Skull Ring

The Skull Ring (called Ring of Varda in the North American versions of Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, and Cursed Ring in Circle of the Moon) is a gold ring with a skull effigy attached to it which increases many stats greatly, although in most versions it's also cursed.
The ring is similar to the Skull Necklace which appears in Aria and Dawn of Sorrow, which emphasizes in Defense, but is also cursed with a luck penalty.
==Game specific information==
===Castlevania: Symphony of the Night===
First appearance of the Skull Ring in the series, known as the Ring of Varda in the English version. Increases ATT by 10, STR by 30 (resulting in a total effect of ATT +40), INT by 30, DEF by 10, CON by 10, and LCK by 5. It is a scaled up version of the Ring of Feanor, which increases each stat to a lesser degree without the same relative emphasis on each.
In the PlayStation version, the ring can only be obtained by having completed the game at least once and using either a "CLEAR" or "REPLAY" save file. Once these requirements have been fulfilled, the Ring of Varda will be unlocked as the Paranthropus's rare drop (in a first playthrough, it would only drop Turquoises in its place). In the Sega Saturn and mobile phone versions, a "CLEAR" or "REPLAY" save file is not required, being possible to obtain on a first playthrough (this is not the case in the PSP or Castlevania Requiem ports, however). The first Paranthropus can be found in the Colosseum, although since the drop is very rare and at that point the player's LCK may not be very high, it could take a long time until the ring drops. To alleviate this hindrance, the player may opt to use "Alucart" mode (equip Alucart Sword, Alucart Shield and Alucart Mail) and/or play a "CLEAR"/"REPLAY" game in Luck Mode, as well as equip the Ring of Arcana if available. Paranthropuses are encountered again much later in the game but in greater numbers in the Reverse Outer Wall.
===Castlevania: Circle of the Moon===
The ring is cursed in Circle of the Moon and in later games, and requires a luck sacrifice in order to gain the other stats. While it increases STR and DEF by 30, it reduces LCK by 100.
===Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin===
In Portrait of Ruin, the ring increases many stats (STR, CON, INT, and MIND, all by +6), but reduces LCK by 13 and also curses the wearer, leaving them unable to use sub-weapons or magic spells until the ring(s) are unequipped. This curse is unavoidable, even wearing a Blessed Ring in conjunction won't prevent or negate the effect.
The curse doesn't come without its boons, however; if the player equips the Magus Ring, the regeneration effect will negate the curse's MP drain and then the ring can be used to deadly advantage.
==Item Data==
==Trivia==
*Varda is the "Queen of Stars", a reference to J. R. R. Tolkien's lore. Its description in Symphony of the Night, however, is closer to that of the One Ring that formed the crux of the plot of The Lord of the Rings.
*In Portrait of Ruin, the "curse" given by the ring is reflected on the stat values it gives; all boosted stats are increased by 6, likely referencing the number of the beast, while LCK is reduced by 13, a number often associated with bad luck.
Category:Gold
Category:Luck Assets
Category:Rings
Category:Skull Items
Category:Tolkien Lore
Category:Circle of the Moon Items
Category:The Dracula X Chronicles Items
Category:Harmony of Despair Items
Category:Portrait of Ruin Items
Category:Symphony of the Night Items