These colorful cards were home runs that featured terrific reprints like Sakashima of a Thousand Faces and Adrix and Nev, Twincasters
This kind of slow, grindy payoff can be outclassed in the modern Commander landscape, but creating copies of Archon of Cruelty and Agent of Treachery each turn is a tantalizing enough reward to try anyway
Turn Aside U Instant Counter target spell that targets a permanent you control
Flavour-wise, this gives the set a distinct look and vibe, with many of the artwork comissioned for the set displaying snow-covered landscapes or Nordic-insipred visuals
Platinum Angel was probably the next card on the list, and it argued that it prevented you from losing the game, but I still say better luck on the next ballot
It also usually grants some other kind of benefit, which leads to some interesting designs that pair the counters with the front side of the cards