Information AboutWoodsball |
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Woodsball is a popular form of Paintball . Woodsball is the name of paintball that is played in any natural setting. GENERAL Woodsball (Also known as Bushball) is the classic form of paintball. In some circumstances, woodsball doesn't have to technically be played in "woods" but played on a natural ground area, with natural barriers - and with large boundaries, or perhaps no boundaries at all. Another form of woodsball is "Scenario Ball" where you create a 'life-like military' objective for one, or both teams to accomplish. Woodsball is more common among suburb or country inhabited paintballers, as it is very easy to find suitable land to play upon. Speed and Arena ball is played more likely by those who live in a city, or places that are hard to find open woods to play. That's where 'Speedball' is different. Speedball may have more publicity, but paintball started in the woods, and where Speedball simulates a 50/50 game (50/50 meaning, either opponent has a 50/50 chance of hitting the other) firefight, woodsball simulates every side of combat that's possible. Strategy is more important in woodsball than ROF (Rate Of Fire, or how fast the marker/gun fires). Speedball, on the other hand, requires much faster-shooting guns than usually seen in woodsball, a notable exception being the heavy rifleman or his equivalent (see below). Also, the speed of players is much more important to Speedball games in general than in woodsball, as woodsball relies much more on maneuvering, accuracy, and broader strategy. To learn more about woodsball, visit http://www.specialopspaintball.com Their section Field Intelligence contains plentiful articles on woodsball, reviews on some popular woodsball products, and overviews of suggested woodsball player positions (see below). EQUIPMENT Normal equipment can include anything that the Military uses, like BDU forms of camouflage, army boots, Ghillie Suits , and so on. Camouflage can be very useful if used properly. It is essential for most woodsball games, providing the basis for the stealth which is needed for most woodsball. The most popular camouflage is the Woodland camouflage developed by the American military in the latter half of the 20th century. The many forms of digital camouflage is making inroads on woodland camouflage's dominance, however. Digital Camouflage , known colloquially as digi-camo, remains relatively rare, however, as woodland camouflage is easier to find commercially. Many other kinds of camouflage are also used. Mossy Oak camouflage and German fleck camouflage are not uncommon. The popular and classic woodsball gun company is Tippmann, mainly because of their cost and reliability. Their most popular gun, the Model 98 Custom, has actually been run over by pickup trucks and survived, to demonstrate the durability of the guns. Their guns are also renowned for their ability to be 'modded', or modified, for many functions. Despite what many misconceptions are, most experienced woodsballers can tell you that camoflauge isn't as useful as the sterotypes about it make it seem. It's usefulness is limited to movement, unless one is in heavy woods or moving at a less than effective speed, it's not difficult to spot a camo'd player without distraction. This is not to be thought of as entirely useless, for camoflague has its uses. Basic camoflauge is inexpensive and a shirt and pants can be picked up for around $15. It also makes you less of a target as compared to wearing brighter, more easily spotted colors. To say it's a deciding factor in woodsball can be easily debated, because camo is not all it is hyped up to be by the media. Woodsball guns in general are known to be universal in play, as one can play many roles while using the same marker all the while. For example, a telescopic sight, stock, and more accurate barrel can be bought and added to the marker, and that player can then play as a marksman. The same equipment can be later exchanged for full-auto grips and/or circuit boards, which allow the player to play as a heavy rifleman. Because of the wide range of possibilities, woodsball guns often come out of the box with relatively basic configurations. Most use carbon dioxide as a propellant, although they can accept compressed air; most are built with the blow-back gas system (system that allows the same gas used to shoot the marker to re-cock it); are semi-automatic; and have stock barrels typically around 20 centimeters (8 inches) in length, and 8.5 inches for Tippmann guns PLAYER POSITIONS There are numerous different styles of playing woodsball. The most popular are given here. Each style is known as a player position, and will often require different individual tactics, equipment, and even different mindsets. Player positions usually suit different kinds of people, and are often chosen for a player by the player's personality. Normally, player positions are only useful if one is playing on a woodsball team; thus 'walk-on' paintball doesn't have these positions. Special Ops Paintball has a good overview of their recommended player positions here. Scout Scouts are always lightly armed and fast. Usually, they are counted on to 'take point' in front of a squad. In numbers, they can also act as a team's quick response force, hovering behind their team's front line and filling in the gaps as players are eliminated. However, scouts' primary responsibilities, of course, lie in finding elements of the opposing team, and then leading elements of the scouts' own team to destroy those opponents. Scouts tend to be chosen for their speed, lightweight gear, intelligence, and their initiative on the field (most 'adrenaline junkies' are assigned as scouts). Rifleman or Basic Infantry The bulk of a team's forces are riflemen. They are generally grouped with squads, and rarely play individually unless as a last resort. Most 'newbies' will start out as riflemen, due to the relative simplicity of the position and since most riflemen stick together (newbies are known to keep together in their first games, forming what are known colloquially as 'newbie clumps'. Being automatically assigned as riflemen gives strategic meaning to this trait). Experienced riflemen are the jacks of all trades, and are expected to fill in when a specialized player has been eliminated. Specialists There are a number of different specialties that can develop in woodsball, due to the wide range of possible equipment configurations and the different needs that come about in play. Specialists are usually integral to a team's strategy, especially if there are a large number of specialists present within that team. Gunner Players with the fastest-shooting guns are almost always gunners. They tend to hang back and 'longball' the opposition, letting scouts and riflemen move up alongside the other team. Gunners are responsible for providing suppressive fire, and they will often be rush up and down the front line, providing cover for other elements of the team as they advance. Heavy Weapons Advanced teams will often have heavy weapons to combat opposing tanks, boats, and aircraft. However, such players will rarely be seen anywhere except 'Big Games' (games where sometimes hundreds if not thousands of paintballers will play) and Scenarioball . Heavy weapons specialists will carry paintball grenade launchers, paintball rocket launchers, paintball mortars, and mounted paintball machine guns. If there is a tank assigned to a team, it is common that heavy weapons specialists will be reassigned as tank pilots. Snipers or Marksmen Paintball snipers are controversial, and thus, the term 'marksmen' is being introduced into the paintball vocabulary. Marksmen are players who concentrate on honing their marksmanship and tuning their markers more for accuracy than for speed, as in speedball. Marksmen are generally used to 'longball' the enemy, and good marksmen can rack up as many kills at thirty meters as most players do at ten. Marksmen are used often as an intimidating concept to the opposing team, like Psychological Warfare . Opponents often fear the marksman's superior accuracy, and will hesitate before attacking him, even if they have greater numbers. This hesitation can become a key factor in woodsball strategy. Paintball snipers are a rather controversial issue in paintball, as snipers in the military form are known for their skill and accuracy in long-range combat. In paintball, however, such long-rage accuracy is impossible, due to the quality, shape and composition of paintballs. Nevertheless, there are woodsballers and speedballers who carry the title 'paintball sniper', but only for their singular accuracy when compared with other players. GAME TYPES Elimination Generally the most common type of woodsball played, and again mostly among new-comers to the sport. Elimination rules can be(but not restricted to) two or more teams, in the woodsball setting, engaging in combat until there is only one team left still in play. Scenario Scenario can be a very grey area, since there are many different ways to play it but still be considered 'Scenario'. Scenario ball is playing more 'life like' situations instead of the classic elimination. Scenarios can be anything from S.W.A.T. versus terrorists to military attacks on an enemy base (and vise versa). Overnight game An over night game is a game that is played for through the day and night. These games can be extremely hard to set up and come with many difficulties in preparing. Some of the problems with setting up these games are: Where to keep refill propellants (and carry enough of it), what rules should be played during the sleeping hours, whether or not to continue during the night (for those without night vision). Mercenary A less common type of paintball played, but made on good ideas. Two different players start on opposing sides of the playing area. All the other players (the "mercenaries") are scattered about the middle wearing some sort of blaze orange(Generally a vest or shirt). When one of the two players finds a mercenary, they can recruit them. Once recruited, the mercenary removes the blaze orange and exposes his clothes underneath, Thus making custom teams. Civil War This is a rule variant that can be added to any of the above game styles. Participants forego a traditional hopper-style ammunition container and load each of their shots manually. Depending on the size of the teams, a certain amount of players may have an 8-round magazine to simulate a Repeating Rifle and one person per team may have a full hopper in order to simulate a Gatling Gun . The start of a Civil War game, like its namesake, usually begins with both teams opposing each other across an open field where each team will fire an opening salvo and then fire at will from skirmish positions. EXTERNAL LINKS |
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