Paintball

[Wycke]

In pump vs. semi games, I usually take to diversionary tactics. Get a couple of your teammates to provide some cover fire while you maneuver into a good shooting position. Also, always think a couple moves ahead. Sure, you can make it to that big tree and have a sweet shot on one guy, but what do you do then? What if moving to that position puts you into the range of someone you don't yet see. This is the kind of stuff that you don't need to think about as much when you have a semi because you're better able to put down suppressive fire if you need to. So, know where you're going to go, then where you can go from there, either forward or back - always leave yourself an escape route.

[Al Ray]

Forcus on the layout of the field, locations of trees, bunkers, changes in elevation, ect. Once you've got a good mental picture, start to think of your line of sight and how it is obstructed by the feild itself. After a point you'll start to think in terms of the opponeints line of sight, and how to move in ways where you wont be noticed.

That will cover movement, next is line of fire. Line of sight is not always your line of fire. Effective range, brush, ect, all come into play. Learn to picture your line of fire, your teamates, and your opponients. After a point all of these things will become more or less automatic, the exception is that you (your brain) will tend to choose which individual thing you focus on at a givin point, thats when you are able to form effective strategey.

Learn your marker,inside and out. Practice snap shooting, and shooting at differant distances.

There is no one magic thing to work on, there is not magic gun, there is no quick way to gain skill. Practice is king.

[midnite-penguin]

what type of paintball are you usually playing? that will help me gauge what you need to do...

Speedball with your average group of walk ons, i really feel like im at no disadvantage, everyones close enough to where you dont have to long ball, or walk your paint onto targets as much. Its all about snap shooting which is any good pump players bread and butter. Snap shooting drills are pretty simple, set up a palate, a wheelbarrow, a lawn chair, anything that resembles a bunker. Then set a small target about 20 yards away, something the size of a big dinner plate(representing an opponents mask or hopper profile). And practice snap shooting out and back in, out and back in, dont worry about doing it FAST at first, worry about doing it accuratley. Once you master being able to snap out, hit the target,(or atleast getting close), begin to speed up the drill. What you want to work on is being in the shooting position and visualizing the target before you lean out to fire. That way your barrel and vision is in the right area already, and all you have to do is adjust your aim accordingly and fire. You will look pretty strange to your neighbors and theres still a gap from that drill, and reality(the target isnt shooting back or moving) but it will prepare your FORM for snap shooting.

Which brings me to the next drill.

I used to practice this with the local team on the airball field on sundays for about 15 minutes each week, and it makes your snap shooting really legit.

What you do is play 1 on 1, your each behind mirroring bunkers(we used the 40yard pillows). You cannot move from the bunker, you just have to snap shoot eachother out. I used to do this against a guy shooting a high end timmy, and to make it competetive for him, he would only shoot one time per snapping out of his bunker. He was a better player(being a tourney veteran and very consistant player)and therefor won most of these little snap shoot-outs, but i would stitch him about 30% of the time and more importantly, i could feel myself improving my snap shooting skills tremendously.

This drill is great because not only are you working on your snap shooting, but your doing it in the most game-like simulation you can without acually being IN a game. Your target is bobbing, sometimes isnt 'exposed' when you snap out(just like in a real game) and more importantly, is firing back, and tagging your bunker so you get used to being able to concentrate WHILE being shot at and intimidated.

Now, not everyone is on a friendly enough basis with the regulars at their field to be able to do this, but you can set up 2 bunkers in the back yard or woods and get a buddy to recreate it just as well.

I think a lot of pump play in speedball is just mental, i mean you have to play a LOT of speedball to get a feel for the game. When you can run up, where people are, how to not feel rushed or panic when all that paint is in the air. Its all between the ears my friend. Other than snap shooting and sliding drills, you really have to know how to calm yourself down when your behind a bunker getting rained on, or in the snake with an opponent 10 feet on your mirror, and concentrate on your fundemental shot techinques - the thing i force myself to believe is that, the closer i am to an opponent, the truer my ball will be and the more of a chance it has to break, and both of those things happening are very important when you have to rock N cock, while mr. Ion kids fingers are sweating out 16 balls a second =)

Woodsball is a whole different can of worms, im mediocre at best with my phantom in the woods because i think it acually favors the longball and spraying paint more so then the small dimensions of the speedball fields. but im sure theres a lot of people(the majority) that can help you with that aspect of the game.

[splattttttt]

One on one, the semi has a better chance. But if you have a group backing you, use them to your advantage.

[mullet]

I just got back yesterday from a trip out to a all pump day in Victoria B.C. It was my first all pump day ( I am usually the only pumper out on the feilds I play at, and this one was a trip to get too let me tell you but I'm getting off topic...) And one thing I noticed was when your playing agianst pumps you will have this ball wiz by you and you wont know were it came from, then you'll sit their looking for someone and another will wiz by and you still can't see anybody, it's like if I didn't know any better I would swear it was just a errent ball. So I have learned thats what semi players get when they play us and I have learned (well gonna try to learn next time out anywase) how to use that to my advantage when I play them. Then I noticed something really funny matrix style kinda, I geuss usually because I have never played agianst other pumpers really I never noticed just how much more the semi players are shooting it was like I had gotten used to watching out for the random balls that by the end of the day when about half of the pump players went home for the day and about half the semi players (they were in their own group previously) left, and they stuck us together you would see on the other side of the feild ( a relitivly small feild and I gotta stop typing in these brackets) a guy with a electro marker just take some shots at you. And it was like watching 20 shots come at you slow-mo, I swear to god I would pop out and fire a ball at him then he would just see it at the end of it's flight path and just make it back inside his bunker or it would miss him, then he would take his shots and you would see this like cloud of orange comming and you would think " ok here they come, here they come, not yet, not yet, just abouts, and duck" and then you would here BANG BANG BANG BANG BANG agianst the bunker then you would pop out agian and sorta give him the old thumbs in the ears wingling the fingers with your tounge out face. But yea I say give an all pump day a try then go back to pump vs. semi and you will deffinitly notice a diffrence in your train of thought when you play them, and I personally think that that one day of all pump play really helped out my game way more than anything else.

[CrazyBoy78]

Originally Posted by midnite-penguin

I think a lot of pump play in speedball is just mental... how to not feel rushed or panic when all that paint is in the air. Its all between the ears my friend. Other than snap shooting and sliding drills, you really have to know how to calm yourself down when your behind a bunker getting rained on, or in the snake with an opponent 10 feet on your mirror, and concentrate on your fundemental shot techinques...

Very true. I can't even remember what it was like to get jumpy when someone was firing at my bunker or around wherever I was. I don't even flinch anymore. Being calm under fire is probably the best asset, other than being a good shot and a great sportsman, that a player can have. Sure, you can get pumped up (sorry for the pun) for a game but as long as you keep your cool, you'll be fine. You'll see things much better (like Mullet's "Matrix" experience) and actually get better.

[Cunha]

One thing I would reccomend is getting a direct feed body so you dont have to think about running out of paint all the tip.

It really makes pump play alot easier.

[cockerpunk]

Originally Posted by b to the a to the k

Check this video out for some pump vs semi tourney action

The pump game starts @ 1:55 and goes to about 2:40.

http://www.youtube.com/watch?v=AYLdR8hsoVo

your a deadly guy on the field.

over spring break ill teach you to really open up that SS25's potential with a direct feed - you can really lay some waist with a pump.

[sparky]

Practice Practice Practice. That's all there is to say really.

Snapshooting is really important in speedball, and so is movement. Your pump setup is probally a lot lighter than your semi marker. Use it to your advantage and keep moving around. Your not likely to get hit while moving, it's when you stay in the same bunker for awhile you'll get hit.

In the woods, it really helps to have a good shot. Practice aiming any chance you get. Setting up different targets at different ranges through differnet brush can really help your elimantion tallly. Long balling with a pump in thick brush is very hard, so move around and find a better shot.

Woodsball is a thinking game; a game of chess with gelatin pawns lobbing at you at 300 fps. Think a few moves ahead a time.

And more than anything, stay the course. It's really easy to not to like pump at first, but it will come in time like all other things. Thiink of it like when you lost your training wheels on your first bike. You'll crash a few times but you'll master it soon enough.

[SpinDoctor15]

Originally Posted by Shade

You first have to realize that you have chosen to hinder yourself by playing with a pump.

I'm surprised no one else picked up on this! I have to disagree Shade, I don't consider it a disadvantage to choose to play pump. You may be outclassed in the ways of firepower, but think of all the ways that you IMPROVE your game when you are forced to focus on a) thinking, b) aiming well, and c) making moves on the field. All of those factors are just as, if not more, important than firepower. I played with my Pump MiniMag this weekend, I had an awesome time, and made a few killer shots. For example, a guy tried to make a run-through on my lefthand side. He was about 25 ft. away and parallel to me when I gogged him mid-run. The point here is that I learned to lead him with one shot. When I play semi with my GZ Timmy, I find that I have a very difficult time leading players, I always seem to point the barrel right at them and don't take into account the fact that they're running. It's a mindset, and I find that I actually concentrate on my shots when I play pump, hence making more eliminations.