Hol Horse (ホル・ホース, Horu Hōsu) is a minor antagonist featured in the 3rd part of JoJo's Bizarre Adventure, Stardust Crusaders, introduced during the "Emperor and Hanged Man" story arc, then in the "Hol Horse and Boingo" arc.
Hol Horse is a mercenary wielding Emperor, a gun Stand. He is sent by DIO to confront the Joestar Group alongside J. Geil and becomes a recurring character.
Hol Horse is a man of above-average height and medium build. At his back he has light, neck-length hair. He has dimples in his cheeks and a cleft chin.
He wears mostly light-colored clothes with a dark undershirt and a wide-brimmed hat from which hang two long, thin, loose straps; and a loose, sleeveless top or a type of poncho, hanging below his waist in a rectangle of fabric of mid-thigh length. His clothing resemble that of a cowboy from a Western, but are distinctly different at the same time.
First appearing to be highly confident and a ladies' man, Hol Horse looks and acts like a stereotypical movie gunslinger. However, whenever he is at a disadvantage, his cowardice surfaces.
As a henchman for DIO, Hol Horse's confidence fluctuates significantly. Unlike many overconfident Stand users, Hol Horse is primarily aware of how weak his Stand, Emperor, is when compared to most Stands. This knowledge combined with his affable personality (since he has no problem being a second-in-command rather than a "Number 1"[3]) makes him willing to partner up with someone else. In that case, Hol Horse is very confident that he can take on anyone.[4] This confidence extends to whenever he can convince himself that he has the advantage, which leads to his assassination attempt on DIO with a calm determination the vampire complimented and deemed enough to prevail against the Joestar Group.[5]
On the other hand, if Hol Horse sees that he doesn't have the upper hand, he reveals his cowardly self and doesn't hesitate to flee in the face of danger. Hol Horse fled twice, for this reason; first when he learned that J. Geil was killed,[3] and secondly when he saw the opportunity of stealing the Joestar Group's 4x4.[6] Still, Hol Horse has a lingering pride and his first reflex, as seen against Enya the Hag[7] and DIO, is to put up a fight if ridiculed.
Hol Horse considers himself to be highly desirable in the eyes of the opposite sex, and has a knack for smooth-talking women. By his word, he has girlfriends from all over the world, but reveals that he seduces them to make use of them later rather than from any romantic feelings.[8] Although he almost always lies to women, Hol Horse is against hitting them. He vehemently denied Tohth's prediction of him kicking a lady from behind would come to pass, as he had sworn never to hit women. This prediction is proven later out of Hol Horse's own compulsion, though he kicked the woman to save her from a deadly scorpion.[9] This moral standard didn't prevent Hol Horse from pointing his Stand at Enya when she attacked him.
Hol Horse has a greedy personality, carrying out assassinations for money, and the possibility of taking DIO's treasures was one motivation for his attempt to kill DIO.
Hol Horse's Stand is Emperor, a handgun that can fire bullets whose trajectory Hol Horse can control to a fine degree.
Hol Horse partners with J. Geil of the Stand Hanged Man, and later Boingo of the Stand Tohth, who both complement his abilities well. He says that he prefers to operate with a partner.
Hol Horse arrives at Calcutta on elephant-back with Nena, a young girl whose marriage proposal he turns down while claiming to be thinking of her best interests. He meets with J. Geil and the two decide to kill Jean Pierre Polnareff while he is separated from the Joestar Group. The following day, Hol Horse confronts Polnareff with his Emperor Stand while J. Geil supports him through his Hanged Man.
When Muhammad Avdol intervenes to save Polnareff, Hol Horse severely injures Avdol, believing him to be dead from the headshot he administered. After separating from J.Geil and the protagonists, Hol Horse catches up to Polnareff and Noriaki Kakyoin and learns that they had already killed J. Geil.
Knowing he could not handle the two Stand users alone, Hol Horse flees before he's intercepted by Jotaro Kujo and Joseph Joestar. Nena's interference, however, gives him a chance to escape, with the Joestar Group deciding to let him go.
Hol Horse later appears before Enya the Hag during her attempt on the Joestar Group's lives and is attacked by her as she considered him equally responsible for the death of her son, J. Geil. While seemingly killed by Enya's Stand, Hol Horse played dead until he was able to escape via the Joestar Group's vehicle, vowing to get his revenge later.
Later, while reporting to DIO on Alessi's and Mariah's defeat, he tries to attack the vampire when questioned on why he is not fighting the Joestar group. He is cowed by DIO's power and, broken, swears eternal loyalty to DIO and decides to attack the Joestar group with a new partner.
Hol Horse flies to Aswan to forcibly take Boingo with him for assistance in dispatching the protagonists with Tohth. On the way out of the airport, Hol Horse antagonizes a pair of men and makes them flee when he shoots one man's ear off. Afterward, he manages to convince Boingo to work with him. At first, Hol Horse is taken aback by Tohth's strange predictions but is ultimately convinced of their reliability after he kicks a woman to save her from a scorpion and is rewarded with a jewel.
Hol Horse and Boingo then stalk the Joestar Group in the streets of Cairo, knowing that Hol Horse must now put his fingers in Polnareff's nose which will somehow end up in victory. Polnareff does surprise Hol Horse and almost takes him out but Boingo distracts Polnareff, allowing Hol Horse to put his fingers in Polnareff's nose. As the rest of the group comes to Polnareff, Hol Horse is forced to hide in a corner and hold Polnareff at gunpoint to force him to lie. Polnareff tips off the group and thanks to his irritated nose, manages to avoid being shot by sneezing, making Hol Horse stumble out of his hiding place. Cornered, Hol Horse is saved when the two thugs from earlier try to run him down but their truck slips on spilled oil and crashes into the heroes instead.
Hol Horse and Boingo retreat behind another corner and see that Hol Horse will shoot into a pipe at noon exactly and put bullets through Jotaro's head. Nervous and eager, Hol Horse ends up shooting too early into the pipe and Jotaro Kujo is saved when Polnareff sneezes again on his face, making him back out of the bullet's path in disgust. The operation goes horribly awry as Tohth's prediction backfires on them, ending with Emperor's own bullets hitting Hol Horse right in the face, just as he realizes the time on his watch was advanced. While severe, the bullet wounds stop just short of his skull with Hol Horse hospitalized for the remainder of the story.
Manga Appearances
Anime Appearances
QuotesHol Horse appears multiple times throughout this game re-enacting most of his moments from the series. His final encounter with the player has him teaming up with Mariah to try and take Jotaro and the others down.
Hol Horse appears in the second revision of the game and possesses two different versions of himself, one where he is allied with J. Geil and Hanged Man; and the other where he is allied with Boingo and Tohth, due to what happens to him in the story. While normal Hol Horse is readily available, Hol Horse's "Boingo" version must be unlocked via code.
In the first version of the game (JoJo's Venture), a few sprites of Hol Horse can be found within the game's data, showing that he was at one point planned instead to debut in the first version.
If he defeats the Joestar party while partnered up with J. Geil, the arrogant cowboy will turn on DIO (in his Shadow Form) and defeat him, though still admitting he prefers to be a second-in-command.
On the other hand, if the humbled Hol Horse partnered with Boingo defeats the party, DIO grants him a cash sum substantial enough for Hol to "live happily ever after", while Boingo decides to use his Stand to help people.
Hol Horse ("& Boingo" version) appears to be able to use his Stand after being de-aged by Alessi, implying he either was born or developed his Stand at a young age.
As Hol Horse lacks an "active" Stand, pressing the Stand button has him fire a bullet that briefly stops in midair, moving in whatever direction the player inputs during this time. The delay is significantly shorter for the "& Boingo" version of Hol Horse.
Predictably, most of Hol Horse's strategies revolve around utilizing his gun (Emperor) to harass his opponents from the distance. He possesses no Active Stand, which renders him extremely vulnerable to chip damage (which having a Stand active would normally block) and forces the player take a more aggressive role, or at the very least avoid attacks instead of blocking them. His Glass Shower move is excellent for denying aerial attacks and forcing opponents backwards, while Hanged Man (normal Hol Horse only) can help Hol by stabbing his opponent in the leg and paralyzing them while they are on the ground.
While all of Hol's super techniques are very usable, the one that shines the most is his Dangan no Modou, which allows him to fire a bullet and freely control it with the joystick for a few moments. This attack is completely unblockable, and can be used repeatedly until Hol's super gauge is empty. This is a great way of finishing off an enemy who is playing defensively or just equalizing an opponent who has more energy than you.
In summary, Hol Horse shines at medium range, as his close quarters attacks are less than impressive, and his bullets become easy to avoid from across the screen. Aggressive gameplay is the way to go with him, as most of his delays give enough buffer to link together attacks. Keep the pressure on with plenty of straight shots (be sure to mix-up between high and low to keep your opponent guessing—all of your bullets CAN be steered to hit high or low, and your enemy has to block them correctly!) and use the Glass Shower to cover your tracks when they try to rush. Hanged Man is great for opening your opponent to a world of hurt from your bullets, but if you're with Boingo, you may have to attack carefully or be on the defensive. Or, you can just experiment with his moveset and make your own strategy, as his techniques allow for a great deal of flexibility depending on who your opponent is.
Hol Horse returns as a playable character in the PS3 title. He was confirmed along with Avdol and DIO as one of the last Part 3 characters (not counting DLC characters Iggy and Vanilla Ice). He is voiced by Hōchū Ōtsuka in this game, who previously voiced young Joseph Joestar in the Capcom game.
Along with Enrico Pucci, Kosaku-Kira, Johnny Joestar, Koichi Hirose, and Giorno Giovanna, Hol Horse is a character who can utilize more than one Stand during a match as part of his moveset; Emperor, and The Hanged Man of J. Geil, who is never shown aside from it.
Some of his attacks return from the Capcom game (Heritage for the Future), though he is otherwise newly outfitted with different abilities. Despite being one of the mass majority of playable characters in the game with the "Stand" Style, Hol Horse cannot switch between movesets, nor does he have access to the Stand Rush ability. He shares this effect with Guido Mista and Diavolo. Instead, Hol Horse's Style button triggers the skill "Gun beats sword", wherein he trick-spins Emperor as it glows, enhancing the next skill marked with a star. Said abilities can be instantly performed following the skill.
During a fight, Hol Horse uses moves that were loosely based on those featured in Stardust Crusaders.
Exclusive to Hol Horse is the passive ability "Hol Horse loves the ladies!". Whenever he faces off against a female opponent (Lisa Lisa, Jolyne Cujoh, or Ermes Costello), Hol Horse will have special dialogue with them as he attempts to flirt, only to be met by repulsion. An icon will display above his Heart Heat Gauge depicting a yellow silhouette of his head as a pink heart appears in the smoke of his cigarette. During battle, Hol Horse's attack power is reduced, but his HHG builds faster.
Hol Horse's HHA, "Eat this!", begins with him spitting his cigarette up into the air shortly before he fires a volley of 4 to 10 bullets, dependent on whether or not an attack button was rapidly pressed. Each bullet comes back around to hit again before disappearing for a total of 8 to 20 hits. The last hit will knock the opponent to the ground, and Hol Horse will catch his cigarette back in his mouth. The HHA will deal more damage if "Gun beats sword" is in effect, making the bullets hit yet another time.
Hol Horse's GHA, "Hol Horse is gonna kill ya!", starts with him throwing an empty glass bottle into the air and shooting it. If the opponent is caught in the shard rain, Hanged Man will appear in the mirror world in front of them and stab them in the shoulder, immobilizing them and prompting Hol Horse to shoot. Hol Horse complying happily, he fires a bullet that curves and dances around the falling glass shards before finally flying with high speed straight toward its target: the opponent's forehead. The GHA can hit a downed opponent, but cannot hit at point-blank or close range.
Besides the cast from Part 3 (not counting Old Joseph, Iggy, and Vanilla Ice, all of whom are DLC), Hol Horse has special intro dialogue with Guido Mista, wherein Hol Horse decides to see which one of the two is the faster gunman, a challenge that Mista accepts. If Hol Horse wins, he'll note that, unlike Mista, his bullets are also part of his Stand. If Mista wins, he'll note how funny of a guy Hol Horse is.
Hol Horse appears as one of the several Part 3 characters who possess a Metal Striker. His FINISH move makes his Stand, Emperor, appear and shoot several times at the defeated opponent.
Hol Horse was confirmed for the game alongside Polnareff.
As a Stand User, Hol Horse is one of many characters with wildly varied abilities that grant him uniqueness in battle.
If he is set up against Mista he will note their similar abilities.
Unlike the previous game, Hol Horse's main color is now based on his anime appearance.
He is paired with Yukako Yamagishi in the Eyes of Heaven Tournament but was eliminated in the preliminaries by Jotaro Kujo and Vanilla Ice.
Hol Horse from JoJo 6251 artbook
Hol Horse from JOJO A-GO!GO! artbook
Hol Horse and J. Geil, Chapter 141 Cover
Chapter 142 Cover
Chapter 157 Cover
Tohth's illustration, Chapter 219 Cover
Chapter 220 Cover
Chapter 221 Cover
Hol Horse and Boingo
Hol Horse's first appearance
Hol Horse with Emperor
Full appearance
Hol Horse and Polnareff laugh
Hol Horse juggling Emperor
Hol Horse attacked by Enya the Hag
Hol Horse prepares to assassinate DIO from behind
Forcing Boingo to help him kill the Joestar group
Kicking a woman passing by, fulfilling Tohth's prophecy
The new duo lying in wait to ambush the Joestar group
Hol Horse sticks his fingers up Polnareff's nose
Hol Horse Retired
Hol Horse summoning his Stand, Emperor
DIO threatens to kill Hol Horse for retreating
Hol Horse prepares to assassinate DIO
Kidnapping Boingo to use as his replacement partner
Forcing Boingo to help him kill the Joestar group
Kicking a woman passing by, fulfilling Tohth's prophecy
The new duo lying in wait to ambush the Joestar group
Hol Horse jams his fingers into Polnareff's nose
Hol Horse's own bullets are redirected toward him
Hol Horse Retired
Hol Horse's appearance in Tohth
Hol Horse in the OVA
Heritage for the Future portrait
Hol Horse's render, All Star Battle
Hol Horse activating his HHA, ASB
Hol Horse activating his GHA, ASB
All Star Battle concept art
Hol Horse's render for Eyes of Heaven (PS3/PS4)
Hol Horse firing Emperor, EoH
Hol Horse in Diamond Records, on the area clear screen
3-star Statue
Hol Horse figurine from the Statue Legend series
Hol Horse sprite in Heritage for the Future
Hol Horse (Idle Animation)
Hol Horse's color 2
Hol Horse's color 3
Hol Horse's color 4
Hol Horse's color 5
Hol Horse & Boingo's portrait from Heritage for the Future
Hol Horse & Boingo (Idle Animation)
Hol Horse & Boingo's color 2
Hol Horse & Boingo's color 3
Hol Horse & Boingo's color 4
Hol Horse & Boingo's color 5
Hol Horse and Emperor
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Chara Heroes; Part 3 Vol.3
| Leadership | |
|---|---|
| Zombies and Other Undead | |
| Stand Users | |
| Egypt 9 Glory God Users | |
| Agents of Pucci | |
| Non-Canon Agents | |
