Solo Queue - A World of Warcraft Podcast

Down to the Bitter End - Ep 34

We had some technical difficulties at Solo Queue Headquarters as the year came to a close.  Fortunately, lost data was recovered and the episode is ready!  But, given it is New Year's Eve (here), I am skipping the show notes for now.  Enjoy and on to 2026!

Dave

HDYS Interview with Jibbs and Kash of Azeroth Morning Radio! - Ep 33

HDYS Interview with Jibbs and Kash of Azeroth Morning Radio! - Ep 33

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 33! – 2:29        

We dodged two goblin toughs for a few moments, but we will need to get the show going before they return.

 

“What Have You Done Lately?” and a bit of news – 3:07    

• Great response to Episode 32 and in particular the profile of my deceased uncle
• Did anyone notice the missing intro and outro music in Ep. 32?  Had to do a quick fix and re-upload
• 11.2.7 is out and I have not jumped into Housing
• Exciting to see all the creativity around Housing
• Will drive players into a lot of old content
• Please be patient while it all gets sorted and adjusted – this is a monumental addition to WoW
• I need to get into the 11.2.7 questline before it gets spoiled all over the place for me

Main Topic: Interview with Jibbs and Kash – 14:54

We chat about the success of Azeroth Morning Radio, its inspirations, and all the work behind it.  Of course, we mix in plenty of WoW talk along with some 11.2.7, our outlook on WoW in general, possible systems improvements, what they identify with in game, and, yes, Housing (they snuck in before we recorded without me – see if they ever get invited back to this show)

 

Lightning Round with two people! – 1:27:52

This is my chance to pit co-host against co-host and see who know whom better.  Will it be quick?  No.  Will it cause a podcast divorce?  Maybe, but if so, we have that covered, too.

 

Outro – 1:43:28

• Thanks to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, my lovely and supportive wife, my family, and YOU for listening.
• Support the show at https://www.patreon.com/soloqueuewow
• Thank you to contributing patrons Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Voldun, Jon, Scott, Jeru, Raven, Greybeard, Case, and Pasta Matt!  And thanks to free members Max, Eddie, Bear, Friends of Wumpus, Sean, Curro, Aronaar, AedinNahkriin, Guardian Sandy, Alice, Don, Kamil, Wednesday, Eric, and TJ!
• Subscribe to the podcast at your podcast feed of choice, Apple, Spotify, and all the rest.  Leave a 5-star rating and a written review to help grow Solo Queue.
• Find Kash on Twitter @kashquests; email AMR
• Find Jibbs on Twitter @jibbsirl
• Contact Azeroth Morning Radio by email at azerothmorningradio@gmail.com; visit the website azerothmorningradio.com
• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.
• Happy Winterveil and Merry Christmas!

“We will see you out there."

My WoW Family (Part 2) and the Story of Norm - Ep 32

My WoW Family (Part 2) and the Story of Norm - Ep 32

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 32! – 1:06        

After the first part of My WoW Family dropped, I was sidelined by some horrible throat cold.  Hard to record without a voice.  Having mostly recovered, it is time to continue the journey.

 

“What Have You Done Lately?” and a bit of news – 6:53    

• I am going to Blizzcon! Tickets and hotel acquired!  Will I see you there?  Let me know.
• Beta access has launched but I don’t have access because unlike when you buy a Blizzcon ticket, your Battle.Net account is not connected to your purchase of the Collector’s Edition. Will I have early access to Housing on December 2?
• Little progress in Legion Remix; wouldn’t screenshots from the game make for great wall paintings for Housing décor?
• Surprise! I am NOT actually participating in the 21^st anniversary events; stopped after a single trivia question

 

Main Topic: On Final WoW Family Story – 20:44

The most recent member of my WoW family appeared when helping me kill a K’aresh rare and hung out to teach me about Devourer Invasions

 

Raid of the Month:  Manaforge Omega? – 29:11

Now a few weeks ago, but the Lion’s Pride Tavern raid team was kind enough to let me run through 6 bosses of Heroic with them!  They might not have known it was my first ever current content raid, but they might have guessed from a few of my actions or inactions.

 

Profile of My Uncle Norm – 57:01

My uncle Norm was 9 years older than me and took me under his wing when he didn’t have to.  Then we drifted apart, and even stayed apart despite both playing WoW.  And then he passed away.  This profile dives into his WoW roster to see what I can learn about my uncle in his final years.  Thanks for listening along.  And thanks to my Aunt Connie for sharing Norm’s story and his account with me.

 

Drink of the Month – 1:46:13

Straight from my uncle’s bank, we crack a couple of Nethergarde Bitters and toast those who we all have lost.

 

SQ Mailbag – 1:47:37

Apple and Spotify and email – we finally catch up in the SQ Mailbag; keep the feedback coming!

 

Big Solo Queue Announcement! – 2:01:36

Why not start a Solo Together Housing Neighborhood and maybe even a guild?  Interested?  Let me know.

 

Outro – 2:05:33

• Thanks to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, my lovely and supportive wife, my family, and YOU for listening.
• Support the show at https://www.patreon.com/soloqueuewow
• Thank you to contributing patrons Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Voldun, Jon, Scott, Jeru, Raven, Greybeard, Case, and Pasta Matt!  And thanks to free members Max, Eddie, Bear, Friends of Wumpus, Sean, Curro, Aronaar, AedinNahkriin, Guardian Sandy, Alice, Don, Kamil, Wednesday, Eric, and TJ!
• Subscribe to the podcast at your podcast feed of choice, Apple, Spotify, and all the rest.  Leave a 5-star rating and a written review to help grow Solo Queue.
• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.
• Lots of gratitude as we approach American Thanksgiving.  See you in December for an interview episode.

“I will see you out there."

My WoW Family (Part 1) - Ep 31

My WoW Family (Part 1) - Ep 31

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 31! – 3:13         

After playing World of Warcraft alone for many years, it turns out that I have made some listeners, supporters, and friends along the way.  This episode (and the second half to follow shortly) aims to introduce you to my WoW family, the people who fit into my somewhat unsolo solo WoW life.

 

“What Have You Done Lately?” – 7:39           

• Grateful to have guested on Lion’s Pride Tavern, episode 450!
• Roster changes, now up to 66, but still leveling through Headless Horseman and candy buckets
• Have jumped into Legion Remix, but not quite to the crazy bronze grabbing level – close
• Couple of Headless Horseman encounter stories

 

News – 27:52

• A second new podcast alert – The Journey – A World of Warcraft Podcast has launched with a couple episodes; Winkari found inspiration for his casual WoW podcast from right here in Solo Queue!
• 2.7 coming with various features
• Midnight news includes beta testing on Nov. 11, portal room changes
• New Xbox will run on Windows, which can run Battle.net, which can run WoW
• Add-on culling; will I soon have to give up my Elvui?
• My thoughts on Blizzard’s push to reduce WoW complexity, including my Three Game Analogy where I compare WoW with the board games Scrabble, Risk, and my personal favorite, The Longest Day from Avalon Hill

 

Main Topic:  My WoW Family – 54:04

• My first WoW friend Kraise
• Two partitions on a Dell Precision M6800 17” that were my first two WoW computers
• Solo from 2015 to 2023 for various reasons
• Birth of Solo Queue
• Fellow WoW podcasters begin connect with me beginning with Gershom from TB; also Gin, Ali from LLL, Ease from RM, Denathar from AU, briefly Scott Johnson, and Jason from TSZ
• Snek of Vol’dun is my far away friend!
• Running M+2 keys with CasualCoo – check him out on Twitch
• SQ patron Case runs me through some Legion Remix dungeons and raids, including getting my M+30 achievement transmog!

 

Announcement

Going to split this big topic into two halves and return shortly with a unique Raid of the Month, my profile of a special WoW player in my life, the SQ mailbag, and a big announcement!

 

Outro – 1:47:51

• Thanks to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, my lovely and supportive wife, my family, and YOU for listening.
• Support the show at https://www.patreon.com/soloqueuewow
• Thank you to contributing patrons, Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Voldun, Jon, Scott, Jeru, Raven, and Greybeard.  And thanks to free members Max, Eddie, Bear, Friends of Wumpus, Sean, Curro, Aronaar, AedinNahkriin, Guardian Sandy, Alice, Don, Kamil, Case and welcome to Wednesday, Eric, and TJ!
• Subscribe to the podcast at your podcast feed of choice, Apple, Spotify, and all the rest.  Leave a 5-star rating and a written review to help grow Solo Queue.
• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.
• Solo Queue will return in My WoW Family (Part 2).

“I will see you out there."

Midnight Re-Launch 2.0 Redux - Episode 30

Midnight Re-Launch 2.0 Redux - Episode 30

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 30! – 2:25         

Could there be a few more roadblocks set to getting this episode out in an already busy part of my calendar?  Yes, I left that exact line from the Ep. 29 show notes because, well, same!  Couple people close to me needed some medical attention and they are on the mend now! But here we are in a news-filled episode

 

News – 7:43

• Some of my fellow podcasts hit some milestones – TSZ hits 700, TB hits 200, AU hits 100
• And welcome to Azeroth Morning Radio which posted its second episode this week. Check them out!
• Busy holiday calendar for October plus includes Brewfest, Harvest Fest, Darkmoon Faire, Great Gnomeregan Race, Hallow’s End, and Day of the Dead

 

Legion Remix Preview – 13:31

• What race/class combo should I create for Remix?
• Oh, I don’t have to level every class to 80 for the class mounts – you can BUY them!
• Mounts, mog, toys, and even housing décor are all available for a total well over 8 million bronze
• Spreadsheet to track it all: https://docs.google.com/spreadsheets/d/1vQ3Y8LmZKuCiINTq8QASJsxTZI4O5LJYTh0brnmV3i4/edit?pli=1&gid=0#gid=0
• Or use this website which connects to your actual characters (thanks SoulsoBreezy): https://wowchievement.com/tracker/legion-remix  

 

More News

• Turbo Boost starts Oct. 7, but the rest of it kicks in on Oct 21
• 2.7 launch on December 2 will include Pandaren heritage armor and Housing for those who pre-purchased the Midnight expansion!

 

Midnight Deep Dive – 36:37

• Midnight alpha is now out there; avoid spoilers as best you can
• Collector’s Edition is available for pre-order after its sneaky announcement
• The retirement of valorstones was greeted warmly by WoW players
• Walking through the Midnight Deep Dive and Developer Q&A videos on YouTube

 

Drink of the Month – 1:31:33

My goodness, it is Brewfest!  After chugging a Barleybrew Dark, it is time to talk about the new additions to Brewfest, which given my delays, ends minutes after you likely get this podcast in your hot little hands.

 

“What Have You Done Lately?” – 1:34:51     

• I have played some, but not much Brewfest and done a little leveling
• And that leveling got me to 80.3% of the maximum possible levels on a 65-character account just as the cap expands to 70
• Hoping for more WoW time and less IRL stuff in the coming weeks

 

Outro – 1:40:05

• Thanks to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, my lovely and supportive wife, and you for listening.
• Support the show at https://www.patreon.com/soloqueuewow
• Thank you to contributing patrons, Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Voldun, Jon, Scott, Jeru, Raven, and Greybeard.  And thanks to free members Max, Eddie, Bear, Friends of Wumpus, Sean, Curro, Aronaar, AedinNahkriin, Guardian Sandy, Alice, Don, Kamil, Case and welcome to Wednesday and Eric!
• Subscribe to the podcast at your podcast feed of choice, Apple, Spotify, and all the rest.  Leave a 5-star rating and a written review to help grow Solo Queue.
• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.

“I will see you out there."

Midnight Oil Definitely Got Burned - Episode 29

Midnight Oil Definitely Got Burned - Episode 29

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 29! – 3:27         

Could there be a few more roadblocks set to getting this episode out in an already busy part of my calendar?  Ep. 28 saw great numbers and a huge contribution to the recent surge was Denethar graciously interviewing me on Azeroth United and I am very grateful.  Also, I’m darn tired and dying to upload this episode, so notes may be a bit short this episode

 

“What have you done lately?” – 9:43

The IRL boss certainly got its licks in over the past 30 days, with school starting up, a sick relative, moving my entire WoW and recording setup and stuff and bookcases and books up to a new location in our house.  But, it was the confusion around the Midnight launch announcement that really was the biggest roadblock for me diving into this episode. 

 

“What ELSE have you done lately?” – 21:38

First I checked out completely and leveled my Earthen monk in MoP (not even Classic).  When I returned to K’arech, I did a small pile of Delves, finally hit Story Mode and the Follower Dungeon, but perhaps most exciting was earning the P.O.S.T. Master's Express Hearthstone from Katy Stampwhistle and her impromptu mailroom in Tazavesh.  And if you ever wondered if you lose a Great Vault if the week passes and you earn another one, you don’t.  I tested it for you.  Your welcome.

 

Drink of the Month – 58:42

For a break from collecting bees and honey in Stormsong Valley for Ecological Succession, I head over to The Golden Flagon in Brennadam.  “Nasty” Buck serves up a Mildenhall Mead.

 

Nostalgia Moment – 1:02:17

A new segment for WoW moments that take me back.  In the inaugural segment,  remember one retired podcast, Azeroth Public Radio and one mostly retired podcast, the Goblin Goldcast after hearing Mac on Lion’s Pride Tavern!  Go check out LPT!  Both are SQ’s forefathers.

 

News – 1:14:56            

• Legion Remix coming on Oct. 7 and bits of the Midnight features come in 11.2.7, like character cap of 70.
• Apple’s iOS 26 will have a feature that can boost voices in its Podcast listening app by suppressing background music and noise. DON’T USE IT or I will be sad with you.

 

Main Topic:  Midnight Announcement Kerfuffle – 1:24:13

The Gamescom announcement was a bit of a mess that took a couple of weeks to sort out, and this seems like a strange mistake for Blizzard.  Second mistake was the timing that saw the Midnight cinematic spoil the Manaforge Omega raid for anyone planning on LFR and Story Mode people unless you did it immediately after weekly reset.  This launch featured less mystery as well  All combined for much lower hype levels for me.

 

Midnight features of interest to me with my thoughts:

• Level cap to 90
• New or renovated zones of Eversong Woods, Zul’Aman, Harandar, and Voidstorm
• Character news: Haranir allied race, Void Elves as DHs, and a 3rd DH spec
• End game: 8 Dungeons, 3 Raids with 9 total bosses (but only 2 with Story Mode – WTF Blizz?), 10 Delves plus a Nemesis Delve
• Prey system is a neat idea for optional challenge
• Community Events return with some variety and in all zones
• Experiences for new and returning players getting needed updates and options
• UI improvements continue by targeting damage meters, encounter assistance, and name plate info; the beginning of Blizz bringing some add-on functions into the game

The janky launch made it difficult to be positive about Midnight.  Looking forward to that feeling fading into the past.

 

SQ Mailbag – 2:08:11

You all responded!  Many new ratings on Apple Podcasts returned SQ to a 4.8/5.0 and we have multiple new reviews on Apple and Spotify.  So grateful for the support!

 

Outro – 2:20:56

• Thanks to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, my lovely and supportive wife, and you for listening.
• Support the show at https://www.patreon.com/soloqueuewow
• Thank you to contributing patrons, Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Voldun, Jon, Scott, Jeru and the newest members of the Solo Crew, Raven and Greybeard.  And thanks to free members Max, Eddie, Bear, Friends of Wumpus, Sean, Curro, Aronaar, AedinNahkriin, Guardian Sandy, Alice, Don,  Kamil, and Case!
• Subscribe to the podcast at your podcast feed of choice, Apple, Spotify, and all the rest.  Leave a 5-star rating and a written review to help grow Solo Queue.
• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.

“I will see you out there."

11.Who Cares, It's Almost Midnight! - Episode 28

11.Who Cares, It's Almost Midnight! - Episode 28

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 28! – 1:45         

There is so much to discuss as we are on the cusp of the eleventh expansion of World of Warcraft.  Naturally, I suggestions for Blizzard for improving the game as the main topic

 

“What have you done lately?” – 6:09

Holy crap, there is so much I have done.  Buckle up.  It all seems to revolve around stories this episode.  Some piled up unlearned recipes leads three of my characters onto huge tangents in Northrend, I discover a flight school in Hallowfall with a weak, indecisive headmaster, and I reach an account-wide leveling milestone (only to learn later this episode that I am actually still 2 levels shy)

 

11.2 Reactions – 55:21            

The final major content patch for The War Within is live; Tazavesh is a cool city; comparing K’aresh to Argus, the (one) new Delve is solid; Bliz nailed it with optional depth of storytelling in the campaign questing.

 

Drink of the Month – 1:27:18

Sneaking some Badlands Bourbon north into Farstrider Retreat.

 

News – 1:32:08            

• Legion Remix announced in a post and video here: https://worldofwarcraft.blizzard.com/en-us/news/24224370
• My thoughts on it
• 2 is in full swing, including RTWF
• LFR Wing 2 and “Story” Mode raids launch today, August 19
• LFR Wing 3 comes August 26
• One more thing in the news…?

 

Main Topic:  Midnight Expansion Announcement – 1:45:02

Tuesday, August 19 (the day I FINALLY get this episode out), Blizzard will officially announce and introduce to us the Midnight expansion at Gamescom in Cologne, Germany.  2:00 PM at SQ HQ, 11:00 AM on the West Coast at Blizzard HQ, and I believe 3:00 on August 20 for my friend the Snek of Vol’dun!

 

My Midnight Wish List – 1:49:47       

My list of 10 requests, the 10 great ideas I have for improving WoW for everyone, but certainly solo players.  Free of charge, Bliz, free of charge.

 

SQ Mailbag – 2:08:11

One negative rating has me upset, but maybe not in the way you would expect.  But that is balanced by a new Patreon supporter who also likes my Solo Crew Refuge proposal for a player housing neighborhood.  And, if you have the time and interest in entering your own ratings or reviews of the show in your podcast app, that would make me feel good and further balance out that negative.

 

Outro – 2:38:30

• Thanks to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, my lovely and supportive wife, and you for listening.
• Support the show at https://www.patreon.com/soloqueuewow
• Thank you to patrons, Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Vol’dun, Jon, Scott and newest patron Jeru!  And thanks to all the free supporters as well!
• Subscribe to the podcast at your podcast feed of choice, Apple, Spotify, and all the rest.  Leave a 5-star rating and a written review to help grow Solo Queue.
• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.

“I will see you out there."

Episode 27 – Gotta Collect Them All

Episode 27 – Gotta Collect Them All

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 27! – 2:59        

A celebration in three parts, the first of which is celebrating my return to WoW and the SQ mic after an unforeseen absence.  Big thanks to Ali for coming on for Episode 24 and to Ali and Gin for having me on Live, Laugh, Lore to talk starting zones!

 

SQ Book Club – 8:11

A review of Dungeon Crawler Carl, the first book in a fantasy series by Matt Dinniman.  It gets the official SQ book recommendation for portraying the immersive MMORPG experience through an involuntary live-action global dungeon crawl with Carl and Princess Donut.   

 

News – 13:14

• March of the Sethrak 2 on July 20 a success: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=ABnqfS8YeKs
• Greedy Emissary event ends July 29 – collect them all!
• Winds of Mysterious Fortune event is live until Aug. 12
• Horrific Visions will continue into S3 but at S2 difficulty levels.
• Collector’s Bounty event ends July 29 as well – more collect them all!
• MoP launch event for the mount ends July 30
• “Doom of K’aresh” short story just released to give us backstory on the world we will be adventuring in, written by Adam Christopher and voiced by Ray Porter as Locus Walker: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=bSw8rW7fZ5c&t=2s
• The passing of Ozzy Osborne; will there be a WoW NPC in-game, or at least one everyone can reach?
• Housing update – types of neighborhoods and the endeavors
• Midnight expansion announcement at Gamescom on August 19!
• Changes to your bank tabs – level 80s need not worry

 

Drink of the Month – 58:57

A wild goose chase for an adult beverage all over the southern tip of Kalimdor.

 

“What have you done lately?” – 1:04:29     

The lull before 11.2 is about as busy as could be with MoP Classic Pandaren starting zone, Lorewalking, One Button Rotation, Turbulent Timeways all kept me busy, until I hit…

 

Main Topic:  Collector’s Bounty Event – 1:52:07

Discussion of the monthlong event, including my farming tips, and a list of my haul for this month, including getting a new mount live in the show! 

 

Outro – 2:38:30

• Thanks to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, my lovely and supportive wife, and you for listening. OGRE’s “King of the Wood” here:  https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=S7iErMhstlY
• Support the show at https://www.patreon.com/soloqueuewow
• Thank you to patrons, Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Vol’dun, Jon and Scott!  And thanks to all the free supporters as well!
• Subscribe to the podcast at your podcast feed of choice, Apple, Spotify, and all the rest.  Leave a 5-star rating and a written review to help grow Solo Queue.
• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.

“I will see you out there."