The Wild World of TB!

As I can see that people are still coming here at quite a large hit rate, I can only assume that the extra traffic is driven with the rumor mill that is working overtime. Waiting to see what 'juicy' things will come this way. Can I promise that they will be rewarded? No, I can't, but until then, I have been pretty introspective the last few weeks. Taking time to read up on articles, books and other things as I prepare to go about the business of helping Thunderstruck rebuild. I re-discovered Edgar Allan Poe and it struck me the sarcastic and dark humor that comes forth in his poetry. I was always a big fan of Poe's but I havent read him in several years. To take the new life experiences that are occuring in real time and apply them to stories from the past does have a way of sharpening the wit. So enjoy this one and see if you can find either the meaning in my life and if you truly want to have some fun apply it to yours.

The Raven
By Edgar Allan Poe

Once upon a midnight dreary, while I pondered, weak and weary,
Over many a quaint and curious volume of forgotten lore, --
While I nodded, nearly napping, suddenly there came a tapping,
As of some one gently rapping, rapping at my chamber door.
'T is some visitor,I muttered,tapping at my chamber door:
Only this and nothing more.

Ah, distinctly I remember it was in the bleak December,
And each separate dying ember wrought its ghost upon the floor.
Eagerly I wished the morrow; -- vainly I had sought to borrow
From my books surcease of sorrow -- sorrow for the lost Lenore,
For the rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore:
Nameless here for evermore.

And the silken sad uncertain rustling of each purple curtain
Thrilled me -- filled me with fantastic terrors never felt before;
So that now, to still the beating of my heart, I stood repeating
'T is some visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door,
Some late visitor entreating entrance at my chamber door:
This it is and nothing more.

Presently my soul grew stronger; hesitating then no longer,
Sir,said I,or Madam, truly your forgiveness I implore;
But the fact is I was napping, and so gently you came rapping,
And so faintly you came tapping, tapping at my chamber door,
That I scarce was sure I heard you-- here I opened wide the door: --
Darkness there and nothing more.

Deep into that darkness peering, long I stood there wondering, fearing,
Doubting, dreaming dreams no mortals ever dared to dream before;
But the silence was unbroken, and the stillness gave no token,
And the only word there spoken was the whispered word,Lenore?
This I whispered, and an echo murmured back the word,Lenore:
Merely this and nothing more.

Back into the chamber turning, all my soul within me burning,
Soon again I heard a tapping somewhat louder than before.
Surely,said I,surely that is something at my window lattice;
Let me see, then, what thereat is, and this mystery explore;
Let my heart be still a moment and this mystery explore:
'T is the wind and nothing more.

Open here I flung the shutter, when, with many a flirt and flutter,
In there stepped a stately Raven of the saintly days of yore.
Not the least obeisance made he; not a minute stopped or stayed he;
But, with mien of lord or lady, perched above my chamber door,
Perched upon a bust of Pallas just above my chamber, door:
Perched, and sat, and nothing more.

Then this ebony bird beguiling my sad fancy into smiling
By the grave and stern decorum of the countenance it wore, --
Though thy crest be shorn and shaven, thou,I said,art sure no craven,
Ghastly grim and ancient Raven wandering from the Nightly shore:
Tell me what thy lordly name is on the Night's Plutonian shore!
Quoth the Raven,Nevermore.

Much I marvelled this ungainly fowl to hear discourse so plainly,
Though its answer little meaning -- little relevancy bore;
For we cannot help agreeing that no living human being
Ever yet was blessed with seeing bird above his chamber door,
Bird or beast upon the sculptured bust above his chamber door,
With such name as "Nevermore."

But the Raven, sitting lonely on the placid bust, spoke only
That one word, as if his soul in that one word he did outpour.
Nothing further then he uttered, not a feather then he fluttered,
Till I scarcely more than muttered, --Other friends have flown before;
On the morrow he will leave me, as my Hopes have flown before.
Then the bird said,Nevermore.

Startled at the stillness broken by reply so aptly spoken,
Doubtless,said I,what it utters is its only stock and store,
Caught from some unhappy master whom unmerciful Disaster
Followed fast and followed faster till his songs one burden bore:
Till the dirges of his Hope that melancholy burden bore
Of 'Never -- nevermore.'

But the Raven still beguiling all my fancy into smiling,
Straight I wheeled a cushioned seat in front of bird and bust and door;
Then, upon the velvet sinking, I betook myself to linking
Fancy unto fancy, thinking what this ominous bird of yore,
What this grim, ungainly, ghastly, gaunt, and ominous bird of yore
Meant in croakingNevermore.

This I sat engaged in guessing, but no syllable expressing
To the fowl whose fiery eyes now burned into my bosom's core;
This and more I sat divining, with my head at ease reclining
On the cushion's velvet lining that the lamp-light gloated o'er,
But whose velvet violet lining with the lamp-light gloating o'er
She shall press, ah, nevermore!

Then, methought, the air grew denser, perfumed from an unseen censer
Swung by seraphim whose foot-falls tinkled on the tufted floor.
Wretch,I cried,thy God hath lent thee -- by these angels he hath sent thee
Respite -- respite and nepenthe from thy memories of Lenore!
Quaff, oh quaff this kind nepenthe, and forget this lost Lenore!
Quoth the Raven,Nevermore.

Prophet!said I,thing of evil! prophet still, if bird or devil!
Whether Tempter sent, or whether tempest tossed thee here ashore,
Desolate yet all undaunted, on this desert land enchanted --
On this home by Horror haunted -- tell me truly, I implore:
Is there- is there balm in Gilead? -- tell me -- tell me, I implore!
Quoth the Raven,Nevermore.

Prophet!said I,thing of evil -- prophet still, if bird or devil!
By that Heaven that bends above us, by that God we both adore,
Tell this soul with sorrow laden if, within the distant Aidenn,
It shall clasp a sainted maiden whom the angels name Lenore:
Clasp a rare and radiant maiden whom the angels name Lenore!
Quoth the Raven,Nevermore.

Be that word our sign of parting, bird or fiend!I shrieked, upstarting:
Get thee back into the tempest and the Night's Plutonian shore!
Leave no black plume as a token of that lie thy soul hath spoken!
Leave my loneliness unbroken! quit the bust above my door!
Take thy beak from out my heart, and take thy form from off my door!
Quoth the Raven,Nevermore.

And the Raven, never flitting, still is sitting, still is sitting
On the pallid bust of Pallas just above my chamber door;
And his eyes have all the seeming of a demon's that is dreaming,
And the lamp-light o'er him streaming throws his shadow on the floor:
And my soul from out that shadow that lies floating on the floor
Shall be lifted -- nevermore!

Nevermore, Indeed Sir!

So as I sit here and read some of these forums and secret squirrel emails, I can't help but laugh at all the blustering so many people have to do these days about how they are just wanting to have fun at scenario paintball. I mean is it really that hard of work for some of you? I mean to post all over the place not just about the game and your excitement about a game but about teams like mine.

I mean scenario paintball, especially here in Texas has become one big Peyton Place. Weeks before a game, all kinds of speculation and story telling goes on. I mean for a game? LMAO.

I must say I find it very amusing to see and read some of the most out-spoken people about their fun and your fun and how they really think about it. Oh the irony, to be sure. However, the rumor mill is working overtime these days. Seems some people just can't help but run those soup coolers in some attempt to be the 'cool kids' and 'in the know', but more on that later. For now, this cool video clip sums it up for me.

You really should google the lyrics unless you speak Twisted Sister. But I will leave you with this:

WE'VE GOT THE RIGHT TO CHOOSE AND
THERE AIN'T NO WAY WE'LL LOSE IT
THIS IS OUR LIFE, THIS IS OUR SONG
WE'LL FIGHT THE POWERS THAT BE JUST
DON'T PICK OUR DESTINY 'CAUSE
YOU DON'T KNOW US, YOU DON'T BELONG

OH YOU'RE SO CONDESCENDING
YOUR GALL IS NEVER ENDING
WE DON'T WANT NOTHIN', NOT A THING FROM YOU
YOUR LIFE IS TRITE AND JADED
BORING AND CONFISCATED
IF THAT'S YOUR BEST, YOUR BEST WON'T DO

No, We Ain't Gonna Take It
You're All Worthless And Weak

Seems that the rumor mill is working overtime in regards to me, the VIP event and this website. Seems some people think that my 'leash' has been pulled in. And that the last couple of posts have little controversy and feeble sensationalism.

Regardless of what these 'tards' think (and I hesistate to use those words as I know some people who are retarded and these guys give them a bad name), I have no leash and I am not being pulled back.

So for all you PAB's who have nothing better to do than gossip about me and my team, why don't you go look in the mirror and remember, you are the one who claims that 'it is just a game'. Do you really spend this much time in your life over Monopoly, Clue or Poker? I mean really?

As for what I post here and when, you don't control what I post and you don't control when I post. To think that this site is some barometer for my opinions and issues is equally ludicrous. And while I appreciate the extra 100 or so hits from the VIP, in the end, I don't need nor do I want your traffic. That isn't the purpose of this site.

As stated in the tagline, it's my world! In fact for those of you that are reading this (and you know who you are) why not take a long walk off a short pier and get the hell out of my world. You neither wanted here nor needed.

As for my version of VIP and the issues there, let's just say that those that need to know, know and those that don't well you don't need to know. Saddle on over to the other side and drink that kool-aid. Because in the end, Friday night parties are all just one big bitchfest these days. ;)

So some may realize that Dale interviewed me for the Ford Report a few weeks back. And now I am certainly happy to be doing the same for him. I first met Dale in 2000 in Mayflower, Arkansas when he was part of FB radio and been hanging on his coat tails ever since. For those in the Southeast, none of this will come as a surprise, as for the rest of you, enjoy this interview with someone almost a public dick as I am.

Question 1: Dale, give us a little bit about your history in paintball. Who you played for and where you've worked.

Dale Ford:I first played at a field near Bloomington, IN in 1988. I'd just gotten out of the Army and my friends wanted to go and give it a try. They (mistakenly) figured I'd have an advantage with my Army training. The fact was, I was as clueless as they were, and I got lit up by a guy using an SMG-60. I was pretty well hooked after that. I've played in Texas, Louisiana, Indiana, California, Florida, Georgia and I visited a field in Norway in 2002. I've never worked in the industry per se, but I got my start with GT2K.Com, and eventually got started with the old PaintballChannel.Com, which morphed into 68Caliber.Com. Along the way I've written for PB2X, PaintballX3, SPLAT Magazine, Paintball Sports, and the old Paintball News.

Question 2: So tell me a little bit about your involvement with The Ford Report.

D: I am The Ford Report. It started out as “The Daily Dale” that was a private thing I did for Chris Iaquinta and Evan Money to give them a hard news segment to the terrestrial radio show they were doing in California. As time went by, I started copying people I liked within the industry, and eventually those very same people browbeat me into doing The Ford Report as you know it today. Late last year I took it independent of 68Caliber.Com with it's own website to give a place for people to go and read old reports, sign up for it, and give me a place to write editorials that would have been too controversial for 68.

Question 3: Most people probably don’t remember but you were one of the first (if not the first) web radio show with FB Radio. What made you decided to step away from that and go into the written word?

D:I think I beat Tyger to the punch by about 2 weeks. Technically I was the first, but Tyger I think had been planning on his show for some time. My show grew out of a weekly webcast I did in a paintball chatroom every Friday night that I called “Friday Night Keggers” where I played music, ranted about some of the crap I saw going on, and usually drank myself stupid. Ben Torrecelli is the one who'll have to take the blame for me getting into writing. I'd been doing the 'embedded reporter' bit at his games and doing shows on-site at his games, and then I'd do a short write-up for 68Caliber.Com. He felt that I had more talent than I was showing, and pushed me into developing that skill. I don't know where it comes from, since my education and background is heavily technical, but apparently I'm a good writer, because people really seem to enjoy what I do.

Question 4: I know that you are writing with the PaintballX3, any truth to the rumors you might be an investor?

D:That's a new one on me. I'm not an investor in PaintballX3, but I am an Associate Editor, along with Josh Silverman. I'm pretty sure I couldn't afford to become an investor with John. However, when Pacific Paintball collapsed, Josh Silverman and I were the first two people that John contacted to see if we'd be interested in working with him on a new project, which was X3. I'm not usually a fanboy of anyone, but I freely admit to being a John Amodea fanboy. He's immensely talented, easy to work with, and he's taught me a lot. I consider him a legend, and he hates it when I say that in front of him, but it's true.

Question 5: As for writing in Paintball X3, what are you most excited about the possibilities that it offers?

D:Paintballx3 is a truly professional organization, populated with professionals at the top of their game in the writing, photography, video and web fronts. Amodea and his people have a plan to create and run a truly independent, unbiased, and professional media outlet. It's something that the game needs and hasn't had, ever.

Question 6: You are deeply immersed in the South East aspect of paintball. What is the number 1 thing you like about it? And you better not say the brotherhood and nice-nice feelings.

D:It came as a real shock to me how different it is down here when I moved to Florida in 2003. Even the new players are flat out nasty. Paintball down here is flat out violent and nasty. Being a former tourney guy, I love the intensity that the Deep South has, and I have a lot of fun playing down here. Players down here want to learn how to be good players and don't mind hard lessons. These guys are fearless!

Question 7: You have been connected with Billy Smith and Low Country Paintball. What do you say to people who think you are just a stooge for Billy?

D:I met Billy the first time at an MPP Game in Titusville, FL. He asked me to come check out a game at his field in Ludowici, GA. I did, and I've really enjoyed the atmosphere at LCP and Billy and I are good friends. As for being his Stooge, if that were the case I wouldn't be covering NOCER games and helping them out as much as I do. The fact is, I don't have a relationship with Dollack, and the one game I reffed there left me with a bad taste in my mouth for Dollack games.

Question 8: Unlike those people, I know that you have also been known to help other promoters like NOCER and MPP Games. What value do you think you add to helping them?

D: Well, producers like NOCER and MPP Games are run by extremely talented people, and rather than getting on whatever bandwagon everyone else seems to be trying to ride, I want to help out producers that have extremely high quality games but nobody knows about it because the media isn't giving them the attention they deserve. Then you got guys like Bill Bain, “Georgia” Joe Hamilton and Bill “Firebug” Meister who write games for LCP who do a fantastic job of entertaining hundreds of people a weekend, but nobody knows because they're not mainstream enough.

Question 9: Ever going to do a radio show again? Or maybe a weekly webcast?

D: I'd like to, but it's pretty time intensive to do those shows. A typical 30 minute show can take 2-3 hours to produce, and it's tough to balance that in with my day job, the writing assignments I have, and trying to spend some time with the Tiny Blonde Goddess. I won't rule it out, but it's going to be tough to get it done.

Question 10: What expansions can we look forward to in The Ford Report?

D: At some point I'd like to go to a different backend for the site and give it some more flexibility so I can do more with it, but I'm not in a hurry to do that. I've got plenty on my plate with the Report itself and PaintballX3.

Question 11: I noticed that you have picked up some major sponsors for the Ford Report. With the economy like it is, why do you think that they chose your website and blog over the others?

D: I've been in the paintball media in one capacity or another for 9 years now...these guys know me, know what I'm capable of and where I come from. Even the guys who don't like me will tell you they respect me, because I say what I mean and mean what I say. There are way too many guys out there that'll whore themselves out chasing sponsorships or ad revenue. If you stay true to yourself, the support will come. You know that as well as I do. I mean, weren't you one of the first scenario players/teams to get full gun sponsorships? That doesn't happen by accident.

Question 12: Anyone who hasn’t been living under a rock, knows that a lot of people have their own answers for saving paintball. Do you think it needs saving?

D: I think the tournament side over-extended themselves chasing TV, and it didn't work out. Once again the grassroots rec, woods, and scenario players are going to be keeping the game afloat while the tournament side sort themselves out and refocuses on getting profitable again.

Question 13: And how would you save it?

D: Just go back to the roots of why we all do this thing: Fun. Make products that are a good bang for the buck, are fun and easy to use, and actually work. There's too much gimickry out there, and the industry side needs to get back to their base markets, keep them happy and try to build from that solid base, rather than throwing money away on pipe dreams like the Olympics and Mainstream TV Coverage. I think the Olympics and Mainstream TV Coverage are possible, but it's going to take time, and require a lot of patience.

Question 14: Most people also know about your recent split with 68 Caliber. And while I am sure that there is a no comment coming soon. Do you think that 68 Caliber will continue with the success that it saw under your direction?

D: You know, Steve and Karen did what they felt was best for the business. I obviously disagree with that, but that's neither here nor there. It happened, and I've been trying like hell to move on from the whole situation. I don't know if they're going to be the next media empire or if they'll crash and burn. I do wish them the best of luck, but it's out of my hands now.

Question 15: I hear you are part of a team now call the South Beach Pimps. Tell me how that came to be?

D: Since I've moved to Florida, I've met some amazing people. John Navarro is one of my closest friends, and we played together on the old 68Caliber.Com tournament team, and once we got out of the tournament side, playing together on a scenario team just kind of happened. The South Beach Pimps are the nastiest, most violent team in the Deep South. We're useless on missions or at night, but we play harder, party harder, and have more fun than anyone else out there. I was one of the first people invited to be on the team, and the invitation was pretty much John threw a Jersey at me and told me I was playing for him.

Question 16: Will your new team be unveiling any new sponsors this year?

D: The South Beach Pimps are sponsored by Kila Products, Planet Eclipse, and Guerilla Air. I'm not sure who else we're talking to right now, but Johnny is on the phone constantly with people.

Question 17: Will you guys be travelling out of the South East to spread your ‘goodness’ to others? And if so where will you be?

D: We all have full time jobs and families, so it's tough to get away. Having said that, I'm going to make a supreme effort to get to Viper's end-of-the-year game this year, mainly because he called me out and told me to get my ass to TX. I know there's been some talk about doing EMR as well, but I'm not sure what's going on with that.

Question 18: So without telling us, since the first rule is you don’t talk about it. What is this new thing that is happening in May at LCP?

D: It's really a new thing. I can't get into too much detail, but the environment there will be as politically incorrect as you can get legally, and I'm really looking forward to it. One of the things I really despise about the way things are right now is the attempt to make paintball politically correct. You run around shooting people with something that looks like a gun. Call it a marker or whatever you want to try and avoid that reality, but it doesn't work. The game will never be politically correct, and trying to make it all Disney like is doomed to failure.

And for the last two questions:

Question 19: Tell us about Dale Ford; Are you married? Do you have any children?

D: I'm married to Jamie, also known as “The Tiny Blonde Goddess” (She's 4'11”) and we don't have any kids. We do have 'paintball kids' that we enjoy being around, but none of our own. Phatty The Cat is our 17 pounds of Calico Love. I'll be 39 this year, and I'm trying to figure out a way to avoid it. I work full time as a copier repairman, plus full time as a writer/photographer with PaintballX3 and TheFordReport.Com. Jamie does a lot of a camera work too, and I'm slowly bringing her into the writing side of things as well. Eventually we'll be a lot like Dawn and TJ Alcott or Bea and Mike. Except hotter.

And the final question:

Question 20: What's your favorite beer/alcoholic beverage?

D: When I drink, which is pretty rarely I dig Bass Ale or Amaretto Sours. Jamie drinks beer and tomato juice. I think she has issues.

And on the drinking part, I beg to differ sir, I partied with you at World Cup in 2007. Then again, you might have been too tore up to remember. :)

Make sure you head over to the Ford Report and get signed up for all the industry news goodness. Dale really does have minions all over in paintball.

I wrote a version of this for the California Paintball Forum: http://www.paintball4all.com/index.php?option=com_fireboard&Itemid=61&func=view&catid=9&id=2021

In it I took the Hot Insertions apart and tried to give some ideas on it. These guys are not new to the sport and scenario has been well and alive in California since at least 2000 when MXS was there. And they have quite a few promoters. This was more to generate discussion and give some insight into the use of them. I hope you enjoy the adaptation for here.

So let's start with the definition in the rules, shall we?

Reinsertions: Reinsertions happen every twenty minutes, and the window for inserting stays open for five minutes. This means that if you show up at the "hospital" at 2:48 you can reinsert at 3:00, but if you show up at 3:22 you may tag up, wipe off your old hit, and go right back to your base. When you insert you must go to within 50 feet of your base before you may remove your barrel cover and enter play. The exception to this is a "Hot Insertion." If the opposing team has control of your base (the referee will make this judgment) you will be informed at your hospital that it will be a "Hot Insertion" which means that you are in immediately when the hospital opens. This time should be used to take out as many of the occupying forces as possible since you only have to tag up at your hospital when you get hit, as opposed to them having to go all the way back to their end of the field.

Now there are several things not spelled out in specifics that come from playing Viper games. I have played in them since 2000 and commanded as well as wrote them. Here is tactical lesson one, be on the field at game on. If you cannot be, realize that for the first 30 minutes of each game segment you do not have to wait until 20 after to hit the field. So if you missed it at the bird banger, gather your guys up and head to your CP. If it is before 12:20 and you have not been on the field, then you can re-insert for free. The next thing is that at the base or going on the field, you do not have to 'tag up' at your base. You only have to come within 50 feet. That also means at the start of the game, you can start out up to 50 feet from your base. You may not think that matters much, but a lot of times. To quote one of my heroes of command, Nathan Bedford Forrest ; "He who gets there firstest with the mostest wins!"

Now some may wonder, why attack a CP. I mean Viper spells out in his rules that CP drops and Base Blows are worth no points. Commander eliminations are worth no points. So why push a CP? Well there are several reasons. Some may or may not agree with me, but trust me they work. First and foremost is that if you are defending or trying to take you base back, you aren't running missions. And missions win the game. If you cannot receive missions, and that means that your CP is blown then once again you cannot score points. Those are the simple reasons and the most spoken ones. The un-spoken is that holding a CP goes to attack the very thing that anyone who is wanting to win may do and that is target the morale of the other side. Now I am not going to discuss whether it is the thing to do at a paintball game where some people want to do nothing but have fun, but it is there. And people do take advantage of it, just as they would a prop, a sniper shot or an airstrike.

So how do you beat that? Well that is up to the individual player and the leadership of a side. And I don't just mean the XO or the Commander, but people who can and are the leadership of a side. There are people who think I take over or walk on a commander when I play. I don't, I simply let them use me as needed and if they are slipping, I try and bolster them while they regain their footing. And that is what leaders do, they work to keep their side in the game. Realize that a lot of things take pre-planning, you have to understand the rules to plan for them. So in this instance, what do you do? Well simply put, you make assumptions. You assume that you are going to have base over runs. You make the commander a Demo guy, you make your radio op and engineer and you make your chief of security a sniper. Once you get your drop box, you plant charges around your base, you plant them in strategic locations and you store some things at your hospital. Sniper shots, a Law rocket and some rockets or even a helo card and helo. Why?

Here is a tried and true method. You push all that way to my base and I deny you, your prize; I blow myself and my base up. First, I may take some of you out. But I deny you the base, you didn't take me, I gave it to you. That is morale boost to command and a team. Your chief of security can snipe out the key players pushing. And your radio op can rebuild. But if they still drop it, then they have to decide to hold it. And the truth is can they? They shouldn't be able to, because in that 5 minutes you are invincible and they are not. And here is another key tip, on a hot insertion, you don't have to go to your base. You are live when you hit the field. What does that mean?

You don't have to go up the hill to your CP straight on. You can go straight to the 50, hell you can push their base. You can hit them from an envelopment of the side or the back. If you want to be tricksy about it, pick up your laws and start raining them down on them. Use your sniper shots that you stored at the insertion point. Put up the helo to give you intel about how many and where they are. Or you can start blowing up those strategic bunkers and killing everyone within 20 feet. You can push people out of your base, and if you can't then you can return the favor. Because if they are sitting on your base, then you either outnumber 20 to 1 or they dont have anyone between you and their base. The quickest way to get them off your chest, is to flip them on their back and climb on yourself.

Now I am sure that this doesn't help now once people have been the victim of one. But some of you have seen the power of it used at the last game you played. Think back now, and what I have said above. That is just some of the tactics that can work. Going forward realize that if you play a Viper game or a Wayne Game or any promoter who follows the old GSRP or such, you may have to deal with a Hot Insertion. And how do you combat all of that? I have played constant insertion and yes it is a lot harder to drop a base, but it can be done. And the morale killer is worse in that respect, because what you feel is I cant even keep my base and all I have to do is kick the can and I am alive.

You are responsible for your morale, and while you may be out gunned or out manned, you guys have played in games where guile and deception beat strength and aggression. Appear weak when you are strong, appear strong when you are weak.

So the next time you get told by your base ref you have a hot insertion, you will know what it is and maybe have a plan on how to defeat it.

I decided to take a closer look at the OS called the Sniper. Not very many promoters use this OS and at times it doesn't seem to be a very popular one with some players. I don't agree with the statement that in scenario paintball, you have to be eliminated in someway by a paintball. This is a game of imagination and to limit it to the physical implements of the paintball game can and might put people at risk of safety.

How? Viper allows non-pnuematic assisted pump guns to chrono up to 300 fps and there isn't a huge difference in the use and accuracy of the two. Airsoft, by comparison empowers their sniper with a huge FPS upgrade as well as the ability to go to a higher weight BB for realism. Those just aren't options in scenario paintball.

Now we all know of the argument about whether there are such things as paintball snipers. The truth is that there are a lot of the functions that a sniper can perform that is performed by these people. All except the coup-de grace shot on a high value target. And the purpose of the OS is to allow that. How?

Let's say that you have someone like Me leading a mission squad. Now most people who know me, know that I know missions up one side and down the other. I lead people and make sure we get the mission done. Take me out and you probably can scrub a mission. Now you aren't going to be able to get that close without my support group stopping you or giving me time to adjust to you coming in. The whole sneaking and setting windage and taking the shot isn't going to work. And that is where the OS Sniper comes in. With this card and this shot, you could eliminate me from within LOS. Now is it full-proof? Now, I mean Snipers do miss for whatever reason, but it being in the game does allow for random type events to happen. So why the pushback, do you think?

Well the fact is that people are abusing the sniper role. But we will get more into that. let's take a look at the official stances on sniper from the Viper rules. And realize that your favorite promoter might take a different look at them.

Sniper: Snipers can use “Sniper Shot” cards to eliminate any player in plain view within 300 feet. The “sniper” must surrender one “Sniper Shot” card to a judge in order to eliminate a player. Each “Sniper Shot” card allows you to eliminate one target. They do not need to actually fire their paintball marker to accomplish this elimination. “Sniper Shot” cards may be used by snipers to complete a “sniping” mission, but must take out a player at the objective to complete the mission. Snipers cannot target helos, or their passengers, while in flight, nor may they fire from helos. Only snipers may possess “sniper shot” cards, and are limited to carrying no more than five at a time.

So this is the current role as it has been since before Jan 2009. However even with these rules there has been some abuse. And that is what seems to have ticked people off over this role more than any other in the history of scenario paintball. Yep, even more than the medics as this can be a pretty devastating weapon if unchecked. According to the 'spirit of the rules' you should have to see your target and point them out to a ref. The ref should make sure that you have a clear line of sight within the prescribed 300 feet and then either call a ref near you or come down to get you himself. The sniper can then adjust fire to the next target.

Now I have seen people run from refs after being sniped and I have seen some people shoot from postions where they cannot see who they are shooting at but are sniping by radio. I have seen sniper shoot at people that they think they see (Hey TB is in the woods, I am sniping him go get him) and more. Snipers indeed are easy to be abused.

You would expect that players would know the MOS rules of the MOS that they chose and you wouldn't need to have ref's enforce the rules. I mean refs are a lot of things, but omnipotent isn't it. Are there gray areas in this rule? Sure, but I think the 3 things I mentioned above aren't it. And there are others, so first and foremost personal responsibility should cover your approach to this. I mean, you said you read the rules so just because a ref says you can do doesn't mean much since the rules are supposed to trump the field ref. Head refs and game directors can and sometimes do over-rule them, but the field refs are the to call paintball hits and enforce the rules. Gray areas again should be left up to the head ref and GD.

So someone who lines up and eliminates a mission squad with sniper shots, really has more to burn than common sense. And the purpose than becomes one of morale. As is the case in certain games, morale allows psychological momementum and so can be targeted rather easily with snipers. When the game director allows one side to have more than the other, or puts too many in the game then the snipers pretty much become all powerful and that isn't fun for anyone now is it?

And those snipers who can traverse the field killing anyone and everyone in a 300 foot swath of destruction should know better. I mean, no one with any common sense would believe that a promoter would give someone supreme ultimate power like that. Now if you are good enough to do all that with a paintball gun, then cool. But to run around throwing out cards isn't what the OS was designed for. So don't blame the OS, or the cards, blame the guy using it outside the scope and the promoter who empowered him (if the promoter did indeed do so).

How can you counter-attack snipers? Well if you keep losing someone, put a helo with a radio in the air. He can then fly down into the group of players and determine who the sniper is and radio back to you. You then close to the 300 feet and line him up and shoot him with your own sniper shots. You can also shoot out and search the body of everyone and bank the sniper shots to deplete them in the game. Another thing to do is to make sure you get your drop box because that can really put you at a disadvantage in the sheer number of sniper shots in the game.

But with all of this, moderation is the key. As is knowing the rules and being able to apply them. That is really the key, the application of the rules vs just knowing them. So the next time you are making that push and a ref runs up to you, you should be happy that you got sniped. In some games these cards are very valuable and you just made them use a dedicated elimination to take you out.

Then again, in the games I have produced I made a sniper carry a 'sniper rifle' and it looked the part. I attached a hole punch and had a slot for a card. The card was a laminated sniper shot card and you got one. You inserted it into the rifle and your rifle was live. You shouldered it, took the shot and the ref pulled the card and punched it. It went back in the gun and you were ready for your next shot. There were plenty of clips around but only one sniper rifle per side. And trust me, that made the sniper roles a lot more 'real' and put alot more time into the game. Plus it made sniper/counter-sniper easier as well.

Until, next time!

Take a look and see what you think.

www.ScavengerPaintball.net (website is having issues)

In the comments, Spiro mentioned this place to discuss as well:

http://www.blackcatpaintball.com/scavenger/forum/index.php?board=4.0

All I have to say right now is a quote from the Bible (ironic isn't it?):

Daniel, Chapter 5, Verse 27 - "Thou art weighed in the balances, and art found wanting"

Congrats to Thespsis on the win!

Good Job Joe on the MVP!

Congrats to Nudi and Thunderstruck (and Prospects) on the Sportsmanship and MVT!

And big hats off to Jedi and the Gun Kings on the Most Formidiable Opponent (Mofo). That was a long way to come to Texas and you guys represented the South East with some stand-up, hard hitting play! I hope to get down there with you guys soon!

Glad to see all the Midwest teams who came down to play! It was awesome running with Steel Reserve again (I really like playing with those guys!)

And click this if you want a good laugh!

I have been hearing rumors about this new format that Black Cat is going to be unveiling. He has been pretty tight lipped with me on the details. Not unusual since most promoters are that way with me these days.

But this is what I do know:

Yes ladies and gentlemen,

Stay tuned tonight on Paintball Live as we release publically for the first time this new game format.

This new format is a combination of the desirable and appealing traits of several paintball formats including Scenario Games, Paintball Tournaments, Woodsball Tournaments, and SPPL events. It is a well orchestrated COMPETITIVE event in which small "armies" of participants rely on the use of their talents and skills to compete against each other in order to successfully win the event and in turn the WHOLE PRIZE PACKAGE for that event!

So check out, www.pblive.tv Wednesday night to found out exactly what this event is, how it is played and more importantly WHY it will shape the way you play paintball.

I did some details on his True24(TM) games when we talked on the phone and he also seemed pretty excited about this new format as well. Guess we shall have to wait until then to see what Spiro has in mind!

Another one of those 'oldies but goodies' this is from 2002, but I mean base defense if a forgotten art. So many people think that the best defense is a good offense. And that is cool as long as you can mount that offense. When you can't you need to be able to have a fall back plan. In fact, there have been a few games in the 'history' of scenario paintball that were won with a nigh un-crackable defense. Enjoy!

By David “Goombah” Hofmann

Base security is one of the hardest issues for any commander. There is no one thing that will always make base security work, or fail. Each game and field requires different security, based on terrain of the field, weather conditions, time of the day, number of players and caliber of players. In this article I will attempt to explore some of the pros and cons of different strategies.

First, let’s look at arm band tape. A good trick to do is tape players up before the start of the game. Most game producers will provide the arm band tape to the commanders before the start of the game. Select two people you know well and trust and give them this tape, making sure you keep one roll to go out to the command center. These two players should go around to everyone they can and ask which side people are on. After they check the players’ card to confirm that they are on your side, tape them up.

This will prevent a lot of confusion when people step on the field. Rather than trying to get everyone taped up right before the start of the game, you can spend that time giving instructions, and players can get positioned around the base.

Also, keep an eye on the clock. Right before insertions, three to four of your staff should head to the insertion area and be checking to make sure people are taped. Several game directors will have players not remove their barrel plug till they reach the base. This is a good rule to enforce. If a player walks up without a barrel plug and no arm band tape, he’s probably an enemy that has tried to slip in with the insertion group. Another thing you can do is have one of your players take a roll of tape and walk to the dead zone 5 minutes before insertion, and tape everyone up that is inserting. Yes, this means calling himself out to be in the dead zone, however it guarantees every player walking up the insertion trail is either taped, or an enemy.

The next subject of importance is whether to be a “Securi-Nazi” or not. There are times when being a “Securi-Nazi” is a good idea, but this should only be done carefully, and in games where you have lots of players to spare for security. If your side has less then 150 players total, trying to keep a secure area of operation is going to annoy your players who would rather be playing, and be counter productive. If the command center has a window that the command staff can interact with the players through, and there is an easily controlled door, then setting up one or two people at the door is a good idea, and make players that want to talk to the command staff come around to the window.

On the other hand, lack of base control can also be very effective. In California, I generaled a game where our base security was designed around letting the enemy take our base. Instead of having a large security force, I had one person that stayed close to me and jumped in front of me when the shooting started (“Boo” from Team Phreekz took several paintballs with my name on it that game). When the base was in danger of being over run, we ran to a safe place that the command staff had chosen, then waited for reinsertion and pushed them back out of our base. This let a lot of people I would have used for security be assigned to running missions. Base security is only important if you’re getting missions done.

Props are the next big issue with security. Sooner or later your base is going to get over run or infiltrated, no matter how good your security is. Putting all of your props up in one location makes it real easy for the opposing team to rob you blind. Depending on the game and the props, it’s often a good idea to store props around the base in different locations, preferably hidden if the terrain will allow. Also be careful who is watching when you hide them. At most games, there is a spy in your midst somewhere.

Speaking of spies, they are an itch on every general’s back that isn’t always easy to scratch. There is no easy way to catch them. The best you can do is watch and hope they mess up. I good spy will never get caught. Some thing that you can try though, is send fake missions. Ask for three or four players to volunteer for a risky mission. Make up a fake mission card for them to go to retrieve an item or do recon at a point. The fact that there isn’t any item doesn’t mater. Make sure to make a big deal of the fact that it is an important mission. Try to select people that aren’t a team known to you. One of two things is likely to happen. Either the spy will attempt to join this group, or radio to his general what’s going on. This is where your command staff comes into play. Before the game, away from prying eyes and ears, tell your command staff to watch players with radios whenever you make announcements or hand out missions. Anyone that radios in stuff pretty regularly, yet doesn’t ever seem to meet up with his team near the command center, is likely to be a candidate for your spy. However, be careful that you have adequate proof before you start accusing people of being spies!

Dealing with role players is the next big subject, and one of the most important. Role players don’t generally win or lose a game, but they can find/have/negotiate for “the thing” that tips the game in your favor ... and they always make the game more fun for everyone. The point of the game is having fun, not winning or losing, right?

Some role players will demand to see the general, for a variety of reasons. Always role play with these people if you have time. If you don’t, get one of your command staff to do it. Make them wait till you or someone else can interact with them or find out what it is they want. If they are serious players, they will either role play with your command staff or wait till you finish what you’re doing. Role players can have a number of special purposes, but most role players won’t attempt to eliminate the general. Doing so is pointless, as it will just prevent them from future role playing at your base. Another idea which you may consider, and depending on the scenario director’s ruling on this, is to have one of your security get with the role player in question and a field judge. You’re not allowed to touch another player without permission at a field, but you might declare to them that your security is searching the player for bombs or weapons. Have them declare that any such items on the player are considered removed till the role player leaves the area of the base. If the role player agrees to this in front of the judge, then take your chances.

My last and final suggestion is this: Change out your security often. Most people don’t care to pull security detail, but it’s something that has to be done. When a mission comes in, try to give those people that have pulled security first dibs on the mission, and tell your players that’s why you’re doing it. You’ll find you have a lot more volunteers.
Dave “Goombah” Hofmann is a member of the scenario team Blitzkrieg, and is the owner and webmaster of www.scenariopaintball.com. Check out the website, as it has lots of cool stuff on it, and it hosts the General Scenario Rules of Play, used by many scenario directors.

I am sure that peeps have seen this, but I had to wait a few before I could publish.

First thoughts, very cool! I wish John and staff luck and will assist as I can to help him out!

To read the Flipbook, click here http://www.paintballx3.com/february/v2/fvxpress.html.

If you like it, be sure to head to his site and sign up to get more information and get the issues sent to you. When the print issue is ready be sure to subscribe, I sure will.

So I have been reading all these 'Big Name' people talking about the status of the game of paintball. I have read all the public and private discussions that seem the swirl around the whole thing and everyone wants to blame someone. Manufacturers want to blame the economy, fields want to blame the manufacturers, Promoters want to blame each other, insurance companies blame the fast guns and players want to blame all of the above and also included anyone who thinks of being aggressive. So that is the new black, I take it? Let's try and put the genie back in the bottle by lowering the BPS caps. Here is the issue with that, BPS really only plays a part in the game of rec-ball. You know when the newbies are on the field. Most every other genre of the game, BPS is a usuable and defendable tactic. There are ways around it and there are ways to counter it. Most everyone will tell you that full auto and burst aren't allowed, yet there are other fields and scenario promoters who allow it. There are some promoters who require semi-auto only and yet others who state that PSP ramping mode is ok.

But I digress. I wrote this in June of 2005 for the last issue of Scenario News. 3.5 years ago, I wonder how well I did in predicting things? You be the judge!

Scenario Paintball, the future?

I’ve been thinking about this for some time and I have pretty much reversed the way I feel about things and the way scenario paintball is going. I’m going to state some things, and then I am going to give my opinions about them. But I would ask all of you that read this column to think hard about what I am saying. This could affect all of us in the future, more then you may realize.

Scenario Paintball has been around for over 10 years now. In the beginning was Wayne Dollack and he had 3 to 4 games a year. If you wanted to play scenario paintball, you traveled to one of two places either Florida or Pennsylvania. And you played Wayne Dollack’s games. One weekend, after playing a Wayne Dollack game, Kerry ‘Viper’ Rosenberry and Patrick ‘Pacman’ McKinnon came up with Viper Scenarios and Viper talked with Wayne and ‘got his blessing’ so to speak. But one of the things they agreed was in the separation of the country between the two companies. And they would travel and promote each others games.

Then five years ago, Mackz Xtreme Sports stormed onto the scene. They had no agreements with Wayne and felt like that if they stayed out of Texas and Florida then life would be good. They traveled the country putting on games in Indiana, Nevada and even California. Of course, when a lot of those fields didn’t pan out they dropped them and migrated to where the players were: Pennsylvania, Florida, Texas and Georgia. And then 3 years ago, Black Cat stepped out of the shadows and began traveling to even more states like New Mexico, Ohio and Washington State. Then there was the split between Ben Torricelli and Wayne Dollack and the creation of Millennium Paintball Productions.

And each and every time a new promoter has stepped out on the scene, the player base has split. You have smaller promoters like NOCER, TAW Paintball and Fledgling Scenarios. They all want to try and do the game better or meet player’s expectations in ways they feel the other promoters ignore. It has led to everybody thinking they can run a scenario game. Every field will put its own spin on scenario paintball. Some fields booted promoters and began to produce their own in-house games, some scenarios and others not even a big game. Some have been successful, like Oklahoma D-Day or Skirmish’s Invasion of Normandy and others have not, Smakzone’s Operation Imminent Storm.

But one thing that they have done is destroy the reason people make some of these games so big, and that is the desire to travel to play them. There was a day, not too long ago, that there was a 24 hour scenario game that was over 1000 people, even Wayne has them but once a year in December. Most of the 1000 plus player games are big games or less then the 24 hour scenario games that so many of us are used to. Why is that? Where has the scenario players gone? Why are there such small games and not any really large games any more? Is it the promoters, is it the fields or is it the players?

Maybe a little of all of that but once thing is for certain, the fact that there are so many people that think they know how to put on a quality scenario event isn’t shrinking. And some of the funniest stuff I have heard recently is how some of the promoters actually blame Wayne or Viper for their troubles. Like these icons in the sport are somehow unconvincing them or players by not bowing to the will of these new kids on the block. And then they start griping how there are even newer companies trying to do to them what they are trying to do to Wayne and Viper. It is really ironic.

So what can be done to fix this? There really isn’t anything that can be done to be honest. You will never convince some promoters and their supporters that they are wrong in any way, well until their supporters get mad at them but that is another story. We are going to have to wait it out it seems. We are going to have to wait for players to get fed up of the hype and fluff and start re-attending the events that used to be something. They haven’t changed for the bad, you know. Texas Revolution is still one of the coolest events around, and Wayne always has good games. Even MXS has great games when they put forethought into it and not give us the cookie-cutter scenario paintball that we’ve seen lately. Black Cat puts on great games as well and well, I’ve never attended a MPP game but some people swear by them.

In the end, it seems that some of our friends are destined to fall by the wayside. It may even wind up being the founder of our sport, Wayne Dollack or Viper. Then again it could be one of the others, but the pie is getting smaller not larger. People aren’t attending the games like the Texas Throwdown or Twilight Zone in the numbers that they used to or are expected to? And the question will then loom again, why? I’ve heard all the excuses from economy to politics, but the simple reason is that none of the promoters have a guaranteed game any longer. I’ve heard people wanting deals on paint, BYOP or lower entry costs. But none of those are the answers as well, I mean are people just that fickle these days?

I can only hope that the sport survives this, it is quite possible it won’t. Already there are competing Big Games and then you have the RTS from Viper or MORF from Realms of Ruin. They are good formats don’t get me wrong, but they are not scenario paintball. People trying to make scenario more exciting by adding in tournament style leagues are really missing the boat. Endurance is the hallmark of scenario paintball, it always has been and it always will be: the endurance of being able to run a ‘boring’ mission along with the ‘exciting’ ones. The endurance of a 24-hour game vs. an 8-hour Big Game. Those are the marks of a truly great scenario team, and those are the marks of where scenario paintball should be going. Back to its roots, back to basics, back to the old school scenario paintball games. Maybe one of the older promoters will figure that out and return to the days, when the games were fun. Before Viper players, or MXS players, before the Scenario Brotherhood or whatever other faction people dream up to leverage against promoters.

One can only hope that some will listen to this cry for reason and sanity in the world of scenario. If you don’t like something, work with the promoter. It’s a hell of a lot easier to do that then to start your own scenario company. Trust me, I know, I’ve promoted scenario games as well. And while good games are easy to write, they are not easy to pull off. Enough of this rant for this month, I’ll see you guys out there and if you think you have the answer, please email me or come up to me, I’d love to hear it.

So whatcha think?

So I have gotten a few of these in the mail in the last few months and I have been remiss not to review them. I’ll be honest, after reading them all, I am not a better scenario player. But that is just me to be sure. I will say this about them, they are a step in the right direction. However the problem with all of them is that none of them approach that someone needs more then these books provide. The deals that all of them sell is that you can pick up book X and become a scenario master and well that just isn’t the case. However this time out I will review two books by Don ‘Badger’ Grubish and next time out I will look at a few of the others.

I talked with Don a few months ago after he attended a game at Tactical Paintball here in Texas and he actually submitted a few articles to Paintball 2 Xtremes. He had mentioned to me that he had written a few books about scenario paintball and I was intrigued to see them. So I asked him to send them to me to review and he did. However I dropped the ball on reviewing them and I am sure he feels I have forgotten about them. Don, I apologize for not getting this up sooner, but here it is nonetheless.

The first book is Scenario Paintball: Tips, Tools and Tactics from the Trenches and to be honest it is a pretty decent read for self help. What he has done is try to bridge the gap of military tactics (which don’t work in scenario paintball) and the multiple books, magazine articles and such that try to teach people paintball. I can honestly say that if you have never played scenario paintball, then this book will be a boon to you and your friends. There is a storyline that runs through the book that tries to get you to relate to the person the story is about and puts some of the things he talks about in layman’s terms with the characters in the story.

It covers the beginning of paintball, it’s evolution and things like how to choose a paintball marker, goggles and gear. It doesn’t go much into air systems and other items that might be needed at a scenario event, but it does do a good coverage of the basics of paintball. Next he goes into tactics and while he didn’t copy the US Army Infantry manual like so many others have done, there is still more ‘real world’ tactics then there needs to be. He also talks about some exercises and training tips to try and move yourself more into the thought process that a good scenario paintball player must be in when they take the field and he discusses some exotic weaponry. The rest of the book is filled with games that he touts as scenario paintball events but most people would think of as glorified rec ball games. Things like airborne, where you put people on a rope and drop them in a field one at a time or Predator, where one player is the predator the rest are hunted by or hunting the predator.

All of these items make for a great book for that type of mindset and the book is well worth the $13.00 that they go for. But I must say that there are some things I didn’t like about the book. First and foremost there is no mention of how scenario paintball came about. There is a history of scenario paintball, one that should be told and retold so that the people who play this game know how and why it came about. There is no mention of the pioneers of this genre of paintball, no mention of Wayne Dollack, Kerry ‘Viper’ Rosenberry, Diane ‘Mother’ Howe, Spiro ‘Blackcat’ Mamligas, Ben Toricelli and others. No mentions of the powerhouse teams of the 90’s like Blitzkrieg, Joint Fury, Air Assault, or of the new decade like Psycho Clown Posse, Delta Paintball, Thunderstruck, 1st MG or others.

I am sure that a lot of that comes from the lack of experience of the author in playing in real scenario paintball events and that brings me to the second part of my biggest issue with the book. You cannot pick up this book, read it and show up at one of the MAJOR producers games and succeed with just that knowledge alone. There is no talk of missions, or scoring or even roles. Now he does talk about roles such as commander and medic but not in the capacity of a scenario paintball game that most people would think of. They are more for the type of games that he has in his book. What this shows is that the field owners and smaller promoters who have taken the term scenario paintball and attempted to redefine it have really done a disservice to the genre and the pioneers who started it and still are involved in it. I don’t blame Don, I blame the fact that he hasn’t gotten out and played the major circuits to really understand what goes on there.

Also there was no talk of strategy only tactics, and that is not anywhere close to what scenario paintball is about. Tactics may get you there but strategy tells you why you are there, how long you have to be there and what happens if you fail or succeed while you are there. Maybe someone should patent Strategical Paintball and start teaching people that strategy is how you win, not tactics. But that is the subject of another column, that’s for sure.

As I said before I would recommend you getting this book since it does offer quite a bit of information but to name it what it was named just seems to off to me because as someone who has played a lot of scenario paintball, this book just wasn’t there.

Now Don has written a ‘sequel’ if you will to the first book, called Advanced Scenario Paintball and while it moves a little further towards what scenario paintball is, it is still woefully lacking in integration into an actual 24 hour scenario paintball event. He does cover tanks, some offensive and defensive actions, squad tactics and goes a little more into the terrain, terrain analysis and such, but there is still never any mention of how to use any of this in a true 24 hour scenario format.

There are nice pictures and there are some really neat looks at advanced tactics but in the end it is simply more of the first book. It does seem like he was told to cut the book in half and make two volumes. Again, it is well worth the $10.00 that it is going for on Amazon but you have to realize that when you get this book that you need to just use it as a starting point. There is still no mention of the major circuits mostly just the big games that he has attended or the events that the field owners have called scenario paintball. Case in point he attended Oklahoma D-Day, Skirmish D-Day and a Tactical Paintball 12 hour event and says that those events are scenario paintball. No sir, they are not. If you cam here from a google search for this book, you need to realize that there is a whole world of scenario paintball beyond those three events. In fact Tactical is nowhere near as close to a scenario event that even Skirmish or Oklahoma D-Day is.

In the end, I have been considering writing a real book on scenario paintball, but what would be the point? Too many people wouldn’t buy it just because it was written by me, and do I really want to try and help this lemmings any more then I do? The people that know, have the Book of TB and that is all that is important. Well at least to me, stay tuned and next time I will be talking to you about 2 scenario paintball books that are really a waste of money, that is unless you truly subscribe to the ‘Mil-Sim’ way of doing things and then this will be must have’s!!! Might even make the Special ops best seller tactical commander’s reading list! What there isn’t one of those? Damn, Jayson you haven’t patented that? I mean come on, paintball warrior’s reading list, you could rip off the Marines now that the Army has been taken by Tippmann.

Want to buy the above books? Here are the links:

Scenario Paintball: Tips, Tools and Tactics from the Trenches

Advanced Scenario Paintball

Want to know more about Don ‘Badger’ Grubish? Then click here.

Man, I tell you reading these old issues has really made me miss doing Scenario News. It has also made me realize how crappy the magazine world has become with games and articles about Scenario News. If the economy were better, I might even try to re-launch the magazine, but the paintball market is in the toilet, so who the hell would sponsor that much less buy ad space? Well I handed the reigns over to Nudi as editor and I started writing my own column, this would be a column similar to what I do here in my soapbox and you can see that even in July of 2004, I spoke in generalities and I did piss some people off. It is what coined the phrase, "if the shoe fits, then just go on and walk that motherfucker off!".

Editor: This is a new monthly column for Lawrence ‘TB’ Wright so he continue to bring his unique opinions on paintball to scenario players. He has told me he will use the column for education as well as opinion. Anything he may see or feel needs to be discussed will be covered here. Please be aware anything he may say does not refl ect the opinions of Scenario News, Blitzkrieg or anyone else. These opinions are his and his alone. You don’t even have to believe them if you don’t want to, but if you want to argue with him, then by all means him at tb@scenarionews.com. I’ll be sure to print anything you send in so he’ll always have new things to write about.

This article will I am sure, offend some people. So why am I writing it, you ask? Well because there is a disturbing trend in scenario paintball and it is starting to concern me. The trend is commanders being paid in some way to command at games. What do I mean by that? Well, I will detail the trend and then we will talk about what I think we can do or should do about it.

All promoters want good commanders, but good commanders aren’t always easy to come by. This may be because of several reasons: location, time of year, whether they have command experience and if they want to command. The reasons for commanding are different for different people, but it seems have realized it is now a way to get paid. There are some promoters out there paying their commanders money and others getting their commanders prizes and goodies...all of that for people already comped into the game and sometimes given paint. This has lead to motivating people who really shouldn’t command scenario games. Commanding is a serious business and people pay good money to travel and play these games.

When you put some yahoo in the commander’s position because they want a free ride, then you are hurting those players. Now this doesn’t always blow up into the promoter’s face, but when it does you better hold on. There have been games held where a whole side turned on their commander. Others where certain teams performed a coup and changed sides. Some people not fit for command have walked off the field and left the game leaving their side to fend for themselves. I’ve had to sit and watch as game directors ‘helped’ a commander along since they obviously didn’t know what they were doing. This is unacceptable in today’s scenario game, or at least to me it is.

Let’s also mention another disturbing trend: propping up commanders with capable XO’s. Everyone knows commanders should run the show, but what happens when you take a commander and make him a puppet for people to rally behind when in reality another individual is running the show? They are putting together the plan, recruiting the teams, and even leading them on the field while the ‘commander’ sits back and thinks, “Yep, I’m doing a great job.” This has happened as well over the last few years with good and bad things coming from it. The good being the game may have went off without much of a hitch and the bad because it encourages more and more of this nonsense.

When you put someone in command who isn’t there for the right reasons, you cheapen it for those of us who do it because we truly enjoy it. We take the aspect of people’s fun serious and we want to win. But winning is not everything, because for someone to win, someone else has to lose. Getting people to have fun when you are winning is not the mark of a good commander, maintaining their fun while you are losing is. I get told all the time, ‘TB, this is a business and I have to treat it as such.’ My response has become, “Then treat it like a business before we step on the field, because once you cross the line and monkey with the game, then you cease to be objective.” If you will do things to ‘even the game’ then you will do things to even it up for the other guy. And there are some people who need more evening up then others to help them out.

I have a very good idea of what I think makes a great commander. I base this off the leadership schools I attended while in the Marine Corps, practical experience as a platoon leader in the Marines and my experience as a manager of people in the civilian world. I have also commanded a scenario game or two in my time. So whether I am qualified to the opinion of what a good commander is may be debatable, but remember I am known for voicing my opinions. So here it goes: TB’s list of what makes a good commander.

1. Desire: Desire is important, because without it there is nothing to keep you going. You must want to command people, to be in charge of the overall plan and to make people want to play for you. You have to inspire people to go that extra mile and that comes as they see your desire for the game.

2. Knowledge and Judgement: These are both important things because without them you will not be able to form a battle plan, or know when to change it. No plan, no matter how elaborate or intricate survives first contact. The smart commander realizes this and can adjust on the fly or have back up plans in place.

3. Communication: This is a big one! Without this, commander’s intent cannot be conveyed to the people under your command; they in turn will not know what actions to take and when to take them. You have to be able to have people understand what you want from them and bring them to the conclusion you know what is best for them and what the overall plan is. This cannot be done without effective communication.

4. Realistic Expectations: What is meant by this, is you realize you are not in the military and you do not have highly trained, disciplined operators working for you. You have Billy and his dad who just came out to play some paintball...not sign their life away and run all over the field. It is game to more people than not, so you have to keep that in mind. You cannot let the realism get you down. You are role playing and sometimes it only goes so far.

5. Strategical Intelligence: This is not a video game. You do not get a second chance to save the game and start over. Just as in the real world, your actions or inactions have consequences. Those consequences can be of a dire nature and can keep you from winning the game. You need a strategy and then be flexible enough to adapt your strategy as neccesary to the game conditions. You should be knowledgeable in terms such as fields of fire, ambushes and bounding overwatch. These will serve a good commander well in the fact you can discuss with your leaders on the field what needs to be done and where.

6. Tactical Intelligence: This is needed so the commander can talk to his operations people in the field. The commander sets the strategy, his commanders in the field take that intent and implement it with a tactical edge. You have to understand that way of thinking as well (tactical vs. strategical) so you can help plug any gaps you may see in their intent. It is your battle plan after all, with the objectives you set in the beginning. Knowing is one thing; doing is another.

7. Tact: This is another big one. You have to work with everyone in the game, from the newest player to the most experienced. You must let everyone know they are important in the grand scheme of things. Why? Because they are! I have seen one person (no matter their experience level) win games and lose games. Be sure everyone is working for you. This is done with tact and it is a trait lacking in more than a few commanders (myself included).

8. Confidence: This is probably the biggest one in the group. Know this: commander eliminations affect morale. Know this: if you aren’t confident in your plan you cannot inspire others to act. Want to destroy the will of the other side to fight? Then destroy their commander’s confidence. On the flip side of that coin: you should never let something get you down. Never let them see you sweat. If something doesn’t work the way you wanted, then you wanted it that way. You get held down, fight your way back out. People in your base and you have to hot insert? Then go after their base. Your people should think you have it all in hand, and you should (at least on the outside).

There have been great commanders over the years. People who really liked taking charge and saw to it their people had fun. There have also been some horrendous commanders who have left their people to their own devices while they fiddled and Rome burned. In the next few issues, I will go more into the art of leading people in a scenario game. And whether you agree or disagree, I am sure you will take a few things from it and make yourself a better commander...or at least decide if you should be one.

From the April 2005 issue of Scenario News. In light of Thunderstruck's split, MXS failing, my relationship with Viper being stressed and the general status of the game. Let's take a look at a TB's Take article. I wonder if it still applies today? You decide!

pol•i•tics (p l -t ks) verb The often internally conflicting interrelationships among people in a society.

self-cen•tered (s lf s n t rd) adj. Engrossed in oneself and one’s own affairs; selfish.

Greed (gr d) n. An excessive desire to acquire or possess more than what one needs or deserves, especially
with respect to material wealth.

Egotstical adj : limited to or caring only about yourself and your own needs

While these aren’t the foundations of society, they are most certainly ugly cracks in those foundations. These are the things that break friendships and cause people to attempt to ruin one another. Practice them enough, and you will find yourself on a path to material success and prestige. What an interesting way to reach the top!

But guess what? These are also ways to lose it all. These are ways to show people how truly shallow you are. And these are things eating away at scenario paintball like a malignant cancer. There is a schism coming; a storm if you will, and at the center you will fi nd some of the biggest names in the sport….or at least they think they are. What they don’t seem to realize is EVERYONE is expendable in a free market. You can have the best product, the best marketing and the best customers and still lose everything by making the wrong choices.

All actions and reactions have consequences. These are un-disputable facts of life. Someday, someone you’ve used and/or hurt will come back for a reckoning. If they aren’t the one to deal the crippling blow, I guarantee they will secure themselves a ring-side seat to witness your comeuppance. Karma can be a real pain, but many seem to conveniently forget that when they are riding the top of the wave. They unknowingly (or live in a constant state of denial about the above stated actions/reactions = consequences) embark on a campaign to end their company and their dreams all the while blaming others as the wave finally crashes down on them.

Who am I talking about in this column, you ask? Well, could be anybody! Take your pick of anyone you know in the paintball industry who has screwed over anyone else in the sport or used bully tactics and/or lawyers to make a buck. Just a few short months ago, Smart Parts was on top of the world and riding the money train all the way to the bank…laughing about all the people lying on the tracks; even those who had helped their company (and the sport) grow. But look now: see karma in action! This same pattern is finding its way into our scenario world as more and more people devour each other, all for fame and fortune. Promoters are attacking other promoters behind closed doors and of late, out in the open. There are promoters making deals with large teams (offering price breaks, deals and freebies as long as they boycott other producers and/or fields) and individual players.

These teams, in turn, are using this to bolster their own egos and reaping the short-term rewards from these promoters. And the team vs. team politics: fighting about skills, promoters, awards, games and on and on. The politics of scenario paintball are out there to be seen for those who can focus on the big picture.

And promoters going after sponsors of other promoters…and while I view this as a serious problem, I’m really tired of hearing it. What I mean is I agree it is in very poor taste to attend another promoter’s game and try to hustle his sponsors. While you should try to get sponsors for your events, you shouldn’t do it at other promoter’s games…someone who was kind enough to invite you out and/or comp you into the game. This is a common business practice for several promoters. I know most of you don’t realize this is what happens, but realize there are political motives for just about anything anyone does in scenario paintball.

Would you rather wear your rose-colored glasses? Do they alter your view, or just keep you from seeing? Are you one of those players who violently insist you aren’t playing politics?

Let’s take a little test:

1. Do you call yourself a (fill in the blank here) player? Example: I’m a MXS player, or I’m a Black Cat player, or I’m a Viper player…and so on.

If you can answer yes to this, then you are playing politics. Yeah, I know…you have great reasons: Brand ‘A’ sucks and Brand ‘X’ is the bomb. You make that choice, and rightfully so. But when you get online and talk smack about the other brand or talk players out of attending other games, then I say again, you are playing politics. To say you don’t shows you aren’t being honest with yourself. I know I engage in politics; you have to in order to survive, but I don’t ever discourage anyone from attending any particular promoter’s games…they need to make those decisions based on their own experiences.

But I digress; we were talking about politics and those of you who say you aren’t going to play them. I respectfully submit to you the following: if you play paintball, you play politics. Why do I say that, you ask? It’s simple! When you have more than two people together in a social setting, you have politics. Scenario paintball aside, you could have three people stranded on a deserted island and you’d have politics.

If person one takes one side and person two takes another side, then person three has to side with either person one or person two. If person three refuses to take a side (or makes a stand of their own), it affects both other people. If you want your point of view to be agreed with, you have to sway people to your side: POLITICS. Politics is a basic characteristic of the human race…being stranded on an island isn’t going to change that.

And neither is scenario paintball; in fact, scenario paintball makes it worse! Greed always factors into politics. I’ve met very few promoters in my scenario travels who haven’t expressed interest in one way or another of doing financial harm to other promoters in the game. Just a few examples: MXS is heading to Old River this year (which happens to be in Ocala, the home of Wayne Dollack); MXS ‘stole’ Paintball USA in Texas from Viper (which happens to be in Houston, the home of Viper Paintball); MPP Games ‘stole’ Wildfire Paintball from MXS (karma, remember?); and TAW has ‘stole’ Jungle Island from MPP Games. More examples: Wayne Dollack is checking in with CPX and Viper has his first game at Sherwood Forest this fall, both previous and/or current MXS fields. Add the field politics: fields that are built solely to hurt other promoters and fields.

This, my friends, has become the everyday business of scenario paintball. There are very few people left who are in it for the sport itself anymore…and the ones who say they are use this “I’m just wanting to do what’s right for the game and the players” as a basis to gain more momentum in the fame and fortune arenas. Players are growing weary of the ‘unnecessary’ politics (there is no way to avoid it all) that is becoming more and more prevalent in the sport.

What does all this mean, and how does it affect you, you ask? Well, it means…maybe, just maybe you are a little more educated about the issue. Maybe I’ve brought you some small understanding of how things really are. Maybe now you will comprehend why certain people have such major issues with particular players, teams, promoters and other people in scenario. And maybe, just maybe…you will strive to avoid becoming entangled in the political vines that are strewn throughout scenario paintball. Play the game, but don’t let the game play you!

So? What do you think? Does this piece still apply? I think it does!

Today, I am going to talk about something that I seem to hear with more and more regularity in scenario paintball. Like; “He couldn’t have made that shot unless he was shooting hot” or “There is no way that he could have dropped our base by himself, he must have cheated in some way”. Well let me tell you guys and gals something, people can make moves that you would never imagine or could even duplicate. I’ve seen this on more then one occasion in my many scenario games.

Cheat (ch t) v. intr.
1. To act dishonestly; practice fraud.
2. To violate rules deliberately, as in a game.

That is the definition of cheat or cheating, if you will. Now like other words in use in scenario paintball, this word is in the eye of the user. But to me the base definition works and there is no gray area in it. And that is to violate the rules deliberately in a game. And that is all, sportsmanship has no bearing in whether someone is a cheat or not. But people seem to argue that it is. The reality is that a lot of people don’t know the rules in scenario paintball. Not that the promoters have made it easy, with the many variations of rules and the 20 pages of General Scenario Rules of Play (GSRP), but that is another story.

But almost 60% of scenario players don’t read the rules. How do I get that? I’ve asked at the games, and it is disheartening to say the least to hear players admit they haven’t read the rules. And then you have about another 25% who’ve read the rules a few times, but not before the game they are playing. Another 10% have read the rules and understand the basics of them, and then you have the remaining 5% who have mastered the rules. They know them in and out, and in some cases helped consult with the promoters to make the rules. These are also the ones who get accused of cheating by those who have not read the current rules.

Now don’t get me wrong, I am not saying that everyone plays stand-up paintball, not even. I’ve played in games where people played until they shot out the person they were aiming at, then did a paint check on themselves. That is cheating, by the way. But I’ve also played with people who hadn’t read the rules and had broken one. Now to me they aren’t cheaters, they should have read the rules and I don’t approve of that, but they didn’t know the rules so they didn’t violate it deliberately. Now, once they’ve been informed of the violation by the game staff if they commit the same infraction, then they are cheating.

But more times then not, the ones who haven’t read the rules accuse the ones who have of cheating. And then they go one better, they start the rumors that this person or this team is cheating. I’ve heard it come back about me and/or my team. And when I’ve asked that person, it is never them that started the rumor, they heard it from someone else. So I’ll ask them to tell me about the incident, did someone play on after being shot, did someone wipe the hit off, etcetera. And when I get the story of how someone played within the rules and got the complaining player or team eliminated, it always makes me chuckle. Because the person complaining doesn’t even see that they were out played.

Scenario paintball is more then just shooting a gelatin-encased paintball at someone to score a elimination. Scenario paintball is a thinking man’s or woman’s game. You should have to think outside the box to succeed and be good at scenario paintball. And you shouldn’t be penalized by being called a cheater because you play the game to the edge of the rules. But for those that don’t read the rules, they will never understand that a helo may fly with the pilot and pole behind the players to protect him from air-to-air combat. Or that a medic can heal any wound except a head shot and that a medic can medic another medic. These things seem to be the biggest issues that most people don’t understand.

Playing within the rules should push people to understand the rules and read them, so that they do not get taken advantage of. But it seems the opposite is the rule of the day. Let’s complain about the rules and the fact that some players can play in the grey area. Let’s push for more rules that they won’t read and let’s label people and teams cheaters or poor sports because they push the boundaries. And that is a sad thing, it really is.

Players sign a waiver and on that waiver it states that you have read and agree to abide by the rules of the promoter. And if you don’t do that then you are cheating, you are cheating yourself, your side and your opponent. Harsh words, I know but that is one of the things that I think make up stand-up play. You can play stand-up, hard nosed scenario paintball. You won’t be the most popular when you play against the whiners, but they will be your biggest fans when you play with them. But the teams that respect stand up play will understand that you are not a cheater, you are just a "playing to win" player or team. And there is nothing wrong with that attitude in scenario paintball.

As long as there is a winner and a loser and awards to be won, I will play the scenario game as hard as I can. I will play like I am losing no matter by how much I may be winning. Why, you ask? Because you never can tell when things are going to change, you never know when the other side may get an advantage on you and then you will be the one on the losing end of things. And when that happens all you can do is try to fight your way out of it, to get back on top. But the same ones who cry for mercy or decry you for not showing any are the same ones that if the roles were reversed would be taunting you and not showing you that same level of mercy they are wanting from you. They want you to handicap yourself, to fight with one hand tied behind your back because they don’t pack the gear to go head to head with you.

My response to that is simple, don’t get in the ring if you expect anything less then my best to knock you out. Because you thought yourself to be ready to take me on when you climbed in the ring, you best be prepared for what you get. Take the butt kicking like you would want your opponent to, if you were dishing it out. Until next time, have fun, play hard and stick it to em!