Charlie Vincent

is a vampire hunter who appears in Castlevania (N64) and Legacy of Darkness. He is a non-playable character and is only encountered by the player at certain times throughout the game. He has no relation to the Belmont Clan.
==History==
Charlie's mannerisms seem to indicate that he lacks experience with vampires or other evils, however, they also suggest he is highly intelligent. He carries several vampire repelling items with him, such as garlic, laurels, crosses and holy water. He is not shown to possess martial skills, instead relying on his trinkets to keep evil at bay (as seen when he first encounters Reinhardt and Carrie). His knowledge of vampires seems to surpass that of the heroes, as he is able to see through the innocent child facade that Dracula attempts to use. However, his apparent lack of fighting abilities limit Charlie to a supporting position, as he is not able to combat the stronger evils around him.
Charlie plays a key role in reaching the game's final boss. After the player defeats Dracula for the first time, he changes back into Malus. Malus looks around as if he is confused about what is going on. The player's character starts to approach Malus but suddenly Charlie appears and douses him with holy water, causing the child to burst into blue flames. His deception exposed, Dracula warps the player to an alternate dimension for the final battle. Charlie's whereabouts afterward are unknown.
However, if the player takes too much time in reaching the Castle Keep, Charlie will arrive before them. He will fail in his attempt to subdue Dracula and will be turned into a vampire instead. The player will then be forced to fight and kill Charlie. If this happens, then the heroes will not see through Dracula's illusions and ultimately fail in their quest (resulting in the bad ending).
==Enemy Data==
Turned into a vampire by Gilles de Rais, Charlie will attack the player upon entering the second chamber of the Castle Keep (this only happens if the player arrives at the Castle Keep in over 16 game days after the journey began).
As an enemy, he is one of the most unique bosses to battle; being the only one in the game that can cause both Poison and Vampire status to the player. His "vampire hunter" equipment are now tools of the Devil, as proven when he uses unholy water on the player, which will not only cause damage but can inflict Poison status. Furthermore, unholy water flames from his attack will remain on the field for a few seconds, limiting the playing field for the player to walk on, especially if it was used multiple times. Like all typical vampires in Castlevania 64, he'll attempt to get up close and bite the player. If that happens, then a small amount of damage is taken and the Vampire status is inflicted. But if enough HP is lost, then he'll constantly spam the player with unholy water.
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==Strategy==
Compared to the other vampires in Castlevania 64, Charlie Vincent places 3rd when it comes to withstanding punishment (next to "Dracula" (Gilles de Rais) and Malus); and, as stated before, is the only enemy in the game that can inflict both Poison and Vampire status, which makes for an intimidating foe.
===Reinhardt Schneider===
Without the use of an Attack Item, Reinhardt will have to move in close enough so that he can use his Attack 1 or Attack 2 to do damage. This poses a problem because when moving in for a strike, Charlie will throw unholy water at the player, inevitably causing Poison. It is recommended to have at least two Cure Ampoules ready when going into battle against Charlie with Reinhardt.
===Carrie Fernandez===
However, despite how intimidating Charlie Vincent may appear to be, he poses no threat against expert Carrie players, or as much of a threat as a skeleton to the average Castlevania player. Charlie always has to be at mid-range to do any damage. Carrie, on the other hand, doesn't need to move in like Reinhardt to get any offense and because there are no enemy projectiles or shields to cramp the energy bullet, it arguably makes this the easiest boss fight in the game for her. By combining Attack 1 with Lock On she can spend the entire battle running around in circles firing her energy bullets without getting hit. Power-Up, healing items or even attack items won't be necessary to slay this doomed soul.
It is interesting to note that upon his defeat, Charlie Vincent will shroud himself with his own purified holy water and commit suicide, possibly as a sign of resentment to what he has become.
==Trivia==
*Charlie Vincent's role and overall personality may have been inspired by Abraham Van Helsing, a character from the 1897 novel Dracula by Bram Stoker, as both are elderly vampire hunters with knowledge about the forces of evil and how to fight them, but lack enough physical prowess for direct combat, thus being relegated only as mentors for the other protagonists.
*Charlie Vincent's name was likely inspired by Peter Vincent (named after Peter Cushing and Vincent Price), a character from the 1985 vampire film Fright Night, in which a teenager named Charley (read "Charlie") enlists the help of this horror-movie host and former actor to help him hunt down his bloodthirsty vampire neighbor. In the sequel and comics, Peter Vincent reinvents himself as a real vampire hunter.
**Peter Cushing became famous for portraying Professor Abraham Van Helsing in two classic Hammer Productions Dracula films from the 1950s and 1960s.
**Vincent Price was widely renowned for acting in a great number of classic horror and mystery thrillers, becoming the host of several mystery and suspense themed radio dramas and TV shows.
==External links==
*Konami of Europe's Vincent the Vampire Killer profile (archived: November 18, 2004)
Category:Allies
Category:Film Based Characters
Category:Humans
Category:Literary Characters
Category:Male Characters
Category:Protagonist-Turn-Antagonist Bosses
Category:Supporting Cast
Category:Vampire Hunters and Huntresses
Category:Castlevania 64 Characters
Category:Legacy of Darkness Characters