Town Center - AoE Podcast with TheViper & Masmorra feat. Hera & Nili - Ep. 9

Welcome to our monthly podcast format "Town Center" - where the lovely duo of ‪@TheViperAOE‬ ‪@MasmorraAoE‬ discuss everything around the world of Age of Empires II.
We had the pleasure of ‪@HeraAgeofEmpires2‬ & ‪@NiliAoE2‬ as guests right after NACV ended to discuss the tournament, Heras signing and more.
Enjoy!
Nilis video: • It's time...
0:00 Intro and Agenda
3:06 NAC 5
38:45 Nili's retirement
42:02 "Why didn't it work out for you, Nili?"
48:40 "What are you going to do next?"
54:47 Advice for aspiring streamers
1:05:43 Hera joins GamerLegion
1:13:31 Will Hera's move to GamerLegion reduce competitiveness in the scene?
1:21:50 Will other Esports teams ever get involved in Age of Empires 2?
48 hours after upload also available on Spotify: open.spotify.com/show/0pv1c2C...
We're excited for your feedback. Let us know what you think!
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[@adamodonovan6947]

Favourite moment had to be T90 saying he was talking to ACCM and he said to him 'I don't think Lierey has the new civs' and T90 was like, 'What he doesn't understand them or hasnt practiced them enough?' and ACCM said 'No, i dont think he has the DLC' 🤣🤣🤣 And then the production team troling him scrolling the DLCs was top tier.

[@4ngi3CK]

oh yes that was on point 11

[@frameshift_mutation]

Link?

[@adamodonovan6947]

Apologies, it wasn't T90 it was Dave and Memb! So funny though

[@adamodonovan6947]

@@frameshift_mutation kzbin.info/www/bejne/opzaqqCfopyDjMUsi=HXHhsIm5LXUVZafk

[@gochunoodle2106]

Crazy that Jordan worked AND played and did so well. Hats off! Amazing content btw, keep it coming :)

[@Cheximus]

Hopefully his employers aren't watching after Viper just ratted him out lol.

[@eMpTy0911]

37:47 Nili having a joke folder is the most German thing ever :D

[@jmoralesv03]

English is not my native language and I thought Nili was talking seriously about the mirror factory, but now that explains Viper's and the others laughs 😆

[@grexursorum6006]

I, a german, can confirm :-) The second Hera asked, Why do have a joke folder I was like: Cause he is german. What a stupid question 🤣

[@BoxerSaint]

American here: I have a joke folder. Professionals have standards, guys.

[@aarononon]

35:30 the reason I think YT was so popular is the ability to pause and rewind. Because of this I was able to watch parts during the day while working or with my family, and then in the evening I could catch up by skipping through some of the non-gameplay parts. In the past I either had to miss big chunks of tournaments, or fall a day or more behind if I wanted to see all games (and try to avoid spoilers on social media). I can't see myself watching any big tournaments on Twitch again unless they also add this function

[@bratan_archer]

For me in addition to this, it's the YT Premium which I am paying anyway so it provides a way to watch uninterrupted without using an adblocker. I hope that some money ends up with the streamer; in theory it should be more than ad-supported viewing. Other than some missing features in chat and a practical way to find the channel without a bookmark, YT is generally superior to Twitch, not to mention FB which is abysmal.

[@sacker987]

^This!! I watched most of NAC5 on 1.25x speed KZbin, always 1-2 hours behind live time.

[@2cunem]

Mamy Times i watch one Match grom Hera or Viper or a set in parts - Home in bed, next day in pause, when i wait. Nit everyday, but a few Times a week. Good Point

[@sokarash]

you can watch on Twitch by going to the Videos tab, but I agree its a lot easier in YT.

[@prathamesh5497]

Same, I started on twitch, but ended up on KZbin for this very reason.

[@enigmaaoe3503]

hera: i have a few weaknesses viper: Ooo do share LMAO that was brilliant, Viper has the best bants and humour 11

[@zjostedt]

Hera: I mess up 1 second here and there :)

[@fueledbykyle]

I was hoping Viper would get out a pen and paper. 😂

[@Scip95]

Hearing Hera talk about various ideas and potential for collaborations makes it so clear why he's gonna be great for GL. You can sense that he's so excited to get started and come up with original content.

[@joshsa4935]

Hera of 2024 has become very diplomatic and presents himself very well. I'm impressed how much he's grown since 2015/2016, not just as a player but also a person.

[@ant_on_orbit]

I agree, he carries himself really well now, has become very mature and his energy is communicative. Shine bright brother Hera!

[@bruellwitz]

Yes absolutely! I used to perceive him as the somewhat arrogant young gun, but that changed completely. He has shown a lot of very positive development in that regard.

[@Felix_EN]

Hera is the perfect fit for GL. His hard work, entrepreneurial spirit and ambition should be meet with an equal amount of these by his team.

[@purplehues001]

Viper is the GOAT. He was the top player for so many years constantly. Hera will never be able to dethrone him. Given viper’s injuries and lack of form gave Hera the upper hand

[@slimjim665]

100%

[@slimjim665]

@@purplehues001we all love Viper but this isn’t about Viper vs Hera to see who is better. Viper is the goat, but maybe Hera can inherit that title eventually. Hera coming to GL is more about bringing the right kind of mindset, energy, and work ethic to a group that is serious about building the professional scene and content for aoe2. I can’t think of two better level headed, skilled, and committed players. Very happy for all involved, and for us fans too.

[@NachoAoE]

One of the best episodes yet. Thank you so much guys! Really appreciate this, I don't usually watch 90 minutes on youtube but you're worth it

[@itellyouwhy6957]

Love how everyone lets each other speak. Superb

[@timoheinrich8763]

True! Everyone seems so self-reflected, it's wonderful to see!

[@viniciusbonatto3943]

Masmorra is such a good interviewer/moderator, with his questions and way he conducts the whole thing.

[@Carlot237]

Hera is using his words really wisely. You can hear that he is dedicated. Great input from him and great addition to GL

[@retrofly9]

He has a very wise head on such young shoulders, we really have watched this young man grow up in front of our eyes. The way he looks at the long term is very interesting, the guy is working now to sort himself out for the future.

[@FredroStarr12]

thanks for sharing the interview. commenting on youtube stream, I prefer it over twitch for several reasons: 1) I can easily go back /rewind and catch up to live stream since I live in east coast and games were starting early. (Biggest reason) 2) KZbin performance is much better and app is smoother (on mobile, ipad or on google tv) 2) I am already a youtube premium subscriber and don't have to worry about twitch advertisements (although I could use my prime subscribe on twitch so this isn't a big deal) 4) the chat isn't a big deal and I'm a casual viewer. KZbin had a decent chat anyway with 8k watchers on the final

[@albertoperez5534]

Hats off to Hera putting on all the work he is doing

[@kieran7409]

@51:57 Hera's bang on here. We need a solid German to organise things and nili's fantastic at that. A nili calendar would be awesome for attracting sponsors

[@Tembies-jk4tx]

Great discussions! And not having a calendar for events throughout at least 6 months is super annoying as a casual watcher.

[@andresperedo1275]

Totally agree with Hera when he says: "More collabs" And, as always, great podcast! Thanks!

[@margaretadams6445]

You and Jordan will be missed nilli GL won't be the same without you

[@squishat]

wanted to add on to the topic of watching on youtube vs twitch for NAC V: Hera saying more casual players finding YT is true. For me though, YT having rewind function and being able to watch the stream back at any point before live was huge. I could skip/scroll through the highlights of the earlier games I missed when during downtime in the "live". There was so much more flexibility to the viewing experience. I think it's great for people that can't watch the whole set live. Me working at the same time throughout the tourny timing also meant that the lower YT engagement with viewers was actually a good thing, could use it more as BGM but also follow on the games and scores.

[@Cheximus]

I watch vods mainly, but mostly to skip forwards. The rewinding definitely helps though. Good point about YT live being able to rewind. Twitch chat at these figures is generally mindless garbage but there are some moments of magic in there.

[@tag180rotax]

Bro that Scrubs, Prison Break, Game of Thrones reference was too real

[@vosster]

An official AoE2 calendar would really be imperative to a successful future for the game. Liquipedia is already doing a good job at giving an overview of dates and events. That's a start to get more casual viewers to come back regularly without the need to follow several streamers closely for months.

[@angryxeuz]

Thank you Hera for understanding and explaining about us regular people watching from KZbin and don't know when any new tournaments are coming.

[@fasstaerke]

the reason Heras is so dominant atm? easy, a man with a clear plan, for him, his carreer, the game etc. he has the mindset of a professional sports player, similar to very sucessful lets say, tennis players, some footballers, basketballers, even darts players, he sees opportunity, he knows its not gonna last forever, it can seem a bit arrogant but I think its confidence and well, winning 5 s-tier i a row he has every reason to be very confident. Im super curious to see how he finds in place inside the GL family with them having developed such a deep friendship over the years

[@mrsmith5723]

And don't forget his excursion to League of Legends. It might have not been the success he envisioned but he came back on a completely different level of skill and professionalism. In my opinion none of the “old” top players will ever be able to reach his level. So, either we see new talents rise (or be attracted from outside) or this will be a Hera-Only-Show for a long time.

[@rynominnie83]

35:30 KZbin streams are the best for tournaments/streams where I want to be sure not to miss anything. You can easily pause & rewind & rewatch anything you missed and then just catch right up. Only way to do that on Twitch is to go to the vod, which is a pain. Twitch is better when it comes to the community aspect around less competition-oriented streams

[@Debrijja]

this podcast takes the aoe2 scene to the next level. irreplaceable for die hard fans, please keep it up!!

[@giovannipiantanida2198]

The quality of This content is incredible. Well done guys!

[@maelmoor]

Another amazing episode, really loving them!! My favourite moment was when Hera had the low HP scout in Dauts base for several minutes and Daut tried to kill it! Loved how both of them laughed about it! 😂

[@naveendennis]

It’ll be interesting to see what kind of a team dynamic Hera brings to GL in terms of practice and strategy discussions! And the collabs are likely going to be easier with the other members of GL which is going to be a lot of fun too!

[@abreviated1460]

There goes Jordan’s PM career once his boss tunes in 11

[@aswathananthasamy]

Not really 😂 he might be up for a promotion if the higher ups see his dedication 11

[@jrtodd-br4zc]

Jordan is a machine. A machine that outputs smiles. And magic. And death (of opponents aoe units)

[@PruthviChauhan]

Big Hera fan.. And very happy for him. Hopefully him joining, makes others step up their game and create other clans strong enough to take on GL for healthy competition.

[@karnazacss]

Hera was right, I watch LEL for ASMR almost every night and I wish to have a more chill format of it.

[@thefire-nanceguy4440]

he never explained, what is ASMR? I havent heard the acronym before

[@floriangailliegue6760]

This community is amazing. It's even hard to cheer for someone over the others as they are all great.

[@Kaiser_Johan]

I primarily watch streams if possible on KZbin because I care nothing for twitch chat and KZbin app works so much better on TVs

[@moritzmonska9912]

I think the last point here is very important. I literally cheered and cried at the climax of Red Bull Wololo 3, when DauT suprised everyone and got the victory. Thats how much these tournaments can give a spectator (and noob player) in a thriving scene like this. Since then at latest, I always wished to know when to come back for a tournament and tune in.

[@TheCptNutter]

❤ Love these. Keep them coming please. I tend to listen on Spotify, but wanted to add a comment here as well to help show support.

[@basstscho1400]

Thx for the content and nice chat at NAC. Your heavy scorps will be remembered ;)

[@Shoz3344]

Those 90 minutes were really informative and entertaining, loved it! By the way, a calendar with the events would be such a good thing!

[@PatataMaxtex]

I was hyped for this episode since I heard that it will come. LETS GOOOO

[@leifdurcholz8486]

pooplord is literally in a 8 hour oasis game right now

[@GLAgeOfEmpires]

haunting

[@10Hangman]

You guys keep bringing such great updates on the scene, thank you!!

[@CaJScar]

Really nice podcast, might be the first one i have listenend from start to finish without skipping anything

[@donaldfarquar]

How come Viper didn't do any wizard tricks in this one? 11 Great podcast. Hats off to Nili as well, putting his and familys happiness first and still pulling NAC 5 together as a perfect way to say goodbye.

[@threeprongedfork7061]

Such a good discussion, I'm excited to have someone as driven and knowledgeable about growth as Hera join the team

[@gmat4380]

Best one yet. Thank you so much everyone!

[@pb_powell]

Nice podcast again and I hope the topic of the calendar catches on. It seems like the last big topic you guys spoke about, money for qualifiers, already seems to catch on given T90 grants 10k to them.

[@rafaelcordioli4115]

KZbin is so much better. Specially if you already have a subscription to avoid the ads..

[@felixkohler9001]

Very interesting episode again! Hope the things you mentioned get implemented so that our scene can grow!

[@gezmac4399]

Hera is right. I’ve searched for aoe resource gathering ASMR multiple times. Someone deliver please!

[@krarch6959]

kzbin.info/www/bejne/j5rHiX-Ke5Wimrc this is the closest thing I found to ASMR and I use it sometimes to study :)

[@gezmac4399]

@@krarch6959oh wow. How did i not come across this. KZbin search function so bad!

[@G31GER_AOE]

amazing stuff guys you got my support, great stuff to listen too at work

[@retrofly9]

Amazing insightful podcast into the whole AOE scene and peoples thoughts on the current state of the game, honestly one of the best AOE podcasts I've listened to, great content.

[@dodgydondbo1361]

From a viewers perspective, the random bans were great!!!!

[@eledaauvenatus4006]

Keep up the good work, really enjoy these videos and this content!

[@xnghtvsn]

I'm really looking forward to see this new chapter in Hera's and GL's future ahead, nice episode!

[@esdalan7922]

Nice episode as always. Keep up the great work.

[@tomtomminger6227]

What an amazing episode! Thank you, Nili, for everything. And thanks to Masmorra for the fantastic interview. Keep them coming and our beloved game alive and kicking.

[@shahrezaDE]

These podcast are really wel put together. ❤

[@agehonor6420]

Amazing Podcast again. Exited for the Addition of Hera in the content. And Rising Teams was mentioned

[@TheNighthawk00]

Super episode. Thank you very much.

[@MamelukeAoE]

And props to Savvy what a beast! -Mameluke

[@lemarquisdemonocle]

Amazing content as usual ! Keep going ❤

[@charleston7717]

Love it, cheers GL

[@turbanheadless]

Hera is right. KZbin is the best platform, i dont engage in twitch if that option is there.

[@Dsnake5]

Soooooooo good! Amazing podcast!

[@fasstaerke]

NAC is, for me, the most interesting Aoe" tournament format, seeing the players interact away from the pc, would love more insight, why to oeple love instagram, cause they wanna see the daily life of their stars, similar here :) NAC could also become like a country hopping format, hire a house in different places on earth which have a big aoe2 community, bring in the top 10, lets go

[@MRRookie232]

Keep up the great work guys. Nili will always be a legend within the AOE space. Great to see Hera’s hustle and looking forward to see how he transforms this space. More collaborations with other players has big potential!

[@Obsto123]

thanks for the great work❤

[@emilienjeanson8479]

Great episode Thank you

[@paradox_303]

Thought my monitor had a mark on it in the top left. Nice one bruvs.

[@GLAgeOfEmpires]

Me too! Some nice NACV relic

[@animes1988]

Can relate.

[@lherrero]

I have been waiting for this!

[@basementrocketry5868]

Great episode, commenting for the algorithm gods! Really excited for the new-age energy Hera is bringing!

[@abhijeetantin6510]

I love these podcasts! Love to see the biggest players' and casters' opinions on all things AOE2.

[@NeoXist]

Very fun episode guys! I agree with the calendar! In Dota2 and League etc. you can very reliably expect when tournaments are happening and a long time before it as well so I think a calendar with structure can be very beneficial to the scene.

[@Cacun]

Amazing episode as always, nice to see Hera and Nili on it and all your POV on so many topics GG WP all and GL HF Nili

[@Questelp]

I think the last segment is very important. I stumbeled upon nac5 cause of the gl twitter account and before that i didnt watch aoe in a long time.

[@GLAgeOfEmpires]

So nice to hear! Usually its the other way around :)

[@chefkoch930]

Great Episode!

[@nesbe3174]

First time watching the podcast. Great show, keep up the good work. :)

[@PhilosophiPie]

loving it!

[@intiparis5970]

the ending made me cry and i havent cried in months

[@boatman2801]

Great episode once again! Best podcast in the AOE2 community

[@pmApostic]

good discussion from some real professionals.

[@LIDOOOL]

Amazing episode!!

[@SilasPT]

As a AM fan I entirely agree with Hera on the GL vs AM team debate. While his skill set is very versatile and makes him the 1# 1v1 player at the moment. It doesn’t directly translate intro teamgame value were a smaller skillset can be more valuable. I honestly considered Liereyy a more important player to AM due to being really incomparable to anyone else in the scene in terms of a archer/flank player. In a team game Liereyy on 1-2 tc flank feels as much of a threat long term as a 3-4 tc pocket knight player.

[@BlueStrawberry_]

great Podcast! Keep going

[@ar1sm70]

Great discussion as always guys, keep it up :)

[@Clickmoi]

What are your weaknesses ? Hera responded it perfectly, the best player is the one that makes the least mistakes and that is right for every sport, competition...

[@urarthur675]

listened to it to fall asleep, needless to say, didnt fall asleep. Good episod!

[@Thomas-wf8qv]

great episode. Congrats to Nili on such a successful tourney, best of luck with the future. On the podcast you have spoken about how a rising tide lifts all ships before, and I think it's the same for GL. They are not so massive that they have a monopoly on every aspect of competitive AOE, so I think them getting better in regards to getting Hera is actually good for the scene, shows other teams what is possible, and other players what they can strive for. I also think the community aspect of AOE 2 is so important, as they mentioned about practicing with other people outside of their teams, but also the ability and willingness to work together with other content creators/ casters/ players, I think is so good and hopefully will be utilised even more.

[@ca11um284]

KZbin is so much better to watch live steams on than twitch! Almost no ads, you can rewind, pause it’s a much better viewing experience

[@toffitoff]

you are amazing, thank you so much

[@matthewbecker230]

love this podcast

[@KurtFan69]

Great pod like always!! Nili is right about NAC, the best idea going fowards is not to try to continue NAC but to do another lan tourneys with similar format but with their own spin

[@brolafdanaross9787]

I was waiting for this episode ! Long live GL Hera

[@dcanerkurt]

Thank you Nili!

[@brandonkilpatrick2145]

Great pod!

[@nemes1s_aoe]

Love this community

[@MamelukeAoE]

Keep making these!

[@MogheesShahid]

36:14 I would like to add here that sometimes, due whatever reasons, when twitch was buffering alot, youtube didn't have any buffering issues. Plus, a much simpler interface. So, when i was travelling, i would use youtube, but when i was at home, i would go for twitch because the stream is one story but there are a million stories going on in the twitch chat and that makes it far more enjoyable.

[@Dirkulos]

Great Content, thx guys! Welcome Hera❤ Goodbye Nili, danke das du mich wieder in die Aoe2 Community geholt hast. Auch wenn ich seit über 10 Jahren nicht mehr spiele, es war immer mein Lieblingsspiel. Alles gute für dich. Grüße aus Hamburg 👋

[@jeremykothe2847]

I think the "colab" point Hera made is super important. eg: People like Daut/MBL would benefit a ton from having their content highlighted by others, even if they were being made fun of. Part of it I think comes down to reducing the number of S-tier tournaments down to a level where there is actually time between them. Right now, every "pro" player is either playing in a tournament or practising for one, neither of which is conducive to their own content creation since they need to keep strats private. Having those players available to play in "show matches" would be better. As a concrete example, two of my favourite ever matches to watch were when MBL and Hera appeared in T90 community games. Them slapping their big presence around, being ganged up on and then ultimately humbled was fascinating to watch. I guess T90 is the real "king" of non-tournament content, and he and Dave have made that work really well. Many others could. Viper I could definitely see doing more community content, especially combined with other pros. eg: Viper could invite FreakingAndy or MBL to play against Tatoh, in a 4v4 with one pro on each side and three "viewers" filling in the spots, and just commentate/meme around. Or... maybe get a group of creators together to do an "all in" challenge with a meme idea against all comers, like say Goth spam only, or archers only etc. Where everyone knows they'll lose eventually but seeing them try to make it work... Just random ideas but I applaud Hera for making the point!