Ghost

:This enemy is sometimes referred to as "Phantom". For the Lament of Innocence skeleton enemy, see Phantom.
The Ghost (also known as Flying Skull, Spirit or Specter, among many other names) is a recurring enemy in the Castlevania series. It is known for constantly haunting adventurers that enter the castle. Ghosts come in many forms. The classic type of ghost consists of a skull and perhaps some of the upper body or arms, and is usually –but not always– surrounded by an aura.
==Description==
Ghosts aren't too tough in small numbers. A couple of hits will usually take them down and they don't have any special attacks either; all they do is appear in a seemingly random spot in open space or within a wall and then slowly float toward the player in order to give them a chilling touch that will damage their health. Normally, they only take one hit and are pretty weak, but they sometimes take two or three depending on the hero's strength. Usually, they are most fearsome in large numbers.
Ghosts are also sometimes referred to as "Spirits", but it should normally be assumed that Spirits are slightly stronger versions of Ghosts when they appear. Although in the case of the PlayStation 2's 3D Castlevania games, the Ghosts and Spirits are very different.
==Movement styles==
===Castlevania-style (skeletal torso)===
The ghost introduced in the original Castlevania materializes from out of a wall in the background and slowly moves toward the player, turning back and forth when it's directly above or below them. It's possible to strike the ghost before it has completely materialized. This kind of movement appeared again with the Ghostly Eyeball from Simon's Quest. The Ghost reappeared in its original form in Dracula's Curse, Super Castlevania IV, Chronicles and Symphony of the Night.
===Vampire Killer-style (ghost waves)===
The aura-less skull Ghost (which has an aura in the manual but not on its sprite) introduced in Vampire Killer starts from one end of the screen and moves up and down in an erratic pattern toward the other end. There are an unlimited stream of such Ghosts (or "skulls"). They are similar to Medusa Heads in this manner. In Vampire Killer, these ghosts only appear in one screen of the entire game (the first one in Stage 6).
In the parody game Konami Wai Wai World, the Ghostly Eyeball moves exactly like a Medusa Head and the skull moves like a sort of extreme Medusa Head whose height could go from the top of the screen to the bottom. In Hard mode in Castlevania III: Dracula's Curse, this skull replaces Medusa Heads and has a random up and down motion as it goes from one end of the screen to the other, making it difficult to avoid or destroy.
===Haunted Castle-styles===
Haunted Castle introduced several different kinds of ghosts and spirits.
The first such spirit encountered was a unique "skeleton ghost". After destroying certain skeletons, a ghost would spring forth from them and hurl itself quickly toward or over the player's character. These can catch the player off guard and are difficult to destroy.
Another type of ghost looked more like a traditional white ghost, as it lacked any skeletal parts and only the upper half of the human-like silhouette could be seen. It raced toward the player with arms outstretched and then turned back for another try after reaching the edge of the screen.
The Poltergeist spirit was seen for the first time in this stage and consisted of a table with silverware that would be hurled toward Simon.
The jaw-less skull ghost introduced in Haunted Castle generally keeps its distance and hovers in one place, but will occasionally make fast, large circular movements around the screen. This kind of ghost reappeared in Rondo of Blood and Harmony of Dissonance. It is also used as Alucard's Ghost Familiar in Symphony of the Night.
===Simon's Quest-styles===
Both an aura and an aura-less ghost appear in this game. The one with the aura and upper body is referred to as a "Pirate Skeleton" and is shaped somewhat like a large egg. It moves up and down quickly while pacing back and forth.
The "Skull" in this game starts at a certain height, moves quickly diagonally downward until it is at the player's level and then oscillates slightly up and down toward them.
===Rondo of Blood-styles===
====Phantom skull====
Castlevania: Rondo of Blood introduced a phantom skull that floats in a certain place for a while, clacking its jaw occasionally; then it swoops diagonally in the direction of the player and stops afterward. This type of ghost appeared again in Symphony of the Night (known as the Phantom Skull) and Portrait of Ruin (known as the Flying Skull).
A giant version of this ghost is generally referred to as the Giant Ghost.
====Empty clothes====
After killing the dark priest Shaft in Rondo of Blood, his spirit, wearing a cloak but with an invisible body, returned for a rematch in another boss battle. It summoned various creatures as Shaft had done before. A ghost resembling this form appeared again as a boss in Dracula X, and it would again summon more creatures (although it's not mentioned to actually be Shaft's ghost). It appeared a third time in Circle of the Moon, where it was known as the Necromancer.
Similar regular enemy ghosts filling out empty robes were slated to appear in Castlevania: Resurrection, but that game was ultimately canceled. They made their 3D debut appearance in Lament of Innocence, where they appeared as a robed figure with red eyes carrying a lantern and a sword. When killed, its lantern would be thrown and cause damage if it hit the player. Most variants of this ghost were soldiers of some kind, donning armor instead of robes and a shield instead of a lantern. This style of ghost would appear again in Curse of Darkness. Most of its variants would appear wielding magic staffs. The type of ghost with the lantern made its 2D debut in Order of Ecclesia, where it would float high in the air, pacing back and forth, and would drop its lantern if struck.
===Other types===
The common Ghost trapped inside the castle has many relative ghosts which haunt the walls of Dracula's home, such as:
*Ectoplasm
*Ghost Dancer
*Giant Ghost (a.k.a. Big Ghost, Skull Lord or Great Ghost)
==Spirit-type ghosts==
This type of ghost usually appears as a human or animal head or skull, with perhaps the upper torso and/or hands reaching out, surrounded by a fiery aura.
===Vampire Killer===
Although the manual artwork shows a Ghost, Vampire Killer has replaced all ghosts with Skull Heads, which behave differently (kind of like a slower moving and more erratic Medusa Head) and do not have an aura behind them.
===Castlevania II: Simon's Quest===
A curious monster that acts the same is the "Pirate Skeleton". This ghostly half of a skeleton is surrounded in flames and likes to wander toward the player, just like the regular ghosts. However, it's not called "Ghost" in the Japanese manual, but rather Akuryou, which translates to "Evil Spirit". Where the name "Pirate Skeleton" came from is anybody's guess, but the fact is that the so-called "Pirate Skeleton" actually better defines the ghost's cousin known as the "Spirit".
So, there technically are no ghosts in Simon's Quest, but there might as well be, given that a number of different monsters either look or act like them.
====Simon's Quest (handheld)====
Fire Ghosts only appear during night and float toward the player from behind. They take one hit to destroy and give 20 points.
====Simon's Quest (watch)====
Fire Ghosts float toward the player from behind. They take one hit to destroy and are worth 5 points.
===Circle of the Moon===
Mainly falling under the "Spirits" category, three variants of the same ghost-like enemy appear in Circle of the Moon, called Spirit, Ectoplasm and Spectre - with each one having a different color scheme and strength. They appear as disembodied and deformed humanoid heads engulfed in a fiery aura and are only found in certain areas of the castle. They materialize out of thin air in infinite numbers and then float directly toward the player (only three may be onscreen at a given time).
They are similar to the Will O' Wisp.
===Order of Ecclesia===
Strangely, ghosts in Order of Ecclesia resemble Mr. Hed from Super Castlevania IV and in fact use the same sprite.
==Specter-type ghosts==
The main characteristic of this type of ghost is that they appear to be empty clothes or armor.
;Subtypes
*Phantom Warrior
*Ghost Knight
*Ghost Soldier
*Ghost Warrior
===Simon's Quest (handheld)===
The ghosts in the Simon's Quest (LCD handheld) game come in from behind but do not attack the player. They are only vulnerable to high attacks to the head, take two whip hits and are worth 20 points. While they are not a threat, all ghosts must be destroyed before it will become nighttime.
===Dracula X===
The Ghost is the boss of Stage 4'. His appearance and general characteristics are based on Shaft Ghost from Rondo of Blood, although there's no indication that it's actually him in this game. He is also very similar to a Necromancer and wears a hooded robe that is almost identical to the one Shaft wore.
He flies around the room, firing energy bolts that slow Richter and raising Skeletons. After taking enough damage, he will surround himself with a shield of tombstones and occasionally toss them at Richter. In his second form, apart from Skeletons he can also summon Mud Men.
===Symphony of the Night (Saturn)===
A ghost that cannot be harmed by simple weapons; this form of ghost waits until the player approaches and then it will try to chase them until one side is defeated. Only through the use of attacks that possess Holy power, such as most of the game's sub-weapons, can such a foe be defeated.
===The Arcade===
Ghosts of tortured souls haunt the dungeons of the Underground stage.
==Skull heads==
Skull Heads are somewhat like a cross between a Ghost and a Medusa Head. There's an endless stream of them that travel from one end of the screen to the other (or directly toward the player), but they move in more erratic up and down patterns.
===Vampire Killer===
All ghosts from the original Castlevania have been replaced with Skull Heads in this game.
===Dracula's Curse===
Skull Heads in Dracula's Curse only appear during the second quest. They are placed in areas they weren't previously in in order to make them more difficult.
In concept art in the Castlevania Anniversary Collection, it is described as a "Flying Skeleton" that has an irregular up-down movement.
==Enemy Data==
==Item Data==
==Gallery==
==See also==
*Ghost Familiar
*Giant Ghost
*Poltergeist
*Skulls
*Spirits (category)
*Summon Spirit
*Vassago
*Wight
*Wind (a ghost character)
*Wraith
==References==
*Jeffrey's Japanese<->English Dictionary Server
*Jim Breen's WWWJDIC Japanese-English Dictionary Server
*Japanese Vampire Killer Manual at Mr. P's Castlevania Realm
*English Castlevania II: Simon's Quest Manual at Mr. P's Castlevania Realm
*Japanese Castlevania II: Simon's Quest Manual at Mr. P's Castlevania Realm
*Mr. P's Castlevania Realm
*The Castlevania Dungeon
*Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin - Bestiary by Darth Nemesis at GameFAQs
==External links==
*Ghost at Wikipedia
es:Fantasma
Category:Dark Enemies
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Category:Skeletal Monsters
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