Cave Troll

The Cave Troll, originally called Chupacabra in Japanese releases, is an enemy in the Castlevania series. It is a blood-sucking beast that extracts the entrails of cattle with its long tongue.
==Origins==
The chupacabra or chupacabras (literally meaning "goat-sucker"; from Spanish: chupar, 'to suck', and cabras, 'goats') is a legendary creature in the folklore of parts of the Americas, with its first purported sightings reported in Puerto Rico in 1995. The name comes from the animal's reported vampirism; the chupacabra is said to attack and drink the blood of livestock, including goats.
Physical descriptions of the creature vary, with some describing it as more dog-like (particularly in Southwestern United States), while most others describe it as reptilian and alien-like (in Puerto Rico and Latin America). Some report it as being a heavy creature the size of a small bear, with a row of spines reaching from the neck to the base of the tail.
Sightings have been reported in Puerto Rico since the 1970s, and this creature has since been reported as far north as Maine, as far south as Chile, and even outside the Americas in countries like Russia and Philippines. All of the reports are anecdotal, though, and have been disregarded as uncorroborated or lacking evidence. Sightings in northern Mexico and the southern United States have been verified as canids afflicted by mange (a type of skin disease caused by parasitic mites). According to biologists and wildlife management officials, the chupacabra is an urban legend.
In 2010, biologist Barry O'Connor concluded that all the chupacabra reports in the United States were simply coyotes infected with the parasite Sarcoptes scabiei, whose symptoms would explain most of the features of the chupacabra: they would be left with little fur, thickened skin, and a rank odor.
Although several witnesses came to the conclusion that the attacks could not be the work of dogs or coyotes because they had not eaten the victim, this conclusion is incorrect. Both dogs and coyotes can kill and not consume the prey, either because they are inexperienced, or due to injury or difficulty in killing it. The prey can survive the attack and die afterward from internal bleeding or circulatory shock. The presence of two holes in the neck, corresponding with the canine teeth, are to be expected since this is the only way that most land carnivores have to catch their prey.
There are reports of stray Mexican hairless dogs, the xoloitzcuintle, being mistaken for chupacabras.
==Description==
This monster is actually the Chupacabra, and is named as such in all Japanese versions of the games they have appeared in. The persistence of this mistranslation is odd, as other misnamed monsters from Symphony of the Night (Venus Weed/Alura Une, Karasuman/Malphas, Granfaloon/Legion, etc.) were eventually corrected in following games, although it's worth mentioning that it's not the only enemy to be treated this way (see Malachi). In all games in which they appear, Cave Trolls attack by sticking out their long tongues, somersaulting at the hero, somersaulting while whipping their tongues in a multi-hit attack, or by producing a powerful electric field around them.
In Symphony of the Night, Cave Trolls appear late in the game but were not a particular threat. They are similar in Dawn of Sorrow and their soul allows Soma Cruz to stick out his own tongue at increasingly longer lengths. In Portrait of Ruin, Cave Trolls gained an immense amount of attacking power, and their somersault-tongue and electric discharge attacks essentially became instant kills on the player. This was repeated in Order of Ecclesia, in which they became immensely powerful enemies. Something worth noting is that one of them can be found remarkably early in the game, in the Tymeo Mountains.
==Appearances==
===Castlevania: Symphony of the Night===
Cave Trolls appear in some remote locations in the Reverse Caverns. Generally, they are very easy to defeat in the locations the player finds them in, and are not all that powerful. However, since they appear so late in the game, they are not to be considered the weakest enemies. They attack by either shooting their tongue at Alucard from the ground or midair, somersaulting with their tongue whipping through the air (50 ATT, Cut), or hitting him with an electric barrier (69 ATT, Hit). All these attacks can be easily avoided, but if the player is not quick enough, they can become really annoying really fast.
===Castlevania: Dawn of Sorrow===
The only two known locations where Cave Trolls appear in this game are in the room before Rahab's boss room in the Subterranean Hell and in one of the unlockable rooms in the Wizardry Lab. They once again attack by either lashing out with their tongues or by hitting the player with an electric discharge if close enough, although they are not very powerful this time around.
Their soul grants Soma Cruz the La-La-La ability, which allows him to attack by lashing with his own tongue. The attack is extremely limited due to being very short in range at the first level (although having a respectable range when maxed out), and it doesn't do a lot of damage. It does serve a purpose, however; in second playthroughs or in Boss Rush Mode, it makes Dmitrii much easier to defeat. If hit by this attack, he will absorb and copy it, although he won't be able to use it properly. The tongue will be at Level 1 length and come from the middle of his hitbox, basically making it impossible for him to hit the player with it, while also leaving him open for attack at the same time.
===Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin===
Cave Trolls can only be found in the Nest of Evil, and have been upgraded into one of the game's deadliest enemies. First off, they have become faster than their Symphony of the Night and Dawn of Sorrow variants, and their attacks now do considerably more damage. The tongue attack does 200 damage on average if it hits and the electric web attack rapidly and continuously deals around the same, tremendous amount of damage as the tongue attack, usually quickly annihilating any player character regardless of Level. There are only three rooms where they can be found. The first one is the third room before fighting Gergoth, which has two of them, a Skeleton Blaze and two Dogethers. The second one, which is the second room before fighting Abaddon, has ten of them. The third one has two of them along with a Wyvern, in the fourth room before fighting Fake Trevor, Fake Grant and Fake Sypha.
A good technique to defeat them without getting harmed is by casting 1,000 Blades. The items they drop, Jamon Iberico and Peking Duck, have some of the highest healing rates in the game. Since either one will drop half of the time, players will be able to restore their health if they lose some during a fight against them. Also, one interesting thing to note about their electric discharge attack, is that if they die while they are using it, the field will remain as if the creature was still casting the spell.
It is strongly recommended to deal with multiple Cave Trolls one at a time, as they do not attack unless if the player character goes near them. This is especially important in the second room before fighting Abaddon, as multiple Cave Trolls attacking the player at the same time is virtually impossible to deal with.
===Castlevania: Order of Ecclesia===
Cave Trolls were slightly toned down in Order of Ecclesia. Still, they have the capacity to deal serious damage with its tongue attack, dealing 90 damage in one hit, while their electric discharge attacks will stun-lock Shanoa unless a Tower Ring is worn, leaving her completely vulnerable.
In Wygol Village, Marcel requests Shanoa to take a picture of one of these creatures to be featured in the newspaper he's working at. The earliest Cave Troll to be seen is in Tymeo Mountains, which somewhat lacks the magical power of the Cave Trolls found in Dracula's Castle. Even so, caution should be exercised in the troll's presence, as it can inflict rather heavy damage for that point in the game, especially if playing in Hard Mode.
When a Cave Troll is killed during its standing tongue-lashing attack, the tongue will continue to extend and retract during its death animation. Players should be aware of this if they happen to kill one while the attack is being performed, lest they take some damage or die along with it.
===Castlevania: Lords of Shadow===
In this game, the misnomer concerning the name of the Cave Troll has finally been corrected and the Chupacabras is depicted as a separate creature. In this incarnation, Cave Trolls are extremely strong, aggressive beasts that attack using only their brute strength, although they will occasionally pick up pieces of scenery to use as weapons if there are any present. After Gabriel obtains the Spiked Chain for the Combat Cross, Cave Trolls can be ridden after receiving enough damage, which means the player can use the Troll's great strength to their advantage, as Cave Trolls are able to smash through obstacles such as statues or steel gates.
==Enemy Data==
==Item Data==
==Gallery==
Dxc 124.png|Cave Troll enemy list entry from The Dracula X Chronicles version of Symphony of the Night.
==References==
Category:Cryptids
Category:Latin American Monsters
Category:Thunder Enemies
Category:Dawn of Sorrow Enemies
Category:The Dracula X Chronicles Enemies
Category:Encore of the Night Enemies
Category:Grimoire of Souls Enemies
Category:Harmony of Despair Enemies
Category:Order of Ecclesia Enemies
Category:Portrait of Ruin Enemies
Category:Symphony of the Night Enemies