Grown Men Playing with Toys
Join us as friends (strategic, stoic “Erik” and observant, energetic “Steve”) discuss topics and experiences that surround their world of Warhammer gaming.
Our goal is to explore the intersection of casual and competitive 40K thru a balance sharing stories about our funniest, most frustrating, or straight up craziest Warhammer experiences (Steve’s goal) with deep, analytical thinking about the game and how to improve at it (Erik’s goal). Beyond that, it’s an excuse for two friends to talk and share how the lessons learned playing with our toy soldiers have enriched our lives and deepened our friendship.”
Episodes
36 episodes
36 - Our 10th Edition All-Star Game
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik emerges from his mad science cave with an idea to help Steve with the end-of-edition doldrums. The result is the most creative thing they've attempted yet.....the GMPWT 10th Edi...
35 - Nobody Told Me the Dice Hit Back
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik shows up to record still licking his wounds, this time from a rough road race -except this time his own son quoted the podcast back at him like a tiny, devastating life coach. &...
34 - Pantheon of Woe: Population.....Me
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik confesses to a crime against his own hobby — being a grouch for two days because he played poorly in a game that he was playing against himself.Steve holds it together lo...
33 - There Is Only War... and Middle Child Syndrome
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik and Steve do something they probably should have seen a therapist about first — they apply the science of birth order psychology to the entire Warhammer 40K universe.The ...
32 - Be Excellent to Each Other
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik and Steve do something a little different — Steve takes the wheel while Erik rides shotgun, and together they explore what happens when you step completely outside your comfort ...
31 - Where We're Going, We Don't Need Roads
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik and Steve do something a little different — they look backwards and forwards at the same time, connecting the dots between the past seven months of Erik's Crusade League and the...
30 - I'm Terribly Sorry Sir. I'm Afraid You Are Mistaken.
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik and Steve do one of the most uncomfortable things in 40K — they turn the camera on themselves and ask the question: what kind of mistakes do I actually make, and why do I ke...
29 - Mo' Models, Mo' Problems
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik and Steve tackle one of the most common experiences in the Warhammer 40K hobby — the impulse buy — and discover that they couldn't possibly approach it more differently.S...
28 - No More "And Then....."
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik and Steve do what grown men do best — argue about made-up words on plastic soldiers and ask the question no Warhammer 40K content creator has been serious enough to tackle: are ...
27 - List Hammer, Math Hammer, Feelings Hammer
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik and Steve discuss the community’s negative reaction to a recent Warhammer 40K Balance Dataslate. The conversation frames players’ reactions as a progression thru the steps of:&n...
26 - We've Forgotten What We're Fighting For
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik and Steve discuss being intentional about monitoring the pace of a game of Warhamer 40K. They share a framework for breaking pacing into two approaches—“tempo and trade”&n...
25 - I Think I C'Tan, I Think I C'Tan....
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik and Steve recap their recent Tabletop Simulator game of Warhammer 40K, where Steve took on Cousin Josh. They talk about how the matchup was setup as a "Steve faces the Boogeyman...
24 - How Our Gorilla Got His Groove Back
In this episode of the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast, Erik and Steve delve into what constitutes a 'good game' in their Warhammer 40K sessions. They emphasize the importance of immersion, challenge, and long-term strategic value. Erik d...
23 - He's a Peacock. You Gotta Let Him Fly!
Join Erik and Steve from the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast as they dive into an entertaining and detailed discussion about Warhammer models with wings. The episode features a "wing tier list", where Steve passionately evaluates models f...
22 - One is a Genius, the Other’s Insane
Join Erik and Steve from the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast as they dive into the ongoing debate within the Warhammer 40K community about "competitive" versus "casual" play. They discuss the two stereotypes and why they don't think they ...
21 - Death By Snu Snu
Join Erik and Steve from the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast as they discuss how to deal with the potentially overwhelming influx of new detachments and model releases in Warhammer 40K recently. Erik shares his mixed feelings about the re...
20 - Slaanesh's Pillars to 40K Success
Join Erik and Steve from the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast as they talk about their Warhammer 40K goals for 2026. The guys will define a structure for how they are thinking of improving their Warhammer 40K gameplay. The episode ex...
19 - Guess Who's Back, Back Again, Nurgles Back, Tell a Friend
Join Erik and Steve from the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast as they discuss their recent Barn Hammer session, featuring a variety of Warhammer 40K armies and a pseudo crusade event that they put Cousin Josh through. The guys reflects on ...
18 - Barn Hammer Prep, Dwarves Come Up A Bit Short
Join Erik and Steve from the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast as they reflect on a recent practice game featuring the Leagues of Votann list crafted in prior episodes. The guys delve into a holistic after-action discussion, analyze what wo...
17 - The Nerfing Eye of Sauron
Join Erik and Steve from the "Grown Men Playing With Toys" podcast as they dive into how they define "overpowered" (or OP) units in Warhammer 40K. The guys will establish rough criteria for how they differentiate OP vs powerful /splashy but not...
16 - I Taught My Peacock to Write a List - Part 2
Join Erik and Steve from the "Grown Men Playing with Toys" podcast as they dive into the importance of marrying the optimization of a list to different play styles. After receiving listener feedback, the guys discuss the importance of building ...
15 - I Taught My Peacock to Write a List - Part 1
In this episode of the Grown Men Playing With Toys podcast, hosts Erik and Steve dive into building a strong foundation for a Warhammer 40K list. They explore how to align your play style with matching detachments and units by using Steve's bel...
14 - Command Points, a Codex, and Chores. The Struggle is Real.
Adulting is hard and life gets busy.....especially if you are a try-hard who gets over-invested in their hobbies like Erik and Steve.In this episode, the guys will talk about balancing their 40K goals with life's challenges and how they ...
13 - Big E’s Shame is Our Heretic Hall of Fame
In this episode, Chaos reigns as the guys play a game of Cool / Not Cool with the various Chaos Primarchs or sub-faction leaders. They'll talk about about the story arc of each Chaos leader, discuss the ascetics of models (when they exist...
12 - Optimizer Prime, Heresy in Disguise
This is bound to be the most optimal episode as the guys are going to break down the latest subject that they have been bickering about. Listen in as Erik and Steve talk about how feeling passionate about doing your favorite parts of the ...
