Community Focus – Ar-McD

AR: Hi, I’m AR-McD, or more simply put—Ash! I’m an artist and designer within the Destiny Community. I’ve teamed up with a few YouTubers, Twitch streamers, and Guardians alike, but I’m best known for the guest artwork I do every week for the Destiny Community Podcast.

 

AR: The best place to see my work is over on Twitter: @AR_McD

All my Destiny and non-Destiny art is either posted or retweeted there.

AR: Back in Year 1 I played the campaign as a Hunter. I took one step into Crucible and was slammed right out of my Golden Gun. It was at that moment I created my Striker Titan, and I haven’t looked back since. 

 

The weapon that has been sitting in my holster the longest has been Ironwreath-D. I got a nice roll early on during The Taken King, and I enjoyed the versatility it provided and its ability to shut down shotgun rushers. The other weapon that comes to mind is Nirwin’s Mercy—I absolutely love that pulse, and although it’s currently collecting dust in the vault, I do still bring it out from time to time.

AR: One of my first Destiny artworks was for the BungieDay T-shirt Contest last year. I was lucky enough to be one of the winners with my King Cayde-6 design. Seeing something I designed up in the Bungie store was an unforgettable experience and a huge honour. 

 

Another piece I’m proud of was the promotional art I did for the Podcast Showdown between Destiny Community Podcast and Planet Destiny. The showdown was a Guardian Con charity event with $20,000 being raised for St. Jude Children Hospital. There was an incredible response, and having a hand in that event was incredibly uplifting. I certainly shed a few tears out of pride for this community.

AR: I was a solo player from day one until The Taken King, where I decided I absolutely needed to play the raid. An opportunity presented itself where the most ragtag team imaginable banded together to take on King’s Fall. None of us had gone through the portal before, and none of us were really an appropriate Light level, and on top of that, we also spoke different languages. It meant that between every wipe we would have one conversation in Czech, which would then be translated into English. It was a mess. Every encounter took 3-4 hours to complete spanning over multiple days. I can’t really explain the elation I felt when I finally saw Oryx drift off into space.

 

Since then I have found a home with a clan who regularly does sherpa runs, and everything feels like a blissful breeze. Having the opportunity to assist other Guardians who were in my place feels so satisfying. It also makes me incredibly excited about guided games and clan integration in Destiny 2!

AR: There are countless artists who’ve inspired and influenced my work. From games, cartoons, anime, and manga, there is a lot to pull from. However, I would like to give a special shout-out to fellow Destiny artist Lazesummerstone. His comic “Watermelon Exo” largely influenced me to jump into the world of Destiny fan art. Without that inspiration, I wouldn’t have been able to meet all the wonderful people I have, including the Watermelon Exo himself.

AR: Thank you so much for this opportunity! The Community Focus is one of my favourite things to read, so it’s wild to get to do this myself. 

And although it gets said a lot, the Destiny community it truly is one of the greatest communities out there. Everyone is so passionate and supportive of one another. It is such a wonderful privilege to be part of it.