This episode we cover the top winning lists from the NOVA Open 2025, one of the premier tournaments in North America!

Time Stamps:

00:00 Introduction

03:22 15th Place

06:54 14th Place

09:30 13th Place

12:40 12th Place

16:32 11th Place

19:40 10th Place

22:48 9th Place

26:35 8th Place

31:40 7th Place (+Frank's Batreps)

40:30 6th Place

45:21 5th Place

47:45 4th Place

52:32 3rd Place

55:34 2nd Place

58:24 1st Place

01:01:19 Conclusion and Shoutouts

Our Links:

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More Open Topic Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AjD8eksrQEbY6i8_wCaxxMH9ULExZ6_

Our Sponsors:

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Mithril Brush, An online painting competition dedicated to Middle-earth. For more information on how you can enter or support this competition, visit https://www.patreon.com/TheMithrilBrush & https://www.instagram.com/mithrilbrush

Credits:

Music: Tavern Loop One by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Music: Redline

Musician: EnjoyMusic

Site: https://enjoymusic.ai

Eliott from Gollum's Gamers joins the podcast this week to break down the top winning lists from the largest MESBG tournament in the world, ArdaCon!

Time Stamps:

00:00 Introduction

07:01 ArdaCon Masters

11:30 10th Place

18:06 9th Place

23:33 8th Place

28:13 7th Place

31:59 6th Place

36:56 5th Place

40:57 4th Place

43:31 3rd Place

46:24 2nd Place

50:55 1st Place

55:31 Final Thoughts

Our Links:

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IntotheWest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ITWpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/intothewestpodcast/

More Open Topic Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AjD8eksrQEbY6i8_wCaxxMH9ULExZ6_

Our Sponsors:

Baron of Dice With dice for all wargaming systems, including MESBG, go check them out! Link: https://baronofdice.com/?ref=WEST 5% off Promo Code: WEST

Mithril Brush, An online painting competition dedicated to Middle-earth. For more information on how you can enter or support this competition, visit https://www.patreon.com/TheMithrilBrush & https://www.instagram.com/mithrilbrush

Credits:

Music: Tavern Loop One by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Music: Redline

Musician: EnjoyMusic

Site: https://enjoymusic.ai

Today we review and rate some army lists submitted by our patrons, armies they have yet to try out!

Our Links:

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IntotheWest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ITWpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/intothewestpodcast/

More Open Topic Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AjD8eksrQEbY6i8_wCaxxMH9ULExZ6_

Time Stamps:

00:00 Intro

00:53 Realms of Men

07:32 Buhrdur's Horde

13:30 Garrison of Ithilien

20:21 Moria

26:11 Lothlorien

35:15 Grand Army of the South

Our Sponsors:

Baron of Dice With dice for all wargaming systems, including MESBG, go check them out! Link: https://baronofdice.com/?ref=WEST 5% off Promo Code: WEST

Mithril Brush, An online painting competition dedicated to Middle-earth. For more information on how you can enter or support this competition, visit https://www.patreon.com/TheMithrilBrush & https://www.instagram.com/mithrilbrush

Credits:

Music: Tavern Loop One by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

It's FAQ season in MESBG, and as usual we are here to break down all of the rules clarifications and errata this time round.

Our Links:

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More Open Topic Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AjD8eksrQEbY6i8_wCaxxMH9ULExZ6_

Time Stamps:

00:00 Intro

01:08 Matched Play Guide

01:22 Armies of the Hobbit

03:52 Armies of the Lord of the Rings

10:56 Armies of Middle-earth

14:49 Rules Manual

Our Sponsors:

Baron of Dice With dice for all wargaming systems, including MESBG, go check them out! Link: https://baronofdice.com/?ref=WEST 5% off Promo Code: WEST

Mithril Brush, An online painting competition dedicated to Middle-earth. For more information on how you can enter or support this competition, visit https://www.patreon.com/TheMithrilBrush & https://www.instagram.com/mithrilbrush

Credits:

Music: Tavern Loop One by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Following our Good tier list, we now break down all the armies of Evil! Join us as we rank all 47 armies.

More Ranking Videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AjD8eksrQH5qcVcOHkfDoCWI5d_oxST

Time Stamps:

00:00 Introduction

01:01 Barad-dur

03:10 The Black Riders

09:35 Wraiths on Wings

15:27 Army of Gothmog

18:33 Legions of Mordor

22:01 Minas Morgul

25:07 Cirith Ungol

27:31 The Black Gate

31:27 Army of the White Hand

33:00 Ugluk's Scouts

34:11 Wolves of Isengard

36:15 Lurtz's Scouts

38:23 Assault Upon Helm's Deep

42:11 Muster of Isengard

44:52 Usurpers of Edoras

47:49 Besiegers of the Hornburg

53:56 Depths of Moria

56:07 Harad

01:00:35 Corsair Fleets

01:03:52 Army of Gundabad

01:07:27 Goblin-Town

01:12:08 Pits of Dol Guldur

01:15:57 Rise of the Necromancer

01:18:15 Azog's Hunters

01:21:46 The Three Trolls

01:24:07 Moria

01:26:39 Desolator of the North

01:27:43 Army of the Great Eye

01:30:13 Sharkey's Rogues

01:34:39 Umbar

01:38:11 Host of the Witch-King

01:40:18 Shadows of Angmar

01:43:42 Buhrdur's Horde

01:47:50 Army of Carn Dum

01:49:14 Wolf Pack of Angmar

01:51:52 The Serpent Horde

01:56:13 The Easterlings

01:58:01 Dragons of the North

02:01:10 Host of the Dragon Emperor

02:05:35 Grand Army of the South

02:08:56 Fell Beings of Mirkwood

02:10:29 Far Harad

02:12:36 Variags of Khand

02:13:59 Army of Dunland

02:15:39 Ravagers of the Shire

02:17:37 Assault on Lothlorien

02:19:15 The Spider Queen's Brood

02:23:10 Final Thoughts & Adjustments

Patreon Promotion: We have a new Patreon promotion to announce! After a month of joining, all patrons will receive a set of our new custom Baron Into the West dice (while supplies last)!

Our Links:

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IntotheWest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ITWpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/intothewestpodcast/

Our Sponsors:

Baron of Dice With dice for all wargaming systems, including MESBG, go check them out! Link: https://baronofdice.com/?ref=WEST 5% off Promo Code: WEST

Mithril Brush, An online painting competition dedicated to Middle-earth. For more information on how you can enter or support this competition, visit https://www.patreon.com/TheMithrilBrush & https://www.instagram.com/mithrilbrush

Credits:

Music: Tavern Loop One by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Music: Redline Musician: EnjoyMusic Site: https://enjoymusic.ai

With the recent release of Armies of Middle-earth and the Legacy profiles, we break down and rank all the Good armies in the game!

More Ranking Videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AjD8eksrQH5qcVcOHkfDoCWI5d_oxST

Time Stamps:

00:00 Introduction

01:13 The Fellowship

03:05 Road to Rivendell

04:19 The Shire

07:23 Breaking of the Fellowship

09:44 Kingdom of Rohan

12:15 Road to Helm's Deep

14:50 Defenders of Helm's Deep

17:00 Ride Out

20:20 Riders of Eomer

22:00 Riders of Theoden

24:53 Army of Edoras

29:03 Defenders of the Hornburg

30:27 Minas Tirith

33:02 Garrison of Ithilien

34:55 Reclaimation of Osgiliath

36:16 Atop the Walls

38:44 Return of the King

41:26 Defenders of the Pelennor

42:39 Men of the West

44:41 Lindon

47:24 Numenor

52:00 Rivendell

54:22 The Last Alliance

57:47 Lothlorien

58:53 Fangorn

01:02:15 The Eagles

01:05:12 Realms of Men

01:07:03 Thorin’s Company

01:08:04 Army of Thror

01:11:33 The Iron Hills

01:14:33 Erebor Reclaimed

01:16:49 Army of Lake-town

01:18:33 Survivors of Lake-town

01:22:26 Garrison of Dale

01:24:29 Erebor & Dale

01:26:20 Halls of Thranduil

01:27:57 Rangers of Mirkwood

01:30:50 Battle of the Five Armies

01:32:16 Assault on Ravenhill

01:33:55 Radagast’s Alliance

01:35:15 The White Council

01:37:22 Battle of Bywater

01:40:38 Arathorn’s Stand

01:44:10 The Grey Company

01:45:49 The Beornings

01:46:58 Fords of Isen

01:49:25 Paths of the Druadan

01:53:39 The Fiefdoms

01:55:46 The Grief of Eomer

01:58:36 Army of Dale

02:00:03 Arnor

02:01:21 Battle of Fornost

02:03:00 Kingdom of Khazad-Dum

02:04:38 Army of Erebor

02:08:41 Defenders of Erebor

02:11:14 Battle of Greenfields

02:13:30 Fields of Celebrant

02:18:23 Reclamation of Moria

02:20:25 Expedition to the East

02:23:14 Final Thoughts & Adjustments

Patreon Promotion: We have a new Patreon promotion to announce! After a month of joining, all patrons will receive a set of our new custom Baron Into the West dice (while supplies last)!

Our Links:

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IntotheWest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ITWpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/intothewestpodcast/

Our Sponsors:

Baron of Dice With dice for all wargaming systems, including MESBG, go check them out! Link: https://baronofdice.com/?ref=WEST 5% off Promo Code: WEST

Mithril Brush, An online painting competition dedicated to Middle-earth. For more information on how you can enter or support this competition, visit https://www.patreon.com/TheMithrilBrush & https://www.instagram.com/mithrilbrush

Credits:

Music: Tavern Loop One by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Music: Redline Musician: EnjoyMusic Site: https://enjoymusic.ai

We discuss how the Legacy documents released by GW will fit into the MESBG scene and also do a full review of all the profiles and armies!

Our Links:

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IntotheWest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ITWpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/intothewestpodcast/

More Open Topic Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AjD8eksrQEbY6i8_wCaxxMH9ULExZ6_

Time Stamps:

00:00 Introduction

00:38 Discussion on Legacies

07:01 Forces of Good Profiles

27:19 Forces of Good Armies

34:48 Forces of Evil Profiles

1:14:38 Forces of Evil Armies

Our Sponsors:

Baron of Dice With dice for all wargaming systems, including MESBG, go check them out! Link: https://baronofdice.com/?ref=WEST 5% off Promo Code: WEST

Mithril Brush, An online painting competition dedicated to Middle-earth. For more information on how you can enter or support this competition, visit https://www.patreon.com/TheMithrilBrush & https://www.instagram.com/mithrilbrush

Credits:

Music:

Tavern Loop One by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Music: Redline

Musician: EnjoyMusic

Site: https://enjoymusic.ai

With the release of all the new profiles and armies in Armies of Middle-earth, we look to see which armies are currently the most powerful!

More Ranking Videos: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AjD8eksrQH5qcVcOHkfDoCWI5d_oxST

Time Stamps:

00:00 Introduction

02:23 Current Armies Runners Up

05:12 Current Armies 4th Pick

06:28 Current Armies 3rd Pick

07:56 Current Armies 2nd Pick

10:49 Current Armies 1st Pick

12:34 New Armies Runners Up

17:16 New Armies 3rd Pick

19:54 New Armies 2nd Pick

23:31 New Armies 1st Pick

Patreon Promotion: We have a new Patreon promotion to announce! After a month of joining, all patrons will receive a set of our new custom Baron Into the West dice (while supplies last)!

Our Links:

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IntotheWest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ITWpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/intothewestpodcast/

Our Sponsors:

Baron of Dice With dice for all wargaming systems, including MESBG, go check them out! Link: https://baronofdice.com/?ref=WEST 5% off Promo Code: WEST

Mithril Brush, An online painting competition dedicated to Middle-earth. For more information on how you can enter or support this competition, visit https://www.patreon.com/TheMithrilBrush & https://www.instagram.com/mithrilbrush

Credits:

Music: Tavern Loop One by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Music: Redline

Musician: EnjoyMusic

Site: https://enjoymusic.ai

It's finally here! With the announcement of Armies of Middle-earth and the Matched Play Guide on the horizon, we break down the preview articles released this week.

Our Links:

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Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/intothewestpodcast/

More Open Topic Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AjD8eksrQEbY6i8_wCaxxMH9ULExZ6_

Time Stamps:

00:00 Introduction

01:41 Armies of Middle-earth & Matched Play Guide

04:20 Prince Imrahil

07:35 Khazad Guard

11:23 Tom Bombadil & Goldberry

13:24 Dragon

19:03 Black Dragon Warrior

Our Sponsors:

Baron of Dice With dice for all wargaming systems, including MESBG, go check them out! Link: https://baronofdice.com/?ref=WEST 5% off Promo Code: WEST

Mithril Brush, An online painting competition dedicated to Middle-earth. For more information on how you can enter or support this competition, visit https://www.patreon.com/TheMithrilBrush & https://www.instagram.com/mithrilbrush

Credits:

Music:

Tavern Loop One by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/

Music: Redline

Musician: EnjoyMusic

Site: https://enjoymusic.ai

We invite Jake onto the show to talk about his recent travels in Europe, and his experience and success in the MESBG tournaments abroad.

Our Links:

Patreon: https://www.patreon.com/IntotheWest

Facebook: https://www.facebook.com/ITWpod

Instagram: https://www.instagram.com/intothewestpodcast/

More Open Topic Episodes: https://www.youtube.com/playlist?list=PL4AjD8eksrQEbY6i8_wCaxxMH9ULExZ6_

Time Stamps:

00:00 Intro

00:59 NA vs Europe

12:12 City of Kings: Terrain

20:19 City of Kings: Custom Scenarios

21:49 Level of Play

33:30 Final Thoughts

Our Sponsors:

Baron of Dice With dice for all wargaming systems, including MESBG, go check them out! Link: https://baronofdice.com/?ref=WEST 5% off Promo Code: WEST

Mithril Brush, An online painting competition dedicated to Middle-earth. For more information on how you can enter or support this competition, visit https://www.patreon.com/TheMithrilBrush & https://www.instagram.com/mithrilbrush

Credits:

Music: Tavern Loop One by Alexander Nakarada (www.serpentsoundstudios.com) Licensed under Creative Commons BY Attribution 4.0 License https://creativecommons.org/licenses/by/4.0/