> I came here to ask why it matters to the GPU how the host boots. Does it need to load some drivers or firmware before the host OS?
Only if you want some display output before the host OS starts. Like maybe firmware menus, or boot prompts. Generally, this functionality is enabled by a ROM with code for the system firmware to call into: VGA BIOS for CSM and the UEFI GOP for UEFI.
I think all of the IBM video standards involve semi-fixed memory and i/o addresses, so a video card operating in CSM mode needs to listen on those addresses or CSM software is unlikely to work.