Rhino Rumble: All the Ways to Use Crashing Footfalls

Modern Horizons, Episode 5: Crashing Footfalls

 

Are you ready for a RHINO RUMBLE?!? Crashing Footfalls joins the lineage of "can't be cast" suspend cards that are historically powerful and ripe for abuse. The combination with Ancestral Visions gives a critical mass of generically powerful suspend cards, in contrast to all-in build-arounds like Living End, Restore Balance, or Wheel of Fate. But what is the best route for casting the Rhinos, and from which zone? Are we willing to wait for them, or do we need to make our Rhinos right now?

 

Roundup: Brewing After Hogaak

 

They actually did it. Bridge from Below got the axe after just four weeks on Magic Online. The crew discusses the post-ban metagame: what's still strong, what may rise again, and what a brewer should be prepared to face. Also: decks we plan to test in preparation for GP Minneapolis.

 

Flashback: Lotus Field

 

We put Lotus Field through its paces in four different builds, discovering quite a bit of clunk (drawing the 2nd copy is awful, Blood Moon and Damping Sphere are embarrassing) but also unlocking several powerful synergies. Blood Sun and the Brought Back + Flagstones + Ghost Quarter package were very solid and worthy of further exploration.

 

Blood Sun Eldrazi: 2-3 league, curve was disastrous, but Blood Sun is strong

 

RG Assault Loam: 2-3 league, needs speed and more versatile control elements

 

GW Brought Back: 3-2 league, Brought Back is strong, but needs better early plays

 

Twiddle Storm: 5-5 leagues, excellent in game 1, vulnerable after sideboarding

 

Brew Session: Crashing Footfalls

 

We take a slightly different approach this week, as several lists with Crashing Footfalls have already seen success. However, each of them tackles the "can't be cast" problem differently, opting to cheat the card into play either from hand, from graveyard, or from the top of the library. If you want to get really crazy, you can even suspend it the "normal" way and wait. Which routes are the most effective, and are there additional enablers that have not been fully explored?

 

Restore Dominance (Jakesbaked, 5-0 league x2)

Rhino enablers: 7 hand (As Foretold, Electrodominance), 2 graveyard (Finale of Promise). Green mana: yes.

 

UR As Foretold (KyFly1, 11-4 GP Dallas, 5-0 league, 6-2 Modern Challenge)

Rhino enablers: 8 hand (As Foretold, Electrodominance), 3 graveyard (Dreadhorde Arcanist). Green mana: no.

 

Black-Red Free (Dzy, 5-0 league)

Rhino enablers: 5 graveyard (Dreadhorde Arcanist, Finale of Promise), 4 hand (Electrodominance). Green mana: yes.

 

Living End "Fakeout" (MagicAids youtube + keatingn, 5-0 league)

Rhino enablers: 12 library (Violent Outburst, Demonic Dread, Bloodbraid Elf). Green mana: no.

 

Rhino Conjuring (Sketch)

Rhino enablers: 4 library (Collected Conjuring), 4 hand (As Foretold), 4 graveyard (Dreadhorde Arcanist, Finale of Promise). Green mana: TBD.