Playmats and Card Mats Playmats do not need to match pocket sizes, so makers use a few common footprints
Protecting our investments is also key to ensuring we survive to the late game, so jamming a bunch more protection into the deck goes a long way
Spot removal and countermagic in particular are at an all-time low, since the current ramp suite is good enough to simply overpower aggro decks with bombs, sweepers, and incidental lifegain
The activated ability also covers a lot of ground: +1/+1 counters, sac outlet, lifegain, power-matters, etc
Its pretty easy to get lands and creatures into your graveyardthough its a bit hard to do so with artifacts and enchantments, but not impossible
It was a useful tool that we knew we'd need again