Missionary


 * For the film incarnation, see Missionary (film).

"He's the one who killed your father. I merely gave the order.
 * —Claudia Wolf, pointing at the Missionary"

The Missionary is a major boss from Silent Hill 3.

He appears on the roof of Heather Mason's apartment, having murdered her father not long before in order to enrage her. After a brief and heated conversation, Claudia Wolf commands him to attack Heather.

The Order's church, seen near the end of the game, is home to a few similar beings called Scrapers. The Book of Lost Memories labels Scrapers as different entities, so they are not the same as the Missionary, making him unique.

Appearance
He is a tall, humanoid monster that seems to be able to comprehend orders. He wears a brown sack over his head and a noose around his neck. The beast wears a set of robes, much like a surgeon's smock, and has bicep-length rubber gloves stained in blood. Like many other monsters in the game, he is constantly twitching. His weapons of choice are two tonfa-like objects with long blades jutting from the handle.

On closer inspection of the boss, he has a human face with an expression of pain. The most notable features are his mouth and nose, leaving his eyes covered and possibly blind. What really sets this fiend apart from other monsters is its human – if rotting and warped – body paired with the intelligence to understand and comply to a direct order (Claudia explains that she commanded it to kill Harry).

Character


The Missionary attacks with his tonfa-like bladed weapons. He often meanders about, seemingly aimlessly, until he springs an attack. He is fairly lithe and extremely quick-footed for a Silent Hill monster, increasing his overall deadliness. His reflexes are nearly super-human in quality, as he's able to deflect bullets with his weapons with perfect timing; however, it is still possible to occasionally get shots in if Heather is facing him head-on. With its powerful blows, the shotgun is the best firearm option, while the katana is a good melee option, given its speed and also power for a weapon of its type.



The easiest way to defeat the Missionary is by attacking him from behind or while dashing around; should Heather attack him from the front or while the abomination is running towards her, he will almost certainly lift his arms to shield himself from harm. Shooting the Missionary successfully and consecutively can prove challenging with his speed, so the player must be prepared to pursue the creature from a distance and also be poised to either dodge or block his frequent and savage assaults.

The Missionary's main method of attack is slashing out with his elongated blades, this being one Heather can counter and avoid harm should she time her blocking move correctly. However, the boss can also make a running slash at her in which he will charge and then rake his blades to either of his sides through Heather, an attack which will not only knock her down, but immediately put her health at critical.

If the Missionary falls to the floor, the player may be tempted to kick it considering the player may be used to stomping enemies in order to finish them off, as is the case in most encounters. However, in the Missionary's case, kicking it on the floor will probably not be enough to finish it off, so it's better for Heather to keep attacking it from a distance with a firearm. In addition, the Missionary has a tendency to counterattack Heather if kicked.

Symbolism
The Missionary is a member of the Order that has become monstrous due to Claudia's power. In Heather's eyes, the appearance he takes is that of a monster. The word "missionary" refers to a person sent on a religious mission to persuade and convert another person to their belief, which is precisely what Claudia is trying to do with Heather.

There is a running theme of maternity and femininity in Silent Hill 3 and its monsters due to the central conflict of the game centering on impregnation in the cult's attempts to force Heather to birth their god. The combination of the Missionary's title, his clothing, and his weapons may be seen as a sign of dilation and cutterage, which is the dilation of the cervix and surgical extraction of part of the lining of the uterus and/or contents of the uterus by cutterage (scraping and scooping). It is an often-used method of first trimester miscarriage or abortion. "Missionary" here meaning one who is sent on a mission (in this case being a mission to kill, perhaps dually symbolic of being sent to kill Harry, and of a doctor sent to eliminate an unborn fetus); rubber gloves, a mask, and a smock being reminiscent of surgical attire; and the long, sharp weapons being exaggerated imagery of abortion tools.

Trivia

 * The Missionary is the first monster in the series to canonically kill a protagonist.
 * It speaks to Claudia's character that she abandons the Missionary to be killed by Heather on the rooftop; she likely doesn't intend for the Missionary to kill Heather and instead is aware Heather is more than angry enough to kill.
 * The Missionary cannot see Heather if she turns off the flashlight and stands somewhere dark on the roof. The Missionary will charge Heather, then wander around aimlessly, as he needs light to see her. It is a viable tactic to keep Heather's light off and stalk the enemy in the dark; shooting him from behind like this cannot be blocked, guaranteeing a successful hit.
 * Defeating the Missionary in under two minutes in the Silent Hill HD Collection unlocks the trophy/achievement "Eye for an Eye".

Gallery
Missionary Missionary Missionary