Most importantly, while not really understanding what they're doing

That's how they get ya 😁

TBH I care more about compatibility and stability than looks

Oh yeah, and one other thing Mint apparently struggles with:
2 monitors

Apart from being very good, it was very innovative at the time, it introduced new things to the genre that basically haven't been done before

Should I build my own wolf pack or buy a premade?

I always imagined it comes from the word "able"... As in "being able to be composed"... It's not "being ible" 😁