Sunday, 19 July 2020

Death Battle Predicitions: Simon Belmont VS Sir Arthur


(ramen)

(Notatruename)

(Brobuscus)

(Phantom Falcon)

“The only thing necessary for the triumph of evil is for good men to do nothing.”
- Edmund Blake

When the gates of hell burst open to unleash all sorts of foul beings into the world, chaos and death reign as innocents suffer left and right. In these dark times, mankind’s last line of defense is a valiant soul armed to the teeth with every known instrument of destruction available to them, and who better to demonstrate what the ideal warrior to combat all evil should be than two of the oldest in the business - heroes from ye olde medieval times who have looked the devil in his face and reduced him to a bloodied pile of bones in the name of righteousness and justice.

Simon Belmont, the legendary Vampire Hunter of Castlevania. Sir Arthur, the ghoul-slaying Silver Knight from Ghosts ‘n Goblins. As the stars of the NES era’s hardest and most unforgiving action platformers, these two gaming icons have faced and destroyed many a monster among their adventures, but only one of them can lay claim to being the one true bane of evil that demons everywhere should fear; when the lance of the armored hero-king clashes with the warrior of light’s holy whip, which of them will ultimately strike fair and true?

A Heads-Up From Ya Bois
Yes, it’s us again with a blog about an episode Death Battle isn’t turning into an episode… yet. Just wanted to get this out there.

Also, as there are multiple Castlevania timelines within that series’ history, the version of Simon we’ll be analyzing here will be based on the primary Castlevania timeline which began when the original game was released many decades ago. Lords of Shadow is considered its own timeline given that subseries’ nature as a reboot, ditto the Netflix anime.

Background

Simon Belmont


Born in the 16th century, 23-year old Simon Belmont often compared himself to the legendary heroes and warriors that came before him; as a member of a long-standing clan of vampire hunters who have existed for generations, he trained night and day for two decades to fulfill their sole purpose: slaying the vampire lord, Dracula. Once an unassuming strategist, the man once known as Mathias Cronqvist harnessed the powers of darkness to amass an army made from creatures of the night to rebel against God as revenge for what he perceived to be His cruel and unjust actions. In response, Mathias’ former comrade Leon Belmont swore that he and his descendants would stand up to Dracula’s rule and one day end his accursed existence.

Since then, Dracula and the Belmont Clan would be locked in a never-ending struggle over multiple centuries. Every time the self-proclaimed king of the night was resurrected, a Belmont armed with Leon’s trademark weapon - the holy whip known as the Vampire Killer - would surface to challenge and slay him. Even as their family name was tarnished by the general public due to their supernatural practices, those in power knew no-one better to call upon when Dracula’s armies ravaged cities all over Europe. Over time, each Belmont managed to win back their trust with every victory over Dracula while earning a reputation as the most qualified to hunt down his unholy abominations, and Simon proved to be no different from his ancestors.

Simon holds a distinction in his family’s storied lineage in that he had managed to successfully fell Dracula twice in one lifetime. In 1691, he single-handedly invaded Dracula’s castle, defeated his minions and killed the great vampire, albeit with a mortal wound afflicted via a curse that would ravage his body and eventually lead to his death. Left with no other recourse, Simon hunted down Dracula’s remains to break the curse, ultimately leading to Dracula’s resurrection and eventual demise by his own hand once more. Even long after his passing, his memory as one of the greatest vampire hunters to ever wield the holy whip has remained strong, as tales recounting his greatness were soon passed onto future generations of aspiring heroes.

Sir Arthur 


The realm of Makai has played host to multiple wretched demon lords and their various armies of darkness who have had their sights set on the conquest of the human world for centuries. One such dreaded devil named Astaroth - a being that has existed for millennia - sought to rule humanity by targeting the last mortal with royal blood: Princess Prin Prin. Under the assumption that mixing her blood with that of a demon’s would allow Makai to finally invade the Earth, Astaroth sent his minion Satan to kidnap Prin Prin and enact the ritual to fulfill the nightmare they have long sought, unaware that threatening the princess brought about the ire of her beloved: a literal knight in shining armor by the name of Sir Arthur.

Donning his steel knight’s armor and arming himself with his trusted lance and other tools of the trade for defending himself like bombs, crossbows and various magicks, Arthur ventured forth into the Demon Realm Village that was Astaroth’s dominion to save Princess Prin Prin and vanquish the monsters that would dare endanger and the rest of mankind. The trials he faced were perilous and difficult, but just when all hope seemed lost, he would often find a way to cheat death and overcome the insurmountable odds placed before him. Eventually, Arthur faced Astaroth himself in his own castle and vanquished the Great Demon Lord in a heated battle, allowing him to save the princess and return her to the realm of men.

However, the demons would not remain undeterred for far too long. In the years since Arthur’s initial victory, he has had to foil even more plots to kidnap Princess Prin Prin from other greater demons besides Astaroth himself. His victories include slaying Lucifer with the Psycho Cannon after the demon managed to steal the souls of all who dwelled in the kingdom, wielding the Goddess Bracelet to defeat the new demon king Samael and finally conquering Demon World’s Black Palace and its master: Hades, the Lord of Darkness. Despite only just being 28 years of age, Sir Arthur’s appearance tells the tale of a brave and battle-tested warrior whose drive to deliver justice and honor his Princess has never wavered, no matter the foe or challenge.

Equipment 

Simon

Vampire Killer 


The Belmont Clan’s prized heirloom, the Vampire Killer is the holy whip of legend enchanted for the sole purpose of destroying vampires and other creatures of the night. It was originally known as the Whip of Alchemy, forged by ex-vampire hunter Rinaldo Gandolfi for Leon Belmont to wield to save his fiancée, Sara Trantoul. When it became too late to save her from slowly turning into a vampire, Sara willingly sacrificed her soul to transform it into its current form.

The Vampire Killer’s actual physical appearance tends to vary from game to game. Normally, it looks like a mundane leather whip, but upgrades have allowed it to coat itself in fire or even assume the appearance of a morning star to extend its range and damage output. Some of the later Castlevania titles (before the Lords of Shadow reboot) also allowed the whip to manifest as spectral energy which can be imbued with other elements like ice, thunder, and wind.

In any case, it boasts tremendous power - one that only a descendant of House Belmont can fully harness. The weapon otherwise acts as an ordinary whip in the hands of anyone else, and while those outside the clan can unlock its true nature, doing so could potentially cost them their lives; John Morris - a distant relative of the Belmonts - had his soul drained by the Vampire Killer, and similar warnings were given to his son Jonathan when he wielded it many years later.

Sub-Weapons

Grand Cross - SmashWiki, the Super Smash Bros. wiki

To fight enemies from longer distances the Vampire Killer cannot reach, the Belmonts have various sub-weapons - projectiles that have varying strengths and weaknesses depending on the situation. Often than not, these can be scavenged from candles and defeated enemies, and require a certain amount of Hearts to use as ammunition. The Item Crash mechanic introduced in Castlevania: Rondo of Blood allows the user to perform a massive screen-clearing attack at the cost of more hearts, and while Simon himself has never been in a mainline series game that allowed him to use this technique, his spin-off appearances like Super Smash Bros. Ultimate do.

Below is a list of sub-weapons he can wield based on his various playable appearances:

  • Axe: A throwing axe which is tossed upwards, mainly targeting airborne enemies or those on higher platforms. Its Item Crash has Simon surround himself with a field of axes, which he dispels around him.
  • Cross: A crucifix which can return to Simon like a boomerang. Its Item Crash is called Grand Cross, a giant energy cross surrounded by smaller crosses that covers the area in a field of light.
  • Holy Water: A flask that creates a wave of purified flames when tossed near an evil presence. Its Hydro Storm Item Crash manifests as a sudden torrent of rain that burns away at monsters.
  • Stopwatch: Temporarily freezes time around Simon. The Item Crash sees Simon create 12 clocks in positions corresponding to its 12 hours, which fires a bolt of lightning at the frozen opponents.
  • Dagger: A simple throwing knife tossed forwards. Simon can throw an entire barrage at an opponent with its Item Crash, Thousand Edge.
  • Ricochet Rock: A diamond that repeatedly bounces off any surface or enemy. For its Item Crash, Simon summons 8 of them above himself to create an explosion of light.
  • Herb: A medicinal herb that restores half of Simon’s health when used.
  • Laurel: A medicinal herb that grants Simon temporary invulnerability from both the environment and enemy attacks. This was a mandatory pick-up in Simon’s Quest, to avoid taking damage from the poisonous marshes in the overworld.
  • Sacred Flame: Creates a barrier of fire that prevents enemies from crossing while also dealing damage.
  • Oak Stake: A one time use weapon, thrown similarly to the Dagger, albeit much slower. It’s used to shatter orbs containing Dracula’s remains, and will kill any monster it hits regardless of it’s defensive strength.
  • Silver / Gold Knife: The Silver Knife is a stronger version of the Dagger that travels further and can hit multiple enemies. The Gold Knife, in turn, is stronger than the Silver Knife, and will burst into flames on contact.
  • Bible: Summons a bible around the caster that attacks in one of two ways: from its caster outward, while its pages deal Holy damage, or by spinning around the Simon dealing holy damage
  • Javelin: A spear that's thrown at enemies
  • Red Crystal: A crystal that has the ability to summon a transportation tornado and also has the abilities of the Blue Crystal (draining water) and White Crystal (can view invisible platforms).

Armors

  • Simon's Bandana: A magical bandana that, when worn, bestows resistance to Curses and Poisons.
  • Simon's Plate: A magical breastplate passed down through generations in the Belmont Clan. Bestows resistance to Blunt, Slashing and Piercing attacks, as well as resistance to Petrification, Curses, and Poisons.
  • Simon's Sandals: Magical sandals that raise Simon's Holy and Dark Magic.
  • Simon's Cloak: A cloak that bestows resistance to Fire, Ice, and Lightning.

Sir Arthur 

Knight Armor

Also known as the Silver Armor and the Steel Armor, this is Arthur’s standard armor set. It’s nothing extravagant, but it’s his most iconic look. This armor’s pretty tough, despite what the two-hit game mechanics would let you think.

Bronze Armor

The Bronze Armor is identical to the Knight Armor in defense, but has the added bonus of upgrading Arthur’s weapons.

Warrior Armor

The Warrior Armor is an upgrade that can be layered onto the Knight Armor, meaning when it is destroyed, the latter will be underneath. The Warrior Armor doubles Arthur’s magical power. 

Emperor Armor

Further down with upgraded armors, the Emperor Armor is an upgrade of the Warrior Armor. It simply acts as an extra layer for the Warrior Armor.

Angelic Armor

The Angelic Armor is a unique set that grants Arthur the ability to take flight with blue wings. In addition, this armor slightly increases his magical power.

Cursed Armor

The Cursed Armor is, well, cursed. It has a peculiar mechanic of having two versions of it. There is the light side, or the positive side, and the dark side, or the negative side. Both have their own advantages. LT (meaning positive) increases Arthur’s magical ability and agility, but does not grant any defense boosts. DK (negative) increases the durability and vitality of Arthur, but also decreases his agility and magic power. 

Dark Armor

The Dark Armor is a double-edged sword, er, armor. It boosts Arthur’s all around physical stats, kinda like merging a few benefits of both Cursed Armors. Unfortunately, it makes it so he is unable to use magic or shields.

Golden Armor

Sir Arthur’s ultimate armor. The Golden Armor comes with a shield for added defense, and both Arthur’s weaponry and magic are upgraded. With this power, he can unleash magical attacks and use stronger gear than he ever could before. 

Lance

Arthur’s starting weapon in pretty much every Ghosts ‘n Goblins game and also his favorite, they have low power and average speed but when Arthur wears the Bronze or Golden Armor they are upgraded into the Flaming Lance making it stronger and leaving behind a trail of flames.

Sword

One of the few weapons Arthur has that isn't used as a projectile, while it may lack range it makes up for it by being one of Arthur’s strongest standard weapons.

Cross/“““Shield”””

The Cross or “““Shield””” is a fast weapon that Arthur can fire but has a very limited range, It can also destroy enemy projectiles as well as the enemies themselves.

Daggers

Daggers are easily Arthur’s fastest weapon however they are also his smallest and they lack a lot of power. With the Bronze and Golden armor it is upgraded into the Magic Dagger improving its strength.

Crossbow

Arthur’s used multiple crossbows throughout his journeys, his version from Super Ghouls ‘n Ghosts would shoot 2 arrows in an upward-diagonal direction, When the Bronze or Golden Armor is attained it is upgraded into the Magic Crossbow and can fire 3 flaming arrows that home onto enemies. 

In Ultimate Ghosts ‘n Goblins Arthur used 3 variations of crossbows the standard one is the Scatter Crossbow which can fire in all directions this time around and Arthur can power up to increase the arrows fired from 5 to later 7. The Fire Crossbow fires flaming arrows straight ahead, and is especially effective against enemies susceptible to fire, it has a fast fire rate but low range. The Elec Crossbow is the rarest crossbow but is also the strongest one with an attack rate higher than the Scatter Crossbow but slower than the Fire Crossbow.

Torch

Fuck this worthless piece of shit

It’s a torch. He uses it to burn things. 

Axe 

Axes that Arthur is somehow able to throw in a “looping” pattern that causes it to spin mid-air, they are already strong as is but with the Bronze or Gold Armor they are upgraded into a Hefty Axe improving its power even more.

Scythe

When Sir Arthur throws the Scythe, it will fly in a straight pattern and hit his enemy twice, he can also make it swoop downward as well, While wearing the Bronze or Gold Armor it is upgraded to the Magic Scythe which makes it more powerful.

Tri-Blade

A strange weapon that moves in an L pattern before returning to Arthur, fitting as you might as well have taken the L if you get stuck with this as it’s difficulty to use doesn’t go all with its low damage. Wearing the Bronze and Gold Armor can upgrade it into a Shuriken which makes it faster and easier to connect.

Goddess’ Bracelet

A powerful piece of jewelry that was worn by Princess Prin Prin. It fires large powerful energy blasts that decimates enemies though it only has a medium range.

Discus

Arthur can throw a Discus to all sides and when it touches the terrain, it moves along the ground.

Whip

Arthur has wielded two types of whips in his journey in Ultimate Ghosts ‘n Goblins, The Vine Whip which is the standard variation that gives Arthur a strong close range attack that can be used to grab items, And the Electricity Whip which functions exactly like the Vine Whip and is also stronger thanks to being covered in...well electricity.

Swallow Blade

A blade that homes into Arthur’s enemies.

Bomb

Arthur’s bombs explode on-contact if they hit a target, If they miss, they will roll along the ground before exploding.

Abilities 

Simon

Belmont Bloodline

As a Belmont, Simon possesses control over Holy Magic. This trait has been present in the Belmont Clan since its inception, though its potency became greatly increased as a result of the marriage between Simon's ancestor Trevor and the witch Sypha Belnades. 

Holy Magic

While his control over magic is weaker than those of his descendants such as Richter and Julius, Simon can still use magic to enhance his abilities, such as launching fireballs from his whip and imbuing his attacks with holiness, allowing him to take on most monsters with ease.

Combat Techniques

  • Brandish: Simon can spin the Vampire Killer around to deal a small amount of damage to foes or block projectiles.
  • Air Ability: Simon can use the whip to pull off vertical or horizontal lashes of the whip.
  • Binding Whip: Simon whips the enemy and pulls them towards him.
  • Rising Whip: Charges the Vampire Killer and launches the target upwards.
  • Holy Ruin: Simon will unleash a burst of energy from a simple punch from the Vampire Killer.
  • Dancing Whip: Simon tosses the Vampire Killer at a short range. It deals little damage, but will irritate the enemy.
  • Twisting Arrow: Simon can pull off a torpedo dive at his enemies.
  • Whip Tornado: Simon performs a 360 degree spin that hits everywhere around him.
  • Sudden Impact: Simon charges, spins and slams the whip in front of him.
  • Hyper Attack: As shown, Simon charges at his enemy and hits them to start the Hyper. He charges his whip and the Golden Cross on his back glows brightly. He rushes at his victim, launching them and hitting them many times, ending with two powerful hits.

Arthur

Pyrokinesis

Arthur can shoot flames in a variety of ways, With the Dagger and stronger armors equipped, Arthur can summon a blue, fiery dragon that circles around obliterating foes.

Electrokinesis

Arthur can manipulate electricity in many ways while equipped with certain weapons and armor. With the Axe and stronger armors equipped, Arthur can fire beams of lightning in several directions at once, With the Lance he can fire lightning bolts in three directions and with the Sword Arthur can create a thunder dragon to stop airborne enemies.

Aerokensis

Arthur can manipulate the air to create powerful attacks, With the Scythe and stronger armors equipped, he can generate two tornadoes that go across the whole screen destroying pretty much everything in its path.

Nuclear Magic

With the Tri-Blade and stronger armors equipped, Arthur creates a large energy sphere above him, which splits into two blasts that move straight to the left and right.

Astral Projection

With the Dagger and stronger armors equipped, Arthur is able to create an astral clone of himself to aid him in battle.

Shield Magic

With the Discus and stronger armors equipped, Arthur can create a mirror that protects him from projectiles.

Resurrection Magic

Should Arthur fall in battle, which happens a lot, a magic spell will resurrect him.

Feats 

Simon

Accomplishments


  • Invaded Dracula’s castle in 1691 and defeated the Dark Lord himself for the first time
  • In 1698, he travelled throughout Transylvania to break the curse Dracula laid upon him; to dispel it for good, he brought Dracula back from the dead to kill him one more time
  • Was sucked into the Time Rift created by Aeon, allowing him to do battle with other legendary figures in his universe such as his ancestor Trevor Belmont
  • Besides Dracula, he has defeated many of his army’s lieutenants, including:
    • Death, the Grim Reaper
    • Carmilla, a vampire seductress
    • Frankenstein’s monster and his handler, Igor
    • Twin mummies
    • A werewolf

Strength

Speed

Durability


Arthur 

Accomplishments

  • Rescued Princess Prin Prin 4 times
  • Survived the Demon Realm countless times
  • Kicked Satan’s shit in in his underwear twice
  • Also defeated other powerful demons such as
    • Astaroth 
    • Nebiroth 
    • Lucifer
    • Sardius
    • Hades
  • Ventured through some of the most infamously difficult games ever made eat shit Dark Souls

Strength

Speed

Durability

  • Can endure being blasted by lightning, lasers and fire
  • Can endure tornadoes
  • Survived attacks from Hades who can shake the ground with his fists
  • Taken hits from the same demons who were able to create the thunderstorm that was mentioned earlier

Weaknesses

Simon

Simon doesn’t really have much in the way of weaknesses but if he does have one fault it’s that many of his weapons were specifically made to slay dark beings, obviously they can still harm regular foes but they won’t be as effective.

Arthur

Arthur Durability by GameboyAdv
While Arthur only being able to take two hits until he dies is just a game mechanic, powerful enough attacks can still shatter Arthur’s armor leaving him in nothing but his underwear (Wait, so where the hell does he keep all his weapons?).

Other than that, Arthur’s pool of magic is limited. 

Summary

Simon Belmont

Advantages:
  • Statstomps
  • Timestop is a insta win
  • Brandish neutralizes pretty much all of Arthur’s ranged attacks
  • His franchise is sorta alive

Disadvantages:
  • Not as experienced 
  • Most of his arsenal is more suited towards fighting monsters
  • Simon’s Quest is a shit load of fuck
  • Captain N

Sir Arthur

Advantages:
  • More experienced
  • Huge arsenal could maybe help him keep Simon at bay
  • Resurrection magic can bring him back should he be killed
  • Arguably the bigger chad

Disadvantages:
  • Statstomped
  • Has no way to get past Simon’s timestop
  • His franchise is dead
  • Manlet

Verdicts 

 

Ramen


Deadly Premonition is some kind of twisted joke. It makes me question if anything is real or if Swery is either the next Yoko Taro or a drunk man randomly taken off the streets of Kabukicho. It’s stupid. It’s insane. 2000 more copies, please.

Also, enjoy this stomp.

Clockboxxer

Should’ve been Sir Daniel vs Sir Arthur smh

Alright, I’m not here for the debate. Simon destroys Arthur. The statstomp is an absolute trainwreck, time stop exists, and that’s about all I gotta say. 

Now, instead, I wanna go off a little bit and talk about what DB is doing right now. 

I quite like Death Race. It’s fast-paced, Wiz and Boomstick are hosts, and it’s fresh to see VS animations that do more than fighting. The matchups are absurd, and that’s something I love about it. Where else can you get a quality animation of Thomas the Tank Engine going up against the leader of the Autobots? All in all, I really think Death Race is more interesting than DBX.

Speaking of DBX, that’s been ok. Nothing has been absolutely horrendous this season, and Lucario vs Blaziken is a big ol’ love letter to Pokemon. Good job this year. 

Anyway, I hope Beerus fights Hades or Galaxia. I would not like Phoenix at this time, but I wouldn’t be mad. Anything else, though, no thank you. ESPECIALLY Thanos/Darkseid. Why is that still a thing? 

Kay, see y’all later.

Phantom Falcon

Simon Belmont is walking towards Castlevania, preparing to fight his enemy, Count Dracula. However, as he approaches the menacing castle, he comes across a rather individual. What is he doing here?

Simon: You, it’s not safe here. Leave before you get hurt.

The person turns around, and reveals themselves to be a knight

???: Me, go home? I can’t do that, I have to annihilate the fiendish monster in that castle!

Simon: Who exactly are you?

Arthur: Who am I?! I am the knight in shining armor, Sir Arthur, and I’m the one who will defeat Dracula!

Simon: Look, it’s not safe to be out he-

As Simon lays a hand on the knight’s soldier, Arthur suddenly explodes into nothingness, on the atomic level, and is subsequently destroyed in all parallel timelines

Simon:...What?

TLDR; Simon moves 0.0000000000000000000000000000000001 meters and Arthur commits the dead, and give me Galaxia for Beerus to fight, goodnight everyone


Notatruename


I fucking love this matchup and hope it happens at some point, Castlevania 2 is a pile of shit and one of the worst games I’ve played in my life, Simon statstomps to oblivion, and Stop Watch is an instant win move. Good night everybody.

Joshski


For as fun and cool as this matchup is it’s also one sided to a hilarious degree. The absolute most you can get Arthur to is planet level and that’s with a HUGE amount of benefit of doubt by not only scaling him to Firebrand but highballing the ever living shit out of him as well. Meanwhile Simon at bare minimum scales to blatant solar system level feats. If Arthur had a good speed advantage and the right hax you can potentially make an argument for him to win but he unfortunately just doesn’t. The most useful spell Arthur has in his arsenal is the resurrection spell, but all that’s really going to do here is delay the inevitable as Simon is more than capable enough of one-shotting him twice especially thanks to his time stop which, as been said quite a few times already, is essentially an instant win.

Arthur is certainly a lot more powerful than most people would expect and is no stranger to triumphing over near impossible tasks but Simon’s absurd power and arsenal will just be too much for him to overcome, This battle won’t be a happy end for Sir Arthur.

Wolf/Swift/MLDKF



I hope I’m not too late on putting my verdict in. I’ve been without a computer for the past few days. Although, even assuming I’m in on time...what really can I say about this match-up that hasn’t already been said?

Look, Arthur’s a badass character (even if his game is hard as balls) and scaling him to the likes of Firebrand, iffy or not, does make him a lot stronger than in his main game...but really, he stands no chance against Simon in a fight like this. Castlevania, weird as some people might think, is a Universal-level series and Ghosts n’ Goblins (or Ghouls n’ Ghosts) isn’t. Nothing Arthur has can even hope to fight off Simon. And even if Simon’s items mostly are meant to hunt the creatures of the night, he has plenty of weapons that work pretty well on plain old humans no matter how strong they are. That’s not even getting into the speed difference and the many hax that Simon has over Arthur. Quick verdict, but...yeah, Arthur’s about to have a horrible night while Simon comes out on top. Vote goes to Simon Belmont

The Black Shulk 

So yeah if you’ve seen above you probably know where this is going so to keep a long story short Simon beats the ever living shit out of the poor Arthur. The stat gap is stupidly large, even if you are generous and scale Arthur to Firebrand. He has no counter against the time stop spell and no amount of resurrection will save him from a repeat one shot from Simon. Really the only win condition Arthur has is if Simon just gets depressed from being low tier in Smash and just offs himself.

Funny Vampire Killer goes weeee as the Belmont breaks the Knight.

4 comments:

  1. While i would love this matchup, i can't help but but be sadden by the fact that it's a massive statstomp

    ReplyDelete
    Replies
    1. Personally, would like to say that stomp from guys can still be enjoyable. DB has proven this.

      Delete
  2. Why did you even do this matchup? You all kinew it was a stomp. Even I did, and I didn't know much either of them

    ReplyDelete
  3. Don't you think scaling Simon to Dracula isn't really logical?

    ReplyDelete