Yoni Skolnik, the early vision design lead for the set and an avid fan of FINAL FANTASY VI, noted that the game is divided into two acts and pitched the idea of focusing more on the World of Ruin in the second half
Like most Magic: The Gathering cards, the value of Nicol Bolas, Planeswalker depends on a few consistent factors: its rarity, the printing and finish (regular or foil), its physical condition, and the set it was printed in (Mythic Edition)
This design choice, more than any other, likely defines how the cube functions
One other strength of Iymrith is, in mulligan situations, keeping lands + Iymrith is a very real way to get back into the game
Its weaker in Commander than 60-card formats, and Id want some sort of self-mill or other ways to fuel Deathrite Shaman
As much as I dislike Pantlaza as the commander, its too good to ignore in the 99 of the deck