INTERVIEW WITH GNILRAPS

Day 3,429, 14:49 • Published in USA Netherlands • by Feynmann

Hi guys,

Today I have a great treat for you - an interview with the one and only Gnilraps.





Of course we all know him as:

- the eUS Top ranking player
- an Easy Company Legend
- the one who is awaited on the battlefield like Gandalf on the third day



But who is the real guy behind the Legend?

I hope I will shed some light on the matter with this interview.

So without further ado ... my interview with Gnilraps.






Who is Gnilraps in Real life (any info you are willing to share)

Husband, Father, Pastor, Marathon Runner, Beer Drinker, Rock Band member, Songwriter, Hebrew Scholar (Ph.D), and massive time waster.


How did you start playing the game?

My batshit crazy wife had just given birth to our son and landed so far off the reservation that I literally thought she was going to kill herself. I needed a diversion from reality. She hasn't gotten any easier to live with and so I've stuck around. Yes. I literally play this game as therapy, so that I have a little arena of my life that is: 1-fun, 2-beyond my wife's control, and 3-rewarding in some way.



A good movie or a good book?

My latest favorite read was Kafka's "The Trial". Dude spends his entire life on trial for some terrible misdead but nobody ever tells him what he did. Fantastic commentary on the postmodern problem of living a life of guilt without the concept of sin. When you're done reading "The Trial", read "The Idiot". And don't bother waiting for the Disney version, Kafka has no chance with Disney.



You know the game since its early years. What was your favorite feature back then?

Congressional Elections back in the day. When there were literally 50 different contests, most of which were competitive, each party had to prioritize, cut backroom deals, organize voting parties, stay up until 3AM (EST) to snipe out a few regions, and plan for two-weeks in advance for election day. The loss of the regional congressional elections, more than any other thing, was the destruction of this game.



What was your least favorite feature?

I hated the specializations introduced in v2. Nobody had any clue how any of the dynamics would work and yet everyone had to pick something. It was russian roulette with your citizen. I guessed totally wrong and that is why my citizen today has less strength than it should have. I was literally punished by guessing wrong in a crapshoot mechanic that Admin didn't even give enough time to mature into possibly being able to compensate itself out. Very fucked up.


Is there any aspect of the game that you think has greatly improved since the old days?

Fewer Headless Chickens.



What does Gnilraps drink while "clicking"?

No. But I definitely "click" while drinking.



You are an EZC Legend. How did the MU come to life?

It preceded me as a Federalist Party military effort. Just as I was starting out in this game, there was an important military maneuver (codename😛 Operation Polish Sausage). Several prominent Feds at that time took some initiative and made the (at that time very difficult) operation of airdropping troops into a battle involving foreign nations (it wasn't as easy in those days to 1-move, or 2- fight for allies). This operation birthed Easy Company. By a year later, the MU was being badly mismanaged by some Feds whose political clout in the party made it quite difficult to adjudicate their crappy job with the MU. I sort of wrestled the Unit away from them, spent a bunch of money on infrastructure and never looked back. I ran the unit until it had become the strongest in eUSA. But as in all things in this game I ran out of gas. So Deepchill took over and together with our Officers we privatized the Unit so as to permanently avoid the problem of politics interfering with the MU. It has been expertly managed ever since.




What makes EZC the greatest MU in the game?

I suppose I should mostly just refer you to the previous answer. The only thing I might add is that we have developed a few things better than anyone else. We've managed to purchase AND properly manage a massive economic engine which has enabled us to supply our troops at top-notch levels while not needing to request any government assistance. The secrets to this have been massive overbuilding of infrastructure so that we can reflexively respond to market shifts, absolutely spectacular internal cooperation and trust amongst leadership, and very astute management of our assets and resources. The result of this has been a little community that is almost bizzare in this game in how little drama there ever is and how stable and steady our growth and membership have been.



Could you explain the meaning of CURRAHEE! When was the first time it proved its efficiency on the battlefield?

Easy Company is a real-world reference to a WW2-era Airborne unit which used to train on "Currahee" mountain in Georgia, USA. Currahee is a Cherokee word meaning something like, "together we stand alone". The Real Life 506th Infantry Regiment of the 101st Airborne Division - the original "Easy Company" are the fabled soldiers behind the film "Band of Brothers". Anyway, it's just like any other silly thing we say in eRepublik... it's otherwise meaningless but it creates a sense of community because we can say it but you'd look pretty foolish in eRep if you ran around yelling CURRAHEE but weren't in EZC.



Steak or Cake?

bitch please. Cake is for girls.



Your newspaper is one of the top papers in the eUS. Do you enjoy writing?

Thanks for the compliment. I wish I had more time and interest in writing it. Yes I have always enjoyed writing.



What was your favorite topic, to write about, over the years?

How Plato has screwed up the game.



Where does Gnilraps like to take a time off the game - the misty mountains, the golden beaches or the local bar?


Wind River Mountain Range in the Bridger Wilderness, Wyoming, USA. Specifically, Latitude: 42-46'42'' N / Longitude: 109-12'55'' W






You are a constant critic of Plato. Do you think Aristotle would make a good substitute if Plato decides to retire?

Given that Aristotle came after Plato was dead, I like the suggestion. Plus Aristotle didn't put up with any bullshit.



It is probably hard, but pick up 3 things, that if implemented, will make the game much better and interesting for old and new players alike.

Scheduled Server Resets, Limits on tanking, Regional politics



Does Gnilraps listen to music while "clicking"? If yes, would he share a piece of it?






If you had to pick one player to be your all time best eBro, who would that be? Why?

MelissaRose because, you know, men and women can't "just be friends"...



After all these years playing eRepublik what keeps you "clicking"?

Sunk Cost Fallacy



Anything you want to say to the other eRepublik players - old and new alike? A sort of message from Gnilraps.

ajay was right






Well that's for today guys


I hope you enjoyed the interview at least as much as I did




AND REMEMBER GUYS - ALWAYS BE GOOD TO EACH OTHER!!!



+ never forget to maintain hydration

CHEERS!!!