thanks for taking the time to respond, I really appreciate your feedback! You are right that the hand crafted aspect of the map is diminished when it is a rogue-lite, it trades quality for quantity I suppose.
The blood mechanic does work well for the common Metroidvania trope of backtracking, and it would make it fun to backtrack if you get to use your movement abilities to do so.
I'm still on the fence between the two, and I'll have to ask more people on what their thoughts are for this. Regardless, thanks for your input, I will keep it in consideration!