Zangetsu | Bloodstained Ritual of The Night Wiki

Zangetsu
Playable Character

Zangetsu is a Playable Character in Bloodstained: Ritual of the Night. Zangetsu is a Demon Hunter samurai who originated from a country in the East.

• See Zangetsu (Boss) for a hostile version.

Zangetsu was included as a playable character during the major update released on May 7, 2020. 

About Zangetsu

Zangetsu was originally the protagonist in Bloodstained: Curse of the Moon, and now returns as a playable character in Ritual of the Night. Zangetsu is a demon hunter who dedicated his life and spent 10 years of slaying demons. He despises the Alchemists for bringing them to the Earth and has vowed that he will kill the demons that walk the earth. At some point in his journey, he has lost many friends, even losing his left eye and right arm - despite that, he was able to create a prosthetic arm that functions nearly at the same level of his original arm by using a special Ofuda spell, it also granted him the ability to see the auras of both living and the dead.

Voiced by: David Hayter/Hiroki Yasumoto

Zangetsu Skills and Equipment

Zangetsu starts with the following Stats. He wields the Zangetsuto as his primary weapon.

• HP  x 300
• MP x 200
• Atk x 34
• Def x 11
• Str x 11
• Int x 8
• Con x 13
• Mnd x 9
• Lck x 1

Zangetsu is designed to focus on fast-paced combat. Consumables, equipment, crafting, treasure chests, quests and story cutscenes are disabled when playing as him. He does, however, level up as he gains experience fighting enemies. He can also collect HP Max Up and MP Max Up items throughout the map, in the same places as they are found in Miriam mode. He is not a Shardbinder, so he does not use shards as Miriam does. Instead, he uses the power of his sword to dispatch enemies along with some special abilities that consume MP. Zangetsu has access to all his abilities from the beginning, including a double-jump. His movement speed and attack speed are very high, allowing him a very high degree of mobility. He also has 50% resistance to all damage sources and status effects with the exception of Dark element, which only has a 25% resistance.

Zangetsu's skillset includes:

• Quick Slash - Attack button ("X" on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu attacks with a quick, horizontal slash. This is his default attack.
• Fierce Slash - Directional Shard button ("RT" on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu attacks with a slower, more powerful vertical slash.
• Annihilated Mind - Manipulative Shard button ("RB" on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu covers his Zangetsuto with an elemental energy. Each use of Annihilated Mind cycles to the next element in the series. These elements affect numerous attack effects, listed below. Using the skill repeatedly will change his sword to Fire-element, Ice-element, Electric-element, and Non-element in that order, before repeating.
• Kunai Throw - Conjure Shard button ("Y" on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu attacks with a fast projectile attack that costs 12 MP. The type of attack is dependent upon his current elemental status:
  • None: Zangetsu throws four kunai in a wide vertical spread at blinding speed.
  • Fire: Zangetsu throws three fire-element kunai in a narrow spread which explode into flames at a set distance.
  • Ice: Zangetsu throws three ice-element kunai in a downwards spread towards the ground. When they hit the ground, they cause brief icicles to form, which can damage enemies.
  • Electric: Zangetsu throws three electric-element kunai in a downwards spread towards the ground. When they hit the ground, they cause lightning bolts from above to strike each kunai, which can damage enemies.
• Empty Blade - Up + Backstep button ("LB" on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu leaps upwards into the air, swinging his sword in an upwards vertical crescent at the cost of 12 MP. This move can be used repeatedly in mid-air to traverse upwards quickly (Like Miriam's High Jump shard).
• Backstep - Backstep button ("LB" on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu backdashes a great distance, leaving afterimages in his wake. This move can be used to 'phase' through some projectiles and enemies, but not all of them. It can only be used when Zangetsu is on the ground, but if he travels off a ledge, he will continue to travel horizontally through the air without being affected by gravity until the backstep is finished.
• Restrain -Directional Aim (Right Thumbstick on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu fires his chain hook in the direction specified. The chain hook deals damage to enemies, and also pulls Zangetsu towards the ceiling, walls or ground if it makes contact with any of these surfaces. 

Zangetsu also can use some katana techniques similarly to Miriam but with different names:

• Flying Vajra - Down, Down, Attack ("X" on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu leaps forward at a low horizontal arc and brings his sword down onto an enemy in a very powerful vertical stroke, similar to Miriam's Helmsplitter attack. Costs 15 MP. The impact is affected by the Zangetsuto's current element:
  • None: Standard vertical slash
  • Fire: An area-of-effect fire explosion occurs in front of Zangetsu.
  • Ice: Pillars of ice briefly rise from the ground in front of Zangetsu in rapid succession.
  • Electric: An area-of-effect electrical explosion occurs in front of Zangetsu.
• Wild God's Blade - Down, Down-Forward, Forward, Attack ("X" on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu uses a standing version of Helmsplitter which does not cause him to leap forward first. Costs 15 MP. The attack is identically affected by elements as Empty Blade. 
• Empty Blade follow-up - Directional Shard button ("RT" on XBox One controller) during Empty Blade - if performed at any point during the Empty Blade animation, Zangetsu will use an aerial version of Helmsplitter and slam his sword into the ground. This follow-up costs 15 MP and is identically affected by elements as Empty Blade.
• Eternity - Forward, Forward, Attack ("X" on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu holds his sword vertically and blocks various incoming attacks. Costs 15 MP. This differs from Miriam's Eleventh Hour skill in that Zangetsu can hold his stance for an extended period, and he does not automatically counter-attack upon a successful block. 
• Eternity Taunt - Up (Held for 2+ seconds) - Zangetsu taunts his enemy before entering his Eternity pose. This version of Eternity does not consume MP, but it takes approximately 2 seconds to reach his blocking stance. 
• Form Is Emptiness - Forward, Back, Forward, Attack ("X" on XBox One controller) - Zangetsu backsteps a significant distance, and summons vertical columns of crimson energy in his wake to damage enemies. Costs 20 MP.