Pigmy: Describe how your pilot name came to be your pilot name.
Ashes: Back when I first joined Kali in 2007, I realized that using my real name wasn't an option because there was already a guy named James on the Descent server. I had to come up with something quick, because I didn't want to be known as James #2. To avoid confusion, I chose Ashes as a nickname. It was a joke about my poor flying, as in "there's only ashes left of my ship," or something like that. At the time, I also started planting a batch of ash tree seeds, so that's a part of why I chose the name. I have a few other aliases on the internet, but I always try to stick with Ashes when it comes to anything related to Descent.
Pigmy: What drew you to the Descent Rangers in the first place, and who recommended you, if applicable?
Ashes: When I first started playing Descent over Kali, the Rangers had their own server, but I never played a single game on it since the server was pretty much dead. IPX over Kali was still the best way to play Descent until around 2010, when UDP started gaining favor. The only problem was that the tracker still didn't exist at the time, so finding games was difficult; you had to talk to people to get a game. I drifted around various Descent IRC channels, and Jinx was a regular on one of them. We played a lot, and he recommended I join the Rangers, since the Mumble was quite active. It took me a while, but I finally joined. Finding a server where you could reliably get a game was a big draw.
Pigmy: How long have you been playing Descent for?
Ashes: If you count singleplayer, I started when our first computer in 1995 came with the Destination Saturn version of D1. I didn't actually play the multiplayer until I got Descent 2 in 2007. That year, I bought Kali on impulse without checking that it was actually still working. Thankfully, it was still alive. Those guys were really helpful and introduced me to Rebirth, and I played the game like crazy after that. Even in 2007, you could still find games at almost any time of day.
Pigmy: What other kinds of games are you interested in?
Ashes: I picked up Killing Floor with Tomato from Kali a couple of years ago, and I really got into it. I think it's my most-played game this year (I really like cooperative shooters). I've also played a lot of Mass Effect, which is a great series. I got into it a couple of summers ago. I put a lot of time into the multiplayer... again, I like my cooperative shooters. Another favorite is Rollercoaster Tycoon, I've sunk more than a few hours into that game. There's a few other games I've put time into, but for the sake of brevity, I think I'll leave them out.
Pigmy: What hobbies interest you outside of Descent?
Ashes: I like to grow trees from seeds I find in the forest. I have a nice collection of ash, maple, and elms, and I even have a few American chestnut. As far as less outdoorsy stuff goes, video games, Twitch stream, watching sports, and anime dominate my free time. I have my own Twitch channel, www.twitch.tv/blueballed and if anyone asks, the username is a reference to the Descent shield orb. I sometimes stream Descent there.
Pigmy: Would you recommend Descent to other people and would you recommend the Rangers to other people?
Ashes: Of course I would recommend Descent to other people. I always try to get my friends into Descent. So far, none of them have really played more than a few games with me, but if I meet anyone who likes it enough, I'd be sure to refer them to the Rangers.
