Explorez tous les épisodes du podcast The Control Phase

In our inaugural episode, the hosts talk about who they are and where they're from, as well sharing their hopes for the podcast. Their first segment dives into some commonly made mistakes and how to avoid them, and in the final part they discuss tips on how to play into Gravediggers. 

Anyone interested in joining the local Ottawa community should check out our Discord server: https://discord.gg/QwSrw7q5hB

In this second episode, the hosts do a deep dive into the latest True Mercenary duo, Nostilla and Aberration! They discuss the models' strengths and how they fit into both Prime armies and Armies of Legend. They also talk about strategies that can be used while playing against this monstrosity and its handler. The final part of the episode dives into the casters you can expect to see from Prime armies as well as some of the more common Armies of Legend that are hitting the competitive scene.

The fellas spend the entire episode talking about MK4 Cryx from both perspectives - they go into commonly seems pieces, common strategies, strengths & weaknesses and don't even get to the second topic! If you're looking for tips on how to play into the Dragonfather's best, or you are just starting to play them, this is the episode for you.

Note: This episode was recorded before the Hellraker's stats were released and we did not have time to go into the Necrofactorium spell rack. An upcoming episode will tackle these subjects.

In this chock-full episode, Marc-Andre briefly goes into his WTC experience; the fellas then talk about the Maple Melee, after which they tackle a weighty question - how to get better when you're only able to play a few games a month? They then go into tips and tricks to play against Old Umbrey and cap it all off with some listener questions.

The Maple Melee: https://maplemelee.ca/ Dragorium's Field Gun: https://www.reddit.com/r/Warmachine/comments/1ouhapr/airdropping_the_compensator/

Intro 0:00 WTC reflections 6:45 Maple Melee 17:06 How to get better at Warmachine on a limited number of games 21:03 Playing into OU 45:38 Listener questions 1:15:20

The fellas share tips and tricks on how to keep one's caster safe from assassination, including statistics shorthand, rules of thumb and the much-vaunted tactical killbox. They round this out with answers to some listener questions, including how to get the elusive 4-0 at your local steamroller. 

Intro: 0:00 Keeping your caster safe: 16:50 Listener questions: 59:27

The fellas continue and conclude their analysis of Necrofactorium, including the newly released Hellraker and the army's spell rack. The second half of the episode tackles Spell Racks more broadly and we conclude the episode with our first crack at listener questions!

Intro: 0:00 Hellraker discussion: 6:30 Necrofactorium Rack: 35:09 Racking Spells: 47:57 Listener Questions: 1:05:56

In this final episode of the year, the fellas join in on the hype and go over the recent L&L spoilers. They also delve into the January 2025 update to discuss how effective the changes were . The final segment of the episode has the guys go over the pros and cons of the rack's impending doom, and cap it off with some of their hopes for 2026.

Intro: 0:00 Lock and Load: 4:13 Year in Review: 38:10 The Rackening: 1:15:01  Hopes for 2026: 1:28:00

In this episode, the fellas go into their tips and tricks for figuring out which list to drop once you've been matched into an opponent, including how to resolve list chicken. They then dive into the salient rules update to come out of the FronTier campaign, with a particular on the extensive Grymkin changes to Arcana, the Bloody Parliament and the Slaughterhouse. Lastly, they tackle some listener questions that they weren't able to get to last time.

https://bytownbeatdown.ca/

The guys are back in their 10th episode and start off with a recap of Belgian Masters and a local steamroller.  They then discuss their experiences with tilt and how they work through it during their games. We go through the recent Thunderhead and Kithguard spoilers, capping it off with 4 listener questions and a roundup of upcoming events!

Belgian Masters & WMNC Recaps 1:50 How to Handle Tilt 24:01 Thunderhead & Kithguard Chat 49:37 Listener Questions 1:29:10 Event Announcements 1:51:05

https://bytownbeatdown.ca/

Now that they have some games under their belts, the fellas revisit some of their hot takes while also going over the Steamroller 2026 packet to talk about similarities and differences with the previous one. They go over some recent competitive results out of Australia and the USA, and cap it all off with a discussion about how to play into the gunlines that have become very popular as of late.

The fellas do a quick recap of the Maple Melee and then dive right into the very juicy January rules update. They talk about highlights of the document and pick some favourites from most Prime armies to talk about. Lastly they announce the Bytown Beatdown, an upcoming 5-person team tournament on June 13th and 14th.  

In this busy episode, the guys tackle much of the recent news - the Command Card overhaul being chief among them. They also talk about their favourite Adepticon teasers, and review the tourney results of the past few weeks. This is all capped off with with a discussion of how Kithguard is shaping up as an army, including talk about how Trap Doors are playing out on the battlefield.

https://bytownbeatdown.ca/

Courtesy of SFG, the fellas go through all of the changes in the 2026 Mid-Year Update and give their thoughts. Was the Slaughterhouse nerfed enough? What of Old Umbrey's top performers? Will Storm Legion finally get a competitive pair? These topics and more in our first bonus episode!

In this extra-long episode, the fellas go through the recent LnL EU spoilers including Scuttlebutt, the Shadow Seraph, General Gunnbjorn and the first couple of Fane of Nyrro Boxes. They then take a long-overdue crack at listener questions, including one that was delivered in person. Marc-André then finishes things off with a recap of his Iron Gauntlet Finals games.

Prelude Recap 1:40 Assorted LnL Spoiler Talk 14:41 Fane Talk 1:07:38 Listener Questions 1:22:11 Iron Gauntlet Bat Reps 1:44:40

The fellas get back to work and discuss recent events including the Bokur Brawl, le Grand Clash & the Australian Super Series. They then go over the recently released Imperatus2 and Chainbelcher cards, including some ideas about how lists could be built with them. They round this out with some thoughts on etiquette in Warmachine, and how to give their opponents a memorable but enjoyable game. *RE-POSTED DUE TO AGGREGATOR BUG*

The boys are back and dive right into the recent spate of high profile releases, including gameplay discussions around Bandit as well as the Constance Blaize & Gallant pair, while also noting that the Swarm Warden was also released. They then pick up a recent discussion regarding the current over-representation of Warlock-lead armies in the competitive scene, with some ideas about why this is happening and what can be done to put things on a more event footing. They round this out with some musings about how to identify your win condition on a given turn in order to get over the finish line in a given match. 

Who Is the Beatdown? https://articles.starcitygames.com/articles/whos-the-beatdown/

Moment of Clarity: https://www.youtube.com/@Moment_of_Clarity_gaming

The guys are back and ready to yap. They dive into the latest Nyrro spoilers and go through some of Ashmael's strengths & weaknesses. They then discuss the use of defenses in a sapperless world. They then do a recap of the recent Bytown Beatdown, with a short update about the quest to play all of the casters in 2026.