Abandoned Castle

Abandoned Castle (Abolition Castle in Japanese version) is the first area of the game Curse of Darkness. It is the ruins of one of Dracula's Castles and is the starting point for Hector's quest. This level represents a 3D interpretation of most of the areas in the original NES Castlevania I game. It lies in the north-west portion of the Wallachia map. To the south it is connected to the Baljhet Mountains. To the east it is connected to the Forest of Jigramunt. To the north, it is connected to the Aiolon Ruins. It also serves as a gateway to the Infinite Corridor.

Geography
Note: The location names in this section are descriptive only.

Outside the Castle Walls
thumb|300px|rightThe game starts within the courtyard. Hector can backtrack outside of the castle walls for a Potion in addition to a Moai, provided there exists a Lament of Innocence game save on the same memory card. This item was an item in the original Castlevania game found in stage 1 that was worth a lot of points. It can be sold for a pretty penny or can be used to replenish your health. A moat of turbulent waters guards the entrance side of the Castle. A large wall with several towers faces these waters, with a draw bridge in the center. On either side of the draw bridge are two towers, the same ones that appear in Castlevania 64, Circle of the Moon, Harmony of Dissonance, Dawn of Sorrow and other games. You cannot enter these towers in this game, however.

Backtracking: At a later point in the game, the Aiolon Ruins can be reached through the mountainside in this area.

Courtyard
The courtyard of the castle resembles the entryway section from before you enter the Castle in the original Castlevania.

Entry Hallways (Floor 1)
The front section of the castle represents the mansion portion of the Castle and is a 3D interpretation of Stage 1 from the original Castlevania, which has appeared in so many other Castlevania games. The entrance to the hallways appear to be sealed off by a wall. However, a powerful Executioner breaks through the walls and is your first opponent in the game. Defeating him leads to the first save point in the game, as well as a Memorial Ticket that can take you back to it. The castle halls stretch to the left and to the right. Heading left takes you towards the outer wall section, while heading right takes you towards the underground section.

Towards the left is a battle room that contains the Quick Step skill. It leads to the outer wall section, which is where you can find the Dragon Crest.

On the right is a section representing Block 2 of Stage 1 in Castlevania and is inhabited by Mermen. You cannot move forwards without the Dragon Crest though. Once you have the Dragon Crest, the next room will be a battle room consisting of Skeletons and a central Executioner and holds a Potion and the Bestiary. Once the enemies have been defeated, you can enter the underground caverns through a hole in the wall.

Outer Wall (Floor 2)
thumb|300px|rightThe outer wall is a 3D interpretation of Stage 2 from the original Castlevania game. Skeletons and Fenrirs roam this area and the Abandoned Castle Map can be found here. A battle room that contains a Cyclops is ahead. Beyond this is a Treasure Chest that cannot be opened yet. There is then a tower where Hector will find his first Innocent Devil, the Infant Fairy, and also encounters Zead, who tells you where to find Isaac (Trevor instead finds a HP Max Up here). The Infant Fairy has the ability to open chests, and the Dragon Crest is found in the one nearby, so you can now head back to the other side of the Entry Hallways.

Backtracking: At a later point in the game, the Forest of Jigramunt can be reached from this area.

Underground Caverns (Basement Floor)
This section consists of a series of tunnels and caves underneath the Castle and represents Stage 4 of the original Castlevania game. It consists of path that leads straight towards the Underground Dungeon and downwards, and a looping area to the right, with a few small rooms on the side. Ghosts now join Fenrirs and Skeletons throughout this section. Off of the looping section is a Cellar room. This consists of a whole bunch of barrels that block the way to the back part of the room. These barrels can be destroyed, however, and some will drop Wine. Behind them is a chest that contains Aluminum (Trevor instead finds a DEF Up). The cave section at the end of the looping section requires you to defeat the Ghosts before continuing. There is a battle room on the right side ahead which will give you $100 for fighting Ghosts and Fenrirs (Trevor instead finds an ATK Up here). At the end is a path that leads to an area that contains the Weapon Combining skill.

This is your first opportunity to create new weapons and armor with the materials you have collected. At this point, you should have an abundance of Wild Memory (from Fenrirs) and Bronze (from Skeletons) and the Aluminum you had found in a chest this level. This will allow you to create a Leather Helm, Soft Leather Armor, new Short Swords, and Gano (axe class) without any trouble. You will have to choose what you want to spend the Aluminum on though. You can use it to upgrade your Short Sword to the Foil (Sword Type, but Rapier moveset), combine it with Bronze to create Punch Rings (Knuckle Type), or upgrade your Leather Helm to make a Corinthian Helmet. You will not gain an opportunity to get any new materials in this stage that can help you create new items, but is is possible an Axe Armor will drop additional Aluminum.

While you decide what to make, the Infant Fairy will alert you to a wooden support beam. Destroying this leads to a ramp, where you can find the I.D. Evo Crystal. This will cause enemies to occasionally drop different colored Evolution Crystals depending on what type of weapon you are using (Sword, Axe, Spear, Knuckle, or Special). When you collect enough crystals of a certain color, the Innocent Devil you have out will evolve to the next level, depending on the color. You can decide now what you want to evolve your Infant Fairy into by choosing what weapon you want to use most for a while. Using a Sword or Knuckle type will drive evolution towards a Leaffle, while using an Axe (or later obtainable Spear or Special Types) will drive it towards an Herbest. After that, it can still evolve into any type of fairy, except that only a Leaffle can evolve into a Honey Bee and later a Probiscus Fairy (good for exploration, comic relief) and only an Herbest can evolve into a Hornet and later a Comet Star (has good combat skills). Of more immediate concern, the Leaffle will eventually gain the Time Heal and Poison Powder abilities, while the Herbest will eventually gain the Antidote abilities Heal Lv. 2.

This area also contains a door that leads to the interior sections of the castle, starting with the Underground Dungeon.

Interior Sections
The interior sections represent the different blocks of Stage 5 of the original Castlevania game. It consists of four towers (rooms) connected by hallways which form a rectangle which spiral upwards.

Underground Dungeon (Basement Floor)
When you reach the castle from the tunnels, you will find yourself in the south-east tower of the basement level of the castle, in the dungeons, which represents the first floor of Stage 5 of the original Castlevania game. None of the rooms contain any reward. Zombies make their first appearance here. They don't drop anything new though (Wild Memory). After traveling north, west, then south, you will enter stairs that lead to the Laboratory.

Laboratory (Floor 1)
The Laboratory is the ground level of the Castle interior and represents the middle portion of Stage 5 of the original Castlevania game. You enter the lab in the South-West tower. The South-East tower contains stairs leading upwards to the Gallery, but you can also go "off the map" to the north. This section contains more powerful enemies, like the Skeleton Blaze and the Wizard and holds a Potion. There's a rare chance you might get a Spirit of Fuji from the Wizard (which cannot be used to create anything yet). The Theraputic Chair can also be found here. You can then enter the Gallery from the North-West tower.

Gallery (Floor 2-3)
The Gallery is the upper levels of the Castle interior and represents the top floor of Stage 6 of the original Castlevania game. It is populated with powerful Armor Knights and Ghosts. You normally enter it from the south-east tower (where you can earn the Double Step move), but you can also enter it from the north-west tower by taking a path that's "off the map". Either entrance can lead to the North-East tower (the north-west tower is connected to the south-west tower, which is diagonally connected to this tower), which leads to the next floor of the gallery.

The next floor consists mainly of Skeleton Blazes, but also introduces the White Dragon (which doesn't drop anything except hearts). After spiraling once more, this will lead to the Castle Keep.

Castle Keep (Floors 3-5)
From the top floor of the gallery, you will go outside of the castle and travel along a set of stairways that are between the four towers and lead to the Keep. This represents the final stretch of Castlevania I as found in Stage 6 of the original game. The keep is notably decorated with bust statues of Gaibon and Slogra. You will face the Crazy Armor boss. Once defeating it, you can take the Gondola to the ground will take you to the ground which leads to the Baljhet Mountains.

''Backtracking: At a later point in the game, a secret room above the one the Crazy Armor was fought in is revealed. Trevor will enable Hector to go to the Infinite Corridor from here.'' thumb|left|300px thumb|right|300px

New Materials Found

 * Wild Memories
 * Bronze
 * Aluminum
 * Spirit of Fuji (rare)

Highest Grade Items Available

 * Sword (Quick): Short Sword
 * Sword (Rapier): Foil
 * Axe (Quick): Gano
 * Knuckle: Punch Rings
 * Helmet: Leather Helm -> Corinthian Helm
 * Armor: Soft Leather Armor