Phase 3: Profit !

Dear Reader, this is a serious post. Don’t worry about the “State of the Market, pt. 2” for a while. It’s half written, and will be released soon. Here’s my motivation for this post: I was recently listening to the AIE Podcast (#68), an excellent podcast for AIE members and non-members alike. The start of the podcast got me thinking in a serious fashion, and I thought I’d use my blogger bully pulpit to reflect a bit.

You see, the podcast starts off with a heartfelt remembrance of an AIE guildy named Brad Kranz. I didn’t know Brad at all. Brad apparently passed away recently. I don’t know the details of his passing, but I do know that he leaves behind a partner, Kate, and a tremendous amount of well-wishing from the members of AIE.

It’s an odd thing to consider the impact that one has on a “virtual” community. As we all know, when your character dies in WoW, you rez and come back. But death, a true physical death, will come to us all. And it scares me to consider it.

Please consider how you act in game. If we’re all as lucky as Brad, we’ll be remembered in such a laudatory fashion as he was. In any case, enjoy the time you have here. No matter how you spend it- playing WoW too much, not enough, whatever- take a moment to consider your mortality, and to enjoy playing while you’re at it. Anyone and everyone reading this blog is blessed to be able to spend so much time enjoying WoW, and sometimes people find that blessing doesn’t last as long as it should.

Okay, that’s the end of my post. GL Kate, we’re all pulling for you. Dear Reader, there will be more gold-making posts soon, but I was moved by the content of the recent AIE Podcast and couldn’t stop myself from chiming in.

GL! /bow

-Jimm

Happy Monday, kids! Hopefully it’s going well for you.

I’m a big fan of podcasts, and that is the topic of this post. I listen to them almost all the time that I’m playing. Unless there’s a reason to be on vent, or I’m on a serious AC/DC and/or The Clash bender, I’ve got a podcast going.

Recently the WoW world changed. 4.0.1 shook up everything, and I, like almost everyone else, am scrambling to get my WoW ducks in a row. Tanking was different, addons are/were broken, etc. All kinds of things have changed, and I have been relying on podcasts for information more now than I have at any time since… well… since I can remember.

All this got me thinking- what do I really, truly feel is valuable? Which podcasts make my WoW experience better? I am now a host of the wonderful Call To Auction podcast. However, long before I started hosting, I was a fan. I relied on that podcast to keep me informed. Thinking about all this got me wondering a few things: (1) What do I need to listen to?; (2) What do I like listening to?, and (3) What are you, Dear Reader, listening to that maybe I and everyone else reading the blog should be aware of?

So let’s get into it. Here’s what on my podcast list. Be careful, it’s not a short list. With that said, let’s go!

-Back in the day, before I was a host, Call To Auction was my A+, #1 podcast. It was (and still is) great. It is, as far as I know, the only AH-centric podcast around. Seth had the 1 Copper podcast for a little while, but that’s gone. So I listen to CtA. (Big surprise, right?)

-Also, Back in the day, I listened to the Tankspot podcast and Veneretio’s Tanking Tips podcast religiously. I’m a tank, so that makes sense. And I would still listen to them today… but they just don’t do the podcasts with any frequency. As far as I can tell, they’re both dead, barring the odd update. So, listen to them when they come out, but don’t wait around for them.

-I still enjoy The Instance and the WoW Insider show. They’re aimed at gamers who aren’t as experienced as I am, but they have good content and, most importantly, incredible prominence within the community. Let’s put it this way- if I try to talk to Ghostcrawler, I’m at the same level as all the other mouthbreathers who stand in the fire. Those podcasts? They get special treatment, to the extent that The Instance #200 got a Russell Brower interview. I’m not begrudging them this access- they’ve earned it by being leaders in this area for years. Their content isn’t aimed at me, but it’s not something I can afford to ignore. (That, and Matthew Rossi is still the best warrior tank podcaster that I’ve encountered.)

-Rawrcast. I’ve called into Rawrcast many times, and have listening since the beginning, “back when they sucked.” The Azeroth United fallout, that Raid Warning commented on, was… well… unbecoming. But I really, really like their show, and think they do a good job.

-Speaking of that devil, Raidwarning. I also listen to them, and they’re fun. I think they do a good job, even if they get a little too drunk to record sometimes. But I like that!

-All Things Azeroth. This is certainly aimed at a different listener base than me (read: much more casual). However, this podcast is one of the grand-daddys of podcasting, having been going strong since vanilla. And, imho, Anne Stickney has been a wonderful addition to the show. She counter’s Medros’ casual tendencies with hardcore raiding insight, and a show of this quality it hard to find.

-Blue Please! I’m a fan of TotalBiscuit. Yes, he’s the shock-jock of WoW, but he’s good at what he does. In fact, he’s amazing- hosting a show every week, alone? No thank you. He is, among other things, exceptional at complaining about things that should be complained about. He says things that nobody else in the WoW community does, and they’re usually things that should be said. Blue Please! doesn’t appeal to everyone, but I like it.

-The Guardian Tank podcast. Eldritch does an exceptional job aggregating everything that tanks need to know about, no matter what the class. Everyone (DPS, Heals, Tanks) should listen to this podcast because it will tell you how tanks are thinking at the current moment. This is especially valuable because this is the only tanking podcast that’s regularly updated, and he (Eldritch) has done a great job filling the void left by the lack of Tankspot/Tanking Tips podcasts.

-Slash 2. It’s vulgar, profane, base, and I really like it. It is like listening to my friends complain about WoW. (And make a LOT of jokes that are in no way politically correct or safe for work. So consider yourself warned!) I enjoy it.

-Bind On Equip. They’re fun, and they’re from Australia. It’s a good show that gives insight to a tight-knit group of gamers who have real lives, outside of WoW. I also love the humor and the bumpers, and don’t miss a show. The re-rolling Horde series was great, and everyone should take a listen.

-Finally, let’s not forget TIPOAA! The Incredible Podcast of Amazing Awesomeness is not to be missed. It is not, technically, just a WoW podcast. But it is hosted by Mike Schramm and Turpster, two WoW veterans. And they focus a lot of their time on WoW. Also, they’re great friends of P3P, and Mike was even a guest on CtA. Listen to it, it’s excellent.

There are a few others, especially non-WoW podcasts, but those are the ones that I look for. I also listen to Bill Simmons’ podcast, Adam Corolla, Daves of Thunder, This American Life, Radiolab, Movielicious, Film Sack, Savage Love, and the Sportscast with Spider and the Henchman. Those are, however, unrelated to WoW.

What do you, Dear Reader, listen to? What have I missed? Let me know. As ever, we look forward to all feedback. Let me know if I’ve missed anything by posting in the comments to this post.

GL! /bow

Everyone has goals. Whether it’s getting gold-capped or just getting epic flying, we all have goals. When I first approached Zekta about being a part of P3P, my personal goal was to write, and to do so with skill. I liked making gold in WoW and was good at it, but I wanted to see if I could consistently write about it. In fact, some of the posts that bring me the most satisfaction are not about gold at all. The challenge of writing well was my motivation. Consequently, I am surprised in that very unexpected way to say that today I took a significant step from  being “Bigjimm, blogger” to being “Bigjimm, blogger and podcast guest/podcaster.”

I was the guest this afternoon for the recording of episode 12 of the Call to Auction podcast. I’ve written about the podcast here before, and I’m sure that anyone who reads P3P regularly is aware of it. It’s the podcast done by Markco, JMTC founder, and Euripides, of Outdps.com and Wow.com. It is an excellent source of information, and I’m very excited to have been a part of it.

The recording seemed to go well. The three of us answered questions that folks had sent in (calltoauction@gmail.com), tried to stay on topic, and generally had a good time. The episode should be posted within the next day or so. I am simultaneously nervous and excited. The thing that is a little nerve-wracking is the “live” nature of the podcast- I have to sound articulate and entertaining, and don’t have the privilege of editing that comes with blogging. And because this is my first foray into anything like this, I’m sure I’ll be unhappy with my performance. But that is to be expected I suppose, and, to steal a line from Don Draper, I have a deep voice and people find that reassuring. So I’ve got that going for me, I guess.

It looks like this is going to be a regular gig for me. Today I was “guest,” but it appears that I’m going to be a regular part of the show as a co-host. This is exciting, and I think it will benefit the show- everyone knows that a three-man booth is the best. Maybe I’ll be Charles Barkley to Euripides’ Ernie and Markco’s Kenny the Jet. We’re planning on some live shows in the future, and I’ll give notice here when they’re firmed up.

Because I had a little time before we taped the podcast, I dropped into listen to TIPOAA to hear the dulcet tones of Mike Schramm, Turpster, and their guest of the day… Markco! That’s right, he was on TIPOAA before we recorded. They talked about WoW gold as well, and generally had a great time. I even got a shout-out from both the hosts, and Turpster again confirmed that he likes Bigjimm. /flopfaint

All in all, today was a happy day in the gilded halls of the Bigjimm Estate. So do me a favor and listen to Call to Auction. Give a little feedback, send in a question, and let us know what you think.

Finally, I’d again like to thank Zekta. He and I make a good team. I’ve always been impressed with Markco’s approach and industry, and Zekta tends to come more from the Gevlon/goblin school of thought. We balance each other out well, and he was very gracious about this whole podcast thing. I sent him an e-mail a while back that said, essentially, “I think I’m actually going to go on this podcast. Is that cool?” His response was, in so many words, “Are you kidding? Of course it’s cool!” He was spectacular and supportive, just as he always is. (Another reason that Zekta’s cool, besides how great he is to work with? He’ll send you links to delicious-looking food. I was dead-hungry and wrote him an e-mail that said he should go eat some excellent Hong Kong street food because I was hungry and I live in rural New England. He obliged, and sent me that link.)

Well, dear reader, that is just about all I’ve got from Casa Bigjimm, at least for now. Thanks, as ever, in advance for any and all feedback. We look at it and read it all.

GL! /bow