Baseline, its a funny mana dork that burns your opponents as you cast spells, but it often leads decks that blur the line between group hug and group slug with cards like Mana Flare and Belbe, Corrupted Observer that generate more mana than your opponents can (hopefully) spend
The life-as-mana mechanic creates interesting decision points every turn and a different experience from most Commander decks
Often we have to make cards that scale based on some factor
Creature - Vampire Glass-Cast Heart Whenever one or more Vampires you control attack, create a Blood token
Of course, Brave the Elements and Unbreakable Formation would make great upgrades here, and someone somewhere probably has them for that cheap
The Blue Spirit gives your first creature spell each turn flash, and if those creatures enter during combat, you get to draw a card