Lets not forget that Castlevania isn't a simple building and seems to be kinda sentient, since it is loyal to Dracula unless he doesn't desire to rule it. In Portrait of Ruin if I understood it right, it was the castle that resurrected Dracula and not Brauner.
Death does it. He even says so after he kills Brauner. The castle is oddly passive in all appearances, its only real ability seeming to be resurrecting along with Dracula and being some sort of location where evil spirits gather (very likely both traits cause each other in a metaphysical paradox).
Nope, because a Dark Lord already exists and its named Dracula
Who is dead and in no condition to affect ANYTHING at the time.
with a dark priest clearly desiring for his ressurection, while controlling Richter Belmont.
Shaft never says he's outright controlling Richter. He admits to influencing, which is easy enough and he probably could have done so without magic (never underestimate an evil psychiatrist) but he was never in 1 to 1 control of Richter's actions -- Shaft may be powerful and talented but in order to assume direct control of every little thing a man does requires that all your attention be paid to that man unless he just kind of stows Richter in a cupboard when he's not using him. If you aren't paying attention to your remote control car, you're not controlling it and it will crash.
Shaft would only do what was needed to ensure Richter stayed the course and remained under the effects of indoctrination, but would have left him a certain degree of autonomy so he could focus on other designs. Furthermore, Shaft is not Richter, and doesn't have Richter's skills. To assume direct 1 to 1 command of Richter's actions would compromise his usefulness as Shaft would never be able to control Richter as effectively in a fight as Richter could himself.
Again, you guys LOVE to see patterns where none need exist; Richter isn't being directly controlled because he doesn't have to be. Why directly control when simply influencing them will do just as well or better? Shaft isn't going to spring for the most resource and time-intensive method if he doesn't have to.
All of the rationale that Richter gives Alucard was Richter talking -- Shaft didn't make him say a word of it. Richter was in control, but that isn't to say he was in his right mind; he definitely wasn't. His decision making and reasoning has clearly been compromised, but Shaft is a tactical thinker and he doesn't have the benefit of his cult anymore. He's doing all of this more or less by himself. Ghost or not, in order to revive Dracula AND keep Richter under control, this demands he divide his attention, so giving Richter as much autonomy as possible makes perfect logical and tactical sense. Meatpuppeting the Belmont (dibs on that as a band name, btw) makes absolutely zero sense as it leaves Shaft no capacity to actually revive Dracula.
Ironically, the only instance in which turning Richter into a remotely controlled puppet benefits Shaft is if my theory is correct, and he decides late in his plan to simply make Richter the new Dark Lord.
I also think that leveling up isn't canon, key items and some relics are.
DID NOBODY READ MY POST ON THIS?!
Occam's razor prevails.
Occam's Razor: "Entities should not be multiplied unnecessarily."
A metaphysical expression meant to discuss whether God could be proven by reason alone, and has little if anything to do on the concept of
Gameplay and Story Segregation, which the save points would fall under.
Where in my prose statement do I say specifically that Alucard kills Richter? I didn't.
You assumed that because of how I posit Alucard's thought processes, but the simple fact is canonically he DOES find Maria, and she DOES assist him by giving him information and the Holy Glasses. He DOES save Richter, but there's no way he could have known any of that was going to happen before he finds her. I don't contradict ANY of that. The prose simply argues that Alucard faces Richter initially and gets whipped to zero health (pretty much everyone does this on their first playthrough as well, which tells me the devs meant this to happen). In gameplay, this is a Game Over Screen. In canon, Alucard would retreat, realizing he made a boo-boo and is epically outclassed. In gameplay, he saves his progress by stepping into a coffin (a room containing a coffin being a "tomb" irl). In canon, he'd find such a (empty and devoid of enemies) tomb and stay there while he heals, which is what I portray.
The Razor doesn't shave off jack because there's not really anything to shave off in my statement; all I have explained is the most probable manner in which gameplay and story are desegregated.
Is my statement forever entrenched in canon? Of course not. I wouldn't dream of it. But canon would resemble it strongly. Alucard doesn't level up, but he does become more skilled. He does become stronger by exercising, and pitched combat against tough foes is one hell of an exercise like no other on Earth. He does gather more relics on his way to meet Maria, and these do expand his abilities.
You argued earlier about Richter's strength and skill trumping Alucard's yet somehow Alucard prevailed.
I illustrated the means by which that statement is true.
We are not actually arguing.
In any case, Richter being influenced, not possessed (for reasons I have already clearly stated enough times I have lost count) would mean that he'd be just as capable of doing horrific things to become a Dark Lord, and be considered culpable. Furthermore, once Shaft's orb is destroyed, and that negative reinforcement stopped, Richter would be aware of that. He'd realize what he was about to do (actually, he did realize it. Pretty much immediately. Hence his "OH MY GOD WHAT HAVE I DONE") and that shame would follow him to the grave. He wouldn't feel that guilty if he'd been possessed because he wouldn't have been in control of his actions. He'd feel a lot of emotions, but shame wouldn't really be one of them. Rage, definitely. Fear of it happening again? Absolutely. Resolve to prevent it from happening again? Certifiably. Shame? Given what we know of Richter's untampered psyche, more than likely not.
But these are things he chose. He had agency in these decisions. He wasn't entirely sane, but temporary insanity is a real thing and it's a bitch to deal with the aftermath of, because however compromised you were when you made the choices you did, you still made those choices. No one forced you to make them.
The shame and the guilt of that would eat away at Richter, and easily provoke a "what have I done" the moment he regained his lucidity.
Rather like Dracula would also do at the end of the game.
But you've all read my topic on that as well.