You can only tap it for mana while removing component counters, but once the deck gets going, this card is more of an excuse to roll a d20 than a mana source
I think the guy went easy on me, he was also advising me on what I should do
Its both an immediate, hard-to-remove threat and a future buff for something even scarier
Snakeskin Veil and similar effects are the cheapest option for targeted removal, though technically Deflecting Swat will be even more effective if you have the budget for it
Conjurer's Closet $9.99 Blink engines appeal to a certain subset of players (guilty!) and Conjurer's Closet is one that can go in any deck
Etali, Primal Sickness gives players poison counters when it deals combat damage (in other words, infect) to a player, and a player loses the game with ten poison counters