Part of the "Who could still be kicking around as a Planeswalker" cycle, started with Serra, Resplendant and continuing into Feroz, Warden of Ulgrotha. Lim-Dûl is pushing that theme. Obviously, he was never a planeswalker in any of the stories. My plan was to explain it away as Leshrac intentionally holding his pawn back from his destiny and trapping the spark within him. Nicol Bolas, however, recognizes a time travelling Lim-Dûl spark, though, and decides that Lim-Dûl not only shows the promise of power, but he's already shown that being a peon is in his nature, so he unburies Lim-Dûl's spark.

I know, at the time, I was trying to make the 'cheapest' planeswaker I could (less color commitment than original Jace. It doesn't hurt that this guy can cost the equivalent of on round 3, if you want.) The ultimate isn't really an ultimate so much as a way to go out of control if left unchecked. I wonder if it resonates. Ulitmates might need to feel ultimate to feel 'right'.

I like the idea of a PW with a 0 ability that scales off itself, like Marrow-Gnawer's effect. But this design makes me wonder why the +1 actually grants loyalty at all.

Maybe you could decide that a theme of Nicol Bolas's planeswalker pawns is that they should only go down in loyalty, like Sarkhan the Mad. Make the abilities cost [0], [-1] and [0] in their current order (and maybe rearrange them).

(Yes, okay, Tezzeret, Agent of Bolas breaks that pattern before it starts. We could decree that he's an odd exception.)

I like the way you think, Alex. Changed first ability to 0, changed the second to -2 and upped starting loyalty to 6, so you have to work to kill Lim-Dul early.

Very cool idea to structure the card this way, I like it. Not clear how good the "ultimate" is, but that's the sort of thing that playtesting would iron out.