Activated abilities require you to pay a cost and choose when to use them
4 Vampiric Rites Vampiric Rites is a staple of Aristocrats and other sacrifice-themed decks in Magic: The Gathering
Considering that shrine decks are usually five colors, its a card that should see play in these decks, because its good at any point in the game
In all fairness, the actual ability itself isn't very bizarre, but rather just the way it's phrased on the card
While thats a little slower in formats like Standard, having access to this card in Modern, Legacy and Commander means youll likely only ever be spending one mana on this powerful effect
When these decks were first announced, a lot of people had a lot of complaints, even though we still know nothing about them outside of the face commanders