Black Panther

Black Panthers, also called "Leopards" on occasion, are large shadowy cats that reside in Dracula's castle.

Overview
These jet-black cats like to sit and wait for hapless heroes to wander by, and then dash at full speed towards them. If they should jump and land behind a hero, they will turn and dash back towards them in an attempt to come back for one more attack.

Whenever Soma Cruz gets a hold of their souls, he is able to dash at impressive speeds, creating a sonic barrier around him that will instantly kill weaker enemies, and damage stronger ones.

Types
While the Black Panther is a unique monster, it does come in a skeleton version: the Panther Skeleton, which is found in Dracula X: Rondo of Blood and Castlevania: Dracula X.

A similar enemy appears in Castlevania II: Simon's Quest, but instead of a panther, a wolf is used instead when Simon Belmont is travelling in the wooded areas of Transylvania.

Appearances
Zombies appear in the following Castlevania games:


 * Vampire Killer
 * Castlevania
 * Akumajo Dracula X68000
 * Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
 * Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow


 * The Black Panther makes a small cameo appearance in Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow as a soul Soma Cruz receives, but only after smashing a special candleabra containing the soul. The Black Panther itself does not make an appearance.