You wont want to cast this if everybody can vote for grace and they have fantastic creatures in their graveyard that outrank yours
It was a subtle sign that the times were changing
Dates As Magic still has to sort out its Phyrexian problem in March of the Machine, and come to terms with the multiverse never being the same again in March of the Machine Aftermath, it is quite a while before well see much more of Tales of Middle-earth
The earlier Gaeas Cradle comes into play, the more mana it yields: on turn 1, itll produce 1 mana, but starting from turn 2, its value scales depending on how quickly you can flood the field, and by turn three, youre looking at an income of maybe four mana or higher
If your deck provides a steady source of sacrifice fodder, this gives a steady source of mana
2) Mistrise Village There are plenty of powerful spells in Magic that can win a game outright if they resolve, such as Expropriate, The One Ring, or Insurrection