This Week in 40K Podcasting – 8/2/2012 – 8/9/2012

Welcome to another “This Week in 40K Podcasting,”

Here is this week’s Top 5!

The 11th Company – Episode – 129 

Highlights:  This week it is back to more of the guys complete 6^th Edition review.  The guys are joined by Dave from the Eternal Warriors and they up the show with ‘This Week in Gaming’, which included their ‘Feast of Blades’ qualifier results.  Neil took 1^st place despite not caring for his list very much.  Next, in ‘Pat’s Corner’, Pat has an interview with Adam Gati from the Sprit Chamber blog and they discussed his Eldar army and how it is performing in 6^th Edition.  Next, Pat talked to Jema from the Black Library Expo and Black Library author Gav Thorpe!  Pat had the chance to ask Gav some questions about the books he has written and his career as a whole working for Games Workshop.  This is really an amazing conversation you need to hear for yourself.  In the community segment, we hear from Mike Brandt from the Nova Open, Noobhammer, the Overlords, Hitting on 3s, and more.  Next it is back to the full review of 6^thEdition, and the guys start off their conversation with Psykers and psychic powers.  This included changes with the new powers, warp tokens, and mastery levels.  Next was part one of their coverage of Vehicles and the drastic changes found here.  They open up discussing the Hull Point mechanic and how this has adversely affected low armor vehicles and tanks.  Conversely, AV 13+ vehicles got a lot better and can still shoot after being hit.  They also talk about the change to the Flat Out rule, and how that nerfed a few things from 5^th.  This also moved on to a discussion about how blast and plasma weapons have changes in the new rules.  They close out the show with a discussion about the changes to AP 2 and 1 weapons and how they have changed what happens on the vehicle damage chart, vehicles and cover saves, and how assaulting out of transports have changed. 

Opinion:  I personally can not get enough of the 11^th Company lately!  Their review of the 6^th Edition rules has been second to none, covering over every little nuance of the new game.  I love it!  Pat’s interview with Gav Thorpe, one of my favorite Black Library authors, was also outstanding!  Great work guys!

The Overlords – Episode 106 ***Explicit***

Highlights:  This week Steve’s son joins the cast and they open up the show with the latest news, including their upcoming event, GW and the new Daemons rules in White Dwarf, the latest from Forgeworld including the new Horus Hersey books, and what is due up next from the Black Library.  They then have a short interview with Steve’s son as he discusses his new Chaos Space Marine army.  Next, the guys move on to what they have been doing lately in gaming and the hobby.  This included Jason heading back to the USA and meeting up with the Independent Characters, games between Jason and Steve, and Jon’s brief review of his painting and an upcoming Apocalypse game.  Next up the guys did a rules review of the controversial rule of ‘Look out, Sir!’  They discuss how the rule is intended to work and how some people are trying to rule lawyer it to work.  Next, the guys discussed how 6^th Edition has changed the newest codices and how they seem to have been written for this edition of the game.  They take their time to run down each of the codices and give a brief overview of how well or not so well they are performing in 6^th Edition.  This included a pretty detailed discussion about the IG and how much better they have gotten and the glory that is the Vendetta!  They ended it there and plan to pick it up next show.   

Opinion:  Call me old fashion, if that term applies in the world of 40K podcasting, but I really miss the jingles.  However, despite their absence, the Overlords clocked in with another signature show which included everything I have grown to love form them.  And it was awesome to hear from Steve’s son again, who hasn’t been on the show since some of the early episodes.  A great show this week guys, keep it up!

The Preferred Enemies – Episode 34 ***Explicit***

Highlights:  This week the guys take a look at how 6^th Edition has changed their armies.  They open up the show by reviewing what has been announced/released in the latest White Dwarf, including new models and new rules for Daemons.  Next, the guys move on to the main segment of the show where they discuss what they feel has impacted the game the most, starting off by discussion Psychic Powers.  They then move on to look at the Eldar army and what has helped and hurt this army in 6^th.  Next, they discussed the Chaos Daemons codex and what they have been running and what they might ally in to help this army out.  Up next was Codex Tyranids and a debate on if they got any better or just didn’t get any worse, Grey Knights very briefly, and the soon to be out dated Chaos Space Marines running with Daemons.  They also talked about the Tau and that their Stealth Suits are now viable again and what to do with Black Templar.  They close out the show with their hobby updates, where they discuss what hey have been up to lately in gaming and the hobby. 

Opinion:  The PE have really been doing a great job covering 6^th, and it was interesting to hear their take on the new rules and how they impact the armies that they play.  I feel your pain with the Tyranids, I desperately want that army to be good once again.  But overall, this was a good review of some of the major players in 40K. 

Jaded Gamercast – 88 ***Explicit*** 

Highlights:  This week the guys have a very special guest, Mr. Dan Abnett and Jema the organizer of Black Library Expo.  They open up by discussing the expo and some of the plans they have for it.  Next, the guys move on to an interview with Dan Abnett and talk about his start with the Black Library, how impressed he is by the success of the novels and the expansion of the universe, and some of his more popular lines, such as Gaunt’s Ghosts.  Nathan and Lange then take turns asking Dan specific questions about his novels, leaning a lot towards the Gaunt’s Ghosts novels, and discussed the Guardians of the Galaxy movie that he is involved in.  They then discuss the possibility of another 40K movie and bringing 40K to the main stream, in the novels, and other media outlets.  They close out the show with some rapid fire questions for Dan, hitting on his Eisenhorn series, comic book questions, and much more. 

Opinion:  This was just a dream show for be, being the huge Dan Abnett fan that I am!  This was a great interview, with a little be of a less censored Dan.  His thoughts on my favorite series outside of the Horus Hersey, Gaunt’s Ghosts, were simply amazing.  I can’t say enough about this podcast, check it out!  A great show!

The Codex Project – Episode 10

Highlights:  This week the guys open up the show with what they have been doing lately in gaming, hobbying, and life.  This included some of their first games under the 6^th Edition rules and ‘Forging their Narrative’ and changes coming to their website format.  Next, the guys had a conversation about a recent event that was held with the GW design team for 40K 6^th Edition, and they talk about some of what came out of that, including the design philosophy.  They then talked about the rumors that Forgeworld models and rules will be completely tournament legal, despite Forgeworld’s denials of said claims.  Next, the guys discuss some of their views of 6^th Edition a month into the game.  This included some ‘bads’ that included wound allocation with multi-wound models, not being about to assault out of reserves, Hull Points not functioning correctly with a potential fix, 6^th Edition in the competitive environment and much more.  Next, the guys talk about their upcoming release of ‘How to run a narrative event’, a book full of tricks and tips to keep your players engaged during your entire event, and a full blown campaign.  They close out the show talking about Jeff’s move and finally getting a good gaming group to play with.  He discusses some of the events he plans to run once he gets there.   

Opinion:  I am slowly beginning to take a new appreciation for this podcast, coming from the point of view from two very experienced game designers.  I found their opinions quite insightful on the design of 6^thEdition, and some to their fixes to things like Hull Points should be submitted to GW, as they will make great corrections to this mechanic.  Great work guys!

Honorable Mentions – All great podcasts that just missed this cut this week, but you should still check them out, in no particular order:

The Heroic 28s – Episode 38 – ‘Feast of Blades’ qualifier, Brent from the Strictly Average blog, and Flying Monstrous Creatures

Ohiohammer: Second Founding – Episode 10 – Last Cheese Standing and Running events in 6th

The Screaming Heretic – Episode 31 ***Explicit*  – News, Aeronautica, Kiss My CSM List, Gamesday 2012 Interview w/James Swallow, and welcome back Joe!  Get better fast man!

Signals from the Frontline ***Explicit***  – GW release rumors, Tournament discussion, Golden Throne GT results