Summer of 2015 Podcast Roundup

Well over the years Podcasts have come and gone.

Some of my favorites are now sadly finished.  I used to love 40k Radio but its just not the same as it was when the original hosts were on it.  I also used to listen to World's End Radio, Turn 8, Deepstrike Radio and Second Founding and now they are all done.

Also it is sad news that two podcasts which have been long time pillars of the 40k podcast community and ones I love listening to are closing their doors: 11th Company and Independent Characters.

I've updated my list of Podcasts on the right side of my blog to include the new ones I am listing here.  I am also keeping the links to 11th Company and the Independent Characters because maybe, just maybe they will return one day. The Independent Characters will continue to have their forums active for the forseeable future so that is encouraging.

Anyways onto the new podcasts I have added to my Podcast roll call:

After Ullanor (30k)
This podcast is like a book club.  The hosts are reviewing each Black Library Horus Heresy book in order.  Each book usually takes up 2 or 3 podcasts to discuss.  It is really fantastic to listen to these guys go over each book chapter by chapter to discuss the story.

Its great for someone who is reading along with them so that you get analysis of the books you are reading.  I think it adds more depth of understanding to these novels.

Its also great for someone who has never read the books and is not sure if they ever will.  Its a great quick way to get the story of the Heresy without having to read the novels.

The Imperial Truth (30k)
This is another 30k podcast but they focus more on gaming and hobby aspect of playing games in the 31st Millenium.

Very fun podcast to listen to.  I would encourage any Heresy Era gamer to listen to this one, After Ullanor and the following podcast.

Eye Of Horus Podcast (30k)
The Eye of Horus podcast is based in Australia and unlike the previous two I've listed above is definitely not kid-friendly.  This podcast contains adult themes and words just as a warning.

I have to say, however that this is currently the podcast I am most addicted to.  They release EVERY WEEK, which is kind of ridiculous but also great as there is always new content to listen to.  They are also very entertaining and quite funny.

They currently have a few episodes out dedicated to specific factions such as the Mechanicum and Imperial Cults.  These episodes are fantastic for someone trying to figure out where the rules are for these factions and then also how to build armies for them

Their Fluff/WAAC section of the podcast is great because they take listener submitted army lists and critique them and rate them on a Fluff scale and a WAAC scale.

Also the Eye Of Horus has a very active Facebook page where they are constantly adding listener pictures and its worth a look.

I can't say how much this podcast has enthused me about 30k its just a great listen.

The Imperial Voxcast (40k)
This is a long-running 40k podcast hosted by Bill and Dawson which is focused somewhat on competitive 40k but not to the point where its condescending like the 11th Company sometimes felt.

The 11th Company always tried to be 'fair and balanced' but came off as WAAC gamers on occasion even though I know they weren't and they were always god at explaining their point of view which really helped me understand where they were coming from and gave me new respect for tournament-goers.

The Imperial Voxcast is kind of an 11th company 'light' but still very informative and entertaining.  I believe it is currently manned by just two guys who definitely know what they are talking about.

If you are interested in current 40k news and developments as well as codex reviews you could do a lot worse than the Imperial Voxcast.

Preferred Enemies Podcast (40k)
Preferred Enemies is another more competitive-focused podcast with current event news and codex reviews along with Tournament talk and hobby info.

Preferred Enemies is another fairly long-running podcast that when you want to know about that new hot codex they are sure to have a full review along with competitive list-building tips.

Very easy to listen to podcast and I recommend it.

NGC 40k Podcast
The Narrative Gaming Club 40k Podcast is basically a podcast featuring members a group who have decided to go 'all-in' with 'narrative gaming' as opposed to 'tournament' or 'competitive' gaming.

They have chosen to focus on modeling and story-telling as the basis for their 40k hobby experience.

This is a brand new podcast which just released its first episode last week.  While it is still trying to find its way as a podcast the first episode is quite good for a first attempt and the host, Peter, seems to be perfect for the job.

The first episode starts with an introduction to the two main contributors to the podcast, Peter and Mark.

I must give full disclosure here as I am a good friend with Mark and so I listened to this podcast because of him.  That being said, I still found this first episode to be quite engaging.  I listened to the whole thing in one sitting and I enjoyed every bit of it.

Peter then goes on to talk about the hobby segment of the episode which is focused on the Imperial Knights he is working on.  He mentions that you can look at pictures of the Knight in the Hobby Spotlight section of the web page, which is a little confusing.  The Hobby Spotlight section is in their forums.  To access the section you must click on 'NGC40K Forum' and then enter the forums to find the Hobby Spotlight to view the pics of his Knights.  It took me a little while to find that.

Also in the podcast they talk about Peter's Apocluck Apocalypse Campaign.  It basically a way for people in the group to play with all of their big toys, like an Eldar Phantom titan, on a regular basis.

I actually played in one of these Apocalypse games and I have to say I was impressed by it.  We got through I think 6 turns in one afternoon and I never felt like I was being rushed even though we had timed turns.

The only part of the episode I thought was a bit out of place was the 'Bolter Porn' section.  I enjoyed the discussion much more than the sounds of bolter fire.

I believe in the future they will discuss more campaigns they have run as well as individual games which had a strong story element to them and I am looking forward to that.

Overall it was a great first outing and hopefully many more episodes will follow.


Well that's it for my Podcast roundup.

Next blog post I will be discussing 30k Iron Warriors.