The Garrador, which roughly translates as "the clawer", were augmented human hosts of the Plaga, a parasitic organism native to Spain. To restrict their indiscriminate killing power, their eyelids were stitched together and they were bound in cells. The loss of eyesight led to increased hearing, making them dangerous even when blind.[1][2][excerpt 1]
The first Garrador Leon encounters is chained up inside a cell in one of the first rooms he passes through after penetrating the defensive walls of Salazar's Castle. Though restrained at first, it soon breaks its bonds as Leon enters the room and attacks him. In this battle, there are two bells in the dungeon where the Garrador is imprisoned. Using its sensitive hearing to his advantage, Leon discovers that the tolling of the bell will drive the Garrador to a state of rage, charging the bell and exposing its vulnerable back, although the bells will eventually shatter when struck by the Garrador's claws. It is advisable to leave Ashley outside the door to the prison, as the Garrador will kill her with a single swipe. However, if the player tries to leave the room, the door will close locking Ashley safely outside.
Cage
Next, another Garrador is found in the room where the Hourglass with Gold Decor is found. Soon after the cage in this room is lowered, this Garrador plunges into the fray, and Leon is forced to do battle with it to survive. The best tactic to use here is to toss a grenade towards one of the doors of the cage, or to employ a stun grenade, but make sure to do it before the Garrador lands (you can do this by skipping the cutscene), as flash grenades allow them to see you. This will stun the Ganados surrounding the cage, giving you a chance to blow the lock off one of the doors. Using the shotgun, TMP, or a grenade, try to open the door opposite of the one you entered through. Run back into the banquet hall and pick off the Cultists that follow. By not shooting the near door, any Cultists in the cage, and the Garrador (assuming you didn't lag on your way out) will try to attack Leon through the bars, and you can safely shoot out of melee range. This Garrador will bang on whichever locked cage door still remains if it knows you're nearby. If it is still in the cage and the player is outside it will keep hitting the door until the lock breaks.
Ada Wong also fights another Garrador in the same location in Separate Ways.
Tower
The final Garrador is fought upon entering Salazar's Tower in a large room with several Cultists as well. There will be two on NORMAL and PROFESSIONAL Difficulty. One of them is armored and is slightly more resilient than the NORMAL Garrador; however, it still retains the same weakpoint. It is the easiest to defeat of the two on EASY mode due to the open spaces and the fact that it is incredibly easy to navigate around it for a shot to its back, provided you kill the additional Cultists that will enter the room. You can also defeat both Garradors instantly by firing a single rocket launcher round between them; however, on PROFESSIONAL mode the armored one will go into a critical state of health.