Shadow Whip

Shadow Whip in Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2.

The Shadow Whip (ダークシャドウ ウィップ Dark Shadow Whip in the Japanese version) is Dracula's neutral and main weapon in Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate and Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2. It is a "whip" that he creates from his own corrupt blood which is bound by a supernatural force which hardens upon impact against his foes. It has many of the same moves and attacks as the Vampire Killer from the first game.

Lore

Shadow Whip

~Gabriel's deeply rooted training with the Combat Cross remained in Dracula. The Prince of Darkness now uses his own blood, which takes the shape of a sinuous whip, to inflict pain and death wherever he goes. The dark fluid is bounded by a supernatural force, and it hardens on impact. Before they die, its victims feel as if thousands of fangs penetrated their flesh, breaking bones and tearing their life force from them.~

Overview

After emerging victorious against the Forgotten One, Gabriel renounced his old identity and shattered the Vampire Killer in his bare hand symbolizing his plunge into Darkness. Upon his return to the mortal realm Gabriel abandoned his old self and took the name "Dracul" (The Dragon) and ruled as the Prince of Darkness with the Shadow Whip at his disposal.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow - Mirror of Fate

Dracula first displayed the use of the Shadow Whip against his -then unknown- son Trevor, along with the Void Sword and Chaos Claws. In the end he was victorious over his son, to his regret and horror upon discovering the truth. He would then use it again against his grandson Simon and Trevor, who had been reborn as Alucard.

Castlevania: Lords of Shadow 2

After the unsuccessful siege of the Brotherhood of Light in Castle Dracula, Alucard talked his father through a plan to lure out and kill Zobek and Satan in order to save humanity once again. After agreeing, Dracula gave his consent for his son to impale him with the Crissaegrim to put him in a deep sleep for centuries. During this time the powers of his blood weakened reverting the Shadow Whip into its weakest manifestation. This time the player must embark on a journey to regain the powers of the Legendary Prince of Darkness and push the power of the Shadow Whip into its maximum potential.

Powers and abilities

The Shadow Whip manifests as a gauntlet made of the Prince's own Dark blood bound by a supernatural force on Dracula's right arm. From it the whip springs when he attacks. Like the Vampire Killer, it is the only weapon through which Dracula can Focus to extract blood orbs from his enemies to power his Void & Chaos powers.

Unlike the Vampire Killer, the Shadow Whip does not possess any other abilities such as the ability to grapple enemies or objects, or alternate means of killing, like the stake. This could be due to the fact that whip is only composed of Dracula's blood (though Dracula is seen lifting and choking Alucard with the Shadow Whip at the end of Act II of Mirror of Fate). However, this also means that the Shadow Whip is the only weapon that Dracula retains when he becomes weak after waking up in the modern age.

The Shadow Whip's appearance depends on Dracula's current level of mastery.  At its weakest level, the whip appears as simply a hardened strand of Dracula's corrupted blood.  At level 2, the blood takes on a dark maroon color and seems to be augmented with magic.  At maximum mastery level, the Shadow Whip becomes a bright, deep crimson red in color and becomes a full on mystical energy whip. It looks similar in appearance to the Vampire Killer's chain whip when augmented with Shadow Magic.

Mastering the Shadow Whip allows Dracula to increase its damage, and to increase the blood orbs from enemies. It also changes the visual manifestation in game.

Strategies and tips

Main article: Shadow Whip/Strategy and Tips

Item Data

Item Data: Shadow Whip
Image	Name - Game   Type - Users Description	Attributes / Consume	Statistics / Sell	Found	Notes
	Shadow Whip - Lords of Shadow 2   Weapon - Dracula				[edit]
	The Prince of Darkness now uses his own blood, which takes the shape of a sinuous whip, to inflict pain and death wherever he goes. (...)			Find: (start with)
Starting Whip Skills
	Combined Whip - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	A series of fast direct attacks effective against a single target. Upgrade: Adds a high-power finishing attack. 200 XP			First Obtained: Start with.	Sequence: [Direct Attack] x 4 Evolve: 200 XP
	Rising Whip - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	Direct rising attack that can lift up smaller enemies in front of you, allowing additional attacks to be continued.			First Obtained: Start with	Sequence: [Direct Attack] [Jump]
	Aerial Whip - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	Aerial Whip Series of direct attacks executed in the air. Linking hits with this combos keeps you suspended in the air allowing you to combine them with other moves.			First Obtained: Start with	Sequence: In the air: [Direct Attack] x 3
Advanced Whip Skills
	Guillotine - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	Press and hold the [Direct Attack] button while airborne to use this direct attack as a finisher in any aerial attack sequence. Your whip will smash down on any enemies in front of you as you land. Good for dissipating enemies on the ground and to drag down airborne foes!			Buy: 500 XP (requires Aerial Whip)	Sequence: In the air: Hold [Direct Attack]
	Sustained Whip - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	Press and hold the [Direct Attack] button to begin a sequence of hard direct attacks. Press the [Direct Attack] button repeatedly to add hits to the combo. It will work as a Block Breaker against certain enemies too.			Buy: 700 XP (requires Combined Whip)	Sequence: Hold [Direct Attack] [Direct Attack] x 3
	Counterstrike Whip - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	Immediately after a Synchronized Block, you can unleash a devastating direct counter attack. This combo can be used bot hon the ground and in the air.			Buy: 750 XP (requires (Combined Whip)	Sequence: After a Synchronized Block: [Direct Attack] x 3
	Somersault - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip, Void Sword, Dark Gauntlet) - Dracula, Alucard				[edit]
	While blocking with [Block] use the jump button to leap over and land behind your enemy.			Buy: 150 XP	Sequence: [Block] + [Jump]
	Somersault Whip - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	After leaping over enemies using a Somersault, immediately press Direct Attack] repeatedly to attack them from behind before they can react. Especially useful against enemies blocking your blows.			Buy: ???	Sequence: After a Somersault: [Direct Attack] x3
Starting Sweep Skills
	Combined Sweep - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	A series of area attacks less powerful than the Combined Whip attacks but very useful for crowd control. Upgrade: Adds two additional circular sweeps to the combo capable of pushing back all surrounding enemies.			First Obtained: Start with	Sequence: [Area Attack] x 6 Evolve: 200 XP
	Rising Sweep - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	Direct rising attack that can lift up smaler enemies in front of you, allowing additional attacks to be continued.			First Obtained: Start with	Sequence: [Area Attack] [Jump]
	Aerial Sweep - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	Series of direct attacks executed in the air. Linking hits with this combo keeps you suspended in the air allowing you to combine them with other moves.			First Obtained: Start with	Sequence: In the air: [Area Attack] x3
Advanced Sweep Skills
	Smashing Sweep - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	Press and hold the [Area Attack] button while airborne to use this area attack as a finisher in any aerial attack sequence. Your whip will sweep around and hit any surrounding enemies. As you land, you will drag down your enemies too.			Buy: 800 XP (requires Aerial Sweep)	Sequence: In the air: Hold [Area Attack]
	Sustained Sweep - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	Press and hold the [Area Attack] button to start a sequence of fast attacks. You can control the direction of the attacks during the combo with the left stick. Enemies in front and behind can be hit with this series of whip attacks too.			Buy: 800 XP (requires Combined Sweep)	Sequence: Hold [Direct Attack]
	Counterstrike Sweep - Lords of Shadow 2   Skill (Shadow Whip) - Dracula				[edit]
	Immediately after a Synchronized Block, you can unleash a devastating area counter attack that affects surrounding enemies.			Buy: 800 XP (requires Combined Sweep)	Sequence: After a Synchronized Block: [Area Attack] x 3

Gallery

Shadow Whip

Shadow Whip from Mirror of Fate

Mirror of Fate HD artwork

Area Attack from Lords of Shadow 2

Enough talk

Aerial Whip

Sustained Whip

Counterstrike Whip

Mastery Level 2

Rising Whip

Smashing Sweep

Close-up

Mastery Level 1

Vs Paladin

Animations

Shadow Whip
Combined Sweep and Sustained Sweep Aerial Sweep Aerial Whip Area Attack Combined Sweep Upgraded Combined Sweep Combined Whip Upgraded Combined Whip Counterstrike Sweep Counterstrike Whip Direct Attack Guillotine Upgraded Guillotine Rising Sweep Rising Whip Smashing Sweep Sustained Sweep Upgraded Sustained Sweep Sustained Whip Upgraded Sustained Whip

Trivia

• The Shadow Whip was originally referred to as the "Blood Whip" during Lords of Shadow 2's development stage. Despite the name change, fans still occasionally call the weapon by its original name.
• In Lords of Shadow 2, despite the whip being Dracula's primary weapon of the three, he is almost never seen using it in cutscenes and usually only during gameplay.  More or less, he is more frequently seen using either the Void Sword or the Chaos Claws in battle.
• The Shadow Whip is the only one of Dracula's primary weapons that isn't magic based and fueled by blood, the reason being that the whip itself is composed of blood.
• In Mirror of Fate, Dracula only uses the Shadow Whip as either a last resort (in the case of Trevor Belmont) or when he is deliberately holding back.
• Also, in Mirror of Fate Dracula is shown attempting to use the Shadow Whip to grapple Simon and Alucard, however regardless of what buttons are pressed during the struggle QTE, the choking animation itself deals no damage, nor does anything occur, eventually Dracula will drop Simon or Alucard, depending on who he's grabbed. This could be a way of showing that the whip cannot perform grapple attacks, and Dracula was just finding that out in the middle of the fight. However, it could also be that Dracula had no intention to kill them and thus he simply did not exert enough force to inflict any damage but just enough to incapacitate.
• The Shadow Whip does not have as many combos and moves as the Vampire Killer.
• Lords of Shadow is the only time Dracula ever used a whip.
• This is also the only whip in the series to be made out of material that is not solid.
• When attacking enemies in a darkened area at max level, the Shadow Whip will briefly illuminate the area with a red glow.
• During an interview, David Cox described the concept behind the Shadow Whip as "a twisted parody" of the Vampire Killer, reflecting Gabriel Belmont's fall from grace.