Tabletop Miniature Hobby Podcast

Hobby updates from the Bedroom Battlefields community. Submit your November update here and be part of the next one!

Award-winning game designer Brent Spivey joins me for a chat about two of his cult games, Mayhem and Rogue Planet. You can keep up with future updates from Brent by visiting his website Bombshell Games.

For most hobbyists, gaming happens in the evening, and almost every group or club meets after 7pm. But what if you're a morning person? I'm joined by Dan of Paint All The Minis, who likes to get his dice rolled before the sun is up!

What have you been painting, playing, or planning for during the month of September? It's time for a hobby progress and accountability update. Be sure to get involved in next month's episode by leaving a voice clip here. And you can see pictures of what I've been up to right here.

"You're looking through the wrong end of the telescope", says Peter Berry of Baccus 6mm - "6mm figures aren't tiny, 28mm figures are very very big".On this episode of the Tabletop Miniature Hobby Podcast, we're exploring the world of wargaming in the 6mm scale. This is a great conversation highlighting the many joys of six. Peter is keen to point out that this isn't a case of one scale OR another (most of us love 28mm first and foremost, after all), but using the right tool for the right job. 

From deep dives into HeroQuest and Citadel Combat Cards to in-depth chats with folks like Ian Livingston and Rick Priestley, Jordan Sorcery is creating incredible content documenting the rich history of Games Workshop. On this episode, he's kind enough to join me for a chat about where it all began, watching someone destroy a Dwarven cannon at Games Day, and uploading his first cat video.

Andy Chambers (Blood Angels) takes on Jervis Johnson (Orks) in White Dwarf 166, October 1993.

Our question of the month for August 2025 was around what you're up to right now. What are you painting, playing, or planning for?

The world's most iconic Oldhammer event, Bring Out Your Lead, took place at the Foundry between Friday, 8th August and Sunday, 10th August.I caught up with Mike Hutchinson (Hobgoblin, Gaslands, A Billion Suns), Owen Staton (Crown of Command, Time Between Times Storytelling), Lewis (Oldhammer Fiction Podcast), Jordan (Jordan Sorcery), Evelina (Jimmy the Brush), Jason (Bedroom Battlefields Community), and David (5th Hammer) to hear about their first impressions, plans, and experiences.  

Is this hobby the one remaining place we can still escape from digital technology and leave the phones, tablets, etc at the door? Or, are there benefits to be had by implementing certain tech to run "hybrid" style gaming experiences? That's just one of the topics we touch on in this episode of the Tabletop Miniature Hobby Podcast.This time around, we're joined by Robey Jenkins of Precinct Omega. Robey is the creator of the Horizon Wars games series, as well as the Precinct Omega News & Game Design Podcast. You can find his games (as well as a whole trove of others) on Wargame Vault.We talk about storytelling, and worldbuilding in miniature agnostic games, referencing some of our own favourites like Open Combat, Song of Blades & Heroes, and Rogue Planet. Does providing a universe or setting limit players, or does it help them to build their forces and play out more meaningful encounters?We couldn't have a chat with Robey without dipping into game mechanics. What are some of the most innovative ones he's come across? What are the mechanics he's most proud of creating himself? Are there only so many different variations of miniature wargame rules out there? And while we're at it, what makes a hobbyist gamer want to start writing their own rules in the first place anyway?Robey also offers his thoughts on how he'd go about adapting a popular miniature game into a solo or co-op ruleset, and whether or not you could make a "tiny" game with only two minis.No conversation on this podcast would be complete without touching on Games Workshop, either. Does GW have more or less of an influence and hold over this industry than it did, say, 25 years ago?

Dan of Paint All The Minis joins me for a chat about the look, feel, and design of miniatures, from old school metal lumps to modern-day GW 400,000 part kits. We also talk Blood Bowl, hobby parenting, and hobbying from two different locations!

3d printed terrain might be trendy right now, but let's not forget about the tremendous benefits of MDF buildings and scenery - especially as this medium has been levelled up recently at Warbases, who now run a pre-coloured range. They also run the fantastic Bifrost Miniatures range and there's loads of fun to be had in there, from giant Ettins to Haggisnadoes. Also mentionedQuestion of the monthThe Fundamentals of Tabletop Miniatures Game DesignBaron's war novelsOathsworn Miniatures

Frostgrave is one of the most recognisable games in the tabletop miniature wargame hobby. It's also one of the most popular outwith the Games Workshop Empire.On this episode, we're joined by the architect of the frozen city himself - Joe McCullough. We're going to talk about the lay of the land when this miniature agnostic fantasy skirmish game was released back in 2015, and speculate on the key factors behind its success.Joe's no one-trick pony though, and his scope extends well beyond Frostgrave. Stargrave may sound similar in name (and certainly shares a few core mechanics), but this sci-fi skirmish game is much more than just "Frostgrave in space".Then there's Rangers of Shadow Deep - a solo and cooperative game that became a firm favourite during the year of global lockdowns that was 2020.More often than not, Joe has appeared to release games in the right place and at the right time. One notable exception, however, is Oathmark. This mass fantasy battle rank and flank game was undoubtedly subdued by its Spring 2020 release date - a point in time where very few people could actually play it. Joe offers his thoughts on that as well as how the game might recover from this setback going forward.One of the reoccurring themes of this conversation was that of miniature wargame terrain. Frostgrave and Stargrave in particular benefit from their tables being extremely busy. But does this create a barrier for players with no existing terrain collection or no budget? Joe tells us about many players using simple wooden blocks or polystyrene packaging to build their frozen cities and intergalactic outposts, and why it doesn’t need to look “real” to capture the imagination.You can keep up with Joe on his blog The Renaissance Troll where he posts updates on his games, his hobby, his painting, and his thoughts in general. You’ll find the official range of Frostgrave miniatures over at North Star Military Figures, if you want to go down that route, as well as a raft of other games and supplements on DriveThruRPG.

If the world were about to end, but we could pack a big indestructible box full of the stuff that said "this was our hobby", what would you put in there?

Domien De Groot is one half of Audio Epics, a company specialising in fantasy audio storytelling. They've published a number of richly designed and immersive tales that will be of interest to listeners of this podcast, not least of all, the Witch Hunter series. Each story is available on YouTube or the audio podcast feed. I would also highly recommend sticking on a pair of headphones and listening to this introduction to The Fairy Tree, a 3D audio production written by Domien and produced by Owl Field.

The Bedroom Battlefields Discord community has spawned several "marquee" games in the past few years. The latest big game was somewhere in between a 28mm game of Man O'War and a giant Warhammer skirmish with moving terrain. Mark and Jason join me for a chat about the planning, prepping, and playing.

May's question of the month was a call to tell us about the games and rulesets you always find yourself coming back to, time and time again. And as for next month's question - here it is.

I'm joined by Lewis of the Oldhammer Fiction Podcast. On this episode, we chat about the show's origins and its role in the hobby. We also get into the topic of Oldhammer more broadly, as well as the brilliant annual Bring Out Your Lead event.

Question of the Month regular Dave joins me for a chat about hobbying with his sons, his legendary Necromunda campaign, and the pain of sitting on a D4.

A recent episode with Mantic's Ronnie Renton got into licensing IPs for tabletop miniature games. That prompted our question of the month for April, which was: What classic, popular, or obscure IPs would you most like to see adapted into a miniatures game?So, here are our answers. And if you want to get involved in this month's QotM, here's the link.