The only thing that you can safely trade for in bulk are commons/uncommons for decks (Yanma, Magnemite, Phanpy, etc), or average Trainer cards like Switch, Energy Retrieval, etc
The solution was for him to have lost someone while serving on the ship
64 commemorative protective sleeves (coordinated design)
Its almost borderline hoarding, where I buy cheap packs of cards from the dollar store whenever I see them because I dont care what I get I just want more cards
While he doesn't do a lot on his own, the extra card advantage is crucial and the access to win-condition cards like Underworld Breach is vital to closing out a game
Your intended commander, Inalla, Archmage Ritualist, has a pretty decent eminence ability that allows you to create a token copy of any nontoken wizard you play, so you can hold your ground until you get the game under your control