You force them to spend multiple removal spells on the card before being able to damage you again, which results in huge resource losses for decks that heavily depend on them
Its also great for pinging off utility creatures with one toughness, like Birds of Paradise
Here are some cards that, to me, definitively fall under the Stax banner: Stasis Winter Orb Static Orb Rising Waters Storm Cauldron Smokestack Words of Wind Back to Basics Drannith Magistrate Decree of Silence The Tabernacle at Pendrell Vale The cards above are all notorious for stopping a game from happening, either through not allowing lands to untap, making it prohibitive to play creatures (the formats defining way to play), or by stopping you from playing your Commander (which is the point of the format, whether you like it or not)
The more typical cycling on Footfall Crater draws you a card and leaves you open to lots of plays
It wasnt until Magic Origins that wed get Legendary Creature transform cards on the front side, with the origin cards of five Planeswalkers in the Gatewatch: Gideon, Jace, Liliana, Chandra and Nissa
