A · Fundamentals · §4
Tempo first, then damage on the stack, then cards, then life. Life is the cheapest thing this deck spends.
The scarcest resource is turns, not cards. Every decision that trades a turn for a card is suspect here, which is why plotting is a real cost and not a free option: it buys immunity to discard by spending the turn you would have attacked in.
The second spell each turn is worth more than the first, because the second one triggers the Cutter and adds the prowess trigger that makes an attack lethal. Sequencing exists to make sure the second one is always available, which is what the free eight are for.
Cards matter least of the three, and the deck is happy to spend two on one turn to produce damage now. What it cannot do is spend cards without producing damage, which is the failure mode described in §16.
Life is spent three ways: fetchlands, , and at two life a copy. Against a deck that also attacks your life total this adds up fast, and it is the reason to check whether the pump is doing anything before paying for it.