The wrathful ghost of Baron Kane.
Baron Kane is the third boss fought in the game Dust: An Elysian Tail. Kane was a baron who owned the mansions in The Sorrowing Meadow and is known to be a great traitor who turned in his own friends and neighbors as Moonblood sympathizers to General Gaius for profit. Kane eventually passed away and his mansions became abandoned but his spirit lived on as an wrathful ghost and made the meadow his haunting ground, terrorizing any traveler who dares to venture through it.
Kane's spirit after being calmed.
Fighting[]
During the first encounters, Baron Kane is colored green, indicating by Ahrah that he is in another realm and cannot be harmed. In this state, Kane is invulnerable to any attacks and Dust has to flee every time Kane makes his presence.
After Kane is weakened when Dust gave him all the keepsakes, he'll lose his green form and his invulnerability. Kane has 4 attack styles during the fight:
- He can summon zombies to his aid, not only regular types but explosive ones as well. Just like with the Necromancer, the rules apply in difficulty.
- He can summon a crystal with Fidget's image in it, to silence her from aiding Dust.
- When meleeing, he brings his claw back and swings it in a crest style, harming zombies and Dust alike in its huge hitscan.
- He can lift his claw straight up and bring it down swiftly, crushing anything below. Parrying is not recommended as Kane is unaffected by the stun and instead magnifies the blast, knocking zombies aside and gathering more near Dust when he lands. It's already bad enough that explosive zombies are nearby, so it's a good way to die just by parrying and landing next to a zombie that could kill Dust in one hit. This rule applies on Hardcore difficulty, as invincibility is disabled if Dust is knocked down.
The best strategy to fight Kane is to stay airborne, attacking in the air and replenishing energy by picking a spot with no explosive zombies. Dashing is needed to survive Kane's massive hitscan, so expect energy levels to lower.
History[]
| Spoiler warning! This article contains plot details or the story in general. You have been warned. |
It is uncertain if Kane has profited before the week of the Zeplich Village attack, but the more important events happened from the servant's letters. Two weeks before the attack, General Giaus arrived at the Sorrowing Meadow and was greeted by Kane. They talked in the manor, possibly about Moonblood sympathizers that live nearby. During this week, the next door neighbors were carried by Gaius's soldiers away from their homes and executed nearby (hence all the gravestones), thus causing Kane to notice that his servant witnessed the event. Kane worries that Cora would find out about his actions, so he bribes the servant to not mention a word. Kane then profits off of Gaius by turning in his neighbors. The other mansions are cleared out, after the actions of Kane and Gaius, leaving the servant wondering about what is happening. With the servant still thinking, he began to clean the office after Kane had an angry outburst and discovers a list of all the people Kane has turned in. The servant horrifyingly discovered that his own name is on the list too, before he was caught and murdered by Kane on the spot.
A few days before the attack, Kane reveals Zeplich Village's location, thus receiving his last pay. Gaius sends Cassius, his soldiers and his assassins to destroy the village, as he left the meadow. Cora soon finds out about Kane's dastardly actions once Gaius leaves the meadow, and she flee from the mansion and into the house outside of Aurora village. A couple of days after the attack on Zeplich Village, Kane hears a rumor that one Moonblood sympathizer survived and escaped. Kane, in deep regret of what he has done, dies soon after and his spirit has consumed by his own rage and by a demonic presence. Cora returns to gather her other things to move out, only to notice the servants abandoned the mansion because of Kane's actions. Later on, Kane's ghost began to haunt the area and consume travelers that went into the meadow and possibly attracted other wicked entities there.
After getting all four keepsakes with the help of Cora, who returned to the meadow one last time to settle her past with Kane, Dust must fight Kane to derive him of his anger (and his own inner demon) to help him return back to his original state. After defeating Kane, Ahrah states that he casted the demon back to the darkness and calmed Kane's spirit. Kane speaks about his life and sorrowfully apologizes for what he has done, thus telling Dust how to find General Gaius. Kane also exposes another detail about Dust having a rare gift: two souls infused in one.
Trivia[]
- Sereth mentions Kane as the "Great Traitor" and talks about his actions, which got his and others' families killed. This reveals to the player that Sereth is possibly a Moonblood or a sympathizer.
- Baron Kane is seen at the credits with a younger Cora leaving the meadow, and Cora's body behind to pass on with Kane.
- Kane's main mansion is in the middle of the meadow where Cora is found.
- The voice of Baron Kane is performed by Joshua Tomar.