Beware to all villains trying to ice skate uphill, Blade is about to enter the building in Marvel Rivals. This was teased a little bit in Season 1, and now Rivals has filled in the backstory. Blade, noted vampire hunter, was the first to confront Dracula when he took over New York City.
But Dracula had mastered the use of chronovium, capturing Blade and imprisoning him in the castle's dungeon. After the heroes saved him, he went to Wakanda where Shuri helped him recover. Now with Knull and Hela having formed an unholy alliance, the Daywalker returns to the frontline to save all reality.
Blade will arrive August 8 with the debut of Season 3.5, and of course, he is a duelist. Here are his abilities:
- Shotgun: Brings “pressure force” in close range and can reduce enemy healing at just the right moment.
- Ravenous Ancestral Sword: “Awaken the Dhampir bloodline” and slice through every last enemy.
- Sword of Dracula (Ultimate): Draw the legendary blade, dash through foes, and leave a “deadly trail” in your wake.
As many have already noted in the comments under the YouTube reveal, the designers of this character are clearly Devil May Cry fans. A lot of Blade's combos look sexy, slick, and stylish. Blade will also join the Lunar Force team up, in which Cloak and Dagger can make other heroes temporarily invisible.
Blade's mother was attacked by a vampire while pregnant with him, turning him into a dhampir, or vampire-human hybrid. He has many of their strengths, such as superhuman senses and healing, but is resistant to many of their weaknesses such as sunlight. Thus vampires commonly refer to him as "The Daywalker."
In many ways, Blade paved the way for the modern Marvel Cinematic Universe. Wesley Snipes' 1998 take on the dhampir was an instant hit, and revisited in Deadpool and Wolverine as they said goodbye to pre-MCU versions of characters.