Reinhardt Schneider

is a playable main character in Castlevania and Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness, with his backstory and quest being just about the same for both games. A young, broad-shouldered vampire hunter who wields the Vampire Killer whip as his main weapon. Reinhardt is a formidable warrior and a noble soul.
He appears as one of the two main protagonists in Castlevania (the other being Carrie Fernandez) and is playable from the start; however, in Legacy of Darkness, he has to be unlocked during Henry's quest by finding one of the missing children.
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==History==
Reinhardt was a Belmont descendant who boasts a deviating surname (though in development his name was given as Schneider Belmont). Growing up, he was often teased by his schoolmates, as they couldn't believe that he was actually directly connected to the famous bloodline. These experiences polluted Reinhardt's mind with feelings of self-doubt, though they eventually manifested and strengthened his will to prove himself as a warrior. He was eventually chosen to receive the title of Vampire Hunter, and with it the weapons that accompanied the honor. He was fiercely trained by his father, who taught him the true values of a vampire hunter and a man of God.
==Castlevania (N64)/Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness==
When the time has come, Reinhardt sets out to destroy Dracula, knowing he has to overcome many dangers to achieve his goal. His quest sees him fighting his way through a cursed forest and a cursed castle, where Reinhardt has to defeat several gruesome beasts. However, when he reaches the mysterious Villa mansion, he encounters an old man called Charlie Vincent, who says to be a vampire killer and is armed with many crucifixes. He also meets a woman named Rosa, who Reinhardt is shocked to find is a vampire, although unwillingly. Instead of attacking the vampire hunter, however, Rosa helps him and Reinhardt leaves the Villa thankful for her help, although he is worried about what will happen to her next. Later, while inside a maze-like garden, Reinhardt meets a little boy named Malus; he says to be pursued by monsters and runs away, despite the hunter's pleas to stay by his side. Reinhardt is still able to find the way out by following Malus and opening one of the fences so he can escape.
This would not be the last time he meets Rosa, though, as he at a later stage of his quest sees her, despairing at her fate as a cursed creature, attempting a sunlight-assisted suicide, and the vampire hunter finds himself for the first time ever saving a vampire's life. He gets little gratitude in return, however, as Rosa says he should have let her die. She departs with an ominous warning.
Reinhardt encounters Malus again inside the Castle Center. Seemingly not having escaped, the young boy asks Reinhardt if he will save his friends and family. Reinhardt promises to avenge everyone and slay Dracula, to which Malus darkly replies that it's impossible to actually kill the Count and that Reinhardt will just end up getting killed. He then runs off, leaving the confused vampire hunter behind. After overcoming the monsters and riddles of the Castle Center, Reinhardt encounters Death, one of Dracula's most dangerous lackeys. His worst fears come true when he sees Death has brought Rosa, and Death forces the vampire to fight Reinhardt. The emotionally charged battle ends with Reinhardt winning, but Rosa surviving, and she and Death disappear in a cloud of mist.
But Rosa still wasn't completely in evil's power, and when Death attempts a cowardly ambush atop the clock tower (after Reinhardt travels through the Duel Tower and the Tower of Execution) to kill Reinhardt, Rosa appears once more to shield Reinhardt from the attack and absorbs the fatal blow. She did believe in him, after all, and he returns the favor by promising the fearing Rosa that God would forgive her tortured soul. He then proceeds to destroy Death, who recognizes him as a Belmont, and sends the evil demon back to Hell.
;Bad ending
Reinhardt goes on to defeat what appears to be Dracula in the Castle Keep. Malus appears and they leave the castle after a short conversation. As they ride home on horseback, Reinhardt speculates that Malus may be the next hero to fight Dracula. Malus' eyes then ominously glow red.
;Good ending
Reinhardt defeats Gilles de Rais in the Castle Keep and the castle begins to crumble. As he escapes, Malus appears riding a winged demon and attempts to kill him with an arrow. Atop the Clock Tower, Malus reveals that he is Dracula and transforms from a boy into a man. The two battle and, after defeat, Dracula turns back into a boy. He attempts to fool Reinhardt into thinking that Dracula merely possessed him. Charlie Vincent arrives on the scene and douses Malus with holy water, exposing his evil nature. Malus then transports Reinhardt to a desert realm and transforms into a giant monster. After defeating Dracula's final form, Reinhardt is transported to reality where the castle sinks into the lake.
"Will this struggle against Dracula never end?" he wonders, grief ridden. Suddenly, a few rose petals drift down from the sky, followed by a single red rose. Rosa appears where the flower lands: human, whole, and freed from Dracula's curse. The two embrace, and Reinhardt expresses his renewed hope for the future.
==Notes==
*To unlock Reinhardt as a playable character in Castlevania: Legacy of Darkness, the player has to find Clark during Henry's quest. He is found in the Villa. In the hedge maze, near the area where the Rose Brooch was required to open, there is an alcove with the child inside.
**To unlock Reinhardt's alternate costume, after finding Clark the player has to find Edward during Henry's quest. He is found in the Underground Waterway. Proceed through the waterway, avoiding any falling floors as best as possible, and keep turning right until reaching a staircase; follow them up and cross a broken bridge. Look for an alcove to the left of the bridge, where Edward can be seen standing. Jump to the ledge to rescue him.
==Trivia==
*In the opening cutscene for his scenario in Castlevania 64, Reinhardt is seen making the sign of the cross.
*Schneider's personal stage in Castlevania 64 is the Tower of Execution. He also received the Tower of Duels as his personal level, which originally belonged to the cut character, Cornell.
*Most members/descendants of the Belmont clan are depicted with swords, but only Reinhardt and Jonathan are seen actually using theirs.
*Originally, Reinhardt was supposed to have the ability to use his whip to swing over pits and swing it around like Simon Belmont in Super Castlevania IV; however, both of those abilities were cut, when Castlevania 64 was trimmed to be released during the holidays of 1998.
*His original name was "Schneider Belmont". He was renamed Reinhardt Schneider during development when the developers were informed by fans that "Schneider" was a surname and not a given name. The "Reinhardt" part of his name comes from the preliminary character Reinhardt Cornell, who was cut from Castlevania 64. Similarly, fans informed the developers that "Cornell" was usually a given name and not a surname.
*His name is German; Schneider is a very common surname, which means "Taylor". Due to this, he's probably an ethnic Transylvanian Saxon or Banat Swabian.
*There is a notable resemblance between Reinhardt's default costume in Castlevania 64 and Simon Belmont's design in the Captain N animated series. Both wear blue colored upper garments which feature a white furry collar with a scarf underneath, khaki colored pants with boots worn over them, enlarged shoulders (in Reinhardt's case, he wears pauldrons), gloves, their faces feature a pronounced chin and an overall rectangular shape, and both have blond hair mainly combed toward the back. However, it's unclear if such similarities were intentional (furthermore, because Captain N ended production in 1993 and Castlevania 64 wasn't released until 1999).
==References==
==External links==
*GamePro scan at Castlevania Dungeon
*Konami of Europe's Reinhardt Schneider profile (archived: July 1, 2001)
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es:Reinhardt Schneider
pt-br:Reinhardt Schneider
Category:Humans
Category:Male Characters
Category:Protagonists
Category:Schneider Clan
Category:Vampire Hunters and Huntresses
Category:Castlevania 64 Characters
Category:Castlevania 64 Playable Characters
Category:Legacy of Darkness Characters
Category:Legacy of Darkness Playable Characters