Entering the Field: Jonathan Bauer

An evil falls and a legend rises. However, not every hero is remembered. Come and hear an untold tale of a Zodiac Brave.

Welcome back! In our second part of the “Entering the Field” series, our next player spotlight is Jonathan Bauer! Jonathan is a recent addition to the NorCal family who only started playing the game after the 2018 Crystal Cup Seattle. He makes the hour-long drive from Santa Cruz to Santa Clara weekly and is known as a stand-up guy and fierce competitor. He started out with some interesting Prishe decks, but has since roared into the top cuts of the Trials of the Zodiac Braves circuit with Earth and Earth/Wind decks.

Hi Jonathan! Thanks for doing this interview. Can you start off by us an introduction of yourself?

To start out, my name is Jonathan Bauer and I am a new addition to the Bay Area Group. I recently got into the FFTCG around September after playing a little bit at PAX West. I first heard about the game at PAX West 2017. I was pretty interested in the game and bought a few starters and packs. I then sat on my new cards for a year and joined a couple FFTCG groups on Facebook and was a long time lurker. Growing up in Santa Cruz, there really wasn’t much of a nerd culture, so it was hard to find people more local to play games with.

Fast forward to 2018 and getting ready for PAX West, I saw that they were hosting the Crystal Cup. I was ready to bring my cards and play in some of the side events while enjoying PAX that weekend. I went to a local store before setting out and wanted to get a few more packs before leaving, but none of the local stores carried any FFTCG. I found one store that had a dusty box of Opus 4 from which I bought a few packs, and then went on my way.

After just having a baby in May of 2018, my wife and I hopped on a plane with our baby and flew out to Seattle to go to PAX. We showed up and had a lot of fun that weekend. I stopped by the Crystal Cup on day 1 and asked if they were doing any drafts or side events and they said to come back the next day. So, I came back the next day and played in the Wolves’ Den; I played against a couple people and just got stomped. I asked what I could do better and how I could learn, and I got some good tips and decided I wanted to get more into this game.

Coming back from PAX, I was motivated to find a place I could learn and play. I started expanding my search and calling more stores, willing to make a drive if I needed to. I eventually found the Isle of Gamers crew and started making friends, and this pushed me to the point of wanting to really dive fully into the game.

 

Have you played other TCGs before? What drew you to this game?

FFTCG is my first physical TCG. I played Hearthstone a bit and the digital Pokemon game but never got super invested. I hated the idea of spending money on digital stuff that could one day just be taken away or changed. I had played Magic before but nothing past opening up the demo decks and playing my friends. I collected Yu-Gi-Oh cards as a kid but never sat down and played a game. My Pokemon cards are collecting dust somewhere but same story there, I had them but never used them. What pushed me to grab FFTCG was the artwork and the fact that Final Fantasy has had such a huge impact on my life.

Your competitive nature is one of the things most people notice about you. Were you always competitive, or did this game draw it out of you?

I have always been a competitive person either in sports or online games. I like winning and hate losing. I like being good at something and I like the feeling of outplaying another person. Getting older, I have gotten slower at games like League of Legends and Starcraft. I just can’t keep up with the amount of practice it takes to get better and win, and my reflexes aren’t nearly as good. I felt that getting into a physical TCG would be a good transition because I can control my rage if I have to look at the guy who is destroying me. Also, making a lot of new friends is always a good plus.

You mentioned Final Fantasy has had a huge impact on your life. Which one is your favorite?

My favorite Final Fantasy is a tough question because I like them all and they all scratch a different itch. I would probably say FFX is my favorite though. It was my first FF game. I played the demo disk over and over and over until one day my mom came home and said she had something for me: my own copy of the full game. I was so happy to finally get off that island! I spent a lot of time in that game getting all the weapons and farming the monster arena. The story was great and that game was what started it all. However, nothing would compare to the amount of my life I put into FFXI. Logging over 365 days of play time over 7 years… Looking back, I had an unhealthy obsession with that game, but also no regrets.

That’s amazing! I’m sure many players have their own great memories of Final Fantasy and thank you for sharing such a great moment. Would you say your favorite Final Fantasy character is from FFX?

My favorite FF Character is actually Vincent. He is a powerhouse and has a cool backstory.

What is your favorite deck/element in the game at the moment? Also, do you have any favorite cards?

My favorite deck element right now is Earth. It has a lot of my favorite cards like Star Sibyl and Prishe. I also like the idea of abusing “enter the break zone” or “enter the field” effects without paying the full cost of the cards. I would say my favorite card is Magic Pot. However, it is just so situational and if you don’t have it out in the early game it really loses its effectiveness. I feel it has good targets that could be explored, but it is just too slow sometimes.

      

The first time you came out to locals to play, you brought your dad along with you. Now, not only are you a mainstay of the community, but so are your wife and son! What does it mean to you to have their support in a hobby you are so passionate about?

My wife has been super supportive of my gaming and knows that it is something that I really enjoy. My family is important to me and we like to do things together. I work long hours at my job, so my time off is something that we like to pack with stuff to do. The reason I started asking my wife to come to more stuff started with the day I had planned to go to the Opus VII prerelease. It was on the calendar, I was excited, and my wife had plans to spend the day with family near the event. A few days before the event, I got a call from work asking me to come in that day. I was pretty bummed because I was going to miss the prerelease, but then I got this great idea: what if my wife just went in my place? That way I could get the cards and she could get a little taste of the game on a more even playing field. My wife agreed and she took my spot, and with the help of Helene she made a respectable deck. I showed up late and tapped in, and she said she had a lot of fun meeting some of the other girls in the group and was excited to get food after the event. After that I just asked if she would want to come to some more events with us, and she agreed.

Having her there at the last event where I got 3rd place felt pretty good. She also knows the rules of the game and knows how damage works. One game, I was up to 6 points of damage but managed to come back and win that game. After that game I told my wife it was over. She asked if I lost, and I told her no, I had a comeback and won; she was (pleasantly) surprised because she had seen the board state before. No matter how long we have been dating/married, I still try and impress her, even if it is winning at this card game. Having my son there is also a bonus because, although I am biased, he is absolutely the cutest baby in the world. I never pass up an opportunity to show him off and get him more socialized.

Bauer Power!

Being a new player in NorCal is tough because lots of the talent is top-heavy in a few of the best players. How has your journey of improvement been and what do you attribute to your rapid growth in skill?

My journey to improvement has been willing to ask for help. I think in the past I would just take a loss and move on without changing. The first thing I do after I lose now is ask, “What did you see me do that was a misplay? What cards do you think would make this deck better?” I am also always going to some of the senior players and asking them to jam out some games; handing them my decks and ask for thoughts; just really humbling myself and asking for help. No one has told me no and everyone has given me something of value. I think my goal would be to get a first place finish, either winning a Crystal Cup or getting a top finish in the local circuit. My final goal was met on my first week: to meet a bunch of people and make friends who I can nerd out with. This game may not last forever but these friendships and this community will continue to grow and evolve and change, and being welcomed in was really what I wanted to achieve.

Thanks so much to Jonathan for doing this interview and sharing his thoughts and stories! We love seeing the whole Bauer family at every NorCal FFTCG event. Since the time of this article, Jonathan has posted 2 top cut appearances this season, one of them finishing at 3rd place. We wish him luck as he continues to shine as a super rookie!