Why would you protect your lifepoints with a card like Magic Cylinder when you could be using a card to setup your gamewinning combo like Soul Charge or help create an unbreakable field with Traptrix Myrmeleo instead
Cards like these and the aforementioned Open the GatesOpen the Gates are all green, so well lean toward that color when we get to our mana
Mardu Charm was also an incredibly good utility card, but I wanted to be attacking, and jamming individually powerful threats down peoples throats, not playing dinky 1/1s or Duressing
Alternatively, you could go the spell route and include cards like Relentless Assault, Final Fortune,Last Chance and Warriors Oath to guarantee yet another round of combat to close out a game but that seems like another deck entirely
The first one went just according to the team script, with a nice U/R deck splashing Kuja