This Week in 40K Podcasting – 10/26/2012 – 11/01/2012

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

Here is this week’s top 5!

Jaded Gamercast – Episode 100! ***Explicit***

Highlights:  This week the boys are celebrating their 100^th episode with some adult beverages (a lot more than usual) and a special guest, Ward.  After rolling for their beverages to start the show off, the guys take a look back at the last two years of podcasting for them.  They discuss some of the things they are looking at changing on the show like ‘Higher Learning’ and keeping their ‘all-gaming’ format will stay to keep content fresh.  They discuss their ‘not for profit’ policy, guest hosts/speakers, and some off topic conversation like the latest ‘Batman’ movie, Dr. Who, and the Ravenor Series.  They move on to talk about the new Warriors of Chaos models for their upcoming release.  Next, the guys talked about some TV shows, movies, and which Black Library 40K book would make the best movie.  Then the boys discussed tournaments, running them and which missions to pick for those events, and the recent ‘Onslaught’ event that Ward ran.  This degraded into conversations on how drunk they were to a very drunk ‘Higher Learning: Tyranids’, well sort of. 

Opinion:  This week, Jaded Gamercast joins the ranks of the 11^th Company, the Overlords, and the now gone but not forgotten Dice Like Thunder as 40K based podcasts to have hit their 100^th episode.  This is a monumental achievement, and I wanted to personally thank Lange and Nathan for 100 episodes of fun, laughter, and great podcasting.  They should be proud of their overall body of work; that they have never and will never accept any kind of finical support from their fans or sponsors and really do the show just for fun!  I am always disappointed that I can only crack open a fresh Mt. Dew rather then something flammable in my glass when I listen to the show at work.  Both of the guys are ex-GW employees and they have offered up so much in ways of insider insight and knowledge I have kept listening even when they review other games that are not 40K.  As for this week’s show, sadly, this episode was easily one of their historic worst, and they admit that.  It reminded me a lot of the legendary ‘Drunk-Like-Thunder’ episode where the show started off with a direction and as the drinks began to flow, the topics began to meander.  The hosts went from coherent to sloppy drunk in about an hour and lost focus on any of the topics they wanted to talk about, expect on how drunk they were.  If not for being their 100^th, this would not have reached the top 5, but I wanted to pay my respects to a podcast that hit this historic mark.  It was fun to hear the guys get drunk, but the content was really lacking.  Check out their other shows though, as I am looking forward to the format change.  Congratulations guys!

The 11th Company – Episode 139 

Highlights:  This week the guys are looking at Blood Angels in 6^th Edition.  They open up the show with ‘This Week in Gaming’ where they discuss their latest gaming and hobby progress.  This included Alan’s Feat of Blades review with all of the controversy and interesting scoring.  Next, in ‘Pat’s Corner’, Pat had an interview with Gordon Danke and his Grey Knight list. They then played the latest parody song from the Screaming Heretics!  In the ‘Community’ segment, we heard from Aaron from the Indy Open, Table War, Craig from Crucible 2, Noobhammer and more!  Next, the boys take a closer look at Blood Angels in 6^th Edition and they open up with where they feel BA stand in the overall grand scheme of the game and some generic lists make ups.  This included a discussion about how bad Razorback spam is now in 6^th and some theorizing about good lists for Blood Angels. They talked about how good the Divination tree is for BA, the Storm Raven, the Furioso Dreadnaught, and their Allies.  They move into their review of the book; highlighting the Special Rules and how they have change in 6^th before moving on to looking at the Troops.  They touch on the Devastator Squad, Sternguard and Vanguard Vets, Terminators, and the Dreadnaughts!  They move on to the Bike Squads, the not so useful Scouts, Land Speeders and Rhino/Razorbacks, Whirlwinds, Predators, Vindicators and Attack Bikes.  They glanced over the Storm Raven and Landraiders as they had already touched on them previously.  They then run quickly through the HQ choices, stopping to focus on Chaplains, Librarians, Mephiston, Sanguinary Priests and Guard, and Dante. They close out the show with their ‘Q&A from Facebook’ segment.   

Opinion:  This week the guys get back on track with their 6^th Edition review with the new direction of looking at each Codex.  I, for one, was ecstatic to hear this!  Their look at Codex Blood Angels in 6^th was just outstanding.  It was not nearly as in-depth as we have come to expect from the guys, however it was enough to know where the army stands in this new edition.  Also, Alan’s look at the Feast of Blades was quite informative and entertaining.  Overall, a great show gang!

Deepstrike Radio – Episode 47

Highlights:  This week the podcast celebrates their second anniversary!  They take a few minutes to look back at the last two years of podcasting before moving on to what they have been up to lately in gaming and the hobby.  They move on to the news which included an FAQ to the Chaos Space Marine codex, the latest from the Black Library, and some third party companies.  After a break, the guys continued the coverage of the Chaos Space Marine codex with two ‘Armory’ sections!  In the first, each of the staff built a 1000 point list, and Chase started off with a Tzeentch themed Thousand Sons list.  He discusses what the Mark of Tzeentch does, some of the powers you can roll for, and the details of his list.  Jim took the 1000 point World Eaters list, and Chris did up a Black Legion list.  In the second segment, Chris did an 1850 point Night Lords list with some Forgeworld models adding in for flavor.  Chase did an undivided Alpha Legion 2000 point list with some IG allies, and Jim took the reins for a 2500 point Soul Reapers list, which come from his own fan-dex found on his blog Galaxy in Flame.  The guys close out the show with ‘the Hobby Trenches’ where they discuss the new Chaos kits, starting with the Mauler/Forgefiend box set.  They move on to the Helldrake and some of the issues they have with that model, the Raptors/Warp Talons kit, and the new Finecast HQ choices.  They also talk about some of the latest releases from third party products that coincided with the CSM release. 

Opinion:  Frist, on a sad note, Chris has decided to leave the DSR podcast and this was his last show as a full time host.  I want to wish him well and let him know to contact me with his new podcast once it is up and running!  I am really looking forward to it.  Overall this was a fun show, full of some great list building ideas.  I also really enjoyed the Hobby Trenches with a great look at the new CSM models, I have plenty of guys in my gaming group I am point to this podcast for some helpful tips on those new models.  Nice work guys!

Imperial Vox Cast – Episode 85 ***Explicit***

Highlights:  This week, Silas is back and the boys are also joined by Carl from the Independent Character.  They open up the show with what they have been doing lately in gaming and the hobby.  This included a team tournament that Silas and his friend Pablo attended and the new Plague Zombie FAQ.  They move on to their review of the Chaos Space Marine codex, they started with their initial impressions of the book itself.  They move on to talk about the HQ choices and their favorite pieces of wargear for the HQ choices.  They move on to discuss the overall aesthetics of the army and the new look and feel of the Daemon engines.  They move on to discuss the new Terminators and what has changed about them from their previous versions, and Bill had a complaint about the lack of grenades for units that could use them.  They also talked about the Dirge Caster vehicle upgrade, how cool the Chaos Spawn has gotten in this new codex, and the Veterans of the Long War upgrade.  They then take a look forward at the design of this Codex and discuss if this is the new GW design philosophy for future codices, and some of the already broken combo people are coming up with, including the Epidemius list.  They close out the show by discussing the Allies that Chaos can take and their good buddies the Chaos Daemons. 

Opinion:  This show was a really good quick overview of the new CSM codex.  It was not nearly as in-depth as some, but I like the direction and the possible competitive builds the guys discussed.  Not to mention it was great to hear from Silas again, we missed ya man, and Carl is easily one of my favorite people.  So a great show that I really enjoyed! 

The Overlords – Episode 112 ***Explicit***

Highlights:  This week the guys are joined by Skew and Sam, and they open up the show with a brief review of the news, which included the GW Mega Paint Set, the Scimitar Jetbikes from Forgeworld, and more.  Next, the boys move on to what they have been up to lately in gaming and the hobby.  Then, in ‘From the Trenches’ the boys revisit Codex Eldar and take a look at it in 6^th Edition.  They discussed where the army was at the end of 5^th Edition and how it has evolved in 6^th Edition, this included some effective builds for Eldar now and taking Eldar as Allies.  Next was a massive ‘Hobby Inferno’ segment that covered multiple subjects.  First Sam led the discussion about air brushing for beginners and covered some great uses for an air brush, how much easier base coats and shading can be, and much more.  Next, the boys have a tutorial on how to magnetize your models.  They offer up some great tips on how to do it, what tools you need, what to watch out for before you start the process, and where to get the right magnets.  Next, the boys answer some questions from their fans, and this covered terrain building tips, their favorite models to paint, fun with Matte Varnish, and much more!  Next up, Ciaran drops by to do part two of the Overlords look at the new Chaos Space Marine Codex!  First, they cover some things that they missed in part one, mostly dealing with Marks and their effects on different units.  They then move on to talk about the icons and how they can make some tough units and the Steeds that the Lords can take.  They then touch on the awesome Chaos Spawn before moving on to each and every one of the Psychic powers available in this new Codex.  Ciaran then moves on to give his overall impression of the Codex and what his experience with the Codex has shown him so far.  They also talk about the Plague Zombie list and all of the fun that can be had there.     

Opinion:  What an outstanding hobby filled show this one was!  The boys really did put together a get hobby show this week with everything from air brushing tips to magnetizing.  I can tell you I have been reluctant to get an air brush, but between the Overlords and the Screaming Heretics, you guys have me convinced to ask Santa for one.  And it was awesome to hear from Ciaran once again with a good look at some aspects of the new CSM codex.  Nice show guys, but where is my man Steve?

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

Signals from the Frontline ***Explicit***  Dark Angels/Space Marine Rumors, San Antonio Game Event, Feast of Blades Discussion

Life After the Cover Save – Episode 57 ***Explicit***  Halloween Special, Golden Ticket review, and top 3 Scariest Childhood Memories

El Pee and the Man – Episode 49 ***Explicit***  Bad Music, Blood Bowl, and Chaos Codex review

Skard – Episode 18  Exiting a campaign the right way, GW leaked releases, and local events!

Second Founding – Episode 16  Kickstarter Projects, Killzone and Terrain, and Big Jim!

The Eternal Warriors – Episode 46 ***Explicit***  Blood Bowl, Black Library review, and the CSM Codex Review!

Screaming Heretic – Episode 35 ***Explicit***  New parody song, Laser Cutting with ‘Burn In Design’, Kiss my Khorne, Painting Tips and much more!