Most paintball games, it seems like, are either capture the flag, or center flag. While these are still the classic games, once in a while, you crave for variety.Here are a few of my favorites:
Fortress: Attack and Defend
Teams: Two evenly divided teams, one attacking, one defending. Or, the attacking team can have a greater number of people.Objective:
Attacking: The attackers should touch (or pull down), the flag of the defending team without being shot within the given time limit.
Defending: The defenders should prevent the attacking team from touching, (or pulling down), the flag within the given time limit.
Special Rules:
1. Both teams start on opposite sides of the field (like a regular capture the flag game).
2. A single flag is placed in the home area of the defenders. Everyone (including the attackers) should know where the flag is. Perhaps let the referee choose a fair placement of the flag.
3. The defenders are limited to a small area. They cannot stray from this area.
4. Attackers can go anywhere they want to after the start of the game.
Where played in Bay Area: Mare Island
Favorite Memory: About forty of us were playing at Mare Island, with twenty players each team. I was with the attacking team. Our plan was a two pronged attack. We sent a group to attack the front and occupy the defenders.
Meanwhile, another big group (which I was a part of), tried to flank the defenders via the annis, an area with very tall grass (imagine being in the middle of a cornfield). We crawled our way through with relative ease and set up camp within visual range of the enemy entrenchment. For several minutes, many of us maneuvered for position while small scuffles broke out here and there. In order to get some movement going, I asked a few of my teammates to cover me while I ran towards an obstacle just outside of the annis. I got there just in time. As soon as I ducked for cover, about three defenders started pelting my obstacle. Luckily, I wasn't hit, and my fellow teammates gave me support.
Since time was running out, I just screamed to everyone telling everyone just to put paint in the air. At first, it was just me, and a teammate. Soon, my other teammates stood from the annis and just started shooting. A little later, about ten or twelve of my teammates just stood from the annis and just let the paint fly. It was a maddening scene, with attackers and defenders unloading our paint all at once. The roar of all the guns going was deafening. About every second, I could hear "I'm hit!", "I'm hit!". Another voice shouts out, "check yourself! I got you!". All this while, various teammates started charging from the annis, just like a banzai charge, with paintguns still unloading without mercy. While one of my teammates was nearing the enemy flag, I charged straight up to one of the fortifications from the side. As I was running, a defender shot me straight on my helmet between the eyes. My teammate near the flag was very close but the buzzer sounded. The defenders won, but overall, that was one great game. The referee even commented that that was "one kick-ass game." I won't forget this game easily.
Capture the Flag Limited Ammo variation
Teams: Two evenly divided teamsObjective: Capture the opponents flag within the given time limit or eliminate your opponent.
Special Rules:
1. Works well even with just four people!
2. Just like Capture the Flag except all team members agree ahead of time to put only a limited amount of ammo in their guns (typically, it was fun having one paintball for every opponent on each gun).
3. More fun indoors where action can happen close-quarters.
This game is great with a small number of people, and it saves money too. Its more of a movement game, than a shoot at everything game. Before taking a shot, you have to think. Should you gamble and hope you make the shot? Or do you play it safe and change position to get a better shot. Better played indoors than outdoors. Try it one day.
Where played in Bay Area: Battlezone (indoor) -- now defunct.
Assassin (or Fox and the Hound) Limited Ammo variation
Teams: A very small team (perhaps one to three people depending on the size of your group), versus a large group.Objective: Eliminate your opponent. If neither team eliminates the other during the given time, the small team (the fox, or the assassins) wins.
Special Rules:
1. The Hounds (the large team) can only have one shot in their gun.
2. The Assassins have a large number of ammo (but not unlimited) at their disposal.
Once again, this game can work with even just four people. One assassin has around ten shots, while the hounds only have one shot each. Works better indoors.
Where played in Bay Area: Battlezone (indoor) -- now defunct.
Save the President
Teams: Two evenly divided teams, each with an unarmed president.Objective: Have your own teams unarmed president reach the opponents side first. If a president is shot, the team with the surviving president wins.
Special Rules:
1. The Teams start on opposite sides of the field.
2. Each team has a president who is unarmed.
3. Both teams try to either eliminate the enemy president (assassin squads), or escort their president to the opponent side.
Where played in Bay Area: Mare Island
Please give me feedback (gmartin@alumni.eecs.berkeley.edu) and let me know if you try any of these variations!
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