Winter is coming—or it seems to have finally arrived. The season’s first real snowstorm is upon us here in the Northeast, so I hope The End Step finds you dry, warm, and safely indoors.

On Monday, Rich Stein defended the banning of Seething Song in Modern, while Jess Stirba explored the world of ramp without ramp’s favorite color.

HotC also continued our coverage of the release of Gatecrash on Tuesday, when Matt Jones recounted the highs and lows of GRUUL SMASH, followed by an (always appreciated) guest post from Jeremy Broomfield on his first GTC draft experience. Li Xu Naya’d Saito’s Gruul deck (can anyone resist the temptation of Boros Charm?) and resurrected crowd-favorite Delver of Secrets, while Zac Clark durdled around with American control and the new Gideon. Friday saw Hunter Slaton hit all the right notes with another successful GTC sealed performance and a guest post from Tim Akpinar on the performance of his new Esper builds.

Finally, the estimable Matt Jones took the little Legion Loyalist on a tour through art history and refused to see its clear connection to Boros Recruit.

To those of you making the trip to Edison this weekend for the StarCityGames Open Series: Stay safe! And if you were ever wondering where Wizard’s Development came up with names like Borborygmos, check out their Greek inspiration: borborygmus, or “a rumbling or gurgling sound caused by the movement of gas in the intestines.”

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