Cerberus

Cerberus is a recurrent boss from the Castlevania series. He is a large hellhound being with three heads. He possesses an extraordinary jumping ability and can spit fire, or, as the series progressed, each head can breath a different elemental-based attack.

Origins
In Greek mythology, Cerberos (in Greek Κέρβερος Kerberos, "demon of well"), also known as the Hound Cerberos, was the dog of Hades. He was a monster canine with three heads (although sometimes it said that he had fifty or a hundred), with a many-headed serpent in place of a tail.



Cerberos guarded the door of Hades (the name of the Greek underworld, as well as the name of its ruler) and ensured that the dead did not leave and that the living could not enter. He was son of Equidna and Tifón (Echidna and Typhon), and the brother of Ortro/Orthrus, a two-headed hellhound.

The myth of a supernatural guard-dog watching the gates of the underworld dates back to ancient Indo-European mythology. Other such watchdogs of the underworld include the blood-stained dog, Garmr, of Scandinavian mythology, who serves a role much akin to Cerberos, and their more benevolent cousins, the Welsh Cŵn Annwn, who were the spectral guard-dogs of the paradise otherworld, Annwn.

Concerning his name, it is unclear if there is an association with Cerbere (Naberius) from the , although in 1583 considered both of them to be the same demon.

Castlevania: Bloodlines
Cerberus appears in the same room in the Ruins of Castlevania where the Giant Bat appeared in the original Castlevania. It only has one head in this game, and is thus commonly unofficially referred to as a "hellhound". Its hind quarters are rotted away, much like those of the Behemoth from Rondo of Blood. When it howls, the glass in the background will shatter, potentially causing damage.

Castlevania: Dracula X
Cerberus is the first boss of Dracula X. He starts the fight by howling and jumping into the screen. He will close into Richter's position and, after being hit or being too close, will jump back and release a flame attack that traverses along the ground. He will jump forward afterward. Oddly enough, his howl resembles more that of a feline than a canine.

Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Cerberus is the boss of the Abandoned Pit to the Catacomb. He attacks by spitting an elemental-based attack at Alucard from one of his heads at intervals. Each head shoots a certain element, either Fire, Ice or Thunder. The heads appear to rotate around the body. This is most evident during his rapid fire attack. After attacking a couple of times, he'll go into his rapid fire attack, where all heads rapidly take turns to shoot their own element. Afterward, all three heads may unleash a steady stream of elemental energies in the direction Cerberus is facing. If the player stands on one of the columns, he'll breath diagonally. If the player gets behind him, he'll either turn around or try to jump on them. It can be easily defeated, though. For example, Alucard could bring Holy Water or the Vibhuti, stand on top of a column and drop several to its body. He'll try to aim diagonally, but most probably won't be able to aim properly and miss, all while standing there taking heavy damage.

Castlevania (Nintendo 64) / Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness
The player will be quickly overwhelmed by a pack of Cerberi as soon as they enter the Villa. They are very quick and agile, and some also have the ability to spit fireballs in a spreading manner. Once the first wave has been survived, the gate that leads to the Villa's courtyard will open. Still, more Cerberi will leap over the fences and attack again. Once they have been dealt with and when everything seems to be calm again, the entire scenery will darken and the Ghost Cerberus will appear, who is more fierce and dangerous than his brethren and can unleash a large and continuous stream of flames upon his preys.

Exclusive to the original Castlevania (N64), an invisible platform located at the right side of the screen when the level starts, can be climbed upon. From there, the player may have an easier time dealing with the pack, given they can use ranged attacks.

Castlevania: Circle of the Moon
Cerberus is the first boss in Circle of the Moon. The player can take the Double necklace after defeating him. He looks much like the Wargs from Symphony of the Night. His attacks include:
 * Quick pouncing and biting.
 * Summoning two electrical spheres which hover high up and project bolts of lightning to the ground (an attack similar to the one used by Shaft in Rondo of Blood).
 * Leaping onto a platform and unleashing a devastating fiery beam which covers almost the entire room.

Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia
While Cerberus himself doesn't appear in Order of Ecclesia, a set of three glyphs, the Custos, must be found in order to complete the game (each glyph representing one of his heads). Two of them are arm glyphs and the third is a back glyph (which works like a harmless version of Dominus Agony).

Eventually, Shanoa will find an altar with a statue of Cerberus located in the Forsaken Cloister and will make a comment about it, hinting that the player must find all three glyphs and use them in that room. Also, every time she absorbs one of these glyphs, she will comment about returning to the altar. These glyphs are: Once she has found these three glyphs and used them in the altar room, the path which leads to the Final Approach will reveal to her, allowing her to finally confront Dracula.
 * Dextro Custos
 * Sinestro Custos
 * Arma Custos

Trivia

 * Some names from the Japanese manual of Castlevania: Dracula X were poorly translated to English, that's why Cerberus is called Keruberosu in it. The Japanese versions generally use the Greek spelling, which appears to have confused translators unfamiliar with it.