The Hand, also called Zombie Hand or The Claw among other names, is an enemy in the Castlevania series. It is the rotting hand of a zombie reaching out either from the ground or another surface, and which serves as an obstacle along the hero's path, whether it is by directly inflicting damage when touched or by momentarily restraining them in place so other enemies can attack them.
Rotting hands of magically reanimated corpses reaching out from the ground and desperate to dig out from their supposed eternal earthly prisons.
Zombie hands made their first appearance in Castlevania II: Simon's Quest (as well as its LCD version), found in some of the many graveyards that are visited along the hero's journey, where they mainly act as semi-stationary obstacles –only slightly moving up and down– that inflict damage when touched.
A similar variant appeared in Super Castlevania IV, along with two new ones: a pair of arms that come out from certain walls and a jumping limb. All three of them don't actually directly inflict damage and instead grab onto the hero to momentarily restrain them in place for other enemies to attack them.
In Castlevania: Rondo of Blood, myriads of hands of the damned can be found crammed inside certain pits. If touched, they'll grasp and drag the hero down into the depths of the earth to their untimely demise. A similar variant of this version was also used in Death's special attack in Castlevania Judgment.
Appearing only in graveyards or nearby areas. The hands of the reanimated corpses buried there will pull out from the ground and wait for an unfortunate victim to grab a hold onto. They can become unexpectedly dangerous, as they are remarkably resilient and usually require many hits to destroy (especially at night), in addition to dealing medium to heavy damage. If the player decides to jump over them instead of destroying them, then it's required to have good timing and proper positioning. Furthermore, they must be wary of not being suddenly overwhelmed by other nearby enemies, such as Slimes or Freddies.
Hands start appearing in the Simon's Quest (LCD Handheld) game at the graveyard stage at night, and keep appearing on each subsequent stage. They pull out from the ground and wave around, causing damage. They cannot be destroyed and they impede the player's movement forward, so they must be jumped over.
Name
HP
EXP
The Hand
-
50
Location
2. Graveyard (night), 3. Castle, 4. The Castlevania
These types of enemies made their most prominent appearance in Super Castlevania IV, where three variants of them are present:
The Hand is reminiscent from its Simon's Quest counterpart. It just pulls out from the ground, waiting for a victim to grab onto.
The Claw is a severed arm that flies in a pattern similar to a Medusa Head. This enemy will grab onto Simon and attempt to squeeze all his Hearts out of him if not dealt off immediately.
Wall Hands come out from the background, grab Simon and hold him in place while a Skeletal Knight comes to strike him with its sword. If the Skeletal Night is defeated, the Wall Hands will perish along with it.
A group of damned souls' arms, called Dead Man's Hands, flail around on the ground as a trap in Rondo of Blood. If the player is unfortunate enough to be grabbed by these, they will drag them deep underground resulting in an instant death.
The Evil Hands from Circle of the Moon are floating, grasping severed hands. They appear in several areas, including the Eternal Corridor and the Underground Waterway. They inflict only minor damage but they will latch onto Nathan and cause damage over time, in addition to restricting his movements, leaving him open for further damage from surrounding enemies.
