
Burst quanta acceleration and damage is exactly what Aether needs in slow decks to not undeservingly fall victim to denial or a lucky rush with PC without any chance of fighting back (Scrambled Shriekers with a redonk hand).
It's quite balanced, as you pay to make it more vulnerable. As such, you'd only play this late if you expected CC. The unupped is even a bit UP, as you can't really use it to rush, but it simply gives Aether another option for faster damage than snail-paced. Even if it's not better than Spider at that, it's another option, and that's very important.
To top it off, the mechanics are interesting. What's the idea behind the name?