Meet the Mod: Crüniac

This week’s interview has been a long time coming. Interviewed by everyone’s hosts, TheHopefulLoser and Aelus, we bring you Crüniac | Voice of the Union. Without further ado, let’s get on with it!

Crüniac: I’ll just start us off with a brief introduction, shall I? Hello, Explorers! My name is Nigel, but most of you know me as Crüniac. I’m twenty-seven years old, and I’ve lived in the northeastern US my whole life, outside of traveling, which I’ve done a little of. I’ll leave it there for now.

TheHopefulLoser: So tell me, where does the “Voice of the Union” get all his Charisma?

Crüniac: Hah! Me or the character? The answer is the same either way. Though I don’t feel terribly charismatic, any I have obtained could be attributed to a life in reflection. I think it was when I was about ten or eleven I started to be very introspective. Time spent looking inward and considering your effect on the world around you can teach you many things; it taught me a great deal of empathy, and a maddening capacity for devil’s advocacy. I think it was from this that I shaped the character known as “The Voice of the Union:” a man who is privy to the memories of the dead, like dreams, or grains of sand slipping through his fingers. It reflects how I feel about the burden of insight. Too much understanding can be uncomfortable at times.

TheHopefulLoser: What would you say is the most challenging part of being a moderator for PlanetQuest?

Crüniac: Probably the most challenging part of being a Mod is, if I’m to be totally honest, which I prefer to be, managing expectations. I’m the kind of person who will dream at a scope that few people are prepared to keep up with. I ask a lot if I’m going to ask at all, so I’ve definitely had some issues with conflicting ideas in my time here. An operation like PlanetQuest requires a lot of backend work, and I have a tendency to press for things I need to enact my own visions for front-end stuff. Luckily, we have a pretty good crew who mostly understand when friction comes from a good place.

TheHopefulLoser: What are some of your hobbies, and which hobbies have helped you along the way in PlanetQuest?

Crüniac: Hobbies eh? Games, certainly, but that seems like a given. 3D art has been a hobby of mine, on and off. I got into that when I was fourteen I think. I like to believe I’ve gotten fairly decent at it for dabbling. Guitar is another one. One thing I’m sure nobody wants to know is that I’m often accused of vampirism because I have very long nails on one hand. I like to hope people are joking when they say this, but sometimes it’s hard to tell. And though I don’t do this much anymore, I used to be a singer, which has helped me quite a bit working with Helios and the gang on the upcoming voiceover project. Probably my biggest flex was (and possibly still is) performing at Notre Dame a couple years before the fire. I am also, I know this is going on a bit, quite good with baking bread, though that’s sadly a thing of the past for me.

…And then there’s writing. I have complicated feelings about writing. Without condition I love to analyze and edit the work of others, but when it comes to creating my own works, the muses have me whipped. When they sing though, it’s a wonderful song.

TheHopefulLoser: Do you think we’ll get papier-mâché Valkyries for Federation use in the Game? (Hopium)

Crüniac: Of course! Right along with the Union Nailgun and the Empire Puddle Duckers!

TheHopefulLoser: What video game experience do you bring with you into PlanetQuest, and how will it help you lead the Onions to Victory?

At the unassuming age of fifteen I was brutally introduced and sentenced to ten long years of League of Legends. My crowning achievement was probably ranking among some of the best Shen players in North America for a brief while. I reckon I can translate some of that skill over to PQ. On a less grim note though, I can’t resist a good card game. I don’t appreciate not being able to get the cards I need, to compete, but when I have gotten what I need, I’ve been able to reach the highest levels of play consistently enough. Then there’s RTS games. I’m terrible at them, so uh…nothing to see here.

Aelus: Why did you pick The Union, when your real Voice is clearly Imperial?

Crüniac: Shhhhhhhh! They’ll hear! Seriously though, the choice to be Union ties back to my reasons for getting into crypto in the first place. I strive to have enough that I can afford to share. I enjoy being generous and sharing, but I’ve never had enough to do that. Joining the Union was an easy choice for that reason. It represents those values to me. I can’t stress this enough though, all three factions are excellent for too many reasons to name. I love them all for their good and their bad.

Aelus: When will we get to read your Book?

Crüniac: Oh dear…someday I hope. I haven’t touched my book in several years. Things shifted around in my life, and I realized it wasn’t striking the tone I wanted. I haven’t been able to reach my protagonist in a long time. One day though, I will be able to write that story again. In the meantime, you’ll be the first to know when and if I publish my short story.

TheHopefulLoser: Do you have any plans to organize for early access gameplay?

Crüniac: You know, for the longest time I didn’t. I thought it would just be me and you two occasionally running missions together and otherwise drifting like the forgotten relics of PQ’s yesteryear that I feared we’d become. Things have changed though. Some of the newer members of the server have helped reignite the flame, and now it looks we will be able to really organize. It’s these guys that have enabled the voiceover project, which is just starting to get going, and allowed us to move the storyline discussion to a more conducive medium. I’ll miss the janky days of fighting with the stage and feeling like we’re huddling in a dusty bar to discuss the latest scrap of alpha, but it’ll be a nice change to be able to speak to our audience properly, have automatic recordings, and use visual aids.

Interviewers: TheHopefulLoser & Aelus

Editors: Crüniac & TheHopefulLoser

Illustrator: Luffy