Solo Queue - A World of Warcraft Podcast

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."

Episode 26 – HDYS Interview with Matt Rossi!

Episode 26 – HDYS Interview with Matt Rossi!

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 26! – 2:03        

A wide-ranging interview with games journalist and fiction writer Matt Rossi!  I’m not even going to pretend to make a list of topics, but we talk about starting hit WoW career with his wife, how to approach WoW when your job demands that you spoil all new content as soon as it hits test servers, and his need to dive into lore in any game.

 

Plenty of talk about lore and storytelling in WoW throughout the years and how the Wrathgate was a turning point in how the stories are delivered to us, the players.  We even get into the true purpose of any fiction in our human existence.

 

We also discuss Matt’s ongoing visual disability, a form of blindness that he explains in more detail.  July is the celebration month for Disability Pride, and in hopes of sharing awareness of disability and accommodations in video games, he explains how his severe visual impairment affects his play of Warcraft and other types of games.  It turns out that flexible difficulty and voice acting are two great accessibility options.  Developers take notice.

 

Lightning Round! – 1:19:53

This round of 8 questions is not quick, but it takes the form of “Two Lizzes and a Joe (and a Cory)”.

 

Outro – 1:31:13

• Thanks to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, my lovely and supportive wife, and you for listening.
• Big thank you to Matt!  BlizzardWatch puts out podcasts weekly and you can find Matt as a regular host on BlizzardWatch and LoreWatch.  He also writes a column and other videogame coverage for the news site.  You can also check out Matt’s published fiction at the Goodreads and Amazon links!

• https://blizzardwatch.com/author/matt/
• https://www.amazon.com/stores/author/B01M6BQ5SF
• https://www.goodreads.com/author/list/308134.Matthew_Rossi

• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.
• 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.
• Support the show at Patreon.com/SoloQueueWoW
• Thank you to contributing patrons, Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Vol’dun, Jon, and Scott!  And thanks to all the free supporters as well!

“We will see you out there."

Episode 25 – Celebration! Warcraft 30, Down Time, and the Best NPC is…

Episode 25 – Celebration! Warcraft 30, Down Time, and the Best NPC is…

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 25! – 1:54        

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!

 

Warcraft 30^th Anniversary Event in Boston – 16:22

The second celebration was 90 minutes south of SQ headquarters in the fair city of Boston.  While my plan to get news and good audio for the podcast was thwarted, I did spend quality time with an old friend, make a new friend, and get away from my normal routine for a night.  Afterwards, I connected with WoW community members Stromgarde Enjoyer (https://bsky.app/profile/nilocor.bsky.social) and meggoart (https://bsky.app/profile/meggoart.bsky.social) to get their reactions to the Boston event.

 

News – 48:24

• Player Housing update from May – looking good!
• Mists of Pandaria Classic on July 21, pre-patch July 1
• Legion arrives as a Remix late this year or early 2026
• World of Warcraft: Blood Ties is the new novel from Christie Golden that arrives Nov. 18, 2025 as the lead-in to the Midnight expansion, pre-order now!
• “Faith and Flame” short story continues the journey of Faerin Lothar, written by L.L. McKinney and voiced by Paris Blu, the voice of Faerin herself - https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=nJtigy8U-_8&t=3s

 

Drink of the Month – 52:15

Stopping into the Snug Harbor Inn in Boralus for a Hook Point Porter and some Tiragarde Sharp cheese.

 

11.1.7 Launches June 17! – 1:00:28

Patch 11.1.7 launches with the Legacy of Arathor storyline, Lorewalking, Turbulent Timeways, Overcharged Delves, the Lightning-Blessed Spire and Sea-Blessed Shrine toys to transform you into a Sethrak or K’Thir, and new features including the rotation helping technology of Single-Button Assistant and Assisted Highlight. 

 

“What have you done lately?” – 1:24:03

It was Horrific Visions that eventually grabbed my interest and got me back into the game.  Nightfall and Dastardly Duos haven’t quite had the same effect. 

 

Professions Pre-Planning? – 1:30:46

The other exciting project that returned me to the game was establishing a roster to cover all the professions and getting them all to 80.  This is the beginning of the prep for an eventual episode on professions, a system that I think borders on being too complicated.

 

Main Topic:  Best WoW NPC Tournament Coverage Rounds 4, 5, and 6 – 1:42:28

Probably not really the main topic, but this is the exciting culmination of a process that took far too long.

 

Outro – 1:54:57

• 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 Patreon.com/SoloQueueWoW
• Thank you to patrons, Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Vol’dun, Jon and Scott (welcome 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.
• Next episode will arrive in less than two months, light willing.

“I will see you out there."

 

Episode 24 – HDYS Interview with Ali!

Episode 24 – HDYS Interview with Ali!

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 24! – 1:45        

An interview with the creator of the now-retired Dungeon Fables podcast and the current co-host of Live, Laugh, Lore, Ali Andras!  A variety of topics listed below but beginning with the current game in Undermine, DRIVE, and 11.5.

 

Talking some WoD – 28:35

 

How Does Ali Solo? – 39:44

 

Player Housing – 49:00

 

No Mo FOMO? – 54:11

 

Books and Libraries – 59:21

 

Why the lore? – 1:02:46

 

Why content creation? – 1:05:54

 

Lightning Round! – 1:17:51

 

Outro – 1:31:00

• Thanks to Blizzard for the amazing music and sound, to OGRE for intro/outro music, my lovely and supportive wife, and you for listening.
• Big thank you to Ali!  Find the weekly episodes of Live, Laugh, Lore (I hear the next one will be amazing…) wherever you get your podcasts and reach out to Ali on Twitter @aliandrask or on Bluesky @aliandras
• You can contact me at soloqueuewow at gmail.com, Bluesky, Twitter, Facebook, Instagram, and Threads.
• 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.
• Support the show at Patreon.com/SoloQueueWoW
• Thank you to contributing patrons, Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Vol’dun and Jon!  And thanks to all the free supporters as well!
• Remember to watch socials and r/wow on Reddit for the next 3 rounds to crown the best WoW NPC!

“I will see you out there."

 

Episode 23 – The 10 Years Ago Thing

Episode 23 – The 10 Years Ago Thing

Show Notes 

Welcome to Episode 23! – 4:42        

Another full episode as we dive into three areas!

 

Best WoW NPC Tournament Coverage Rounds 1, 2, and 3 – 6:43

The upsets, the lopsided victories, and the first three rounds of this grueling six round tournament.  Coverage by region.  We end the segment with 8 NPCs left to fight for the (someday) famous title of Solo Queue Tournament of 64 Champion and Best WoW NPC!

 

News – 49:26

• Season of Discovery Phase 8 – some new content in the old WoW? Is this the next phase of a test drive for Classic+?  https://www.wowhead.com/classic/news/season-of-discovery-phase-8-patch-notes-new-avalon-scarlet-enclave-raid-and-376282 
• Use your Sparks of Fortunes to upgrade gear, but look at this article because it is still a mystery to me. https://www.wowhead.com/news/fourth-spark-of-fortunes-available-for-crafting-this-week-in-the-war-within-376283
• The C.H.E.T.T. system demystified. Turns out you need Renown 13 to interact with the system.  https://blizzardwatch.com/2025/03/26/wow-undermine-chett-list-cartel-reputation/#google_vignette
• And…

 

11.1.5 Launches April 22! – 54:32

Patch 11.1.5 rolls out in 3 phases beginning on April 22 with the Nightfall scenario, the Winds of Mysterious Fortune experience and reputation buff, and the new Cooldown Manager feature.  Listen for more details and the details in the blue post here:  https://www.wowhead.com/news/patch-11-1-5-release-date-is-april-22nd-376279

 

“What have you done lately?” – 1:09:34

Interesting interview about the disappearing role of Vulpera in WoW, but I need to build a story around this.  Stay tuned.  Also an interview with Ali from Live, Laugh, Lore coming in Episode 24!  A few Delves.  And lots of leveling in Draenor of all places which leads to the main topic!

 

Main Topic:  Revisiting Warlords of Draenor – 1:12:34

A walkthrough of the lore setup for WoD, a playthrough of the excellent WoD intro questline, talking about the questing in the Horde zone of Frostwall, how the graphics hold up, building a Garrison, not flying (but then getting weak and flying), hitting the Bloodmaul Slagmines dungeon, and wrapping up with the first of three raid tiers from WoW’s most maligned expansion.

 

Drink of the Month – 2:09:11

Couldn’t find a tavern, so knocking back bottles of Ogre Moonshine on the steps of the raid entrance to get acclimated to battling ogres.

 

Raid of the Month:  Highmaul – 2:11:48

And, on to battling said ogres (but not OGRE, of course).

 

Verdict on Mythic Highmaul – 2:27:29

You have to listen to find out, but let’s just say you probably aren’t going to be camping on the steps where we drank the moonshine each week.

Solo Queue Mailbox – 2:29:52

Kind words on Apple Podcasts and the first SQ episode on YouTube!

 

Outro – 2:33:08

• 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 Patreon.com/SoloQueueWoW
• Thank you to patrons, Andrew, Righteous Bandy, ThatSkyGuy, Cyn, Snek of Vol’dun and Jon!  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.
• Next episode is Ali from Live, Laugh, Lore!
• Remember to watch socials and r/wow on Reddit for the next 3 rounds to crown the best WoW NPC!

“I will see you out there."