CanYouSayG(G): Hello everybody, this is CanYouSayG, and you are reading the CanYouSayBlog, the blog where YOU get to meet the people of vanguard from around the world!

G：Today, we will be bringing to you our exclusive interview with the man who brought Blasters to the top of the world, Mexican representative, and the World Champion of Cardfight Vanguard Bushiroad Championship Series: Jesus Daniel Herrera!!!!

Jesus Daniel Herera (JDH): Hello man, thank you for having me here! I want to send greeting to all the readers.

G: Thank you for coming to this interview today. Lets begin with some basic introductions.

When did you first start Cardfight!! Vanguard?

JDH: I began back in 2011 when the game was starting. One day while I was surfing the net I came across some episodes from the anime, so I started watching it and soon I was hooked with it. There was an online platform where you could play with other users and I even won a couple of tournaments then.

G: What, in your opinion, is the one best thing about Cardfight!! Vanguard ?

JDH: I like the fact that it is very fun and dynamic, the fact that you ride up grades through the turns makes it fun to play and (unlike some other cardgames) the matches tend to last enough to enjoy a game since there are no FTK or OTK in this game.

G: How did you meet the greatest Vanguard player you know?

JDH: The moment I look at the mirror…(just kidding) Well, I have met amazing fighters from all over the world, but if I had to choose one I would choose Alam Aguilar. He was the first Mexican National Champion (we only have one important event in Mexico so our regional is like our national) he couldn’t play at worlds because of personal reasons. I met him during a tournament of other game in a store, later on we discovered that we both liked Vanguard and our friendship has continued since then!

G: What clans do you use? What were the reasons you started playing those clans?

JDH: I have played all the clans in the game, maybe not every variant or archetype, but I have experience with all the clans. I think that every clan from all the nations has something different to offer, and I haven’t closed myself to just one clan. Touken Ranbu is one of my favorites though!

G：How interesting! What is your favorite unit?

JDH: I like so many units and I haven’t found a favourite yet. However, Gancelot and Phantom Blaster Dragon were the first units to catch my eye because of their amazing arts.

G: Let us enter the main topic: The World Championship!

On 21st of January on 2018, you played in the World Championship of Vanguard, with Blasters. Do you mind sharing a bit about your journey to the World Championship?



JDH: Japan is amazing: the people, the buildings, the food. The weather was really cold and people don’t speak as much English as I had expected, but in the end I could communicate with a lot of people and had a really good time.

G: For World Championship, you chose to enter with Blasters, a deck that is consistent and fast but lacks in late game advantage, and is commonly considered a beginner friendly deck rather than a competitive pick for the meta, a so called "dark horse" of the tournament. What lead you to choose the Blaster deck?

JDH: As you said before, Blasters are fast and consistent. On the other hand, I noticed overlords and L.J (the best decks in the format) are slow starters and tend to get into action after 3 or 4 turns. In addition, blasters have access to one of the best unlockers in the game right now(Holy Squire Dragon). My logic was to use a blaster deck that begins at full throttle since the beginning of the game, punishing the first 3 turns while “the beasts” are still inside their cages.

G: And the Blaster deck you chose to bring wasn't just any blaster deck, you chose the 8 Critical 4 Stand 4 Heal trigger lineup in a deck that is very commonly 8 Crit 4 draw or straight 12 or 16 critical. What were your reasons behind picking to play Stand Triggers, and why did you pick to play Sarugal over any other Stand Trigger?

JDH: The deck was balanced in order not to leave too many openings through all the possible matches and Sarugal helped with that: providing a booster that would leave the field and maintaining hand advantage during Kagero matches and an attacker that would live the space empty vs Link Joker. What’s more is the fact that was the only stand trigger that helped to keep your hand so it was almost like a draw trigger.

G: On the subject of Blasters, what do you hope to see for the blaster deck in GBT14?

JDH: A G unit that allows me to flip Gancelot in the G zone face up, in order to use his resist skill during the first stride, either that or another functional grade 1 blaster.

G: And what did being able to play with the absolute best players from across the globe feel like?



JDH: It felt so good to meet people from all over the world and seeing so many different strategies, playstyles, and deck builds even when the clan and archetype was the same. Having the chance to stand there with the best players and realizing that you are one of them too if what makes any tournament exciting.

G: Not many people have been to the World Championship and seen the world level. In fact most people don’t even make it to the Continental Championship level. What are some things that you have learned or experienced at the Continental Championship, and World Championship?



JDH: Learning how to play under pressure and learn from your mistakes.

G: What is something you experienced at the World Tournament of Vanguard that you want to share with the world?

JDH: Listen to your instincts, if you don´t want to go with the meta you don’t have to, as long as you train hard and take time to achieve greater comprehension of the deck you want to play.

G: Regarding on the day itself, what did you think about the media coverage of this year's world championship?

JDH: It was perfectly on point! People from all over the world could see the matches and get to know how the standings were going on live time. This is going to help the Bushiroad card gaming community to keep growing for so many years to come.

G: Lets move on to your own experiences. Regarding playing, As an high level player, what is, in your opinion, some mistakes you see a lot of players (newer as well as veterans) you see making?

JDH: These are two sides of the same coin; for competitive players: Meta decks that you are not used to tend to be difficult to handle specially with brand new support, so even if you have played for a long, take enough time to get to know what your decks can and can’t do.

For “fun gaming” player: Meta decks users are not wrong and don’t feel pressured to play the meta if you don’t want to, achieve enough level of understanding of your deck and its resources and you will be able to compete while having fun with your favourite decks.

G: After seeing Japan's vanguard scene in person, and meeting and fighting several Japanese Vangaurd fighters, what do you think of Japan's Vanguard Scene?

JDH: It’s in another dimension, not because of the player level, but rather because of how easily everyone can get their cards! You just walk into any shop and they have any card you want! Players (as community) there seem to be more experienced than in any other part of the world thanks to the cards, promos, and support they have available, making it so much easier to put together decks to play and test against.



G: Today, we also have several questions to ask you from the blogs fans!



G: First off, regarding your decklist at Worlds. Jesus, your deck only plays Two Alfred Holy Saver, a card that is very commonly seen in 4-ofs due to its power level in Blaster decks. In fact the lack of a second set of Alfred came to haunt you not once but twice just when you were playing in the top 4 stream! What was the reason you chose to only play two Alfred Holy Saver? Do you regret your decision to play only two?



JDH: I do not regret not playing only two. The g-zone is tight since you could say it has only 12 spaces due to having to play Holy Squire and to the fact that Holy Squire dragon is only good vs Link joker. So, I had to build a stride line-up for Alfred Oath in case I had to ride him, which made me look into possibilities of good strides that had synergy with him and keep playing without the necessity of riding into another card through the match.

G: Jesus, you are also a start of a new trend worldwide where people don’t just quote decklists that win, but also the player with it. It wasn’t Blasters that won Worlds; it was Jesus Daniel Herrera of Mexico that won with Blasters. What do you think about being the spearhead of this new trend?



JDH: I’m so happy with all the recognition from players that live and fight around the globe. I hope that from now on we can keep hearing and reading more about NAMES and not just DECKS. There are lots of amazing players out there, doing this will make our communities grow into an attractive environment for both competitive and “play for fun” players

G: Vanguard in Latin America and South America has been quite quiet and not widely known about. What countries do you know about play Vanguard in Latin and South America?



JDH: Mexico, Brazil, Chie, Costa Rica, Puerto Rico, Argentina, are the ones that I can remember, anyone can find great challenges and experience by fighting all different kind of fighters across the world.

G: We are nearing our conclusion. Are there any parting words you would like to leave with our audience tonight?



JDH: Always hope for the best!

Listen to your instincts, if you don´t want to go with the meta you don’t have to as long as you train hard and take time to achieve greater comprehension of the deck you want to play.

G: Who are some famous players from around Central/Latin America?

JDH: Alam Aguilar (1st National 2012, 3rd team league 2014, 1st team league 2015, 1st team league 2016)

Diego Razo (1st autumn 2016, 3rd team league 2014, 1st team league 2015, 1st team league 2016)

Max Carreño (1st spring 2017, several top eight in previous events)

Gabriel Espinoza (1st National 2013, several top eight in previous events)

Alejandro Iglesias ((Messiah and Victor player. Puerto Rican Top Ranker, 2015 USA Team League Champion)

G: And who are some famous players you have heard of from other countries?

JDH: Austin Somers (USA. Several tops in Vanguard and other games)

Kevin Cho(USA. Several tops in Vanguard and other games)

Joshua 'Axel' Lee (Canada. My hardest match during worlds)

Gugnir (Japan. I don’t know much about him but I've heard of him)

Ryan Kai (Malaysia, 2015 Malaysia Representative, 7 National Top 8s)

Helene Bourre (France, 2 Time Winner of Europe Continentals)

G：Our classic final question is going to be a bit weird for you, seeing as of all the people we have interviewed, you've actually gone to the World Finals and WON it!! but here it goes: If you had the chance to go to the Finals of the World Championship again, which three fighters, of all the fighters in the universe, would you like to fight on the greatest stage of Vanguard?

JDH: Austin Somers, he’s an amazing player and I don’t get to challenge him as often as I would like to. He has a lot of skills and a final match with him would definitely be one to remember!

Alam Aguilar would be another fun match! But he will have to compete with me for the spot to join World's first!

Hank Hwang from the USA! It was a close fight at the finals with Overlord VS Blasters that the audience loved. I'd love to have a rematch!

G: That’s all for today folks. Thank you everybody for coming tonight and reading our interview we had with Jesus Daniel Herrera! Lets give him another round of applause for his wonderful performance at the World Championship this past weekend! Thank you once again Jesus D. Herrera for coming to this interview tonight. I’m sure the audience has enjoyed hearing your thoughts and experiences.



G: I have been your host, CanYouSayG. Keep on being awesome, and we will see you again next week, right here on the CanYouSayBlog.

Did you enjoy this Article?

Check out more interviews with players around the world here!