Why do I podcast?
I was invited to
Well, the first part of the answer is pretty simple, I do the Malibros because after Chris Tomlin decided to move on, concentrating on his first wargaming love; Warhammer and his fantastic and successful podcast The Black Sun (@the_black_sun), Joe and Gary were left wanting to carry on the show but wanted a third.
I was happy to be offered the spot by Gary and Joe, I believe I was really the only person they had in mind.
I had started to play Malifaux a lot more at this point, but the bigger factor really is that I’ve been friends with Joe, Gary and Chris a long time.
Chris has been one of my best friends for over a decade, meeting him through Games Workshop and even working with him.
We've gamed, done tale of gamers together, organised forums, a whole host of nerdery, I just never went to tournaments, mostly due to work.
Gary I met, also through wargaming and through Chris, I've also been friends with around ten years and us 3 have dabbled in a lot similar geek hobbies together at one point or another.
Joe is a newer friend as such, he’s younger for a start so imagining being friends with him 10 years ago would be a little weird at best.
Joe I also met through the big Gee Dub, he’s one of my best friends now, he’s also probably the main reason I got really into Malifaux.
So, enough of my life story, I (obvious I know) accepted the invite.
More on why later.
Also, a small factoid about me, I had actually done another podcast before this, “Protection from Noob” which was about Magic: The Gathering, once again jumping in part way after one of the original hosts left.
I may end up referring to Pro:Noob again later.
I like talking
This may sound like a comedic reason, or maybe even an annoying or arrogant one.
It’s not quite “I like the sound of my own voice”, it’s just a fact that I talk a lot, always have and probably always will.
Been told this since School and have received looks knowing that I still do these days.
Talking out loud though, especially on the podcast though, I find helps with organising thoughts.
Not to say you shouldn’t think about things before you say them, but the knowledge that you are having to say them can help organise what is (for me especially) usually a blur of information (and shit generally).
Talking with my friends is always fun, originally when I did Pro:Noob it was always in person and was actually the nicest chance to get to chat at length about Magic with my friends Lennox and Greg.
You might see people at gaming clubs every week, tweet, text, email, but sitting down and just chatting is something different altogether.
All the microphone does is really keep things a little more organised.
I like listening to others
Hearing different perspectives, getting new ideas, it’s all good.
Discussion is fantastic, if it’s arguing whether or not Narcolepsy is a first-pickable card in Rise of Eldrazi draft (it is by the way) or if Painting points should effect a tournament finish, getting a mixture of perspectives can clear out to almost find a “right” answer and if not, makes understanding each other a lot easier.
Discussion may lean close to argument, but as long as it doesn’t spill into that, passion can show through.
This does also lead into rants!
However, I bloody love rants, hearing them, having them. It’s hard for rants to come out informative, but they can, for the most part it’s entertainment.
One of my favourite podcasts The Eh Team (@mtgEhTeam) has a member Jay Boosh, his rants are amongst my favourite things to listen too on a Monday, usually with point, always hilarious.
In the end, listening to podcasts is something I do, so being able to do one is sweet.
Helping others
Seems that I make bookend this blog with a bit of soppiness, but I one big thing for me about doing a podcast is to hopefully bring some light into someone else’s day.
Being able to spread the love of the hobby into the ears of people I may never meet is an amazing thing to be able to do either way, but the fact that I might be entertaining someone makes me feel a little better about life.
Information is something that podcasts put out there too, learning something new as discussed before. Some like Zac Evans on Malibites (@malibites) actually inspire me, make me feel happy knowing that it could, no will, help someone get into Malifaux.
I've also found that, in some bad situations, podcasts have oddly been able to help me through.
To some people this may sound ridiculous, but consider what a podcast can be on this level, entertainment, something to cheer you up, some friendly voices.
The chances are, people who listen to Malibros also have other similarities with me, they may like the things I like, get annoyed by the things that annoy me.
It’s unlikely they listen to a podcast, so niche just by chance.
Which leaves me the final reason.
The community
I don't just feel like I might help them, I know they help me, the Malifaux community is especially fantastic, friendly and welcoming.
So many of these people I enjoy chatting with, some I've even spoke personally too and 99% of them I haven't even met.
Thank You
-Ben (@psientologist)
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