An activation can only be negated by a card effect that specifically uses the term "negate"
On your own battlefield, if you run a Liquimetal Torque, attach Artifact Ward to your biggest creature, then turn their best blocker into an artifact until the end of turn and swing in for free, or protect your own creature fully against an incoming Wurmcoil Engine
Eight more cards in the lower $2-5 tier, mostly the bread-and-butter stuff you see in every precon run like Swiftfoot Boots, Propaganda, and a few duals that peak just above the $2 mark
SOL RING See everything I said about Grim Monolith, but better
New Premium Gold technology isnt the only way Maximum Gold is going to make your cards look amazing
While one could have played jank like two partners or Morophon, the Boundless for access to additional colors, that was never worth the downside of losing a synergistic value engine like Alela, Cunning Conquerer (currently the most popular faerie commander by a mile, with over 4,000 decks)