There are old clanmates who have since stopped playing who I remember fondly. Chungus, Gunter Gant, Squic, ObsidianOrb, GREENS, SGT.penguin, Blind Duke, Sethra Cellecant, and others.
A few people became Bards after leaving their clans, people like Sheamzilla, who was a bit rough around the edges, but people gave him a much harder time than he deserved. We took him in after he was clanless and it was his final home. I hope he comes back one day. I checked his steam, and he hasn't played anything since January. I hope he's still doing all right. I know he was dealing with a lot of difficult things, I really hope nothing's happened to him.
There are also those few random friends that we all run across if we're playing the game properly. A clan I made a lot of friends in were The lols. A clan I was immediatly turned off too by the name, but turned out to have a lot of great people in it. Some people I met while in that clan still play, Like Blacky Sabbath (now Black Sabbath), Isla, -Horus-, but some I haven't seen in a long time. People like Poppetry, and Citizen Fry. Pop reliable in every role. I hope she comes back some day. And Fry was amazing. I always looked up to him as an engineer and he was great company as well. He was one of the funniest people I've met in GoI. He had this amazing voice that was able to do dry, deadpan humor so well. I hope he comes back someday as well.
Non-lols include people like SteveOfWar who it took me a while to grow fond of, but I did and now it's sad he doesn't play anymore. NicoT I used to play with a lot in my early days, but his log ins are growing further and further apart. Patched Wizard was a pilot I looked up to and was afraid of for a long time, but then we became friends after we officially met. Those were in the days of StarBard, my first real step into the competitive scene. Patched was the ultimate +1. He was always clanless, but could do anything you needed him to. Top rate engi, stellar pilot. He's sworn off the game for a while, but I'm hopeful he'll make a triumphant return eventually. Shinigami Mensa was an oddball, but I liked having him around. He was going through some pretty rough stuff right up until the point he last logged in. Wherever he is, I hope he's ok still. Atruejedi was someone who made games interesting a lot. He was drunk most of them time, but he was a good drunk. tomdrifmach was someone who taught me a lot. He was great in every role and was super reliable. I'm sad he doesn't play anymore, even if he was tiring to be around
I also miss the group I signed up with for my first SCS. We joined in as a Rag Tag Bunch of Misfits. Me from the then MUS as a fresh engineer, Sinistrus piloting along side Duchess of Gilmaness from CsM, crewed by people like Spinach and The Cunning Linquist from AFNC. We got 5-0'd twice by SPQR, but we still had fun. These people don't really play any more, which is sad. They were a good group and had a lot of potential.
Also, I feel someone should make mention of Garner and the [Ottr] clan. Before the matchmaking update, every Tuesday without fail, he would hold an event that was always a lot of fun to goof around in. There were rules for wonky builds and everyone always had a good time.