Category Archives: Site News

Site News

Welcome to the New Swagnilla Ice!

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Hark, loyal subjects of Swagnilla Ice!

I come before you today with a royal decree! While I shall continue to create my tales of adventure on YouTube, both through my gaming series and the A Few Moments with God podcast, I have decided to return to the hallowed halls of the blog. This will be a place for me to share my thoughts, plans, and even a few sneak peeks of what I’m working on.

In a show of my gratitude for your continued support, I have also decided to restructure the kingdom of Swagnilla Ice. Our new membership tiers will now reflect the journey of a true hero. Starting from humble beginnings and growing to a position of great power.

  • The Peasant tier is for all who wish to follow my journey. It is free and gives you basic access to all the goings on in my kingdom.
  • The Squire tier is a small pledge of $1 per month. For this, you get full access to the kingdom and a sign in my Minecraft worlds.
  • The Knight tier is a more substantial pledge of $5 a month, which also grants you full access and a sign in my Minecraft worlds.
  • The Lord/Lady tier is for those who are ready to take on a leadership role for a pledge of $25 a month. You will have full access and a sign in my Minecraft worlds.
  • The Duke/Duchess tier is for my greatest benefactors, a pledge of $150 a month. In addition to full access and a sign in my Minecraft worlds, you will also be granted permission to post go-live announcements in our Discord.

Yes, that is right! I have also created a new Discord server. All subjects, no matter their station, are welcome to join. Let us build a community, a great empire if you will, where we can share our common interests.

I am greatly looking forward to this new era of Swagnilla Ice. Your support, no matter the level, is what allows me to continue building this kingdom. Thank you for being a part of this community. I am proud to be your content creating king, but I am even more proud to be a loyal subject of the King of Kings, Jesus Christ.

Site News

An Update on How the Northern Lights Tier is Awarded

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Hello everyone! I have an important update about the Northern Lights Tier, the rarest membership tier handed out once a year to as many as two members, but as few as zero can happen as well. I am making a small change to the eligibility process to make sure it is as fair and consistent as possible for everyone.

To be eligible for consideration for the Northern Lights Tier, new members must have an activated account by January 1st of the year the award is handed out. This new deadline allows me to fairly consider all eligible members, as everyone will have at least five months of activity in the Swagnilla Ice community before the award or lack of awarding it is announced on June 1st.

How It Works: Examples

To make this clear, here are a couple of examples:

  • Alice registers for a free membership on November 25, 2025 and activates it two days later. Because her registration and activation occurred before the January 1, 2026 deadline, she is eligible to be a candidate for the Northern Lights Tier awarded on June 1, 2026 and going forward. This eligibility does not guarantee a spot, but merely grants her the chance.
  • Bob registers for a free membership on January 15, 2026 and activates it the same day. Because his registration was after the deadline, he is not eligible to be a candidate that year. However, he will be considered for the Northern Lights Tier awarded on June 1, 2027 and going forward.

This change is the only one to the Northern Lights Tier process. It remains a free and rare reward, and I hope this change encourages everyone to get involved sooner. If you are not a member yet and want to be considered for the next award, be sure to register and activate your account before the January 1st deadline.

Gaming and Technology, Site News

Building for the Future: New Payments & A New Direction

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When I created Swagnilla Ice, I wanted to build a company that was accessible, forward-thinking, and ready to grow with my community. Today, I’m announcing two important changes that reflect that vision.

A New Way to Pay in the Swagnilla Ice Shop

I’m excited to introduce a new payment option for all digital goods and services in the Swagnilla Ice shop: cryptocurrency! I understand that not everyone uses or has access to traditional payment methods like PayPal. By offering a crypto payment option through my partner, Coinbase, I’m giving you more choice and making my shop more accessible to a global audience.

Here’s how it works:

  • When you choose to pay with crypto at checkout, the Coinbase system automatically handles the conversion. The price of your purchase, originally in Canadian Dollars (CAD), is automatically converted to the real-time equivalent in your chosen cryptocurrency.
  • I’ll accept any cryptocurrency that Coinbase supports.
  • All crypto payments are instantly and automatically converted to USDC, which keeps prices stable and protects Swagnilla Ice from market volatility.

A New Direction for Video Content

In my efforts to evolve and focus on the future, I’m making a change to my content strategy. I will no longer embed the “news and announcement” video series of the past on blog posts. Instead, I want to embed announcements directly into blog posts like this one to keep all of my news in a single, easy-to-find location. I’m still excited about creating future video content, but these will likely be singular posts rather than series based on a modpack. This will allow me to put more creative energy into other video projects for my future community.

Site News, Personal

A Promise to Our Swagnilla Ice Community: Maintaining Control, Ensuring Quality

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Hey everyone,

I’m writing this post today to talk about something really important to me, and I believe, to all of you who are part of the Swagnilla Ice community.

Lately, there’s been a lot of discussion in the creator world about online channels being acquired by larger equity firms. As I’ve seen these conversations unfold, it’s made me think deeply about the future of Swagnilla Ice and what truly matters to us all.

And that’s why I want to make a clear promise to you: I will never sell Swagnilla Ice in a way that would cause me to lose creative control or quality control over our content.

What does this mean for you? It means that the unique voice, the dedication to quality, and the community-first approach you’ve come to expect from Swagnilla Ice will always remain our top priority. We won’t sacrifice the integrity of our content for external pressures. My vision for Swagnilla Ice has always been to create something special and authentic, and that vision is directly tied to being able to steer the ship and ensure every piece of content meets our standards.

This commitment extends to everything we do, from our free content to our member-exclusive experiences. Our Free Member, Tip Jar Member, and Full Member tiers exist because we want to offer various ways to engage with Swagnilla Ice, all while maintaining the high quality you deserve. And of course, the incredibly rare Northern Lights Tier is a testament to the special bond we share with our most dedicated community members.

This promise is about safeguarding the heart of Swagnilla Ice. It’s about ensuring that we continue to grow and evolve on our own terms, always with your experience and our shared passion at the forefront.

Thank you for being such an incredible community. Your support is what makes all of this possible, and I’m excited for everything we’ll continue to build together.

Consider becoming a member today (it’s completely free with optional paid upgrades) and let me know in the comments what you think about this!

Site News, Personal

Factorio Update: Season 1, Episode 30 Live!

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I’ve embedded up to episode 30 of Swag Plays Factorio Season 1 right here on Swagnilla Ice! I’ll be adding more next weekend, and potentially Monday or Tuesday. Just a heads-up that my work shifts (and ability to update) then are entirely dependent on good weather keeping the roads clear for our backfill trucks. I’m taking a break from embedding for today to prevent burnout, but if the road conditions aren’t good enough, I can then work to embed more videos here, so you won’t have to go look for them on YouTube.

Site News

Exciting News: A Few Moments with God Podcast is Now on Video! Plus, How to Never Miss an Episode (and Chat With Us!)

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Hey Swagnilla Ice Fam!

We’ve got some incredibly exciting news to share that’s going to level up your experience with our content! We’re thrilled to announce that A Few Moments with God Podcast is officially switching to a video format!

You asked for it, and we listened. We believe that bringing you visual content will enhance our discussions, allow us to share more dynamically, and generally make our episodes even more engaging. We’re kicking things off by hosting all new episodes on YouTube, making it super easy for you to watch, listen, and share.

This is just the beginning of our video journey! While we’re starting on YouTube, our long-term goal is to transition to Vimeo Business for an even more integrated and ad-free viewing experience exclusively for our members.

Why Membership is Now More Important Than Ever!

To ensure you never miss a beat and get the most out of our new video episodes of A Few Moments with God, becoming a member of Swagnilla Ice is the absolute best way to stay connected. And guess what? Our Free Membership is packed with value!

When you become a Free Member of Swagnilla Ice, you’ll gain:

  • The Best Way to Engage: As a member, you’ll have the exclusive ability to comment directly on all our blog posts and video episodes, providing your valuable feedback, asking questions, and connecting with other listeners and the Swagnilla Ice team.
  • Access to Our Community Forums: Dive deeper into discussions, ask questions, and connect with like-minded individuals in our members-only forums. This is where the real conversation happens!
  • Weekly Email Updates: Beyond new episodes, stay in the loop with all the latest from Swagnilla Ice, including news, special announcements, and exclusive content.

And for those looking for even more, our Full and VIP Memberships offer deeper dives, exclusive content, early access, and unique perks that truly enhance your Swagnilla Ice experience.

Ready to Watch & Engage?

Head over to A Few Moments with God to catch our latest episodes of “A Few Moments with God.”

And to ensure you can comment, engage in forums, and stay subscribed with email updates, take a moment to Sign Up for Your Free Membership Here! It’s quick, easy, and unlocks a richer experience with Swagnilla Ice.

We’re incredibly excited about this new chapter and can’t wait to hear your thoughts in the comments!

Stay cool,
The Swagnilla Ice Team

Site News

Our Community is Leveling Up: New Features and Your Support Needed!

Greetings everyone!

I have some exciting news to share with you today, and I need your help to make it a reality. Please take a moment to read this entire post. My goal is to create the best family-friendly community website out there for anyone in the world who can speak, read, and write English. I believe the news I’m about to share will bring us one step closer to achieving that goal. So, let’s dive in!

The first bit of good news I have to share is that you can now earn hearts and ranks! The higher your total hearts, the higher your rank will become. Here’s how it works:

  • Starting Rank: Everyone begins as a Recruit.
  • First Level-Up: Earn 100 hearts to level up to the next rank.
  • Subsequent Level-Ups: Each rank after the first requires ten times the hearts of the previous one. For example, the third rank requires 1,000 hearts, the fourth rank requires 10,000 hearts, until you reach the rank of Triplicarius at 1,000,000, halfway up the ranks.
  • A Bigger Jump: To get from Triplicarius to Centurion, you need to earn another 1.5 million to get to 2.5 million in total.
  • Top Ranks: The top four ranks are spaced 2.5 million hearts apart. This means you’ll need to earn 2.5 million hearts to reach the next rank.
  • Top Rank: The highest rank is Legate. Who will be the first to achieve this prestigious title? Only time will tell!

By the way, I named the ranks after those of the Roman military, so if you’re curious about the historical context, feel free to look it up!

The next bit of good news is that we now have arcade games to play here! Yes, and they are amazing! Here are some details:

  • Game Availability: New games are added every day, so there’s always something fresh to try.
  • Tournaments: I hope to soon add tournaments (but that will cost C$96 – consider joining today and becoming a paid member – it’s a way of earning hearts) to allow you all to compete for bragging rights.
  • Guest Access: Visitors can play our games five times before they need to register to continue playing.
  • Member Benefits: All members, including basic (free) ones, get to record their high scores (only their high scores) on games that support the feature, which should encourage you all to have more fun and try to set new high scores every time you play!

Now, I need your help with something exciting: I want to add an events calendar to the site. However, to get all the features I want, it will cost US$399, which is a significant investment, but I believe it will be well worth the money. Here’s what the events calendar will offer:

  • Event Submission: You’ll be able to submit your own events.
  • Ticket Sales: Sell tickets for your events through the shop and split the revenue with my company.
  • Location-Based Search: Search for events by location, so no matter where you live, you can see what’s happening nearby that you can enjoy with your family members!

Additionally, I have an idea to introduce achievements to the site. These achievements will serve as visual rewards for achieving certain milestones or ranks. Here are some of the achievements I envision:

  • 1st Comment
  • 1st Forum Post
  • 1st Forum Reply
  • Your suggested activity-based achievements

While I’m not an artist myself, I’m open to suggestions and help from the community if anyone is interested in designing them.

In summary, we have some exciting new features to enhance our community:

  • Ranking System: Earn hearts and ranks to level up and achieve the prestigious title of Legate.
  • Arcade Games: Enjoy a growing collection of arcade games, with tournaments coming soon for members.
  • Events Calendar: Help us add an events calendar to submit, search, and sell tickets for local events.
  • Achievements: Earn visual rewards for achieving milestones and ranks.

Your support is crucial in making these enhancements a reality. Consider becoming a paid member or donating via Ko-fi to help us reach our goals. Together, we can make this the best family-friendly community website for English speakers worldwide.

Thank you for your continued support and engagement. Let’s make this community even better together!

Site News

Gradually Embedding My YouTube Content Here

I’I’m excited to announce that I’m gradually embedding my YouTube content here for everyone to enjoy, and you don’t need to be a member to watch any of it (at least for now). I’ve planned out a schedule to make this process smooth and engaging for you all.

Here’s what you can expect:

  • Daily Episodes: I’ll be embedding five episodes per day.
  • Current Series: I’ll start by finishing the embedding of Swag’s Mini Peaceful Pack, as that series is already halfway done.
  • Classic Seasons: After that, I’ll move on to the first seasons of Banished and Factorio.
  • Current Seasons: Once those are caught up, I’ll start adding new episodes as I post them to YouTube.
  • Creative Engineering: Following that, I’ll embed the first season of Creative Engineering, which currently has 24 episodes. After that, I’ll resume work on that series.
  • Special Releases: I might also release Creative Engineering as a beta modpack for my Full Members and VIP Members. If I do, I’ll start releasing world downloads for them every twenty-fifth episode. However, I don’t anticipate this series reaching one hundred episodes.
  • Other Series: After Creative Engineering is embedded here, I’ll work to embed the rest of my content from oldest to youngest, including my tech series, Swag’s Computers.

I hope this update convinces you to join our community and enjoy not only the embedded content but also our awesome forums and podcast, in addition to these blog posts. Stay tuned for more exciting updates!

Site News

The Site Has Been Moved

I have great news to share with you all today! My blog has undergone a significant transformation and is now a full-fledged community website. This means you can join, start posting comments, and participate in the forums (as long as you follow the posted rules). While there is still some work to be done to make everything perfect, I am excited to share this milestone with you.

In today’s post, I want to walk you through the changes, explain what you can expect, and provide some insights into the ongoing development. Stay tuned for more updates and feel free to dive in and start contributing to our growing community!

One area where I still need your help is completing the legal pages for the community and addressing the various issues surrounding them. I previously mentioned some of the challenges I’ve been facing in this post. Rest assured, I am actively working on these pages and will keep you updated. Once they are finalized and posted, I will share a dedicated post to inform you of the updates.

I haven’t added the arcades yet because I want them to be fully functional when they go live, and that requires some financial investment. The same applies to other features such as advertising (ensuring Full Members and VIP Members remain ad-free), implementing a “pay what you want” membership model, and adding video hosting and live streams via Vimeo. I am working on embedding my existing YouTube series into the website, but this will take some time—this year marks three years of posting videos on YouTube.

I welcome suggestions for other features you would like to see. Please feel free to share your ideas in the comments of this post or in the appropriate forum.

In summary, the transformation of my blog into a community website is an exciting step forward, and I am thrilled to have you all join me on this journey. While there are still some areas that need attention, such as the legal pages and additional features, I am committed to making this community the best it can be.

I invite you to explore the new features, share your thoughts, and contribute to our growing community. Your feedback and suggestions are invaluable, so please don’t hesitate to post in the comments or the forums. Together, we can build a vibrant and engaging community.

Thank you for your support, and I look forward to seeing you all around the site!

Site News

Starting to make changes…

Aside

I’m starting to make changes to how my blog looks in preparation of turning it into a community website when I get the money I’ve been waiting for (and I’m annoyed that it’s still not been deposited in my bank account). I’ve got all the necessary plugins downloaded already, so I figured I would start work on the changes the site will need to transition to a community website from its current status as my blog. (BTW, I have not written this post or designed any of new pages with the help of AI.)

I’ve also separated my podcast episodes from the main blog posts like this one, as well as the videos. I won’t add my YouTube series videos here until I have the series plugin added when I have a paid hosted site elsewhere, to make it easier for you to find each episode.