Dead Crusader

Dead Crusaders are particularly tough skeleton and/or zombie monsters as they tend to use their shield against almost all oncoming attacks. They are only vulnerable if caught unawares or attacking.

Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow
The Dead Crusader returns in Dawn of Sorrow as a zombie crusader instead of a Skeleton. He wields a sword, heavy armor and a massive shield that blocks ALL attacks and will not flinch unless he stops blocking. The only way to kill him is to hit from very far away where he "can't see it coming" or wait until he lift his sword to strike. Using the Nunchakus and Valmanway is really handy against this undead knight, since he can't block the attack. Absorbing the Dead Crusader's soul allows Soma to reduce damage from all attacks. It has 2 bonus feature-

1) Normally if an enemy damage is defended to less than 1, Soma still takes 1 damage. Equipping Dead Crusader nulls that rule and Soma takes 0 Damage and will not flinch. (Though he will still bleed) This comes in handy when plowing though weak enemies in the castle.

2) Status changing attacks such as Stoning from the Medusa Heads and poisoning from the Ghouls are nulled if the damage taken is less than 1. (No damage means no status change) However if damage is more than 1, status change will occur. To avoid this, it is advisable to level up Soma or improve his Constitution.