From the Ashes is a collection of friends that like to play online together. Our heyday was in Halo 2 but we threaten to re-emerge as Halo 3 arrives and hopefully clan support rises with the 360. Most of us are around 30 and have fairly normal lives. When we ventured online we found it populated by loud children, foul-mouthed idiots, mean-spirited punks, and assholes of every type. But in our games we did find a few souls that thought about things like saying "good game", complementing the competition, and honored sportsmanship and fun.

That's essentially what we are about: having fun online in a clean and fair way.

We believe in:
  -Good sportsmanship and fair play (say good game)
  -Maturity - as much as you can get online
  -Teamwork and communication
  -Minimal trash talking (unless you do it first)
  -NOT Cheating - and we report those that do
  -Playing to win (just goofing off doesn't cut it)
  -And above all: Having Fun (why else would you play?)

I can remember fairly clearly how it all began. Dave and I were sitting in his living room in November of 2004. We were caught up in the all of the wonderment that was the Halo 2 release. We'd hauled my big tube TV (I was thrilled it had s-video) over to his apartment so we could both play in proximity - and I'd whipped up a quick network. Neither of us was hyped about playing competitively online. But we figured what the hell. So while he was fiddling about in campaign, I started looking at the options and said something like: "Hey we need to make a clan, I guess." Dave's response was "a what?"

And so the discussion began. Dave found the little bird that looked like its wings were on fire. I coined the phrase "from the ashes", originally as a slogan for a clan called "Phoenix". Well, "Phoenix" was taken. As was every other good idea we could come up with after hours and hours of Halo 2 without much sleep. Dave was big on the emblem though, so it stuck and we turned the slogan into the clan name (which barely fit I might add).
Thus, From the Ashes was officially born.

Dave and I later found that the online play was something entirely new to behold. The game had its aggravations but still captured our attention online as nothing else ever had. We brought our close friends Dustin, DJ, and Bryan into the Clan and had a great deal of fun trying out all the matchmaking system had to offer. We met a lot of people who seemed to share our unique view of fair play and sportsmanship and our ranks grew a bit. While many of us lost touch as Halo 2 faded - the clan remained in spirit and carried over to the XBOX 360. Now we eagerly await clan support and the chance to reunite in full force.