I think about this as 2 mana for the 3 damage and 3 mana for the instant-speed token
They can be pennies, poker chips, or whatever is convenient you can even keep track of life points on paper if you want to
Theres a lot of sacrifice fodder available to throw -1/-1 counters around, and the proliferate ability can help you to speed up sagas, kill bigger creatures with the previous ability, and grow some of your own creatures
Its main goal is to reach 20 Lore by gradually ramping resources with Sapphire glimmers, then using Ambers sturdy characters to keep the board safe and consistent
If a creature with ward is equipped with Leather Armor, becoming the target of a spell or ability an opponent controls will cause both ward abilities to trigger
Though Marchesa's ability doesn't specifically mention Pirates, it inherently synergizes with the Pirate play style quite effectively