CA: How did you get started in content creation?

MILK AND COOKIES: About a decade ago (before I could feel the slow creep of arthritis in my bones) I got pretty deep into SHOGUN II, playing in competitive tournaments and doing challenge campaigns. My friend Fishsandwichpatrol (who had a YouTube channel at the time) ran a Classic Battle Tournament called ‘Fishy’s March Madness’ that ran for entirely too long.

I ended up winning that tournament, and partnered with a friend named Madness (who I met during the competition), and together we created content through the lifecycle of SHOGUN II and well into ROME II before he burnt out… and the channel became mine. I always loved watching two real players clash and attempt to outwit one another with a hypecaster explaining the match and the tactics employed. I wanted to emulate that commentary style with my own videos.

CA: What is your favourite Total War game?

MILK AND COOKIES: Immortal Empires is an obvious choice at this point, but if I could only have one single Total War game to play forever it would probably be MEDIEVAL II. Of course it’s a great game in and of itself with fantastic expansions, and it holds up moderately well almost 20 years later, but the modding scene for it is absolutely wild.

Call of Warhammer: Beginning of the End Times was a big reason why myself and many of my viewers even got into WARHAMMER in the first place, and of course there are legendary mods like Third Age: Divide and Conquer, Stainless Steel, Broken Crescent and others. There are too many to list, but those mods and modders took what was already the best Total War game in the series and made it into a game that will never be forgotten. MEDIEVAL III when?

CA: How did you get into playing Total War?

MILK AND COOKIES: My first Total War title was actually SHOGUN I, all the way back in the dawn of time when prehistoric creatures still roamed the Earth. I was bowling with friends at my first-grade birthday party and was gifted a historical game about the Sengoku Jidai and armies of samurai forging nations. I was already enthralled with games like Age of Empires II: The Conqueror’s Edition, and I grew up loving knights, vikings, cataphracts and historical warfare, so I guess my friend figured it would be right up my alley. He was right. 

CA: Is there a stream/video that you’ve made and are especially proud of?

MILK AND COOKIES: I’m really proud of my Epic Sieges in WARHAMMER series, my Subcommander series, and the Units of Warhammer series that I worked on with Invicta. It took a lot of effort to put together but I think came out great in the end.

But the one video I enjoyed making the most was probably ‘A Bizarre Undead Siege of Winterfell: The Problems with Season 8 Episode 3 – Game of Thrones’.
It was basically a breakdown of all the horrific tactics and illogical moments coming to a head in a series many of us had grown very invested in, and it was very cathartic to see those same points echoed across the internet in the days immediately following the episode. Unfortunately, it only got worse from there.

CA: What do you enjoy most about the game, and what are you excited for in the future?

MILK AND COOKIES: Naturally I’m very excited for famous characters like Nagash, Thanquol, Neferata and the potential for End Times units like Putrid Blightkings and Stormfiends. But those are kind of known quantities and are expected. What really has me pumped are the UNKNOWN races, like Ind and Khuresh, who may one day be fully fleshed out with legendary lords and complete rosters of their own. It will be very exciting if and when that day finally comes.

CA: Why do you create content for Total War games?

MILK AND COOKIES: Armed conflict in real life tends to be horrible for all involved, but many people find it a fascinating subject to learn about and discuss (especially after the fact, through a historical lens). But even purely from a spectator’s standpoint, there is a reason humans like listening to swelling music and an epic score as the Rohirrim ride down orcs and Easterlings on the fields of Pelennor. Being able to recreate those moments in a high-fidelity video game where no one is at risk is an awesome experience. And that cinematic element is a big reason why Total War is so appealing as a series. 20 years on and there’s still nothing else like it.

CA: Do you have a favourite unit from the Total War series?

MILK AND COOKIES: I really can’t narrow this down to one as there’s too many that I absolutely adore.
For MEDIEVAL II, the Verlorene Haufe or ‘Forlorn Hope’ are super cool. Elite Zweihanders meant to yolo into pike formations and break them apart before the main assault.

For WARHAMMER, Blood Knights and Skullcrushers of Khorne are at the top of my list. Ancient, almost otherworldly creatures with a mean streak a mile-wide, and a nice mix of twisted chivalry and ‘edge’ to them. Generally speaking, Cataphracts and Elite cavalry are my favorite type of unit in any Total War game.

CA: What are some of the challenges you face when creating content?

MILK AND COOKIES: Burnout is by far the biggest challenge for me. I love what I do, but do anything for long enough (even if its playing and talking about video games) and sometimes it just gets old. Finding that balance between combating my own nature, pushing through at the right times and knowing when to actually take time away to recharge and refresh can be difficult. I don’t always get it right.

CA: What is your favourite faction to play as across all of Total War?

MILK AND COOKIES: I think it has to be the Byzantines, right? When I’m looking for a faction to play first, there have to be units in early, middle and late game that are fun to play, units that I look forward to using. The factions with elites in every category are the ones that are most fun for me. The High Elves are a perfect example. Majestic models, cool monsters, powerful infantry, archers and cavalry – the elite of the elite.

The Byzantine Empire from MEDIEVAL II (particularly the Crusades expansion) was one of the first factions in the series to really offer that in a historical setting. Vardariotai horse archer hordes, devastating Cataphract charges, and vicious shock infantry like the Varangian Guard, all wrapped up in that Royal Purple color scheme. Plus they had Flamethrowers. Always loved the smell of Greek fire in the morning.

CA: Tell us a random thing about yourself!

MILK AND COOKIES: Growing up I had a cleft palate and all kinds of ears, nose, and throat issues. I needed lots of work done, from tubes in the ears (which gave me ear infections when I swam) to a pharyngeal flap to fix the hole in my mouth. I needed years of speech therapy to begin talking normally, and the first time I heard a recording of myself I literally cried. It sounded alien to me, and not at all what I heard in my head. I never really thought of it as ‘overcoming’ anything, just that it was a normal part of my upbringing, but it’s cool to think that I now speak publicly for a living despite my voice being very strange as a child.

Thanks to Milk and Cookies for taking the time to chat with us! Be sure to check out his social channels to connect with them, or follow/subscribe to stay up-to-date with their latest content:

• YouTube: https://www.youtube.com/c/milkandcookiesTW

We’ll see you next time!