Attributes are damage types in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night. Physical damage types are Cut and Hit, and these are the general attributes of weapons. Elements (or magical damage types) are the attributes of spells and magic-based attacks in general, such as Fire, Thunder, Ice, Holy, Dark, Poison, Curse, and Stone. There are also elemental weapons, which have an element and may also have a physical damage type. Weapons and attacks can have more than one attribute. In such cases, often one is the primary or dominant attribute, while the other is the secondary or recessive attribute, although there are cases where a weapon or attack may have more than one primary attribute.
Elemental affinity[]
Enemies weak to one attribute will take double damage from attacks with said attribute; this is an elemental weakness. An enemy resistant to an element will take half damage from attacks based on that element; this is elemental resistance. A target may also be immune, take no damage, or may absorb, be healed by an element; these are elemental immunity and absorption, respectively. Enemies that take normal damage from an attribute are said to be neutral to that attribute. This is a typical feature of role-playing games and plays a prominent role in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.
Equipment[]
Weapons[]
Weapons have two physical damage types: Cut and Hit. Even weapons that apparently pierce enemies, such as rapiers, are considered to be Cut since Pierce is not an attribute in this game.
Weapons with the Cut attribute, such as swords, will cause blood to spill from enemies that bleed; this can be used to heal Alucard when he is under the Dark Metamorphosis effect. Non-Cut weapons won't do this, even if they're swords, such as the Stone Sword and Takemitsu.
Elemental weapons often have two attributes: a primary attribute (their element) and a secondary attribute (their physical damage type). They can only use one at a time for attacking. The primary attribute will usually be the one selected in most situations. The secondary attribute will only be used if two conditions are met: (1) the enemy has no reaction to the primary attribute (i.e., is not weak, resistant, immune, etc.) and (2) is weak to the secondary attribute. Only when these two conditions are present will the weapon select and use its secondary attribute, its physical damage type, instead of its element. For example, Richter Belmont's Vampire Killer whip has two attributes: Holy and Hit, an element and a physical damage type. Normally, Holy will be selected, but when attacking an enemy such as the Axe Knight [Lv. 4] (and the Axe Knight [Lv. 9] in the DXC version), it will use the Hit attribute because this enemy has no reaction to Holy and is weak to Hit.
Elemental weapons with Cut as their secondary attribute will always make enemies bleed (if they bleed at all), even if their element is the attribute being used. Since there's only one enemy weak to Cut in the game, the Stone Rose, elemental Cut weapons will only use their secondary attribute against this enemy. The Muramasa (Curse/Cut), for instance, will always deal Curse damage against every enemy (even against the boss Akmodan II, who is immune to Curse), except against the Stone Rose, where it will use Cut and will deal twice the damage. This happens because the Stone Rose does not react to the Curse element and is weak to Cut. On the other hand, the Mormegil (Dark/Cut) won't deal Cut damage to the Stone Rose because this enemy absorbs the Dark element and, as such, reacts to the primary attribute.
Some weapons and attacks have two primary attributes instead of one primary and one secondary attribute. These will behave differently from the elemental weapons mentioned previously. They can select and use any of the two attributes, and they will never use the one the enemy is resistant or immune to while always selecting the one the enemy is weak to, if such is available. This means these weapons and attacks can pierce through enemies' elemental resistances and immunities, as they will always select the attribute the enemy has no protection against, if available. So enemies must be resistant, immune, or absorb both attributes in order to not take full damage.
Examples of such are the Tyrfing sword, the Holy Water sub-weapon (but not its Item Crash), and Maria Renard's Cardinal sub-weapon in the DXC version of the game. The Tyrfing is Dark elemental but will switch to Cut against the Stone Rose, who absorbs Dark, thus overcoming this enemy's elemental protection, while Maria's Cardinal sub-weapon (Holy, Fire) will use Fire against an enemy with resistance (or immunity) to Holy and vice versa.
Usually, when the two attributes are both elements (magical damage types), they are both primary attributes. While if one of them is a physical damage type, such as Cut, it will usually be a secondary attribute. The only exception is the Tyrfing sword, which treats Cut as if it were an element.
Enemy attacks work differently. If an enemy attacks with a dual elemental move, the player character only needs to be protected against one of the elements. For example, if the boss version of Richter Belmont attacks Alucard with the Holy Water's Item Crash, which is Holy and Fire, if Alucard is equipped with the Gold Circlet, he'll absorb the full damage of the attack. And he can halve its damage by equipping either the Fire Mail or the Holy Mail.
| Item Data: Elemental Equipment (Weapons) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | Name - Game Type - Users Description |
Attributes / Consume | Statistics / Sell | Found | Notes | |||
| Short Swords | ||||||||
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May "petrify" enemies... Immobilizes enemies, may also turn them into stone...
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Attrib: Stone |
ATT +1 |
Drop: Gorgon |
Effect: Horizontal Slash; may inflict Stone status | ||||
| Swords | ||||||||
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| Cursed dark sword Cursed dark sword
|
Attrib: Dark, Cut |
ATT -30 |
Find: Castle Keep |
Effect: If total ATT is 0 or less passes through enemies; piercing (enemies must be resistant to both Dark and Cut to not take full damage) | ||||
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| Black sword - strong vs. holy A dark sword that works against holy people
|
Attrib: Dark/Cut |
ATT +25 |
Find: Catacombs (after defeating Granfaloon) |
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| Lightning sword of Indra Lightning attribute sword
|
Attrib: Thunder/Cut |
ATT +25 |
Buy: $10,000 (later) |
Special: ↓↘→ + [Attack] for Thunder Blast (ATT +40 for 5 MP) | ||||
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| Ice sword of Mim Ice attribute sword
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Attrib: Ice/Cut |
ATT +25 |
Buy: $10,000 (later) Find: Catacombs Drop: Fishhead |
Special: ↓↘→ + [Attack] for Ice Blast (ATT +40 for 5 MP) | ||||
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| Fire sword of Oberon Flame attribute sword
|
Attrib: Fire/Cut |
ATT +25 |
Buy: $10,000 (later) Find: Final Stage: Bloodlines Drop: Lossoth |
Special: ↓↘→ + [Attack] for Fire Blast (ATT +40 for 5 MP) | ||||
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| Cross hilt - strong vs. undead Holy sword that works against undead
|
Attrib: Holy/Cut |
ATT +26 |
Find: Colosseum (requires Bat Form, US and EU only) Drop: Vandal Sword |
Special: ↓↘→ + [Attack] for Holy Burst (ATT +35 for 5 MP) | ||||
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| Poisoned executioner's sword Extra poison damage
|
Attrib: Poison/Cut |
ATT +32, DEF +2 |
Drop: Nova Skeleton |
Effect: May inflict Poison status | ||||
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| Powerful sword of flame A powerful flame sword
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Attrib: Fire/Cut |
ATT +33, DEF +1 |
Drop: Fire Demon, Efreet |
Special: ↓↘→ + [Attack] for Inferno Blast (ATT +60 for 5 MP) | ||||
| Two-Handed Weapons | ||||||||
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| Rusty red sword [2 hand] | Attrib: Curse/Cut |
ATT -2 |
Find: Automatically dropped by second Bone Scimitar encountered Drop: Bone Scimitar |
Effect: Very slow swing (no diagonal attack); occasionally "jams" (Alucard fails to attack, as if Cursed); may inflict Curse status | ||||
|
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| Poorly-made sword [2 hand] | Attrib: Curse/Cut |
ATT -5 |
Drop: Blade Soldier |
Effect: Fast swing (but low swing rate); may inflict Curse status | ||||
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| Bloodthirsty sword [2 hand] | Attrib: Curse/Cut |
ATT variable, default -5, DEF -4 |
Drop: Scarecrow and Vandal Sword |
Effect: "Jams" like Red Rust if Alucard's total ATT is 10 or less, slow swing speed if total ATT is 29 or less, Slash Flurry and increased swing speed if ATT is 30 or more; continuous Dark Metamorphosis effect; hidden leveling system where a point of ATT is gained for every (current ATTx2 +11) blood heals while Muramasa is equipped; may inflict Curse status | ||||
| Clubs | ||||||||
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| Anointed rod | Attrib: Holy |
ATT +12 |
Find: Long Library |
Effect: Flail (fast) Special: ←→ + [Attack] for Holy Blast (ATT +27) | ||||
| Projectiles | ||||||||
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| Powerful! Be careful... [use] | Attrib: Fire |
ATT +100 |
Drop: Bomb Knight |
Effect: May throw a dud occasionally | ||||
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| Flaming boomerang [use] | Attrib: Fire |
ATT +50 |
Buy: $1,000 (later) Find: Anti-Chapel, Reverse Entrance Drop: Skelerang |
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| Flaming throwing star [use] | Attrib: Fire/Cut |
ATT +100 |
Buy: $15,000 (later) Find: Long Library Drop: Jack O'Bones |
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| Creates pillar of flame [use] | Attrib: Fire |
ATT +60 |
Find: Throughout castle (all) Drop: Bomb Knight, Skeleton Ape |
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| Other Attack | ||||||||
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| Attrib: Holy/Hit |
ATT +32 |
Find: Starts with |
Effect: Standard Attack Special: Brandish Whip; Fire Whip | |||||
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| Attrib: Holy |
ATT +12 |
Find: Starts with |
Effect: Can have multiple owls out at once, can be used while walking Special: High Jump and Glide | |||||
Armor and protection[]
Alucard has access to equipment that grants him varying degrees of elemental protection. The Fire Mail, Ice Mail, and Lightning Mail will halve the damage from their respective elements, while the Alucard Mail will halve the damage from all these three elements. The Holy Mail will halve the damage from Holy-based attacks. If Alucard is hit by an elemental attack while wearing equipment with a matching resistance, the damage will first be halved, and then his total DEF value will be subtracted from the remaining amount. So if he is hit by a Fire attack that deals 90 points of damage while wearing the Fire Mail or the Alucard Mail, the damage will be reduced to 45, and if his DEF is 20, he'll only receive 25 points of damage from the attack. There are also consumables called Resist items, which temporarily grant resistance to elements.
Some elements are also status-modifying damage types, such as Poison, Curse, and Stone. If Alucard is hit by them, besides the damage, he will also get a status ailment. Poison will halve his ATT and DEF; Curse will prevent him from attacking with weapons, blocking with shields, and from using most of his items; and Stone will petrify him, leaving him immobilized and vulnerable to attacks that will then ignore his DEF stat and deal damage equal to roughly 1/8th of his maximum HP. These attacks are elemental in nature, and there is equipment that will protect against them. The Topaz Circlet allows Alucard to absorb the damage from Poison-based attacks, and he will not be poisoned while wearing it. The Coral Circlet headgear and the Heart of Vlad relic will grant immunity against Curse, both the damage and status. The exception is the Stone element, against which Alucard can't be protected. While the Mirror Cuirass and the Medusa Shield will prevent Stone status, rendering Alucard immune to petrification, he'll still take damage from Stone-based attacks.
The Fire Shield and Dark Armor (and Glaring Cloth in the Saturn version) will confer immunity against Fire and Dark, respectively. The Gold Circlet, Beryl Circlet, and Ruby Circlet will absorb damage from Holy, Thunder, and Fire, respectively. The Cat-Eye Circlet will absorb damage from cats that the enemy Salome will summon and throw at Alucard (she herself will turn into a cat when defeated), even though cats are not an element.
There is no equipment in the game that grants protection against Cut and Hit damage types, even though the enemies themselves can be resistant or immune to these attributes.
| Item Data: Elemental Equipment (Protection) | ||||||||
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Image | Name - Game Type - Users Description |
Attributes / Consume | Statistics / Sell | Found | Notes | |||
| Shields | ||||||||
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| Gorgon headed shield | Attrib: Stone |
DEF +1, ATT +13 |
Drop: Medusa Head |
Effect: Projectile block and shield attack that may petrify a vulnerable enemy. Immunity to Stone status when equipped Special: Shield Rod or Mablung Sword spell (30 MP): Summon Medusa – Laser Attack (ATT +0, Attrib: Hit) | ||||
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| Shield with fire properties | Attrib: Fire |
DEF +4 |
Drop: Fire Demon |
Effect: Projectile block and immunity to Fire when equipped Special: Shield Rod or Mablung Sword spell (50 MP): Summon Salamander – Flame Attack (ATT +70, Attrib: Fire) | ||||
| Headgear | ||||||||
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| Restores HP by holy damage | Attrib: Holy |
INT +6 |
Drop: Salem Witch |
Effect: Holy-based attacks of enemies heal Alucard instead of damaging | ||||
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| Immune to curses | Attrib: Curse |
INT +7 |
Drop: Venus Weed |
Effect: Immunity to Curse status and damage | ||||
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| Big HP restore by cat damage | INT +8 |
Find: Catacombs |
Effect: Large health increase if hit by the cat Salome summons or becomes when defeated | |||||
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| Heals HP by lightning damage | Attrib: Thunder |
INT +10 |
Find: Reverse Entrance |
Effect: Thunder-based attacks of enemies heal Alucard instead of damaging | ||||
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| Restores HP by ice damage | Attrib: Ice |
INT +10 |
Drop: Frozen Half |
Effect: Ice-based attacks of enemies heal Alucard instead of damaging | ||||
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| Restores HP by poison damage | Attrib: Poison |
INT +10 |
Find: Long Library |
Effect: Poison-based attacks of enemies heal Alucard instead of damaging | ||||
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| Restores HP by fire damage | Attrib: Fire |
INT +10 |
Find: Floating Catacombs |
Effect: Fire-based attacks of enemies heal Alucard instead of damaging | ||||
| Body Armor | ||||||||
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| Polished to resist stoning | Attrib: Stone |
DEF +3 |
Find: Outer Wall |
Effect: Grants immunity to Stone status | ||||
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| Strong vs. fire-based attacks | Attrib: Fire |
DEF +4 |
Find: Castle Keep Drop: Gremlin, Hellfire Beast, Efreet (Saturn-only) |
Effect: Cuts Fire damage by half | ||||
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| Strong vs. lightning attacks | Attrib: Thunder |
DEF +8 |
Find: Reverse Keep Drop: Hellfire Beast |
Effect: Cuts Thunder damage by half | ||||
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| Strong vs. ice-based attacks | Attrib: Ice |
DEF +8 |
Find: Clock Tower Drop: Frozen Shade |
Effect: Cuts Ice damage by half | ||||
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| Impervious to evil attacks | Attrib: Dark |
DEF +8 |
Drop: Malachi |
Effect: Grants immunity to Dark | ||||
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| Strong vs. holy attacks | Attrib: Holy |
DEF +11 |
Find: Entrance |
Effect: Cuts Holy damage by half | ||||
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| Resists fire, lightning, ice | Attrib: Fire, Thunder, Ice |
DEF +20 |
Find: Starts with and loses; Death Wing's Lair |
Effect: Cuts Fire, Thunder, and Ice damage by half | ||||
| Cloaks | ||||||||
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| The silvery white shine which tears darkness | CON +6 |
Find: Underground Caverns |
Effect: Grants immunity to Dark | |||||
| Medicine | ||||||||
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| Brief resistance to fire [use] | Attrib: Fire |
Find: Throughout castle (all) Drop: Gremlin |
Effect: Temporarily cuts Fire damage by half | |||||
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| Resistance to lightning [use] | Attrib: Thunder |
Find: Alchemy Laboratory, Reverse Keep, Floating Catacombs, Black Marble Gallery |
Effect: Temporarily cuts Thunder damage by half | |||||
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| Brief resistance to ice [use] | Attrib: Ice |
Find: Forbidden Library, Reverse Keep, Underground Caverns Drop: Fishhead |
Effect: Temporarily cuts Ice damage by half | |||||
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| Resistance to holy [use] | Attrib: Holy |
Find: Castle Keep, Black Marble Gallery |
Effect: Temporarily cuts Holy damage by half | |||||
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| Resistance to darkness [use] | Attrib: Dark |
Find: Black Marble Gallery, Castle Keep, Necromancy Laboratory Drop: Karasuman, Phantom Skull |
Effect: Temporarily cuts Dark damage by half | |||||
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| Resistance to stone [use] | Attrib: Stone |
Drop: Gargoyle (Saturn only), Medusa Head |
Effect: Temporarily grants immunity to Stone status | |||||
Enemies[]
Enemies may attack with different damage types and may also be weak, resistant, or immune to an attribute. Some may even absorb the damage from certain attributes.
It's part of the game's strategy to protect against elements that the enemies will use while also trying to exploit their weaknesses.
When fighting Richter Belmont, for instance, the player may find it useful to equip the Holy Mail, which will halve the damage from most of his attacks, while also using the Holy Sword, Holy Rod, or Medusa Shield to not harm him, if one intends to proceed to the Reverse Castle. Otherwise, if the player wishes to pursue one of the bad endings, he may want to wear the Gold Circlet to absorb the damage from most of Richter's attacks and equip the Mormegil to kill him faster.
When fighting the boss Medusa, the player may find it helpful to equip the Mirror Cuirass or, even better, the Medusa Shield to avoid being petrified by the beams she will shoot.
Equipping the Dark Armor (or the Glaring Cloth in the Saturn version) and the Topaz Circlet will render the attacks of the boss Beelzebub completely harmless, making it impossible to lose the battle. Likewise, the Dark Armor (or Glaring Cloth) will make enemies such as Bitterflies, Schmoos, and all types of Gargoyles (in the Saturn version) no longer a threat.
The Beryl Circlet will make Galamoth's Thunder attacks heal Alucard, making the battle considerably easier. While the Coral Circlet (or the Heart of Vlad relic) will completely nullify the damage from Ectoplasms and Tombstones (except in the DXC version, where the Tombstones no longer deal Curse damage but the Archers will instead, with their arrows).
When the player first encounters a Slime in the Catacombs, he may think this enemy is immune to physical attacks in general, but they're actually only immune to Cut (as a primary attribute) and can be easily dispatched with non-Cut weapons, such as the Hit-based and elemental ones. Non-Cut swords, such as Takemitsu, and swords with Cut as a secondary attribute, such as the elemental ones, can also harm them.
The Specters in the Saturn version are particularly resilient against several damage types. They take half the damage from Fire, Thunder, Ice, and Poison and absorb the damage from Dark, Curse, Cut, and Hit damage types. They are, however, weak to Holy and only have 20 HP, so they can be easily dispatched with most sub-weapons or with the Holy Sword or Rod. They deal Dark-based damage, so equipping the Dark Armor or Glaring Cloth makes them harmless.
Will O' Wisps in the Saturn version deal Fire-based damage. Equipping the Fire Shield or Ruby Circlet will render them harmless.
As can be seen from the game's bestiary, some enemies are resistant or immune to an element called H2O (Water), even though there are no weapons or attacks available to the player that will inflict this type of damage. Likewise, there is no equipment that will protect against this element in the game. The boss Scylla, however, apparently has Water elemental attacks, although Alucard has no means to protect himself against them via elemental protection. Not only is there no Water-resistant equipment, but there's also no Resist Water item. This element could also be a reference to the water in the castle that deals damage to Alucard, if it goes over his knees, before he acquires the Holy Symbol relic. However, this relic does not protect against Scylla's attacks. A reasonable explanation for the absence of Water-based equipment and player attacks is that the developers may have forgotten (or run out of time) to add the means to attack with or protect against it, or simply decided to remove it, and the reference to this attribute in the game's bestiary could be leftover data from earlier stages in the game's development.