NintendoCapriSun plays Castlevania - Part 3 of 4

This is why you stop before you pick up what's in that candle or before you move on after destroying an enemy, kids.

Stages 13-15

You're going to be seeing a lot more of the skeletons in this area.

The red skeletons - also known as blood skeletons - break apart when you hit them, then come back. They can't be killed, so be sure to temporarily off them when you see them.

The part after the red skeletons in the second section of Stage 13 has a pork chops. Before jumping onto the platforms before the door, strike the wall below all the platforms with your whip.

The Axe Armors have shields, and they also throw axes straight ahead. You can destroy the axes with your weapon, but keep your distance so you don't get hit by one of them. It takes even more hits to take out the Axe Armors, and to make matters worse their axes will come back to them like boomerangs after they travel a certain distance. They can throw them either high or low, and you'll have to duck down to hit the low ones.

If you have the Holy Water and the Triple Shot at this point, then whatever you do, be when you destroy the Skull Dragon Cannon at the top of the first section of Stage 15. You definitely don't want to trade in Triple Shot Holy Water for anything else due to the fact that sometimes enemies can randomly drop sub-weapons every once in a while. That's just a doozy of a dick move by the game right there.

Also, before you go up the stairs that lead up to the second section, attack the wall to the right. It's another Pork Chop. The next part combines both the Axe Armors and the Medusa Heads, which is a nasty combination if you don't have enough hits to beat Death without the Holy Water...and since Death can kill you in four hits, that's not good.

At the end of Stage 15 is Death himself, who would become a powerhouse of a Castlevania mainstay. If you have the Holy Water and at least the Double Shot, he's really easy. All you have to do is throw the Holy Water at the platform to the top right, where Death will instantly show up. Just keep jumping and throwing the Holy Water onto that platform. Death will be taken down before he even has a chance to attack you.

If you don't have it, well...you're in for a fight. Your best alternate weapon for this is the boomerang. Pay close attention to the screen as Death just flies around, summoning scythes to come out of the air and spin around, slicing at you if get too close. If you have the Stopwatch and a whole lot of hearts, that really helps, since he can be kept in place no matter what.