Charlie Vincent

Charlie Vincent is a vampire hunter that appears in Castlevania 64. He is a non-playable character and is only encountered by the player at certain times throughout the game. He has no relation to the Belmont Clan.

Character history
Charlie's mannerisms seem to indicate that he is very intelligent, but lacks real experience with vampires or other evils. He carries several vampire repelling items with him, such as garlic laurels, crosses and Holy Water. He is not shown to possess martial skills, instead relying on his trinkets to keep evil at bay (as seen when he first encounters Reinhardt and Carrie). His knowledge of vampires seems to surpass that of the heroes, as he is able to see through the innocent child facade that Dracula attempts to use. However his apparent lack of fighting abilities limit Charlie to a supporting position, as he is not able to combat the stronger evils around him.

Charlie plays a key role in reaching the game's final boss. After the player defeats Dracula for the first time, he changes back into Malus. Malus looks around as if he is confused about what is going on. The player's character starts to approach Malus but suddenly Charlie appears and douses him with holy water, causing the child to burst into blue flames. His deception exposed, Dracula warps the player to an alternate dimension for the final battle.

However, if the player takes too much time in reaching the Castle Keep, Charlie will arrive before them. He will fail in his attempt to subdue Dracula, and will be turned into a vampire instead. The player will be forced to fight and kill Charlie. If this happens, then the heroes will not see through Dracula's illusions and ultimately fail in their quest (resulting in the bad ending).

Enemy Data
Turned into a vampire by Gilles de Rais, Charlie will attack players upon entering the second chamber of Castle Keep. (Can only be done by arriving at Castle Keep 11 game days or later after the journey began.)

As an enemy he is one of the most unique bosses to battle; being the only one in the game that can cause both Poison and Vampire status to the player. His "Vampire Hunter" equipment are now tools of the devil, as proven when he uses impurified Holy Water on the player, which will not only cause damage but can inflict Poison status. Furthermore, holy water flames from his attack will remain on the field for a few seconds, limiting the playing field for the player to walk on, especially if it was used multiple times. Like all typical vampires in Castlevania 64 he'll attempt to get upclose and bite the player. If that happens then a small amount of damage is taken, and the Vampire status is inflicted.

As a Threat:

Compared to the other vampires in Castlevania 64, Charlie Vincent places 3rd when it comes to withstanding punishment (next to Dracula and Malus). And as stated before -- is the only enemy in the game that can inflict both Poison and Vampire, which makes for an intimidating foe.

Reinhardt: Without the use of Item attack, Reinhardt will have to move in close enough so that he can use his Attack1 or Attack2 to do damage. This poses a problem because when moving in for a strike Charlie will throw impurified holy water at the player, inevitably causing Poison. It is recommended to have at least 2 Cure ampoules ready when going into battle against Charlie with Reinhardt.

Carrie: However, despite how intimidating Charlie Vincent may appear to be, he poses no threat against professional Carrie players, or as much of a threat as a Skeleton to the average Castlevania player. Charlie will always has to be at mid-range to do any damage. Carrie on the other hand doesn't need to move in like Reinhardt to get any offense. And because there are no enemy projectiles or shields to cramp the energy ball it arguably makes this the most easist boss fight in the game for her. By combining Attack1 with Lock-On she can spend the entire battle running around in circles firing her energy without getting hit. Power Ups, Healing items, or even Item attack won't be necessary to slay this doomed soul.

It is interesting to note that upon his defeat, Charlie Vincent will shroud himself with his own purified Holy Water & commit suicide, possibly as a sign of resentment to what he has become.