...Dael...

The only difference between Bael and Dagon is that Bael's Rusalkas are blue, and Dagon's Rusalkas are red. Seriously. They have the exact same attacks, and the exact same strategy works. Therefore, I shall call him DAEL and save my breath.

The Prima Official Game Guide explains that after NERO has...

 "...struck Bael several times, the toad demon may roar and go limp.
Quickly lock on to his tongue and use the Devil Bringer.
Press the button repeatedly to energize the attack.
DANTE goes inside Bael's mouth and rips through Bael's back!"

I have tried this several times, but alas Dante has yet to emerge in Nero's place. ~_~

Dael comes from an army of toad demon clones who lure in they prey by dangling beautiful, naked Rusalkas off of their antennae as bait. These playful nymphs dart about in a Dael-induced blizzard, and if you strike them, they will rain down red orbs. But the Rusalkas aren't always passive, and their unpredictable nature caused me to take more hits than from Dael himself!

RUSALKA'S ATTACKS
Sword Slice: a Rusalka charges at you and does a rapid upward slash with an extended sword.
Blade Twirl: a Rusalka becomes a whirlwind of swords and spins towards you.
Freeze Hug: a Rusalka latches onto you and encases you in ice. Devil Trigger to break free!

Devil Triggering out of a Rusalka's embrace causes Dael to withdraw them. His red eyes light up in the darkness and he lunges at you with full force! Jump out of the way or he will swallow you and start chewing for massive damage. If you are swallowed, or about to be swallowed Dael, Devil Trigger immediately to break free. Strike a balance between using Devil Trigger to inflict damage on Dael, and conserving enough of it (at least 3 full bars) to bail you out of emergencies like the Freeze Hug and Swallow.

DAEL'S ATTACKS
Lunge: Dael lunges towards you from the back of the room. Get out of the way or he will...
Swallow: ...you whole and start chewing away. Devil Trigger to break free and keep attacking.
Ice Missiles: Dael hops back into a crouch and shouts for Nero/Dante's death as he fires several rounds of ice projectiles. They're easy enough to avoid so run, jump, and roll out of the way.
Ice Quake: Dael takes a giant breath and barfs out a river of ice spikes. Jump and stay airborne to avoid it.
Squash: Dael jumps high into the air and you see his shadow growing on the ground. Get out of the range of his shadow or he will crush you when he drops down.
Wind Blast: Dael takes a deep breath and blows icy wind across the courtyard. He disappears into the gloom and his Rusalkas come out to play.

While the Rusalkas are out, Dael may drop large chunks of Hail from the sky, so be ready. You can get Dael to come out of hiding by striking a single Rusalka until she loses her glow, or by escaping out of a Freeze Hug with Devil Trigger. Dael will charge you, so leap out of the way and counter him with attacks to the head while he recovers. The same works for Squash: get out of the way and counter. As Dael hops around and attempts Ice Missiles or Ice Quake, keep shooting at him from a distance.

When you've done enough damage, Dael will collapse and roll out his tongue. If you're NERO, run towards him and tap Buster to initiate a special move for massive damage. If you're DANTE, Devil Trigger and unleash every combo you can imagine.

Sometimes Dael will freeze himself and become invulnerable for a little while, but you can still slash or shoot the inert Rusalkas to yield red and green orbs. In the last third of the battle, Dael will glow red and his attack frequency increases, but he follows the same pattern and the same strategies work.


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