Solo Queue - A World of Warcraft Podcast

Midnight Meanderings - Ep 38

Midnight Meanderings - Ep 38

SOLO QUEUE DISCORD now available:  https://discord.gg/nXQVqERcSU

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 38! – 2:13        

Time to pin you down and force you to listen to what I think of Midnight so far.  Or maybe just entertain you while you work or commute or mow the lawn or whatever it is you are doing.  Thanks for bringing Solo Queue along!  By the way, the countdown checklist idea on a podcast on the day that the U.S. launched four astronauts towards the Moon is sheer coincidence.  In fact, my intro preview came out to Patreon supporters days ago.  Serendipity, baby!

 

News – 6:37

1. SQ Socials news
   1. Horde neighborhood – Desolate Collective – finally figured out how to add members beyond those on the original charter; not great for momentum, but the key was, as I suspected, strip down to no add-ons and the invite button on the roster actually functioned properly! The test was Gershom and she is the first new member; reach out in game or out if you want to move your Horde house to the Desolate Collective
   2. The SQ Guild Solo Together is strong and growing. You can find it in the Alliance Guild Finder, but it is open to both factions.  We have an Alliance side Guild Neighborhood that is open to members of the guild.  If you want to join, just reach out and we will get you an invite, Horde or Alliance.  It is a bunch of cool people of many different backgrounds hanging out, checking in on each other, all very casual. 
   3. New Discord link: https://discord.gg/N86fhRkDem  If you are good people, come check it out.  I am @sweeperdave on Discord and of course, soloqueuewow on everything else out there.
2. GT change/delay – yeah, life finds a way into all of my plans; GT on hold, but will return; also quietly on hold is this year’s 64-competitor single-elimination tournament among Warcraft characters will take a year off.
3. Rufus is available, Habitat for Humanity; through May 12; The mini war hammer in the mouth is amazing.
4. Music video/marketing from WoW and the musician Aurora is fantastic
5. S1 – what is open, what is left?
   1. A lot of S1 is now open with the arrival of M+ keystones last week and the Darkway delve. For raids, the Voidspire and the Dreamrift both opened on Mythic difficulty.  All other diff of the Dreamrift, the one-boss raid, opened the previous week.  For the Voidspire, LFR wing 2 is available, as is the as-yet-unimproved Story Mode version.
   2. Coming this week with the March 31 reset is wing 3 of LFR for VS along with the Normal, Heroic, and Mythic versions of the 3^rd raid of Midnight, March on Quel’Danas. This is a 2-boss raid.  The Raid Finder/LFR and SM versions arrive the following week on April 7.  And the final delve, the Parhelion Plaza opens this week as well.  New nemesis for the season is Nullaeus, and Valeera Sanguinar is here to help you through all of the Delves.
6. A Race to World First update? On Solo Queue?
   1. 9 bosses from all 3 of the raids, with of course the final 2 bosses taking the stage on Tuesday with the launch of the March on Quel’Danas.
   2. As of the time of recording, there are three familiar names that have cleared the first two raids and are awaiting the penultimate boss: Liquid, Echo, and Method.  Six more teams are trying to take down the final boss, identified as the Crown of the Cosmos in the Adventure Guide.
7. Spring sale on Bnet – pets and mounts and packs of stuff, along with certain game services
8. Twitch drop is the Cuddly Void Grrgle; before April 23; watch 4 hours of WoW on Twitch
9. 0.5 preview of what is interesting
   1. No release date yet, but an 8 week cycle would be April 28, so there is still plenty of time.
   2. The Voidforge will help to upgrade gear. That said, the Nebulous Voidcores that you will need to upgrade gear come from M+ d, raids, Bountiful Delves, and Nightmare level Prey Hunts. 
   3. More open-world activities launch with 12.0.5 with Void Assaults comprised of Void Strkes and Void Incursions.
   4. Another activity is Ritual Sites, a tiered scenario that can be tackled solo or with a party of up to five players.
   5. Add the underwater fishing activity called Abyss Anglers and it seems like there will be a lot of options to freshen up your routine midway through Season 1 of Midnight.

 

Class Identity Challenge – 27:45

On Azeroth Morning Radio, Jibbs described his connection to the Paladin class to his own life and that got me thinking about why I identify with my favorite class, Druid of course. 

 

Hero’s Call Co-Opted – 36:33

And continuing with AMR-adjacent content, I low-key (as my 9^th grade students say) stole the Hero’s Call Board segment from them for a good reason, to highlight someone awesome in the WoW community.

 

“What Have You Done Lately?” – 53:56       

Honestly, not enough Warcraft, but both Haranir characters have been created bringing the active roster to 69.  My oldest active character, and possibly my first character, is the first Horde character to start an expansion for me, and he has hit 90 and already wiped once in the “Story” Mode raid.  Oof.

 

Main Topic:  My Midnight Experience – 1:29:19

Walking through the leveling campaign going through my thoughts on the zones, storylines, music, graphics, and selected systems in Midnight.

1. Silvermoon City – 1:39:22
2. Eversong Woods – 1:45:20
3. Arator’s Journey – 1:55:22
4. Zul’Aman – 1:59:48
5. Harandar – 2:07:41
6. Voidstorm – 2:17:40

 

Closing Thoughts – 2:25:26

Wrapping it all up, including my brief thoughts on the so-called “Story” Mode raid for the Voidspire and a potential reveal of the final boss…

 

Outro – 2:37:10

• Thanks to all of you for your patience in waiting for this episode, 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, Pasta Matt, Luch, and Rak!  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.
• Race to World First is…still a thing.  Go team.

“I will see you out there."

State of Warcraft with Gershom 2, This Time It’s Midnight - Ep 37

State of Warcraft with Gershom 2, This Time It’s Midnight - Ep 37

SOLO QUEUE DISCORD now available:  https://discord.gg/N86fhRkDem

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 37! – 3:13        

Gershom is back for our second annual State of Warcraft conversation!  Here are some of the topics we get into:

 

Looking back at TWW – 9:06

Midnight First Impressions – 16:18

Revamp of Zones – 39:42

Troll Talk – 48:48

Arator's Journey – 57:44

Looking Ahead – 1:06:34

Housing – 1:14:58

Overall State of Warcraft – 1:42:04

 

Outro – 1:53:12

• Thanks to Gershom for joining me once again, to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, to my lovely and supportive and healing wife, my PodBean for hosting the show, and to 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, Pasta Matt, Luch, and Rak!  And thanks to free members Max, Eddie, Bear, Friends of Wumpus, Sean, Curro, Aronaar, AedinNahkriin, Guardian Sandy, Alice, Don, Kamil, Wednesday, Eric, TJ, Denethar, TheChampZ, Michelle, Donald, and AggroManagement!
• 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.
• You can contact Gershom on Twitter @huntergershom or on Instagram @huntergerrshom.
• You can check out Thrall’s Balls at thrallsball.com for links to socials and the Discord, and the show comes out every Tuesday with WoW news and opinions.

“We will see you out there."

Seeking Acceptance - Ep 36

Seeking Acceptance - Ep 36

SOLO QUEUE DISCORD now available:  https://discord.gg/nXQVqERcSU

 

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 36! – 2:49        

Who knew it was so hard to get four player signatures to start a guild?  A sign from the universe, perhaps?  Too late, we started a guild!

 

News – 13:05

• Solo Together Guild open – Yes!  But, RANT #1 INCOMING – the long road to 4 signatures
• Loner’s Run, the ST Guild neighborhood open
• Solo Together Community up and running
• Community neighborhood for Horde side houses? Desolate Collective needs only 1 more signature!
• Discord is alive and running at https://discord.gg/N86fhRkDem
• Mini-Mailbag
  • Johnnietips from TB
  • Jibbs from AMR
  • Rak nice comment; R not just a fan, not just a member of that SQ Discord, R and Kael have started up…
• Welcome Ready Check podcast to the community; Weekly show of 2 friends talking WoW and tackling what is going on in game
• Meggoart – 4^th Interlude is out at https://interludecomicanthology.carrd.co/ and her WoWKEA YouTube channel is going strong at https://www.youtube.com/@meggoart
• The Jan. 29 WoW Showcase event with the 2026 roadmap

 

“What Have You Done Lately?” – 32:51       

• RANT #2 INCOMING. Short version is yes, I lost all 800,000+ bronze that I collected when Blizz shut down the Remix event earlier than two of the three times is announced.  Me not happy, for sure.
• Pre-patch event nearly done and maybe not the best of these events
• Void Elf DH unlock relatively brief; Devourer DH seems cool, but only doing 1-button rotation
• Catchup experience not useful after a level 70 boost

 

Main Topic:  Grand Tour Actually Announced – 1:05:19

This will be a recurring segment exploring the dungeons and raids of each expansion

 

Grand Tour:  Classic Kalimdor – 1:16:14

The ten dungeons and two raids of Classic on Kalimdor discussed in an overview

 

Raid(s) of the Month – 1:33:33

The Temple and Ruins of Ahn’Qiraj are the two raids in Classic Kalimdor.  Are they worth farming?

 

SQ Book Club warm-up:  The Void Between – 1:39:13

The recently published short story written by Alex Acks is a great little story before Midnight arrives

 

SQ Book Club:  Blood Ties – 1:47:24

The latest novel by Christie Golden is a great read, but one you do not have to finish before the launch of Midnight.  Read it now or read it later, but read it.

 

Outro – 2:37:10

• Thanks to all of you for your patience in waiting for this episode, 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, Pasta Matt, Maccus, Luch, and Rak!  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.
• Gershom is up next in the Queue.  Enjoy early access for those who celebrate!

“I will see you out there."

Kicking off 2026 with Denethar! - Ep 35

Kicking off 2026 with Denethar! - Ep 35

SOLO QUEUE DISCORD now available:  https://discord.gg/nXQVqERcSU

 

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 35! – 1:24        

Welcome to the Solo Queue to Denethar, host of Azeroth United, another fantastic podcast started in 2023

 

“What Have You Done Lately?” and a bit of news – 14:57  

Projects and spreadsheets and Housing and Remix

 

Grand Tour Kind of Announced – 18:29

Over the course of 2026, I will be diving into every dungeon and raid in World of Warcraft.  Each month another expansion’s worth of end game to report on.  Stay tuned.

 

News – 38:16

• Pre-patch is nigh. Blizzard video explains it all: https://youtu.be/fp8Ngxzrwxg?si=isQBdEBmsZSiTf7U
• Legion Remix ends January 19 at 1:00 (this turns out to be utter bullshit – tune in next time, rant incoming)
• Haranir introduction video from Blizzard: “Everything You Need to Know, featuring Fiamma” https://youtu.be/Jk1t4FhXyyc
• Customization of races imbalance
• Burning Crusade Anniversary pre-patch rollout
• Solo Queue Discord site now open to fans of the show; here is the invite code: https://discord.gg/nXQVqERcSU
• Twitch drop now available is the Cuddly Green Grrgle Housing Décor Item, from Jan. 20 to Feb. 17.
• Sad news that podcast Live, Laugh, Lore will be stopping its run next month as it hits episode 200; Gin and Ali, you will be missed by many!

 

Drink of the Month – 1:24:53

Without prompting, Denethar created the first original drink for the Solo Queue, the Nightwatcher!  Try it.

• 2 oz. Bourbon
• 1 oz. Chambord or other blackberry liqueur
• ¼ oz. simple syrup
• ¼ oz. lemon juice
• 2-3 dashes of bitters (experiment, the world’s your oyster)
• Top with ginger beer

 

Main Topic:  Denethar – 1:28:06

A conversation about WoW, Classic, names, life, podcasting, and so much more.

 

Lightning Round! – 2:18:38

Will Denethar survive the relentless assault of my inquisition?

 

Outro – 2:37:46

• Thanks to Denethar for this long overdue conversation, 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, Pasta Matt, Maccus, and Luch!  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 Denethar on Twitter @denethar
• Find the Azeroth United website at azerothunitedpod.com and on Twitter @azupodcast
• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.
• Enjoy the pre-patch everyone, it’s going to be a 12.0 world.

“Take care.  We love you all.  And we will see you out there."

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."