to reach through the entire room.  Jump in place 
or roll through the beam to avoid this.  If it hits you it will curse you.  If 
you watch his movements you should be able to get plenty of hits in on this 
boss when he recovers from attacks.

-----

Boss 10 - Dracula's Castle

-----------
>> Isaac <<
-----------

> Level 50

> HP - 6500

> Weakness: Ice

> Tolerance: Dark

> Steal: Cheese

> When to steal: As he is being knocked back from one of your attacks.  Try to 
hit him with a Square, X combo while he is next to the wall and then steal.  
Your battle-type Innocent Devil can also knock him up into the air, which will 
allow you to steal.

This battle is pretty different from the first.  He has a whole different set 
of moves and a new weapon.  He will constantly try to hit you with one of many 
combos.  Dodge the combos and hit him while he recovers.  If his fists ever 
glow blue, then be sure to dodge the dash attack that he will do shortly 
afterwards.  If he catches you then he will drain some of your life.  Hit him 
when he pauses at the end of any combos or moves.  Do not hit him after the 
blue grab attack, since he remains invincible for a while afterwards and may 
be able to hit you before it wears off.  As he gets lower in life, he will do 
this move more often.

Eventually he will stand still and summon an Innocent Devil.  While the 
Innocent Devil is hovering about, Isaac will have a whitish glow around him 
meaning he is invincible to physical attacks - you can still hit him with 
energy attacks however.  When he does this it is best to target the Innocent 
Devil and defeat it or pressure Isaac with constant projectile attacks from 
your Innocent Devil in order to finish the rest of the battle.  Isaac will be 
doing the same combos from earlier and the Innocent Devil will attack as well.

The first Innocent Devil is a bird-type.  It will mainly breathe fireballs at 
you, which can be easily dodged.  When it spews flames from it's mouth, get 
away from it.  The Devil will breathe fire all around its immediate area.  I 
have found it best to have a mage-type Innocent Devil equipped for this 
portion of the battle so it will constantly shoot fireballs at Isaac's 
Innocent Devil if targeted.  Try to work the bird-type Innocent Devil away 
from Isaac so you can attack it without him interfering - stay on one side of 
the screen and let it come to you.

The second Innocent Devil is a battle-type.  You can pretty much hit it any 
time, but be on the lookout for its teleport splash - it will teleport into 
the air and try to land on you.  It will be left extremely wide open to your 
attacks after the splash move.  Isaac will shout out "Go!" right before it 
does the splash attack.  Listen for the command and hit the battle-type while 
it recovers.  It sometimes does a three hit combo that will leave it open to a 
few attacks as well.  Hit it sparingly with a battle-type equipped and you can 
take it down pretty quickly.

The third Innocent Devil is a knight.  The best way to beat the knight is to 
do a combo that knocks him down quickly.  He will remain on the ground for a 
while and you will be able to attack him the whole time.  The best time to hit 
him is when he stalls after doing an attack.  Roll around the area and you 
will eventually see him pause after doing his teleport attacks.  If you have a 
battle-type or bird-type Innocent Devil with you, then now would be a good 
time to use them, since both types usually knock the enemy to the floor often.  
Be on the lookout for his blue fireballs that appear around him - once they 
start to shoot out, he will fire them all at you.  They can be blocked, but 
they will cause you to stagger so you can't block more than one in a row.  
Roll or run out of the way when he starts his dagger rain attack in which 
daggers fall from the ceiling.

After each of Isaac's Innocent Devils have been defeated, he will always taunt 
Hector.  If you are next to him, then you can get some free hits while he 
taunts.

Innocent Devil Strategies

- The bird-type Innocent Devil's "carpet bombs" will be extremely useful 
against Isaac's knight Innocent Devil.  Not only will it knock it down for the 
first hit, but the bird will continue to rain bombs down upon him.  See 
Frequently Asked Questions to find out how to get this ability.

- Use a Crimson bird-type Innocent Devil and fireball him to death, even if he 
has his Innocent Devil equipped and has a white shield around him.

-----

Boss 11 - Dracula's Castle

-----------
>> Death <<
-----------

> Level 51

> HP - 6700

> Weakness: N/A

> Tolerance: Dark

> Steal: Death's Pulse

> When to steal: At the end of his Big Bang attack, there will be a small (and 
I mean tiny!) window of opportunity for you to steal from him - timing is the 
key.  Stealing from Death is incredibly tough, and may require you to perfect 
guard some of his attacks in order to get hearts to stay alive for more 
chances.  Thankfully, many of his moves can be perfect guarded if you get the 
timing down.  Use the fairy-type Innocent Devil to heal yourself while trying.  
Below is three ways that I know of to steal from him successfully...

> 1) If you have the "Invincibility Jar" skill from the fairy Innocent Devil 
(Tiramisu) you should be able to stand in front of him while encased in the 
fire provided that you do the ability at the right time.  In order for his 
window of steal to still be open while trying this method, you must do the 
Invincibility Jar as he holds the ball of fire in his hand.  It must wear off 
as soon as the fire starts to go away.  Jump and steal from him if you see the 
purple cursor.  Some people claim that you can also steal from him while on 
the ground (see the Frequently Asked Questions section for details on how to 
get a Tiramisu).

> 2) Stand in front of Death as he unleashes his big bang attack.  Guard the 
first hit, then perfect guard the next eight attacks from it, then jump toward 
him and steal.

> 3) If you can mix the above two methods, you may be able to steal from him 
as well.  Have your Invincibility Jar purposely wear off right before the 
final hit of the big bang, perfect guard the hit, then jump toward Death and 
steal.  A perfect guard right before the steal will increase your chances 
greatly since the final hit is right before his window of steal opens.

This boss is fought immediately after Isaac so you may need to heal before 
going up to him.  You can hit any part of his body to damage him.  When you're 
up close to him, be sure to watch his hands or the area above him.  If he 
rears his hands back to one of the side, then he will try to hit you with his 
scythe.  When he swipes at you, stay right next to him and double jump into 
the air and keep hitting him - you will fall shortly after his scythe swing, 
avoiding it completely.  Sometimes he chains the first scythe swing into 
another so be sure to watch, and avoid it the same way.  The scythe swing will 
be his main move for a good portion of the battle so take advantage of it and 
air combo him.  It can be easily jumped over, if you time each jump.  The 
scythe swing can be blocked, but the third hit will cause you to stagger, 
which may leave you open to the second swing if you are not careful.  DO NOT 
get too combo-happy on the ground or you might accidentally get hit with his 
scythe swing.  

If sickles appear above him, roll backwards a bit.  Block the first sickle, 
then roll, block another, then roll...rinse and repeat until all are gone.  
Perfect guard a few of the sickles for some extra hearts if you need them. 
When he creates a fire sickle you must back off and roll or run around it.  
Start out by rolling or running away, then roll or run to a side, and make a 
complete circle around it by rolling or running straight ahead and then the 
opposite way.  An alternate way to avoid this attack is to block or perfect 
guard the sickle just as it's about to hit you, and then roll through it - 
roll to avoid it if it comes back.  If he starts to charge a fireball attack, 
get to the one of the far sides of the screen.  He will throw down a fireball 
that will make a huge explosion covering most of the area for a few seconds.  
When he turns a transparent red, look out for the transparent red hand that 
will appear to the left side (can be blocked).  He likes to chain this move 
with his others, so it might be best to move away from him when you see the 
transparent hand.  When he raises both hands in the air, that means that 
flames are about to rise up from the ground.  As fire appears below you, roll.  
If you can time it right to where you roll as each fire circle appears below 
you, then you can dodge this move easily.  Be sure to roll in different 
directions.

There is a save point in the room ahead after the battle so you don't have to 
go back to save your game at the other save point.

-----

Boss 12 - Dracula's Castle

-------------
>> Dracula <<
-------------

> HP - 2920

> Weakness: Light

> Tolerance: Dark

> Steal: Tomato Juice

> When to steal: Right after dodging his grab attack.  Jump and steal from the 
upper portion of his body.

I would very much recommend that you be at level 50 (or preferably higher) 
before even attempting this boss fight mainly because of the second fight.

First of all, a battle-type Innocent Devil can really help you out in this 
battle.  Set the Innocent Devil to "Guard" so it will boost your attack for 
the fight.

He usually starts out by hitting the ground with an orange beam.  The line 
that is formed on the ground will burst into flames after the beam is gone.  
Dracula will then teleport around the room while unleasing attacks.  He can 
only be hit from his backside most of the time.  If you try to hit him from 
the front he will throw his cape up toward your attacks avoiding them 
completely.  If he yells out "I'll reduce you to ashes!" this means he is 
about to teleport next to you and try to grab and bite you.  Right after he 
teleports, wait a second, then roll and do a sidestep to avoid the grab.  For 
his other attacks, he may unleash a row of purple spikes from the ground.  He 
will hold up his right hand and yell out "Go!" before doing this attack.  The 
spikes will continue to pop up out of the ground for a few seconds and will 
leave a trail of spikes that will stay in place until they stop emerging.  
During this move, run around Dracula and time it so that the spikes stop just 
before you reach his back and you can get a full combo out on him.  The red 
fireballs that he shoots out can be blocked even if they explode next to you.  
He will eventually turn into a bunch of bats and go back up to his throne to 
do the beam attack again.

Once he is down to his second bar, he will start to do a new attack when you 
get close to him, in which he will unleash a giant explosion starting from the 
ground below him.  Once the orange light appears below Dracula, roll and 
sidestep backwards as fast as you can.  The important thing to remember while 
fighting Dracula is to hit him sparingly and be sure to watch his every move.  
The only time you can get a full combo in safely is after his spike attack.

-----

Boss 13 - Dracula's Castle

--------------------------
>> Dracula (Demon Form) <<
--------------------------

> HP - 7500

> Weakness: N/A

> Tolerance: Dark

> Steal: Vampire Blood

> When to steal: As he flies toward the platform with a dashing punch, you can 
steal from him the second he stops.  Try to roll out of the way and then 
immediately steal from him.  Another way is to do a double jump as he dashes 
toward the platform and steal from him as you're landing.

For this battle you can only hit Dracula whenever he is right next to the 
platform that you are standing on.  He will start out in the background.  His 
background moves include a beam attack where he will shoot out a beam and 
circle the platform that you are on.  Get to the one of the sides and double 
jump over the beam as he passes by on the right and left side.  For one of his 
other attacks, he will shoot greenish fireballs at you.  When the background 
turns green that is a sign that is about to perform this attack.  Get to one 
of the sides and as the fireballs come toward the platform, block the first 
fireball, roll to the side, block another, roll...repeat.  He may also send a 
wave of electricity toward you.  You will need to time a jump carefully to 
avoid it.  He may eventually do a dashing punch toward the platform that you 
are on - you must roll to avoid this.  Sometimes he will fly to the back of 
the platform causing you to have to adjust the camera.  When he is next to 
you, hit him until he starts to do an attack, then quickly dodge to one of the 
sides or block it.  Most of his physical attacks will leave blood trails that 
will damage you if you touch them.  The only attack that does not leave a 
blood trail is his sideswipe move.  He will yell out "I'll crush you to bits!" 
before doing this swipe.  Dodge in the direction of his arm to avoid this 
attack or block it.  If he hits you with this attack, he will hold you up and 
start to crush you with his hand.  Most of his physical attacks (including the 
blood trails) can be blocked, but the overhead attack and most of his 
background attacks must be dodged.

-- Innocent Devil Strategies

If you have any Innocent Devils left then now is good time to use them.  If 
their attacks are useless, then summon them and set them to "Guard" to at 
least use their stat bonuses for a while.  If you have a strong battle-type 
Innocent Devil this will definitely help you take down this form faster.  

- If your bird-type Innocent Devil has "Carpet Bombs" (Skull Wing ability from 
red gems), then use it whenever Dracula gets close to the platform for some 
extremely good results.  See Frequently Asked Questions to find out how to get 
the bird type with this ability.

- If you have a Corpsey (battle-type) Innocent Devil, then have him use his 
bone storm or set him to auto and he will really be able to help you out quite 
a bit for this battle depending on his current level.  Corpsey is invincible 
during his bone storm, so if Dracula tries to hit him, it will pass right 
through him.  Level 50+ will yield the best results.  See Frequently Asked 
Questions to find out how to get him.

-----

OPTIONAL BOSSES - Garibaldi Temple (B1)

To find these special boss fights, go back to Garibaldi Temple and use the 
Magic Circle skill from devil type Innocent Devil to go under the crack in the 
wall on the first floor of Garibaldi Temple.  Assuming you are looking at the 
unaltered map, as soon as you enter Garibaldi Temple, from the start of the 
map (labeled "S"), it is a little ways beyond the west save point.  Look to 
the southwest and it will be in the last big room.  There will be a space that 
leads to a hall.  This will lead you to level B1, a save point, and the 
special bosses.

------------
>> Legion <<
------------

> Level 52

> HP - 6900

> Weakness: Light

> Tolerance: Dark

> Steal: Pizza

> When to steal: When you have knocked away all the dead bodies and the core 
is revealed, target the core, jump toward it and steal from it.

I would recommend that you be near level 50 before attempting this boss fight.  
For the first part of the boss fight you will need to destroy the mound of 
dead bodies that are covering the core.  Go up the stairs (knock the zombies 
out of your way) until you reach the boss and hack away at the sides of him 
until the core is totally revealed.  Zombies will be after you the entire 
time.  They will race toward you while their head swells.  You must not let 
them explode on you or it will take quite a bit of damage.  As more of the 
core is revealed, the zombies will get faster and explode sooner.  Have an 
Innocent Devil help you out on exposing the core to make the first part of 
this fight faster.  Once the core is revealed, jump and hit it (or steal from 
it), to reveal the next boss.  Don't stand below the core as it falls or it 
will damage you.

Alternate tip:

(Please note that not all of the list below is used in the first battle.  Skip 
down to the Nuculais battle to see the uses of everything else)

First, you need to bring a few things with you,

- A Mage Type ID with the Floating B skill
- Megingelos (accessory that increases damage as your health is lowered)
- Sacrifice Brooch (accesory that sends any damage you take to your ID)
- A Fairy Type ID for healing emergencies
- and as many Battle Type IDs you can bring

Get a Mage type ID with the Floating B skill and keep it on you.  About 95% of 
the time, it'll keep any of the exploding zombies from reaching you while you 
pound away at Legion.  Simple and efficient.  Don't keep the Mage-type 
equipped while climbing the stairs however, or the zombies will hit it.

(thanks to Biscuit)

--------------
>> Nuculais <<
--------------

> Level 53

> HP - 8875

> Weakness: Dark

> Tolerance: Light

> Steal: Napoletana

> When to steal: As he begins to perform his grab attack, you must perfect 
guard his hand at the moment he hits you and then run up and steal.

For the second battle he will actually be in human form (somewhat) and will no 
longer be immobile.  It's a good idea to use an Innocent Devil as bait for 
this battle.  Set one of your battle-type Innocent Devil's to "Guard" and the 
boss will, most of the time, go after the Innocent Devil allowing you to 
attack him from behind.  This boss has several attacks, most of which can be 
blocked.  He will teleport around the room constantly.  He teleports by 
jumping into lava and then rising out of the lava at another part of the room.  
The lava is blockable, but the irritating part about this move is the fact 
that it will sometimes catch you in the middle of an attack if you are not 
cautious while attacking him.  If he jumps at any time, then get ready to 
guard or dodge.

His other moves are a blade strike (blockable), a grab in which his arm will 
stretch out toward you (this must be avoided by rolling), several punches (he 
usually chains about 4 punches together, they can be blocked) and a move in 
which he will summon a bunch of dead bodies and hurl them at you.  When he 
summons the dead bodies, block the first set that he throws at you, roll and 
quickstep from the second set and, for the third set, block the first few 
bodies, then roll and quickstep to avoid the move completely.  He also has a 
purple beam that must be avoided as well (roll or run...A LOT).  If you have 
your battle-type Innocent Devil in guard mode, step into his shield and it 
will protect you from the entire beam attack.  Hit him sparingly throughout 
the battle and watch for his attacks.  The only time that you can usually get 
a full combo in safely is when he recovers from a physical attack (punch, 
blade strike).

Once he is down to his second bar, he will start to dig at the ground.  Run up 
to him and combo the hell out of him while he searches through the floor.  He 
will pull a dead body out of the ground and absorb it, causing him to grow to 
giant size.  When he is like this, he will have very few attacks, but he can 
be extremely hard to hit without getting damaged.  Each step he takes creates 
a shockwave on the ground (these can be blocked).  When he jumps he will 
create a gigantic shockwave that will reach further than usual (jump to avoid 
it).  Summon an Innocent Devil with a strong projectile move and have him fire 
upon the boss.  Eventually he will shrink back down to normal size and the 
fight will continue as it was until you beat him.

-- Innocent Devil Strategies

- A bird-type Innocent Devil with "carpet bombs" can be extremely useful for 
this fight.  See Frequently Asked Questions to find out how to get this 
ability.

- A Corpsey (battle-type) Innocent Devil will literally win the battle for you 
if you allow him to.  His bone storm is especially useful.  Set him to auto, 
or have him use his bone storm often.  Hit the boss from the back as he tries 
to attack Corpsey.  Don't forget to use Corpsey's guard if the boss does his 
beam attack.  See Frequently Asked Questions to find out how to get him.

Alternate tip:

Set your first Battle Type ID to guard and let him get you a little low on HP. 
This will give you a much greater damage rate on him thanks to the megingelos 
(I chose force glove as my weapon).  Also, when you get sufficiently low on 
HP, equip the sacrifice brooch so you don't take any more damage as long as 
you have an ID out.  Usually, he will be attacking the ID, but even if not, 
his attacks are fairly easy to dodge.  When he gets big, the only strategy 
change you need is to start doing air combos to his kneecaps (another good 
reason to use force gloves for a big air combo).  This part is incredibly easy 
if you make sure not to get caught by his jump attack.  Keep at it, and he'll 
be dead in no time.

(thanks to Biscuit)

==============================================================================
                 > Section III: Frequently Asked Questions <
==============================================================================

[1]

Q: How do I get a Corpsey Innocent Devil?

A: Start out with a normal battle-type Innocent Devil (Magmard), and use the 
knuckles to evolve him with yellow crystals.  When he has changed to the Speed 
Mail, change to a spear weapon and collect green crystals until he evolves 
into a Corpsey.  Corpsey is a boned berserker, reminiscent of the Skull Knight 
if you watch or read Berserk, who has some incredible defense and attack 
power.  His bone storm ability will make him invincible as well as take some 
major damage from whatever enemies are on the screen.

[2]

Q: How do I get the Carpet Bombs skill with the bird-type Innocent Devil?

A: You will need to get evolve a Skull Wing, which is the second evolution of 
the bird-type Innocent Devil by collecting red gems with a sword.  This skill 
is extremely good for large enemies that stay stationary for a given amount of 
time and the skill will make him invincible to attacks much like Corpsey.

[3]

Q: Where is the best place to evolve my Innocent Devil?

A: Garibaldi Temple B1, right outside the room where you fight Legion, or in 
the Infinite Corridor a few rooms after the big iron door that you have to 
open with "Brute Force".  The enemies in these locations will usually give you 
three crystals as they die.

[4]

Q: How do I unlock Boss Rush Mode?

A: You must defeat the final form of Dracula and you must defeat both optional 
bosses all in the same file.  Go to any warp room and "[Boss Rush Mode]" will 
be the first option after all the requirements are done.

[5]

Q: Can I steal items from Bosses in Boss Rush if I missed them earlier or can 
I steal duplicates of the ones I have gotten?

A: Very much so on both.  You can even steal from some bosses that you 
couldn't steal from before.  If you missed an important item then you can gain 
it through Boss Rush, but keep in mind that you will have to beat all the 
bosses to finish it.  Nope, you can't warp out with a ticket.  I would advise 
bringing some strong Innocent Devils with you.

[6]

Q: How can I evolve my Fairy into a Tiramisu?

A: There are a variety of ways to do this, but the way I did it was to use a 
sword and collect red gems until she is evolved into a Killer Bee, then change 
to an axe and collect blue gems to make her ultimately evolve into a Tiramisu.  
Invincibility Jar is her third skill.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

==============================================================================
                          > Section IV - COPYRIGHT <
==============================================================================

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

This document (c) 2005 Kevin Hall (Berserker)

Castlevania: Curse of Darkness (c) Konami Digital Entertainment, Inc. 2005.

This document is for private and personal use only!

Do not try to sell this document for profit!  This is a free document and 
should remain free.

Do not try to reproduce this document in any way, shape, or form.

Do not alter this FAQ in any way!

Do not post this FAQ on your site without my consent, contact me and ask for 
permission to use it.

^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

This FAQ can only be found on the following sites:

GameFAQs (www.gamefaqs.com)
IGN FAQs (http://faqs.ign.com)
Neoseeker (www.neoseeker.com)
Cheat Happens (www.cheathappens.com)
SuperCheats (www.supercheats.com)

If you see this FAQ on any site other than these, then please contact me! 
([email protected])

^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^ ^

-- SPECIAL THANKS --

- Kagekaze for Trevor's stolen item.

- KaiserTBD for the info on stealing from Crazy Armor and Dracula's Demon 
Form.

- darkeggmcmuffin for the info on Corpsey.

- A fellow gamer (he knows who he is) for Dracula's stolen item (demon form).

- MurderDeathKill from the GameFAQs boards for his perfect guard stealing 
technique for Death.

- sebasabi and unclevinnie for the tip on stealing from Dullahan.

- Biscuit for the tips on Legion and Nuculais.

- Leviathan953 for the tip on the first Isaac battle

- whythecynic for the many boss tips and suggestion.

- anybody that has emailed me.  I have received quite a few for Castlevania.

------------------------------------------------------------------------------

-- CONTACT INFO --  

I can be reached at my email address, which is > [email protected] <, so 
please contact me if you have any questions, comments, etc.  I don't mind 
receiving emails at all.  All I ask is for you to try to make the email 
decent.  I realize that some people do not speak perfect English or cannot 
type that well, so that doesn't really matter to me, but all that I ask is 
that you try to make it readable.

I would prefer you not to add me to your messenger, but if you do, at least 
tell me a bit about yourself and why, or if I know you, tell me who you are.  
One of my pet peeves is when people just add me to their messenger without 
saying anything.  I usually just deny their request.  Last but not least, do 
not send me any viruses or spam mail please.

Want to learn a bit more about me?  See my FAQ Writer of the Month interview 
at IGN...

http://faqs.ign.com/articles/637/637797p1.html

-- Please visit my Prince of Persia: The Two Thrones Featured Guide courtesy of 
   Cheat Happens!

http://www.cheathappens.com/features/two_thrones/poptt_index.asp

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