I met David Bauer at $10K Columbus. At a time when Curve Sentinels players were beginning to run new tech, primarily Total Anarchy and the Overload/Nasty Surprise combo, Bauer was right on the cutting edge. Though he didn’t find ultimate victory on that day, he has since won a cool two grand at $10K Orlando, as well as two PCQ’s. He doesn’t yet have the fame of a Leander or Jones, but he’s certainly got the potential, as well as a proven track record.

A lone wolf, David wasn’t attending $10K LA as part of a team. He was packing his trusty Curve Sentinels, this time with five Hounds of Ahab instead of Sentinel Mark III. If Rob Leander has built himself up to be the master of Teen Titans, then it’s possible that David Bauer’s rigorous practice and raw skill have made him the master of Curve Sents. “It has won me $2,500 already,” he told us.

By the end of round four he’d played in a mirror match, gone up against TNB and a Medium Brotherhood, and a mono-Fantastic Four. He was pretty indifferent about his matchups, although he was eager to go up against one type of deck. “I’d love to play against Common Enemy!” He and I both laughed, as we knew that virtually nobody was playing it.

“Hounds are ridiculous. It’s the first time Sentinels have anything but Bastion to win. If you get board advantage you just start KO’ing everything and you win. I’ve been locking people quite a bit today, getting an early lead, and then just going hounds, hounds, hounds, hounds.”

I was curious as to whether or not he stuck with the other tech I’d seen him playing over the past few months. “I’m still running Total Anarchy and Not So Fast. I’ve been doing mostly Modern Age testing, because I’m going to Amsterdam, so the only big change I saw fit to make was to add in Hounds. That was all I changed to the deck, aside from a few card balances. Just Hounds period, just five.”

The deck seemed tight. I hadn’t seen a list, so I asked Bauer how he made the space to fit in his five Hounds of Ahab. “I cut down to three Mags, I was always at three Genosha. I’m down to two Bolivers too. Boliver is one of those things that keeps bouncing in and out, he helps you hit your curve. He’s a necessary evil.”

Was there anyone who he did or didn’t want to play? “I know people’s faces, but I don’t really know too many names. Not a lot of people here, at least.”

The metagame was heavy on TNB Blitz, and I knew that could be a potentially negative thing for Curve Sents, so I asked Bauer what he thought. “It’s good against Curve, that’s the reason it’s being played. It’s a very good matchup. If I’m playing Blitz then I won’t flip Anarchy, because I just can’t afford the chance it will get Foiled. I think it’s a draw-dependant deck. There are a lot of combos that are deadly but that need to be drawn into. My deck is more consistent, it can get an average draw and still win.”

I was surprised to hear he was going to Amsterdam! “Orlando paid for it, so yeah. Most players in the United States are banking on the idea that most European players won’t be up to snuff. Some people are great, like that guy who won 2 $10Ks (Hoeh). His deck was on-par, slightly netdecked, but very good.”

Being a curious little pot stirrer, my last question was what Bauer thought about the recent call for errata on Savage Beatdown and cards like it. “People should just run Not So Fast! It’s a combo. It’s not broken, people shouldn’t complain. It’s just a combo. Play Shape Change and Acrobatic Dodge. I think Curve in general is why people are complaining about it, I feel like that’s the main reason.”

David Bauer is a decisive, intelligent, and dedicated player. With his recent successes and what will hopefully be an outstanding showing at PC Amsterdam, he’s starting to claim the spotlight that is likely rightfully his. Watch for him to become a major player on the professional scene over the next few months.