Devil May Cry 4 - Bloody Palace guide Version 1.00 by Joshua Vaughn, a.k.a. Mikadok on GameFAQs/GameSpot and I Kei I on Gaia Online and Shoryuken.com = = = = = = = = Copyright info = = = = = = = = Copyright 2008 Joshua Vaughn All trademarks and copyrights contained in this document are owned by their respective trademark and copyright holders. This may not be reproduced under any circumstances except for personal, private use. It may not be placed on any web site or otherwise distributed publicly without advance written permission. Use of this guide on any other website or as a part of any public display is strictly prohibited, and a violation of copyright. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Why'd you make this guide? = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Ever since hitting the top U.S spot on the 360 leaderboards (though I doubt that will be held for much longer), I have been getting a lot of questions about aspects of the Bloody Palace, as well as the game in general. I'm hoping this guide will help alleviate some of those queries. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = What IS the Bloody Palace? = = = = = = = = = = = = = = For anyone unfamiliar, the Bloody Palace is Devil May Cry 4's equivalent to a survival mode. You fight and fight and fight until you can't fight anymore, for one reason or another. Originating in Devil May Cry 2, the Bloody Palace made its return in the Special Edition of 3, and here again in Devil May Cry 4, albeit with a few changes to offset it from the previous Palace incarnations. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = What makes it different? = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Whereas before, you simply fought until you died or cleared the entire Palace, now, you have a set time limit that you must adhere to which adds to the already grinding fact that should you die, it's game over, for running out of time yields the same result. You start out with a meager two minutes worth of time, but destroying enemies gets you even more time to work with. Doing it with style will net you that much more time. Detailed farther below are the time bonuses that you get from killing certain enemies, as well as how many spare seconds a style bonus will get you. Clearing stages will net you time bonuses as well. You'll get anywhere from 10 to 15 seconds worth of bonus time, and that amount will double if you clear up the stage without taking damage. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Stages of the Bloody Palace = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = In this incarnation of the Bloody Palace, there are 101 stages. As compared to the 9999 stages in the earlier games, to most, this would seem to be quite a relief, but it's leveled out by the fact that the enemies become much more tenacious to deal with, and bosses are thrown into the mix every twenty stages. Here are the stages and the enemies therein, in order from 1 to 101. 1 - Scarecrow x 3 2 - Scarecrow x 4 3 - Scarecrow x 6 4 - Frost x 2 5 - Bianco Angelo x2 6 - Mephisto x 3 7 - Gladius x 6 8 - Chimera Seed x 9 9 - Chimera Seed x 9, Scarecrow x3 10 - Scarecrow x 12 11 - Assault x 2 12 - Mega Scarecrow x2 13 - Assault x2, Bianco Angelo x2 14 - Faust x1 15 - Bianco Angelo x2, Alto Angelo x1 16 - Scarecrow x6, Mega Scarecrow x1 17 - Alto Angelo x2 18 - Blitz x1 19 - Basilisk x4 20 - Berial (Boss) 21 - Mephisto x2, Frost x1 22 - Frost x2, Faust x1 23 - Assault x3, Frost x2 24 - Assault x 3, Basilisk x 4 25 - Assault x3, Blitz x1 26 - Blitz x1, Basilisk x4 27 - Frost x2, Bianco Angelo x2 28 - Assault x2, Gladius x8 29 - Blitz x1, Gladius x5 30 - Frost x4, Assault x6, Blitz x1 31 - Chimera Seed x6, Mephisto x3 32 - Scarecrow x3, Faust x1 33 - Mephisto x2, Mega Scarecrow x1 34 - Mephisto x6 35 - Mephisto x3, Frost x1 36 - Scarecrow x2, Faust x1 37 - Mephisto x2, Assault x3 38 - Mephisto x2, Blitz x1 39 - Chimera Seed x9, Faust x1 40 - Bael (Boss) 41 - Chimera Seed x9 42 - Chimera x5, Chimera Seed x5 43 - Chimera x4 44 - Chimera Seed x6, Gladius x6 45 - Chimera x2, Blitz x1 46 - Basilisk x2, Chimera Seed x4 47 - Chimera Seed x5, Bianco Angelo x2, Alto Angelo x1 48 - Scarecrow x1, Chimera Seed x6 49 - Chimera x3, Faust x1 50 - Scarecrow x6, Chimera Seed x12, Assault x4 51 - Scarecrow x6 52 - Scarecrow x3, Gladius x8 53 - Mega Scarecrow x3, Frost x2 54 - Scarecrow x5, Alto Angelo x1 55 - Mega Scarecrow x1, Faust x1 56 - Mega Scarecrow x1, Alto Angelo x2 57 - Scarecrow x4, Mephisto x3 58 - Mega Scarecrow x1, Basilisk x5 59 - Chimera x2, Mega Scarecrow x1, Chimera Seed x4 60 - Echidna (Boss) 61 - Bianco Angelo x4 62 - Cutlass x2, Bianco Angelo x3 63 - Blitz x1, Bianco Angelo x2 64 - Bianco Angelo x1, Gladius x6 65 - Bianco Angelo x7, Alto Angelo x1 66 - Alto Angelo x1, Basilisk x4 67 - Blitz x1, Alto Angelo x2 68 - Bianco Angelo x2, Scarecrow x6 69 - Alto Angelo x1, Frost x2 70 - Bianco Angelo x10, Alto Angelo x2 71 - Gladius x16 72 - Mega Scarecrow x1, Gladius x9 73 - Gladius x8, Frost x1 74 - Cutlass x2, Basilisk x4 75 - Alto Angelo x1, Cutlass x3 76 - Cutlass x4, Gladius x8 77 - Basilisk x10 78 - Frost x2, Basilisk x4 79 - Cutlass x2, Basilisk x2, Gladius x4 80 - Angelo Credo (Boss) 81 - Mega Scarecrow x1, Scarecrow x5 82 - Mephisto x4, Faust x1 83 - Frost x3 84 - Chimera x4, Chimera Seed x10 85 - Blitz x2, Chimera Seed x3 86 - Bianco Angelo x2, Alto Angelo x1 87 - Basilisk x4, Gladius x7 88 - Cutlass x3, Bianco Angelo x2 89 - Mega Scarecrow x3, Blitz x1 90 - Scarecrow x20, Mega scarecrow x3, Chimera Seed x3 91 - Faust x3 92 - Alto Angelo x3, Bianco Angelo x4 93 - Assault x8 94 - Chimera x3, Chimera Seed x6, Bianco Angelo x2 95 - Basilisk x16, Chimera Seed x4 96 - Gladius x8, Cutlass x3, Bianco Angelo x3 97 - Mephisto x6, Mega Scarecrow x2 98 - Chimera x4, Chimera Seed x3 99 - Alto Angelo x2, Bianco Angelo x44 100 - Angelo Agnus (Boss) 101 - Dante (Boss) = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Monsters and time bonuses granted = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = NOTE: This part was partially borrowed from Excruciatix's guide and expanded upon somewhat, so credit goes to them. Scarecrow +5 Seconds Frost +10 Seconds Bianco Angelo +10 seconds Mephisto +10 seconds Gladius +2 seconds Chimera (Un-attached) +2 Seconds Chimera (Attached) +XX Seconds Assault +10 seconds Mega Scarecrow +15 Seconds Faust +20 seconds Alto Angelo +20 seconds Basilisk +5 seconds Cutlass +XX seconds Blitz +30 seconds As you can see, destroying enemies quickly is paramount to having enough time to do what you have to do. In the case of Boss encounters, you will be given a 2:00 bonus at the beginning of the fight. Defeating them without being damaged will grant you an entire minute of bonus time. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = "A mode where style is key." = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = When the game tells you this before entering the Bloody Palace, pay attention ecause it is telling the truth. Yes, as you may have surmised, time is indeed of the essence, so killing your enemies quickly and in the most efficient way possible is important. Getting a high style ranking while doing so, however, will help you that much more, since killing an enemy while having a high style ranking will get you even MORE time from them than usual. Let's say that you kill off a Blitz. Under normal circumstances, it will give you a 30 second bonus of time. Manage to take it out before it can destroy itself, however, getting you a SSS rank in the process, and your bonus will increase to 42 seconds. Keep your style as consistently high as possible while killing enemies as quickly as you can. = = = = = = = = Why use Nero? = = = = = = = = Right off the bat, no matter who you decide to use, be sure to come into the Bloody Palace with every one of your skills intact, all of your health, and a full Devil Trigger gauge, the DT gauge being the most important, since outside of bosses and certain enemies dropping health, using the Devil Trigger will be your only way to recover health. You also will want the extra strength to destroy anything and everything you can as quickly as possible. Of course, when it comes to character preference, using Nero shows it's benefits as you go through the game itself. His attacks are powerful with wide range and he can strike rapidly enough while moving quite a distance to avoid enemy attacks while doing so. Then there's the Devil Bringer. This in itself is VERY important to keep in mind, since there are enemies that are bound to be stubborn enough not to be staggered by multiple sword strikes. This will knock them off balance, if they can be snatched up, so you can launch them easily. Also, using the Buster on certain enemies makes a bit of a shockwave when they get slammed to the ground that off-balances the other enemies. Use that to your advantage. The name of the game with Nero is crowd control. Use the EX versions of his moves to pile enemies, then continue your assault. Never let up on a group of enemies you manage to pin down. Also, another nice thing to keep in mind about Nero is Charge Shot 3. This thing is EXTREMELY potent. The shot itself does great damage on most enemies, then an explosion follows for even MORE damage. So long as you are able, keep this charged while fighting so you can nail an unsuspecting enemy, or any that hopes to sneak up on your back or side. Finally, a very useful thing to know about Nero is that his Devil Trigger works much like a Burst from the Guilty Gear series. So long as you aren't activating it during an attack in a combo or a Buster, the transformation grants you a moment of invincibility, and it will also damage any enemies nearby. It will even launch some of them. Use it to save you from a few tight spots. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Random tidbits to keep in mind = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = First of all, as in past DMC games, jumping gives you frames of invincibility. Keep this in mind. If you're grounded and in the middle of a move that you know that you can jump cancel while the enemy is doing something that you know will put serious hurt on you, like Berial swinging his sword down, for example, jump away from it. This will only work while grounded, however; you do not get any invinicibility from an Air Hike. Secondly, when fighting multiple enemies that either stay grounded or close to the ground, the two best things to do are to either stay airborne so that other enemies wont have much of an opportunity to attack you, or to focus on one enemy and one enemy only, to the poit that that enemy is the only one on the screen, since enemies that are off-screen WILL NOT attack you. They will instead spend their time getting back into your line of view before doing so. Finally, before going into any level, take a moment to rev your Red Queen on up to Level 3. Kicking off each fight with a level 3 Exceed move will help it end that much more quickly. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Dealing with normal enemies = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = I'm pretty certain that if you've got this mode unlocked, normal Scarecrows are the least of your worries, so I'll omit them. Frost - Keep the Frost off-balance as best you can. Snatch him often and use EX moves whenever you need to strike and knock down, or knock him out of a move animation. At any point you see a Frost go airborne, snatch him down from the air immediately, or move out of the way. Be careful, because in the later stages, they will begin to flip out of your Snatch/combo attempts, and they'll also dodge your Snatch attempts while closing the gap on you. Whent hey get to being this way, use EX attacks to knock their health down. After that, they won't be as certain to pull away from your attacks. Bianco Angelo - Make these guys guard, then get behind them and you have a free Buster. Not too difficult to deal with, but be careful when there are more than one of them, or worse yet, if an Alto Angelo is around. They will sometimes fight other enemies as well, so long as they aren't Angelos, but you're better off taking care of everything yourself. Alto Angelo - These guys are worrisome. They tend to be difficult to staggerwith anything less than an EX strike or a Charge Shot 3, and worse yet, if they don't come with Bianco Angelos, who will go through Hell and high water to protect them, they'll often be with OTHER Alto Angelos, or other enemies altogether. Like the Bianco Angelos, they'll fight other enemies, but letting them do so isn't worth the trouble and time. Mephisto - A point blank Charge Shot 3 will damage their cloaks immensely. Snatch them after this, and they'll be out of their cloaks. Wail on them as the explosion does its damage and you can take them out no problem. Faust - Basically an amped up version of a Mephisto, it will take more than one Charge Shot 3 to take these guys out of their cloaks, but once you do, a good DT combo will take care of them quickly. The Showdown DT attack will often take mass amounts of health from them, if not take them down completely, once they're cloak-less. Gladius - These things are more of an annoyance than most enemies, simply because they tend to come in large numbers, but shooting them with charge shots when they start to spin will do the most damage to them (I've seen some of them die outright from this). Take them down quickly, since in the Bloody Palace, they will come to yield Devil Trigger orbs. Chimera Seed - Another enemy type that should be taken out quickly, but for different reasons, those being because Chimera Seeds grant you health, and because you will often see many Chimera Seeds come paired with Assaults or Scarecrows, each of which it can and will infect if left unchecked, so kill them off quickly. Your Buster is an instant kill of them, Devil Trigger or not. Assault - They will often come in groups of two, three or more. Strike them with EX Streak to knock them over, then jump and snatch them to you. Combo them from there, but be careful in the later stages, because like the Frost, these guys will recover in midair from your Snatch/combos attempts. If they start to guard, a couple of EX strikes will break their shields. Assault/Scarecrow (infected) - You basically deal with these the same way that you would the normal varieties of Assaults and Scarecrows. Don't throw caution to the wind, however; they'll start to swing their tails about at intervals. This will anger most, because it can destroy a great combo streak you might have going if you're being too offensive. A charge shot will often stop them from flapping their tails about, though. Basilisk - These will probably be one of the most annoying enemies for a lot of people. They aren't hard to kill, but they often come in large numbers, and the accuracy with which they fire their projectiles is scary at times. EX Streaks will close the gap easily, and you can use them to pressure them and take them down quickly. Cutlass - The Cutlass can be pretty evil, if you're prone to doing near stationary combos on some other enemy. If you keep moving, however, them hitting you shouldn't be a worry. When you have the chance, a Charge Shot will stun them long enough for you to hit them with a few sword strikes to pull them from underground. Either way, so long as you get them out of the ground, they aren't a threat. Mega Scarecrow - If anyone EVER tells you that the Mega Scarecrow is NOT a threat, do NOT believe them. Sure, so long as you don't let them do much of anything, there isn't much to them, but give them a spare moment, and they have quite the arsenal of moves to use, the most terrifying being one where the Mega Scarecrow will roll towards you, shielded by its blade. To this moment, I've yet to see anything outside of a Charge Shot or Devil Triggering at the last moment knock them out of this move, and if it hits you, it can cause massive damage. These often must take priority, unless, of course, they are being aided by... Blitz - ...these guys. The Blitz are, by far, the biggest threat in the Bloody Palace. Some may not have much of a problem dealing with one of them, but the Bloody Palace often likes to throw these guys at you with other enemies...and in one stage, you even have to fight two of them at the same time. I personally find dealing with a Blitz easier with Dante, thanks to the Royal Guard style, but this is covering Nero, so my strategy for dealing with a Blitz normally goes as follows: Start out by hitting the Blitz with a POINT BLANK level 3 Charge Shot. If the explosion hits and doesn't take the electricity off right away, which it often does, then the next charge shot/explosion will do so without a doubt. After the electricity is gone, hurry to the Blitz and Buster him. During this, have the Blue Rose charging, turn on your DT, run up as it's recovering and Buster it again. By this time, your Charge Shot should be ready again. As the Blitz is trying to flip back to his feet, let him have that charge shot. It'll knock him onto his back, and the summoned swords will do even more damage. Streak to catch up to him while charging your gun, then Buster him once more. This will leave him within an inch of his life, and that level 3 Charge Shot that you should now be holding should be more than enough to kill him before he can start his little suicide run, netting you a SSS ranking. Another way that is even faster, though much more risky, is to Devil Trigger as soon as you enter a stage with the Blitz, or as it's appearing. Fire off a charged Maximum Bet, but be quick about doing so. If the first doesn't take the lightning off entirely, fire off one more, if you have time enough before it gets on the move. Once the lightning is gone, turn off your DT, then run right up next to him and DT again. This will launch him into the air. Start your Showdown DT attack as he's recovering, and it should take his health down quite a bit. Buster him before he can gather himself to drop his health down more. By the time he starts to glow, a Charge Shot or two should be sufficient enough to finish him off. = = = = = = = = = = = Dealing with bosses = = = = = = = = = = = Berial - He's way more fierce this time around, and worse yet, there aren't any houses around to help heal you. I've heard from many people that they make it to Berial and die. If you have Charge Shot 3 with Nero, this is where you can see its potency best. If you have plenty of time, you can go the safe route and avoid Berial's attacks while plugging lots of level 3 Charge Shots into him. They will stagger him and stop him from doing anything involving his sword, plus doing Charge Shots on him repeatedly DOES NOT decrease your Style meter. Once you figure his fighting style out, being offensive against him isn't as risky as you might think, so long as you have meter to Devil Trigger and are decent enough with knowing when you can cancel combos with jumps, since when you DT or jump, you gain a bit of invinicbility in either case. Once you learn the timing between your Charge Shots and the explosions that occur thereafter, you can mix in Nero's Showdown DT attack every now and then, which takes good amounts of health from Berial, not to mention the fact that it will dissipate his flames that much more quickly. Bael - This boss, to me, at least, isn't hard in the least. When he lunges to ty to chew on you, double jump out of the way. When he launches the ice spikes that come crashing down, the shadows will give away where they will fall, so avoid them accordingly. When fighting him, stay on his side as often as possible while you attack and charge your gun so that he'll have to spend most of his time trying to turn towards you and attack. When he sends in the Rusalikas (the glowing blue female "antennae" or what have you), stay airborne and keep going for a snatch. When you eventually catch them, Buster them down. This will either hasten their departure or stun whichever one you're slamming that much more quickly so you can pull Bael back out to wail on him. Lastly, whenever you Buster Bael at all, be sure you're in DT state so you do the most damage possible. Echidna - She will almost always begin the battle by swinging her body about the battlefield in a sweeping motion to smack you, so jump towards her as you approach. Wail on her with aerial combos while she holds herself above ground while being careful to move away if you see her try to swing her whip-like head at you. When she plants herself into the ground, always make sure you attack her from the other side, since she will be prone to calling her tentacle-like appendages up through the ground to try to hit you. Completely ignore any Chimera Seeds she summons unless you NEED the health, and focus only on her. When she powers up near the end and charges at you without the dragon- like head surrounding her, you can hitch a ride by nailing her with a Buster with good timing to jam your sword into her and rev away. Mind her head when you're in close, keep away from the tentacles and shoot any projectiles she fires at you, and you'll do fine. Angelo Credo - A fun boss to fight, in my opinion, but not necessarily hard. When he's walking towards you, attack him. It may sound crazy, knowing that all he'll do is guard the attack, but trust me when I say that this is what you want, for two reasons, those being that guarding attacks weakens Credo's shield, and because Credo will often counterattack immediately after guarding a sword strike from you, often with a couple of sword strikes, followed by an attack from the air. After Credo misses this, he is left WIDE OPEN to an attack. Streak in, then follow up with a Buster to do even more damage and repeat until he's defeated. Just be mindful of any spears or other projetiles he throws. Also, in the instances where he does his aerial slash that leaves a swath in the ground twice in a row, Air Hiking, then firing some Blue Rose shots will usually help you avoid this. When he calls his "summoned swords" around you, simply turning on your Devil Trigger will rid you of those before they can attack you. Angelo Agnus - This fight can be the most annoying, and if you aren't careful, it can be the end of your Bloody Palace run. To deal with Agnus, keep an offense going on him at all times. If he summons anything, take care of it quickly, and go right back to beating on him. If you hear him say anything along the lines of "TIME TO DIE!" or "Your strength...!!", stop him at ALL costs, because if you don't, you're in for some serious hurt, and he'll put salt in the wound by recovering his own health simultaneously in the case of the latter attack. When he does the attack where he spins like a top while holding the two Cutlass enemies, avoid it by getting as much distance as possible, then Air Hiking as high as you can while firing off the Blue Rose. Make sure to avoid Agnus' more devastating attacks, keep up your offense, and you should drop him soon. Oh, and, goes without saying, but be sure you're in DT mode when you Buster him. ^_^ Dante - Most people will more likely than not die when they come to fight Dante, and with good reason. Dante is a force to be reckoned with...if you approach him the wrong way, that is. There are two ways to go about beating him without much trouble. One, as most people know, is to keep firing your gun as you approach him, then Buster him when you get in range. The other, and the most safe way I find, is to keep charging your gun to Level 3, then blast Dante when he leaves himself open. Your best times to let your Charge Shot go are as follows... - The moment he touches the ground when missing a Helm Splitter or aerial kick from the Gilgamesh gauntlets. Any later, and he'll simply jump or roll out of the way. - When he pulls out Lucifer and starts swinging it about. When he jumps into the air to set a few phantom swords, shoot him down. - If he starts a combo with Rebellion and starts the Million Stab, he's vulnerable if you catch him before the end of that animation. - If he does the lightning kick combo with the Gilgamesh gauntlets, he's open there as well. - When he pulls out Pandora to try to form it into the laser cannon. - When he puts down Pandora to open it up to use Omen. (!) When Dante tries to use Omen, you MUST STOP HIM. A Charge Shot, any level, is sufficient enough to do so. If you don't, and your health isn't high enough (say, nearly full), wave byebye to your entire Bloody Palace run. If he ever turns on his Royal Guard style, don't fret. This is actually a good thing, because he will attempt to block anything and everything you do, including your Devil Bringer, which he CANNOT block against. Turn on your Devil Trigger, run right in his face and Buster him. Just be sure to regain any distance you had between you and him afer the DT'd Buster, or he'll be bound to ruin your Stylish ranking with a random shotgun blast or something else. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Dealing with troublesome stages = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = The most important thing to bear in mind is that once you make it to level 81, all the enemies from there on out, with the exception of the bosses, will start to Devil Trigger, making them harder to kill, which means that you will have to kill them off that much more quickly if you hope you clear them out without much of a hassle. Most people tend to have the most problems out of stages where there is a Blitz with other enemies about. In these occasions, oftentimes, the enemies that are around can be snatched in, so go airborne and Split them to the ground after one or two strikes. If you don't, the Blitz is liable to appear above the both of you and smack you out of the sky. If you try to take out the enemies while grounded, the Blitz won't waste time getting in close to you to either come back into view or to try to attack you, resulting in your sword strikes hitting it as well, causing you to take unnecessary damage. Use your DT to speed up the annihilation of the other enemies so that the Blitz is all that stands between you and the next level, then deal with him accordingly. Levels with lots of Basilisks, Gladius enemies or Cutlass enemies are also troublesome. Keep as many of them off of the screen at one time to keep yourself from being attacked from multiple angles, especially in the case of the Basilisks. Finally, levels that have multiple Bianco and Alto Angelos spell doom for a lot of people that have contacted me. There are three ways to go about this. You can either take out the Alto Angelos first so that the Bianco Angelos aren't so vicious, you can take out all the Bianco Angelos in the area except two so that the Alto Angelo will have a higher probability of having them help him launch the huge energy attack that you can deflect back at them, or you can be patient and wait, and the Alto Angelos will eventually order the Bianco Angelos to pull a suicide strike, which you can dodge with a couple jumps. This, of course, is not recommended if you plan on getting the highest score possible, since the number of enemies you kill counts towards you score. = = = = = = Now, we'll cover dealing with the nuances of the Bloody Palace with Dante. = = = = = = = = Why use Dante? = = = = = = = = Dante, as you may likely know by now, whether by experience using him or facing him, is extremely versatile. There isn't a single situation that he can't push past given the right style and weapon selections. He even has a far easier time with most enemies than Nero does, due to the strength of the red-clad Devil Hunter. His attacks are more straightfoward than Nero's (quite literally in most cases), but they are powerful nonetheless, and knowing which ones to use and when to use them are key to making good time when using Dante within the Bloody Palace. Styles and their nuances will be explained further below. Some of the things to keep in mind with Dante are rather obvious, yes, but they are also things that are bound to slip some players' minds as they fight their way through the Palace. First of all, it is imperative to note that many of Dante's moves and combos either end with him being quite stationary, or they won't kill the enemy at all until the very last hit, so you always want to be wary of the enemies' health as you're attacking, as well as the other enemies around you, so you aren't interrupted in mid-attack. Second, always use the style best suited to the situation. If you find yourself facing a large group of enemies, for example, like a gaggle of Scarecrows or Chimera Seeds, it would not be ill-advised to switch to DarkSlayer style and utilize the Dimension Slash to damage many of them at once, or if you're carrying a full Disaster gauge with Pandora, you can switch to Gunslinger and use Omen to kill everything in the room instantly. Third, the only guns that are recommended are his Coyote shotgun and Pandora. The damage dealt by Ebony & Ivory, sadly, is far too miniscule in comparison, and using them will do nothing more than whittle away precious seconds of your time. Finally, Dante's Devil Trigger transformation, unlike Nero's DOES NOT push the enemy back in the slightest. It does, however, give Dante a form of Super Armor, allowing him to take either multiple hits or one big hit before being staggered or knocked back. If you absolutely MUST finish a combo that you're doing and you're about to be hit, turn on your DT and you can do so unhindered. = = = = Styles = = = = Trickster - Your all-purpose evasion and mobility style. This is best used in situations when your enemies are extremely mobile, or if they're about to do something quite painful to you so you can avoid it. Good for closing the gap quickly between you and a far away enemy as well. Gunslinger - You should only shift into Gunslinger mode when you have to deal with certain situations. Most of the time, these situations entail you using a form of the Pandora for some reason or another. - Using Omen when facing a Faust or Mephisto, regardless of how much of the Disaster gauge is filled, will dissipate their cloaks completely. It will also knock the electricity right off of a Blitz. - Using the aerial version of Fireworks with the Coyote is another way to rid the Fausts and Mephistos of their cloaks, and doing so this way gives you the added advantage of being able to recover quickly enough to do more damage, possibly killing them before they can recover. - Finally, using Omen with a full Disaster gauge is enough to kill off a room full of small fry enemies like Chimera Seeds or Scarecrows instantaneously. Royal Guard - Your main defensive style, of course. This is only recommended if you'reeither A) exceptionally good with Royal Blocking, or B) Against a Blitz. As most know, you can cancel an attack with a Royal Guard. Utilizing this, with good timing of course, you can strike a Blitz with an attack, then Royal Block the aftershock that comes up to keep yourself from being damaged. Doing this repeatedly will allow you to take the electricity off of a Blitz in mere seconds, afterwhich you can follow up with a couple Distorted Real Impact attacks (elaborated upon below) to drop his health to the point where a mere bullet can destroy him. Outside of dealing with the Blitz, however, building the Royal Guard gauge has its benefits. A Royal Release on a boss, for example, can take anywhere from 40 to 60% percent of its health. Again, relying on this is only recommended for those that have good timing with Royal Blocking in the first place. Swordmaster - Your all-out assault style. This style gives you moves that you can use to deal with enemies either extremely quickly with straight-to-the-point killing strikes (that yield few style points over time), or long, drawn out stylish combos. There are a few moves that are recommended in this style in particular. - Drive is a solid move to use when you've got some distance between you and enemies that are easily launched, so long as they're in somewhat of a line. - The Beast Uppercut is your easiest and most effective launcher. Use this to set up for... - ...the Real Impact. This is a monster of a move, and given the proper execution, can be made all the more deadly. It's also worth mentioning that the Lucifer has its uses from time to time with this style. Use Bondage or Discipline to put multiple phantom swords into enemies, then leave them be while you do more damage to other enemies in the area. The swords will more often than not stagger them as they attempt to advance on you. DarkSlayer - This is an extremely underrated style for Dante by some, simply because it's a toned down version of Vergil's style from the Special Edition of 3. The DarkSlayer style, though, is most definitely an integral part to advancing with Dante, the most prominent reason being the Dimension Slash moves that it has. This attacks a wide area with one hard hit that knocks enemies back. Normally, a Stinger will put an enemy within perfect distance for the far version of the Dimension Slash to hit an enemy. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Crowd Control methods with Dante = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = As implored by the above section for Nero, crowd control is a very important aspect of the Bloody Palace overall. Knowing what to do to gain a measure of crowd control with Dante is essential to clearing stages that much more efficiently. Some crowd control techniques for Dante include... - Omen (Of course. :P) - Dimension Slash - PF594: Argument (with at least half of the Disaster gauge full.) There are, of course, other methods for keeping hordes of enemies under your thumb. Use them at the proper moments to make your life that much easier. = = = = = = = = = = = = = "Distorted" Real Impact = = = = = = = = = = = = = On its own, the Real Impact is a deadly move that can take out most any normal enemy with a single use. There s a "trick", however, that will up the strength of the Real Impact, making it that much more potent. Dubbed by players the "Distorted Real Impact" (hereafter referred to as "DRI"), this move can turn fight that would otherwise last minutes into a seconds long affair. To do a DRI, initiate a Real Impact attack. As the first hit connects, turn on your Devil Trigger. This will kickstart a flash that will give you an extra hit in the move. When you get to the top of your leap with the attack, turn off your Devil Trigger and it will add one more hit to the attack. Just one of these is enough to cripple Berial's flame and take nearly 35-40% of his health away, to give a solid example of the strength of this move, so don't be shy about utilizing it. There's word that other moves can be distorted to increase the strength as well, such as the end of the Dance Macabre, but I have yet to test this out myself. = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = Dealing with normal enemies = = = = = = = = = = = = = = = In each enemy section with Dante, I will tell my most recommended methods of dealing with enemies as I did before with Nero, only in this section, you will see notes every so often called Stylish Kills; these are alternate ways to deal with these enemies specifically in DMD mode (which is good to know, considering the enemies are at that difficulty after level 80), and were submitted by Septimus Prime from Shoryuken.com. Scarecrow - Again, normal Scarecrows should be the least of your worries. However, to rid yourself of these quickly, a Beast Uppercut followed by a Real Impact will take them out. ((Stylish Kill: Scarecrow - These can be a problem when they DT, so here's a way to take them out quickly. Rebellion, Swordmaster. Do two Stingers in a row, then slash, slash, launch (hold), three aerial rave slashes, Dark Slayer, two Yamato slashes. If the scarecrow isn't dead by then, come down with a Rebellion slash, and then do two more slashes.)) Frost - A Beast Uppercut while DT'd will launch them. After this, a Real Impact will finish them off. If you're facing Frosts on higher levels, use a DRI instead of a normal Real Impact. Bianco Angelo - Like with Nero, if you can get behind them, dealing with them is infinitely easier. Something to keep in the back of your mind, however, is if they decide to get defensive and guard everything that you do, switching to DarkSlayer and repeating the grounded Yamato combo will let you keep up an offense that they cn't fight against. It will break their shields and you can keep up the assault from there. Alto Angelo - Dealt with in a fanshion similar to that of the Bianco Angelos. Just stick to it to make it hard as possible for it to counterattack. If you break its shield, launch it with a Beast Uppercut, then use a DRI. Mehpisto - There are two ways to drop the cloaks of Mephistos with Dante quickly, those being using Fireworks with the Coyote and using Omen. Using the Coyote is more recommended, since doing so will leave you with more time to do the damage necessary to destroy it. If there are multiple Mephistos, though, use Omen so you can focus on one without worry of the others creeping up on you. Faust - Deal with their cloaks the same way you would the Mephistos' cloaks. After their cloaks are gone, hit them with a DRI and they're dead. Gladius - Trickster+Coyote is a good combination for dealing with these. The shotgun will knock them out of the air immediately. Dash or teleport to catch up to their prone forms quickly, then dispose of them as you wish. Another good method, though costly, is to use Argument form of Pandora. With at least half your Disaster guage full, fire off a missile barrage, but DO NOT lock on to anything. This will make the missiles attack whatever they come close to instead of focusing on a single target and converging there. Chimera Seed - You can deal with these easily, with repeated Stingers, Pandora, the Coyote...however you choose to do it, do it quickly -- since Dante lacks the Devil Bringer, taking them down out when they come to bum rush you can be a chore. Assault - If you've played Devil May Cry 1, facing these down with Dante should give you a sense of deja vu. Helm Splitters and Stingers are your best friends against these things. Just be wary if any burrow underground. Assault/Scarecrow (infected) - Again, deal with these the same way you would deal with the normal versions of them. Just don't get too happy with your offense. If you do, you'll pay for it dearly when their "tails" start flapping about. The worst thing to do is to Stinger them while DT'd. Do so if you're curious, and suffer an extremely quick demise. ((Stylish Kill: Chimera Scarecrow: (I think this is how it goes) Use a charged shotgun blast for knockdown, then jump kick in, punch, punch, point-blank shotgun. Kick-13 probably works too. Chimera Assault: Start with Coyote-A, Gilgamesh, Dark Slayer. Do one point-blank charge shot for knock down, jump kick, Kick-13, 3-slash Yamato combo. That's it. If they start flailing, jump and gun for some extra damage.)) Basilisk - Like the Gladius, Trickster+Coyote is your best bet here. These things stay on the move far more often, so you'll have to keep moving in order to immobilze them with the Coyote long enough to start impaling them with the Stinger until they die. Cutlass - Dealing with these with Dante can either be extremely easy or a chore, depending on whether or not you have enough Devil Trigger to do what is necessary to take them down. Shotgun blasts will slow them down enough for you to strike them with a DT'd Stinger, which should drag them right out of the ground. A Real Impact will take them out right away once they're out. Mega Scarecrow - Launch these with a Beast Uppercut, then finish them off with a DRI to end them quickly. Just be wary of the falling blade when they go. If you're unlucky enough to face a DT'd one, refer to Septimus' strat, which consists of hitting it with a Stinger, then a full Dance Macabre, foolwed by a DRI. Blitz - There are quite a few ways to deal with a Blitz with Dante, some time consuiming, yet safe, and others far less strenuous on time, but much more risky to do. The most efficient, but riskiest, way to deal with them is to switch to Royal Guard style, equip the Gilgamesh, then get near it and attack it. Just as your punch hits, guard. With proper timing, you'll Royal Guard the aftershock. This method will take the electricity off of them quickly, afterwhich a couple of DRIs will take his health out rapidly, leaving him vulnerable to be killed by a shot or two from any firearm. {{Stylish Kill: Blitz: First, use charged shotgun blasts to remove his shield (don't use Omen because you want the extra damage when Blitz is still in his "safe" yellow mode). As soon as that dies down, DT and do a full Dance Macabre (try to distort the last hit, if you can; I can't really do it, so whatever). Switch to Gilgamesh, jump kick, Real Impact (try to distort if you can). At this point, Blitz will start to turn red. While he's charging his shield, jump kick him, and that should do it right there. If not, blast him in a face a few times with your shotgun.)) = = = = = = = = = = = Dealing with bosses = = = = = = = = = = = Again, notes from Septimus will be added if his strats and mine don't coincide with each other. Berial - Keep a reasonable enough distance in relation to Berial to keep him from feeling the urge to come charging in with his horns glowing red. If he misses anything that leaves him particularly open, go for a DRI if you have the Devil Trigger to spare. It will make the fight go much faster. Just be wary of hitting him with a Stinger or anything that might launch, since it will make him kick his legs up. ((Septimus' Berial strat: Use Trickster and Lucifer. Spam that one move where he throws five blades in front of him over and over, and then dash out when Berial tries to do anything. Stay close, or Berial will do his fire dash thing that's really hard to dodge. And, of course, Sky Star out when he does his explosion. Once Berial turns dark, DT and keep spamming. You'll knock him down, and then you can do a distorted Real Impact on his face for more damage.)) Daegon - As with Nero and Bael, keep as close to his sides as possible while you attack, avoiding his attacks as they come by Air Hiking. If he goes for his attack where he tries to chew on you, Air Hiking or using the Sky Star will let you avoid it easily enough. If you stun him and knock his down, go for a DRI. For future reference, Pandora does more than reasonable damage to him. ((Septimus' Bael/Daegon strat: What a joke. When the Rusalka twins are out, just try to get in a few hits on them with whatever you feel like. Then, when Dagon comes out, run/dash to his side and spam that Lucifer thing until he falls down. Then get in front of his tongue, DT, and do the same thing, and he'll probably just die right there. If not, when he jumps back, there should still be some blades stuck on his tongue, so detonate those, and you should be peachy. Otherwise, wait around to do it again.)) Echidna - Just like with Nero, she'll start the fight by sweeping her body across the ground, so jump as you come in, then start slashing away with the Rebellion in Swordmaster mode, avoiding the "tentacles" as best you can. When she perches herself in the ground, get in close, DT, then nail her with a DRI after she uses her purple wave to try to push you and stun you for a moment, since that will have left her open long enough for you to hit her with it. Shoot back any projectiles she fires at you, and if she comes charging in, shoot her in the face with the second form of Pandora to divert her course. ((Septimus' Echidna strat: Jump kick into her face, and then start punching. Jump when you need to. When she floats in front of you, use aerial Yamato slashes. And, if you have a full Disaster gauge, do the missile barrage twice to score some big damage.)) Angelo Credo - A first for Dante, fighting Credo with him is quite fun. The Gilgamesh gauntlets do exceptional damage to his shield. Keep up your offense with them and he'll leave himself vulnerable soon. If he ever falls to his knees, that's a free DRI for you. Angelo Agnus - This fight is far easier with Dante than it is with Nero, simply because it's a much faster battle for him. Septimus and I share the same strtegy for defeating Angelo agnus with Dante, so of course, here are his notes ((Septimus' Agnus strat: Use Gilgamesh and Dark Slayer. Start attacking him with aerial Yamato slashes. When he calls the Gladiuses, run behind him, DT, and then slash at his head with Yamato. You'll kill the Gladiuses and do more damage. Keep this up until he staggers, and then do a Distorted Real Impact, then repeat. You can pretty much ignore the Basilisks he calls, or you can just Stinger them over and over, since the ones he calls get knocked down, unlike the ones just chillin' on the street. Dodge his spinning attack with Air Hike and Sky Star.)) Dante - Dante vs Dante is actually a far easier affair than Nero vs Dante. While it still isn't recommended that you close the gap with Dante (unless you either have a full Royal Guard gauge or are some sort of Royal Blocking god :P), most everything that the Dante doppleganger can and will throw at you can be countered easily using Trickster to dash about, evading his attacks and getting in the occasional Stinger or Coyote shot. Like any other grounded enemy, the doppelganger isn't exactly fond of DT'd Stingers, so if you feel you can spare the DT, go on and impale him with a few. Also, it's worth noting that Dante will shoot whenever you do. Bearing this in mind, you can simply jump and use the Coyote to get shots in on him, since he'll try to match them with Ebony & Ivory for some reason. Again, stop him from using Omen or any other Pandora forms to keep from getting into too much trouble. = = = = = I hope that this guide is helpful to whomever may read it. I know how much of a pain the later levels can be, and I hope that it helps some people push their way through to the end. = = = = = = = = Special Thanks = = = = = = = = - To Capcom for making such as awesome series. - To Septimus Prime from SRK for his Dante input. - To peeps around the Devil May Cry communities all over the net for their kind words and advice. - To the good Lord above for protecting me and my family and friends throughout the harsh, volatile weather recently (since I live in Arkansas x.x).