1. Two volcanics is more than enough to cast, but not sustain. Gets destroyed via wasteland. Your mentioning of hypergeometric distribution really doesn't mean anything tbh. You didn't describe K, unless you mean for us to assume that K is drawing the 4th ponder or 20th land is to be included in which case drawing the mountain is still not bad generally. For example, in a 5 card hand + mountain + flooded strand, you play the mountain on turn 2 instead of being forced to ponder if an additional land is not drawn. SB is in fact more important than MB. Half of a stoneblade deck is useless in any given match up. For example, TNN is useless against combo & spell pierce has minimal value against DnT in the first game. Thus, the SB is necessary to bring in a lot of tailored cards post board & removing the less than useful cards. In fact, every match will have the same or more post board games.

2. Ponder costs mana, even at 1. Drawing the 4th ponder vs drawing a card that does something. Adding ponder reduces the number of cards that do something in the deck. There is an argument for simply playing more cards that do things, like additional catch-alls, threats, etc. More cantrips increases looks but decreases the number of "do something" cards. It is possible to lose can-tripping into more while being pressured. 7 is just as a reasonable of a balance as 8.

3. Clique is good against control of all types, and in a lot of instances better/more flexible than TNN. Flash is significant as is being able to play a threat on the opponent's turn. Getting a sorcery speed TNN countered is typically game losing because the opponent can simply play their own threat of do whatever they want on their proceeding turn.

4. EE requires opposing CC's to align. Also loses out to revoker and flickerwisp. Verdict does not care. UW and UWr decks have a lot of basics so getting to 4 mana is usually not an issue. It wins when no other card can. It gives you a card to use can trips for in bad spots.

5. All the cards I named may be play in a limited number of decks, but in the aggregate comprise of a significant number in a large tournament. Priests can be split, one on field and one in hand thus avoiding the possibility of removal. The flash aspect is hugely significant. Lastly, the idea is to wait for flickerwisp to target their own creature, not to simply run it out against vial.