Eviterno, First of the Penitents

Tha audacity of your faith now gives us the chance to meet once again.

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Eviterno, First of the Penitents	•	Eviterno, Last Desecrator

"This waiting... This endless waiting has been my penance.

The Original Penance, as old as the Miracle itself.

It appointed me First among Penitents, perpetual by its grace, perpetual in awaiting you an eternity.

My miracle, heed my prayer.

Grant me thine blessing to fulfill thine holy command.

Dress my body in wounds, lacerate the tattered parchment that clothes my flesh.

For I am the First Penitent, and you... shall be the last."

Eviterno is a boss from Blasphemous 2. He is the leader of the Archconfraternity and also the first among all the penitents. He can be found at the top of the Crimson Rains and he's also the penultimate boss of the game. A formidable opponent, being a boss with two phases.

Behaviour and Tactics[]

Attack names not official

Veil of Penitence: A red shroud covers Eviterno, allowing him to teleport. Eviterno will always open with this move, and will always use it after using any other move, being his primary means of movement.
Crimson Spell: Eviterno will eject two Mystical damage projectiles from the stake on his hand. The projectiles circulate around his back before arc-ing on different routes, the one above his head will descend downwards, while the lower projectile while fly upwards on a diagonal. Eviterno will usually use this spell 3 times in a row, shifting position between either left, or right of the screen to the other with each teleport in between. Can be dodged and blocked, but walking past them suffices.
Persecution Spell: Similar to the above, Eviterno will charge magic power before unleashing a barrage of Mystical damage spells that now pursue the Penitent One, but their homing ability is weak so they won't persist after being dodged. A different green projectile has stronger homing ability, and if struck, will actually strike Eviterno, dealing damage and stunning him. Approaching Eviterno while he is chanting this spell will prompt him to float backwards.
Penitent Lightning: Eviterno will appear at either extreme end of the screen and will charge magic before summoning pillars of red Lightning damage a total of three times, similar to Svsona. The lightning pillars have inconsistent timing, with some being faster than the others. This attack must be dodged through.
Penitent Flare: Eviterno's strongest attack. He will float in the air while charging a massive ball of Fire damage before throwing it at the Penitent One's location. Once it explodes, it will bring forth tall fire columns across the entire screen except for the very center of the explosion. The pillars fade out as the line extends. This attack must be double jumped and air dashed.

Strategy[]

The first phase against Eviterno is not really difficult, but will prove tricky, as Eviterno teleports a lot, and often his attacks take away precious windows of opportunity to damage him. His Crimson Spell can easily be walked through, before the spells fully finish their trajectory, allowing the Penitent One to score some hits. His Persecution Spell can provide another window of opportunity, but only if players do not pursue Eviterno allowing them to double jump and air dash through the barrage and putting them behind the first penitent, allowing them to hack at him, although care must be given to the green projectile that will likely aim back at the Penitent One. If the green projectile successfully hits Eviterno, however, players will be able to deal a lot of damage to him all at once, as he'll be stunned and unable to defend himself. By far the greatest window of opportunity will be while he charges his fire attack as he will be exposed for several seconds. Players should avoid double jumping in full as it can risk ramming themselves on the fireball. The Lightning attack will provide no room for attack so dodging should be prioritized, preferably with ample room to maneuver due to the different timings of each wave.

Since parrying is largely not required, all weapons will prove effective against Eviterno. If using Veredicto, they are encouraged to build Fervor for the next phase as it will be much deadlier. Sarmiento & Centella will have the best chance during the fireball attack for charging. Ruego al Alba will be universally useful. Blood Pact can be used for large damage and healing before the next phase. Equiping elemental resists should be useful, particularly Mystical damage, which is used the most. Fire resist is unnecessary as the fireball can be easily avoided through double jumping and dashing over the fire pillars.

Players should concentrate on making sure to maximize their HP and Fervor for the next phase which will be drastically more difficult.

Achievements[]

The Wait is Over
Defeat Eviterno, Father of the Penitents

Relevant Item Description[]

Remembrance of Crisanta
Crisanta (Altarpiece)

Trivia[]

The nail in Eviternos hand might be a reference to the nails driven into the hands of Jesus Christ when he was crucified.
His nail seems to both serve as a catalyst for his power and also to constrict the power he holds, shown by his flare attack which is very immense as he takes his nail out of his hand momentarily in order to do the attack.
During the first phase Eviterno teleports around the room and hurls fireballs at the Penitent one in a similar fashion to the first phase of Dracula boss fights in most entries from the Castlevania series.
The intro cinematic shares resemblance to the statue “Augustus of Prima Porta”; in which a cherub similarly holds the robe of the Roman emperor Augustus/Octavius Caesar.