...and 5,000 Posts for the Month!

When I started blogging, I thought a couple of dozen hits per week would be great, a couple hundred in a month would be awesome!  Never would I imagine a lowly blog covering a second tier product from a small historical miniatures company (and other miscellaneous stuff) would ever get 5,000 hits in a month. 

While my annual Historicon posts drum up some traffic every July, Steve Jackson Games tweeting a link to my OGRE post has skewed all my expected numbers.  Hitting 100K views overall happened a month and a half earlier, and even as late as Tuesday, I did not anticipate 5K views in July!

Fun Fact:  Before July, I never had 4K views. 

Here's the really scary thing, the numbers just keep coming, the views have not slowed down since the tweet.  So to all you new folks discovering me, Hi!  I'll try to do better to keep you around...

So to not toot my on horn and add to my post count with filler, some tangible stuff.

While it can be a bit dangerous and a logistical nightmare, I already have a slew of posts scheduled for release through the first week of August, and that doesn't include the weekly Tuesday Hackmaster Actual Play.   I may still have 48(!) other posts I'm working on, but the problem is that I just keep getting ideas! 

I've gotten one response for the Gnomes of August campaign, but since I've already begun it, we'll carry it through.  Time to go find some maps to work with. 

As my painting recently has created more single figures than units, I'm starting the Gnome Profile series of posts.  The first one will cover Sister Maria Katerina Burritto, fame medic in the Imperial Guard of California.  Not everyone can be the Most Interesting Gnome in the World, but I'll try to cover a few of the More Interesting ones for flavor. 

I'm also halfway done painting my first Imperial Guard (of California) unit.  After that, I'll try my best to cover the other countries of North America (Quebec, New Scotland, Canada, Deseret, Columbia, Texas, The Aztexan Empire, the Indian Tribes, and even the City-State of New Orleans) and try to include a history, foreign relations, and a suggested paint scheme. 

After the Guard are done, I'll be alternating between updating the base coated Germans, and a decidingly non-gnome painting queue.   There's some sci-fi which could be incorporated into the Gnomish Space Marine concept, but it could also stand on its own.

I've also begun researching miniatures for the Wizard of Oz books.  Maja and I are already eight chapters into Ozma of Oz, so it's a perfect time to look for correct figures to compliment the Wonderful Wizard of Oz (not the movie), as well as find troops for all the armies of The Marvelous Land of Oz.

I picked up the new D&D Starter Set for Fifth Edition.  Not nearly as thrilled about it as I've seen on other blogs.  Now, I haven't played yet, but the rules look fine and seem to cover facets of all its previos incarnations.  I feel I can run the mini-campaign out of the box comfortably.  I do have some significant issues with the writing and, more importantly, the editing of the included rulebook.  I'll eventually have a review of this, but I'm planning on a super-special first game to try out the rules.

The munchkins did get to use Daddy's painting station this week to paint up some keepsake boxes for Mommy.  Maja's painting is much improved, including putting little embellishments on her box that I did not expect.  Millie got through the process without mixing all her paints in a brown/grey goop on either the box or her paint pallette, so that's a huge improve.

Soon, we'll drive those painting services in Malaysia out of business!

I think that's all.  I've got a half day of work Friday to go see Guardians of the Galaxy.  Here's hoping it inspires me to change all my plans (or not...)