Rolling With The Top Dogs, 14

Welcome back to another segment of Rolling with the Top Dogs! First of all, I would like to thank Mike from Dueling Legacy to help me get in touch with today’s guest. Thank you and I appreciate it a lot! Today’s duelist comes from the Philippines and has met quite a number of successful achievements in the game. He is none other than, Luigi Karlo Bonillo! The man is no doubt one of the best players in the Philippines. Now sit back and enjoy the interview!

LUIGI KARLO BONILLO

Notable Achievements:

Top 8 2010 Nationals (Lightsworn)

Top 3 2011 Asia Championship Qualifier (Six Samurai)

Asia Plus 2011 Champs member

Top 3 2012 Nationals (Chaos Dragons)

1.Let's start of by introducing yourself. Please tell us a little bit of who you are.

Hi I'm Luigi Karlo Bonillo from the Philippines, I am the team leader of the Asia Plus 2011 team of our country. Also I started the Topdeck Blog.

2.Before going into serious business. Do you've a favourite deck, which deck(s) is it?

My favorite deck is Lightsworn because I really like the concept of the deck.Playing Aggro and damage your opponent bit by bit with weak monsters and then drop your boss monster when they have used all their defensive cards.

3.This is a 'lil something everyone wants to know. Are there any YGO cards you especially like? I mean, favourite card(s).

My Favorite card is Judgment Dragon, because I always draw it when I need it way back when I was playing Lightsworn. Also Topping Judgment Dragon is so cool and I feel like I am Yugi when it happens. 

4.Okay, going into business. How long have you been playing YGO and what is your personal opinion on the state of the game right now?

I have been playing YGO since 2004 and since that time the pace of the game became much more faster.

5.Apart from improving skills, being competitive means understanding the current situation of the format. What do you think of the format as of now and how is the Meta in your country performing at the moment?

So far our country's Meta is too diverse with Inzektors sitting on top since it is the fastest and the best deck of the format IMO.

6.What deck are you running at the moment and how is it performing in the format, in your opinion? And, just out of curiosity, why do you choose that deck as your weapon of choice?

Right now I am using Chaos Dragons because the deck is similar to Lightsworn but the difference is there are so many plays that you could make once you have experienced playing the deck. 

7.This is a personal interest of mine. Do you think TCG exclusives are capable of making an impact in the OCG competitive scene by the time they arrive? Will they be positive or negative changes?

They will certainly make an impact because those cards like Tour Guide and Dolkka are too good not to use.

8.YGO is serious business nowadays. Are there any specific preparation taken by you to get yourself ready for major events? How does it help you?

Usually I select a deck that I am most comfortable with, no matter how strong the deck is, if I am not comfortable in using it I will never use it and I always listen to anime music just to get myself ready the day before the event.

9.Side-decking has always been an important part of the game and many players still aren't familiar with it. What does you focus on in your side-deck and how do you decide on which card is effective enough to be included?

Just remove cards that will not work on your match-up and also don't over side against a certain deck since it will destroy the balance of your deck.

10.Continuing from the question before. Side-decking sometimes reduces the synergy in your main-deck. Do you side in a specific order to prevent that from happening, is there a formula you apply while side-decking?

I usually dedicate 12 cards on my side deck against the meta and 3 cards just for my tech cards, when I am siding I usually change 2-4 cards just to keep my deck stable.

11.I'm sure a lot of players are interested in your methods of seeking improvement as a competitive player. What do you do exactly to be a better player?

I just try to analyze the Meta and also If you can find a group of people that can help you play join them, having many friends will help you in becoming a good player.

12.The banned list has always amused us. So, let's say Konami gave you the right to ban a card, which card(s) would it be? Why?

I would like to ban Gateway of the Six Samurai, because it is a free ROTA and so that Wslasher will not win much games LOL.

13.By banning a card, what if Konami again gave you the chance to unbanned a card, which card(s) would it be? Why?

Tribe Infecting Virus. Because I would love to have a splash-able card that could wipe the entire field to punish bad players.

14.Apart from the banned list, if you given an opportunity to change a part of YGO, what would it be and why?

Stop the production of TCG exclusives.

15.Last question, are there any players out there that you think should be in this section? Who do you think Digital Mortal should interview next?

Michel Grüner because aside from Rodrigo Togores he is also one of the players I look up to.

We have come to an end to yet another great interview with amazing players. Check out Karlo Bonillo’s blog! Before I forget, I would like to thank Karlo Bonillo for spending time and effort to complete this interview. Much appreciated! I hope readers have found more knowledge in the game after hearing what the interviewee’s opinions. I will be sure to bring more interviews with great players from around the world to you fellow readers. Stay tuned and remember to play smart, fight hard, or go home a loser! Also, Mike has uploaded the videos of my matches yesterday. Check out his Youtube account, zerothegreattornado. Again, thanks for the videos Mike!Thank you for spending time here!