| Sitting down and watching a game of live paintball can | | | | their orders. Stick to your missions! Some may sound |
| tell you a great deal about the individual players in the | | | | boring, but part of a scenario planners job is to make |
| game. The way one goes about playing greatly | | | | sure everyone gets a piece of the action. Don't worry. |
| affects their chances of success. After watching a | | | | You'll get your adrenaline fix when the time is right. But |
| single game, you will see that there are two very | | | | if you can't wait, and blow your mission because of it, |
| diverse groups of players: the adrenaline junkies and | | | | don't complain if your color loses. If it's any one's fault, |
| the strategists. | | | | it's yours. |
| From the names given to these two groups you can | | | | My team and I recently played in a scenario in which |
| probably imagine the differences between them, but | | | | the opposing side, the Whites, had just such a problem. |
| here are the differences in case you can't: | | | | Few, if anyone, on that side had any idea how to |
| Adrenaline junkies have one goal and one goal only: to | | | | achieve their goals. They just shot at us, the Blues. I'll |
| lay as much paint upon their opponents body as | | | | allow they probably had a great time blasting away, |
| humanly possible. They will go to the extremes to hit | | | | but they utterly lacked discipline. |
| their opponent. The shooting pattern of this type of | | | | Meanwhile, my teammates and I spearheaded the |
| player is sporadic and never ending. They don't care | | | | Blues' main squad. As squad commander, I had to |
| how many times they miss their target as long as they | | | | practically fight to keep the action junkie walk-ons |
| get a few paintballs on the target. | | | | under my command from blowing directives. In the end, |
| Now this seems like the purpose of the game, to | | | | I lost the fight with the junkies and was forced to work |
| shoot anything that moves, but it lacks strategy and | | | | with my small team. We operated carefully, keeping |
| execution. A team's leader will frown on adrenaline | | | | our objectives foremost in our plans. We engaged only |
| junkie type players because of their lack of precision | | | | when necessary and maintained steady |
| and true skill. | | | | communication with our general. Surrounded by and |
| At every scenario game, one can divide the players | | | | opposed by disorganized players, our mere handful of |
| into two basic groups. | | | | careful, deliberate teammates worked from one |
| The first group are the juggernauts, the players who | | | | objective to the next. |
| have developed a sense of what the game needs, | | | | At the end of the day, the results were announced: |
| how to play to their color's best advantage, and pay | | | | Blue won. But later, the Blue general confided to my |
| attention to directives. They understand that the key to | | | | team and me why the actual score hadn't been |
| winning a game is not the number of opponents they | | | | announced: The Whites wouldn't have liked the news. |
| mark out, but how many objectives they complete. | | | | White had fought hard, he said, and deserved to feel |
| They work as a unit, conferring with the officers and | | | | all right about the day. |
| watching each other's backs. | | | | True enough. White had indeed fought valiantly. |
| The second group are the action junkies. These | | | | The final score? 310 to 100, Blue. All because a few |
| people come to the game for one reason only: To | | | | people worked together. |
| shoot people. Action junkies are usually a | | | | You can play as hard as you want and mark out as |
| commander's biggest problem. If he orders a squad to | | | | many opponents as is humanly possible, but without |
| hold a certain point, it's because that point is critical to | | | | organization you might as well spend the whole game |
| the game's success. The squad must keep watch and | | | | in the re-spawn area. Officers are there for a reason - |
| repel all attackers. But if that squad mainly consists of | | | | pay attention to them! |
| action junkies, the players grow bored and leave their | | | | So when you enter the next scenario game, what will |
| assigned posts, running off to where the excitement is. | | | | you be? An action junkie? Or a paintball juggernaut? |
| Believe me: If you want your color to have any | | | | Your decision could change the outcome. |
| chance of winning, listen to your officers and follow | | | | |