There are goblins on pirate ships, hiding in dumpsters, and enacting arcane rituals to conjure massive amounts of mana
While the banning of White Plume Adventurer has seen the card dropping right off in Legacy again, the Initiative/Monarch Package is so good that any format where it can be played is a format for Palace Jailer to succeed (namely Duel Commander and Canlander now, though)
Character cards have attack and defense values, each character taking damage in a challenge, and they are banished to the discard pile when the damage equals their defense
Cram Session gains four life and grabs you a card
It's a good thing, then, that there are some brilliant online tools to streamline your brewing
Final Days Before the Final Fantasy Panel These two precon commander alternatives are pretty interesting