Striking Weapons

The whip is the Belmont family's trademark. It has been passed down to each new generation of vampire hunters ever since it was created by Leon Belmont. Each Belmont thereafter has gained the ability to power-up its standard leather whip appearance to give it much more vicious and deadly forms. Other heroes have brandished their own tools of destruction, while some of those same Belmonts have used supplementary weapons. Note: Nathan Graves' DSS whips will not be included in the regular "whip" category.

The Whips

Vampire Killer Whip: This is the standard leather whip. Its range is short and its power is weak, but Morning Star symbols hold the power to transform it into a chain whip and beyond. Some Belmonts have even mastered a brandishing technique that can be done with this or any whip form.

Thorn Whip: This is the next most powerful form that a Belmont can use without collecting a Morning Star, adorning the leather of the whip with several thorns. Only Simon and Nathan Graves have used this type of whip during their journeys, though. It's a bit longer than the leather whip, and it's a bit more powerful.

Chain Whip: Powering up a leather or thorn whip turns it into a short-ranged chain whip. Its power is just about consistent with its next-most-powerful form, but it's much shorter, making it not as ideal when fighting long-range-based enemies.

Morning Star Whip: The Morning Star Whip, or long chain whip in simpler terms, is powerful and has excellent range. It easily lets you fend off enemy projectile attacks and allows you to plod along rather than try to speed through enemy-heavy territory. Some of the Belmont heroes have refined the whip to this form rather than using leather.

Fireball Whip: This whip is no more powerful than a chain whip, and it doesn't quite reach the level of the most powerful whip form--all it does is spew out fireballs that do damage equivalent to the thorn whip. Still, due to that nature, it has more range than any other known whip; only Christopher, Sonia and Juste have used this, however.
Flame Whip: Only powerful magic has the ability to turn a chain whip into a flame whip. The most powerful of its kind--speedy and engulfing--Simon, Richter, Nathan Graves, Reinhardt and John Morris are known to have used this.

Short/Long Swords

Short Dagger: The stabbing dagger is exclusive to Grant Danasty. With his quick speed, he can stab at opponents, hitting multiple times before a foe can react. What it does in speed, however, it lacks in power.

Short Swords: Reinhardt Schneider, who is primarily a master with the whip, is known to also wield a short sword for in-close battle. Henry Oldrey, as a suited knight, also utilizes a similar type of sword for in-close combat to complement his pistol. Also, Alucard is skilled in combat with many types of short swords (in Symphony and as a boss in Legends). Short swords aren't as powerful as the highest level of whip, but they comes in handy against smaller, less-powerful enemies.

Long Swords: Alucard uses an array of swords in Symphony of the Night. There are so many that I couldn't possibly list them all here (here, instead). He can use double-edged swords, double grips and two-handed swords, too. Soma Cruz utilizes a similar arsenal. Nathan Graves can utilize several swords in Circle of the Moon as part of the DSS system, and Simon can use a forged blade in place of the whip in Haunted Castle.

The Staff

Sypha Belnades, who is similarly patterned after magic users in other games, can control the Warakiya Staff. Whether or not it holds magic within, it's not the ideal weapon for combat, as its range is short and its power is weak. It can not be powered up, either. Her descendent Yoko Belnades also uses the staff, but she affords to it a unique property: Each time it strikes an enemy, Yoko saps a bit of energy from the subject and uses it to replenish her own.

Projectile Attacks

Ball of Destruction: Alucard can release fireballs by unleashing the power within--just like his father. He can only blast one at first, but collecting Morning Star symbols allows him to fire two and then three in a Contra-like spreadshot. One fireball isn't all that powerful, but when three are used together, they can cause some damage. The attack has otherwise become known as the powerful "Hellfire" spell.

Homing Ball: Carrie Fernandez can use a similar attack by emitting a a heat-seeking fireball from her hands. By holding down the attack button, it can be charged up, unleashing a bigger, more powerful fireball. Charging it up is necessary to get the most out of its heat-seeking ability. The homing ball can also be powered up two levels if Carrie is able to collect morning star symbols.

Energy Scythe: Cornell also utilizes a projectile power. By reaching back and unleashing the power from within, he's able to rip his claws through the air and use a wind property to blast enemies using a glowing energy scythe. It, too, can be powered up two levels. Even though the attack is quickly executed, the scythe is not heat-seeking, which makes it less effective than Carrie's homing ball.

Charge Ball: Maria's play experience in Nocturne In the Moonlight is wholly different in terms of her Rondo offense. Instead of birds, Maria shoots out fireballs from her fingertips. If the attack button is held, she can charge this attack up to three levels, each represented by a color. For blue, she simply fires a larger fireball. For yellow, she fires a larger but slower energy sphere. For red, she releases an expanding beam with accompanying electric bolts for repeated damage.

Alcarde Spear

This weapon, once collected by Alucard, is now exclusive to Eric Lecarde. He can use it to stab left, right, up or down (in a diving motion only when in the air), and he can use it to vault himself upward to hard-to-reach platforms, as sort of a super jump. Also, when standing still, he can twirl it from left to right quickly. Collected coat-of-arm symbols are used to power up the spear, transforming it into a longer spear and then into a poweful trident.

Ring Smash

For a short-ranged attack, Carrie Fernandez uses steel-bladed rings to execute a dual high-low slash; while running, she'll instead spin, employing a deadlier attack that can eliminate several clustered enemies. She can add range to this: When running, she can slide along the ground and flail the blades forward, upward, cutting up single or multiple enemies at the knees. This attack is useful for a reactionary assault, and it isn't all that less powerful than her homing ball of destruction.

The Mace
Simon can command a mace in Haunted Castle in place of the whip. I would guess that, power-wise, it's the equivalent of the chain whip. It wouldn't make another appearance until Symphony of the Night, where Alucard can use all kinds of these clubs as regular weapons.

Birds

In Maria's Dracula X: Rondo of Blood appearance, her attack weapons are doves that she'll throw forward at short range, two at a time. Each bird can strike multiple hits, coming and going, and they offer Maria good protection against projectile-happy enemies.

Claw Swipe

This isn't an actual weapon--it is instead a method of attack utilized by the wolf-like Cornell. Besides using his energy scythe for long-range attacks, Cornell can also fight in-close by using his long, sharp claws to rip enemies to shreds. With a single overhead swipe, Cornell can clear out whole clusters of weaker enemies instead of risking a miss with the energy scythe. This method is of course less powerful than the aforementioned scythe attack.

Pistols

Henry Oldrey was the first vampire hunter in the series' date-released order to use a gun of any type. His regular weapon is a six-shot pistol, and Morning Star symbols can increase its power. Collecting one of the symbols makes the bullets stronger, and collecting another symbol makes them even more devastating. The only drawback is that it has to be reloaded after firing six shots. Nathan Graves is also able to use a pistol as part of the DSS card system. Soma Cruz can find and use two types of handguns and a futuristic positron rifle, which assaults foes with electrons.

Shuriken

Maxim Kischine is the series' only trained ninja, and he comes along with his very own ninja star. The shuriken, as it's known, is Maxim's alternate means of attack and his permanent sub-weapon; with the latter in mind, it costs five hearts per use. When Maxim releases the shuriken, it'll travel half the screen's length, looping upward through the air like a boomerang. Because of its large size, it can eliminate several enemies at once.

DSS Weapons

The DSS card system in Circle of the Moon allows Nathan Graves to equip whips and weapons that other Belmonts could not. Only mentioning the equippable weapons, the following are included (some also mentioned above):

Fire Whip- Normal flame whip (see above) Fire Sword- Lowering, flaming sword swipe
Ice Whip- Freezes enemies so you can walk on them Ice Sword- Swings upward and freezes enemies
Thorn Whip- Regular thorn whip (see above) Rose Sword- Lowering, rose-petal-throwing sword
Earth Whip- Stretches really far to strike enemies Giant Hammer- Huge hammer swung to smash foes
Stone Whip- Stones enemies when struck Tonfer- Short-ranged claw weapon that stones foes
Poison Whip- Poisons enemies when struck Poison Claws- Claws that poison enemies
Wind Whip- Waves forward to damage repeatedly Sword Draw- Repeatedly-swung sword
Electric Whip- Continues to electrocute after striking Martial Arts- You throw punches and flying kicks
Holy Whip- Replenishes energy when used Holy Sword- Powerful, long-range holy sword
Darkness Whip- Surrounds enemies in darkness Pistol- A single bullet is fired forward each time.

With DSS cards, the whip can also spew out the following: Fireballs, Three Ice Balls, Rose Petals, a Quake Blast, Three Rocks, Poison Fumes, a Wind Wave, Electricity, a Guided Shell and Eight Darkness Shells. To see what these whips and swords look like, please check its weapons page.

Other Items

Axe: The axe can replace Simon's whip as his main weapon in Vampire Killer. It acts as a boomerang in that it returns to its holder after being thrown. Failure to catch it on its return or refusal to regain it after it hits a breakable wall means its loss. Like the two items below, you will lose it when the stage is complete.

Dagger: Another weapon that replaces the whip in Vampire Killer, the dagger can be thrown in endless streams. They're weak, but the quantity in which they're allowed to be thrown makes them the best weapon in the game. Only the loss of a character will result in this weapon's loss. In the Japanese version of Castlevania 3: Dracula's Curse, Grant Danasty uses a throwing dagger as a regular weapon, rather than a short stabbing dagger.

Boomerang: Yet another weapon that replaces the whip in Vampire Killer, this travels farther than the axe--but it's not as powerful. Again, failure to catch it on its return or refusal to regain it after it hits a breakable wall will mean losing it.

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