- "Dracula. Die now, and leave this world! You'll never belong here!"
- — Richter Belmont
Richter Belmont is a descendant of Simon Belmont and renowned vampire hunter. He has a strong sense of justice and unwavering will. Every generation of the Belmont Clan has produced tougher, more dedicated vampire hunters — yet Richter stands above all others. Brandishing the legendary sacred whip which so many of his predecessors wielded, this hot-headed youth pushed Dracula to the brink.
Character's history
Castlevania: Rondo of Blood
Dracula, resurrected by evil humans, who sacrificed a young virgin female's blood and life, commanded his forces to kidnap Richter's girlfriend, Annette and villagers, Maria Renard, Tera, and Iris. Richter, obligated to battle the dark lord in every incarnation, single-handedly slayed the Count's massive army, including Shaft, and arrived in time to save the women — proving to himself that he was worthy of his vampire-hunting destiny.
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
Mesmerized by Shaft, who had somehow survived the earlier defeat, Richter betrayed his people and resurrected Dracula: "Dracula rises once a century. One chance for each Belmont to shine, and then we're finished, forgotten. If I bring him back now, the battle can last for eternity!". It was Alucard who arose from his slumber, braved the evil castle, and with Maria's help freed Richter from his delusion.
Castlevania: Nocturne of Recollection
Richter sends a letter to Maria, warning her about vampire attacks in the village that she and Alucard were staying in, he also tells her to be wary of the vampire.
It wasn't long before Richter tracks down the vampire attacks. There, he encounters Cyril and Alexis, the self-proclaimed vampire hunters. He rescues the two from a skeleton, making himself known.
Later on, Richter rescues Maria, who was hurt by the potion that Cyril made. He brings her back to Alucard, there he tells him that the ones closest to him will be sacrificed once he gives in to his vampiric urges. He advises Alucard to tell Maria why he is letting her stay with him.
On his journey to find the vampire responsible for the attacks, he meets Cyril again. He tells Richter that Alexis had been kidnapped by a black-winged demon. Richter immediately knew it was Magnus and sets out with Cyril to rescue Alexis.
Richter and Cyril finally meet up with Alucard for the final battle against Magnus.
Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin
The Vampire Killer is under the ownership of Jonathan Morris, who is unable to use the whip effectively. After Jonathan Morris and Charlotte Aulin cure Loretta and Stella from vampirism, the two sisters offer to aid Jonathan in learning to use the whip's full power.
This is an optional choice, up to the player, and if they choose to do so, the sisters accomplish this by sending Jonathan into another realm to fight the living memory of the last full Belmont to wield the whip — Richter Belmont. Richter fights the player using knives, boomerang crosses, holy water, axes, the Grand Cross item crash attack, a fast Dash strike and a fully powered version of the Vampire Killer. Once Richter's illusion is defeated, Jonathan's whip becomes one of the most powerful weapons in the game.
Gameplay
Castlevania: Rondo of Blood
Richter can back flip by pressing jump twice in quick succession. His greatest ability is to be able to perform an Item Crash with all the sub-weapons in the game. If Richter performs Item Crash without a sub-weapon equipped, he will instead empower his whip with fire. There are very few opportunities to do this because Richter will spend the vast majority of the game with an active sub-weapon.
Castlevania: Symphony of the Night
- Main article: Richter Belmont/Symphony of the Night
In Symphony of The Night, Richter was controlled by Shaft, you need to equip the holy glasses and destroy the little ball. As defeating Richter, players who complete the game and get the best ending are able to play as Richter by entering his name as the name of a new save file. In Sega Saturn version, he is always available (as well as Maria) and has an alternate costume. Richter also gains many new abilities which are executed with a combination of directional arrows and the attack button. Unlike Alucard, Richter does not depend on MP, thus he can use these abilities indefinitely. Richter can also sprint.
Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin
As his second appearance as a boss in Portrait of Ruin, Richter is the only memory of the Vampire Killer. He's an optional boss; if you defeat him, the whip becomes stronger and one of the best weapons in the game. Richter is also playable in the game's Alternate mode along with Maria Renard. The mode can be unlocked after completing a game where Whip's Memory has been defeated. Richter plays much as he did in Rondo of Blood, except that he lacks item crashes. His partner in this mode is Maria Renard. This mode has no story.
Castlevania Puzzle: Encore of the Night
- Main article: Castlevania Puzzle: Encore of the Night/Arcade Mode
Richter appears as an opponent in story mode of Castlevania Puzzle: Encore of the Night. He also is available as a playable character in Arcade Mode. He carries his Cross weapon into battle with him for his spells in Arcade Mode, which he can toss or crash.
Castlevania: Harmony of Despair
- Main article: Richter Belmont/Harmony of Despair
- "A descendant of the Belmont clan, the world's most powerful vampire hunters. Richter prefers the brute force approach, and excels at a wide variety of Martial Arts."
- — Description
Richter appears as a downloadable character in the multiplayer game Castlevania: Harmony of Despair. He plays much as he did in Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin. He can use the Vampire Killer, several sub-weapons, and a variety of martial arts.
Quotes
Portrait of Ruin
- I'm counting on you...
Dracula X Chronicles
Events
- What?!
- Annette!
Battle
- Hydro Storm!
- Grand Cross!
- (attacked) What?
- (attacked) No!
Enemy Data
- See also: Belmont-Like Enemies
Enemy Data: Richter Belmont and Similar Enemies | |||||
---|---|---|---|---|---|
Image | Name - Game Description |
Statistics | Items | Location | Notes |
(PSX/Saturn) |
|||||
It is the strongest vampire hunter. It's been a year since he disappeared. (...) | Strong: Holy, Stone (both immune) Weak: Dark Level: 48 HP: 400 Exp: n/a |
Castle Keep (Alucard only) |
Weapons: Vampire Killer (Standard Attack, Flame Whip), Cross (Cross Boomerang, Grand Cross), Holy Water (normal attack, Hydro Storm), Axe (Arc Throw, Spiral Axe), Agunea (Lightning Bolt), Holy Book (Item Crash) | ||
A demon who assumes the form of its intended victims before killing them. | Weak: Slash HP: 2000 Exp: 2000 Skill Pt: 99 |
Guard: Greatest Five |
Nest of Evil |
Weapons: Any equipped by the player when first entering the boss room | |
A memory of the last Belmont to wield the Vampire Killer. | Strong: Holy Weak: Dark HP: 5,000 Exp: 0 Skill Pt: 0 |
Master's Keep |
Weapons: Vampire Killer, Axe (Arc Throw), Cross (Cross Boomerang, Grand Cross), Holy Water (Normal Attack), Dagger (Double Knife Throw) | ||
' | HP: 2550 Exp: +1 level |
Steal: ~75S |
Castle Keep |
Weapons: Cross (Cross Boomerang) Abil: Cross Toss - The opponent instantly does 20 damage to the player. |
Notes
- Richter's given name is a German word, which literally means "judge" when translated.
- It seems that Richter's sprite from the cancelled game "Castlevania: The Bloodletting" might have been modified into Fake Trevor in Castlevania: Symphony of the Night.
- Although he has a different character design in Symphony of the Night, his in-game sprite is the same one from Rondo of Blood, except in the Saturn version, which gives him the coat, but not the long hair, nor the white shirt and pants underneath.
- Despite his lapse during Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Richter is largely considered as the most powerful Belmont and described by the game as "Master Vampire Hunter". As Alucard stated in the game: "...Richter's powers are supreme among vampire hunters. None other can defeat him." However, he may have been surpassed by his descendant Julius Belmont, because in Castlevania: Aria of Sorrow, Julius is the one said to be the most powerful Vampire Hunter.
- Richter uses the cross more than any sub-weapon. It is seen in artwork for Dracula X Chronicles and in Rondo of Blood's intro, as well as in Encore of the Night.
- Richter can extend the Vampire Killer by pressing forward just as the whip reaches its maximum length.
- Richter Belmont is most likely Juste Belmont's son as Juste's battle takes place in 1748 while Richter's takes place in 1792. This would give the 18 year old Juste plenty of time to have a son or grandson.
- The Rondo of Blood version of Richter resembles Ryu from the Street Fighter series by Capcom. This isn't repeated in Nocturne in the Moonlight and Castlevania: Dracula X Chronicles, probably to avoid lawsuits.
- In Medicine, there is a syndrome where an indolent lymphoma converts into a fast growing malignant lymphoma. This condition is called Richter Syndrome. In Castlevania: Symphony of the Night, Richter suffers a conversion to evil as well.
- Richter's English voice actor, David Vincent, also provided the voice of Eric Lecarde / Wind in Castlevania: Portrait of Ruin.