The 1.14 update for Vampire Survivors has arrived, bringing a wealth of content that challenges even the most seasoned monster hunters. Whether you are exploring the twisting corridors of Maze-erella or braving the gambling mechanics of the West Woods, perfecting your vampire crawlers unions strategy is essential for survival. This update introduces new relics, secret characters, and the highly anticipated Dark Arcanas, which fundamentally shift how players approach late-game builds and weapon synergies.
Navigating these new challenges requires a precise understanding of the unlock requirements and the evolution paths of the latest armaments. From defeating hundreds of thousands of enemies to manipulating luck stats beyond 900%, the path to completion is more intricate than ever. By mastering these vampire crawlers unions, you can transform a standard run into an unstoppable display of pixelated power. This guide provides a comprehensive walkthrough of every secret, stage, and character added in the Westwoods and Ante Chamber updates.
Unlocking the New Stages: Maze-erella and West Woods
Before you can experiment with new weapon combinations, you must first gain access to the new environments. The 1.14 update features two primary stages, each with unique unlock conditions that reward high-level play and exploration.
How to Access Maze-erella
To unlock the Maze-erella stage, you must reach Level 80 in the Inverse Dairy Plant. If you have characters with a high Golden Egg count, this can be achieved in mere seconds. For standard players, utilizing the "Speed Up" function from the Coop update is highly recommended to reach the level threshold quickly. Once inside Maze-erella, focus on locating the two primary relics:
- Wax Fetish: Head to the far right of the map, following the guide NPC to a hidden room. Defeating the enemies here grants the relic, which unlocks the Preserve power-up.
- Chaos Lazulia: Head to the left from the spawn point. This orbiting relic allows the character Ramba to undergo a special transformation upon reaching Level 80.
Accessing the West Woods
Unlocking the West Woods is often automatic for veteran players, as it requires finding 23 Little Clovers. These are random drops similar to Floor Chickens. If the stage hasn't appeared for you, simply start and quit a run to trigger the achievement if you have already met the lifetime clover requirement.
| Stage | Unlock Requirement | Key Relics |
|---|---|---|
| Maze-erella | Reach Level 80 in Inverse Dairy Plant | Wax Fetish, Chaos Lazulia |
| West Woods | Collect 23 Little Clovers (Lifetime) | Magji Stone, Masquerade |
Mastering Vampire Crawlers Unions and Weapon Evolutions
The core of the 1.14 update revolves around new weapon synergies. Forming powerful vampire crawlers unions involves leveling specific base weapons and matching them with the correct passive items. The West Woods stage introduces the Magji Stone and Corrupted Mana, which serve as the foundation for the update's most potent evolutions.
To fully open the West Woods map and locate these items, you must interact with the "Wheel" NPC. Winning three wheel spins will permanently unlock all quadrants of the map for future runs. The Corrupted Mana is located in the southernmost part of the final quadrant.
Primary Weapon Evolutions in 1.14
The following table outlines the necessary components for the latest weapon unions. Note that for most of these, the passive item must be at maximum level to trigger the evolution from a treasure chest.
| Base Weapon | Passive Required | Resulting Evolution |
|---|---|---|
| Magji Stone (Lv. 7) | Corrupted Mana | Enhanced Gemstone Evolution |
| Ammo-late | Bracer (Max Level) | Zi' Assunta Character Weapon |
| Inferno Latro | Outer Sa Bataar | Keanio Unlock |
💡 Tip: You do not necessarily need a max-level Corrupted Mana to evolve the Magji Stone, but the Magji Stone itself must reach its level cap before the evolution becomes available.
Integrating these weapons into your build is essential for vampire crawlers unions mechanics, especially when attempting the more difficult Dark Arcana challenges. The Ammo-late, for instance, requires defeating 251,096 shooting enemies—a milestone many long-term players will find already completed upon loading the update.
Unlocking Secret Characters: The 17th Colossus and Secretino
Vampire Survivors is famous for its hidden characters, and version 1.14 introduces two of the most creative secrets yet. These require specific movement types and interaction with the new "Party Mode."
Witnessing the 17th Colossus
To unlock this secret character, load the Maze-erella stage using a flying character such as Gyorunton.
- Fly to the northernmost edge of the map to find the massive Colossus.
- Wait for approximately two minutes for the Colossus to activate and begin chasing you.
- Lure the Colossus to the southern boundary of the map.
- Because you are using a flying character, you can move out of the map bounds. Lead the Colossus into the void until he walks completely off-screen.
- Once he disappears, the secret character unlock sound will play.
⚠️ Warning: Avoid using characters with excessive Golden Eggs or high-damage passive builds. If you accidentally kill the Colossus before he walks off-screen, you will have to restart the process.
Finding Secretino
Secretino is tied to the new Party Mode function. After unlocking Party Mode in the West Woods, enter the stage again while the mode is active. Navigate to the Merchant located on the far left side of the map (in the final room). Purchase the "Pre-order Me" item from his inventory to instantly unlock Secretino.
Dark Arcana Challenges and Strategies
The Dark Arcanas represent a new tier of power-ups that require specific gameplay feats to unlock. Optimizing your vampire crawlers unions is vital for surviving the 30-minute weaponless challenges.
Pale Diamond
- Objective: Find 10 Golden Treasure Chests from Zi' Assunta's special ability in a single run.
- Strategy: Use the Il Molise map on Endless Mode. Zi' Assunta creates totem-like chests that can be detonated. Use the "Fast Forward" function and Song of Mana to clear these quickly. Only Golden Chests count; bronze and silver drops will not progress the achievement.
Call of the Mad Moon
- Objective: Reach a Luck stat of over 999% with Chula Rae.
- Strategy: Chula Rae re-rolls his luck every 30 seconds. Wait until the dice icon shows a six. To guarantee success, take the "Wicked Season" Arcana to boost your stats even higher. Once the luck stat exceeds 999, you can safely exit the run.
Victorian Horror
- Objective: Survive 30 minutes with no weapons in Inverse Green Acres.
- Strategy: This sounds impossible until you realize that Megalo Menya Moonspell's innate ability does not count as a weapon slot. Since Megalo Menya is invincible, you can simply stand still for 30 minutes. Ensure you are on Green Acres, as surviving on Mad Forest will not trigger the unlock.
The Balatro DLC: A Surprise Integration
Alongside the 1.14 update, a free Balatro-themed DLC was released. This adds a new layer to the vampire crawlers unions by introducing poker-themed weapons and characters. Before starting, ensure you have manually downloaded the free DLC from the Vampire Survivors Steam Page or your respective console store.
Balatro Unlock Progression
- Jimbo: Purchase the new relic in Moongolow for 50,000 gold from the merchant, then find the coffin in the new stage.
- Keanio: Level Jimbo's weapon (Inferno Latro) to level 6 and evolve it using the Outer Sa Bataar.
- Perkeo: Continue the evolution chain by leveling the subsequent characters' weapons to level 6 and evolving them with the same passive item.
| Character | Weapon | Evolution Requirement |
|---|---|---|
| Jimbo | Inferno Latro | Max Level + Outer Sa Bataar |
| Keanio | Multi-Latro | Max Level + Outer Sa Bataar |
| Perkeo | Final Latro | Max Level + Outer Sa Bataar |
Completing the final evolution with Perkeo rewards the player with a massive payout of 77,777 gold coins. To unlock Hyper Mode for the Balatro stage, you must defeat the stage boss that appears at the 25-minute mark.
FAQ
Q: What are the best vampire crawlers unions for the 1.14 update?
A: The most effective union in this patch is the Magji Stone and Corrupted Mana. It provides excellent screen clearance which is necessary for navigating the tight corridors of the Maze-erella stage.
Q: Why isn't the Balatro relic appearing in Moongolow?
A: Even though the Balatro DLC is free, it is not automatically added to the base game. You must visit the Steam, Xbox, or PlayStation store and "purchase" the free DLC for the content to appear in your game.
Q: Can I unlock the 17th Colossus with any character?
A: No, you specifically need a character with the "flying" trait (like Gyorunton) to move out of the map boundaries in Maze-erella. Non-flying characters will be blocked by invisible walls, making it impossible to lure the Colossus far enough.
Q: How do I get the Ammo-late weapon quickly?
A: The Ammo-late requires over 250,000 kills of shooting enemies. If you have been playing for a long time, this should unlock the moment you start a run and quit. If not, farm stages like the Library or Dairy Plant where ranged enemies are more frequent.