| After experiencing a lull in the mid 2000s, paintball has | | | | for highly trained military personnel in combat, but you |
| surged in popularity and is now the third most popular | | | | can psych your paintball opponent out, too. Your goal is |
| of the "extreme" sports, behind only inline skating and | | | | to have your paintballs in the air headed toward your |
| skateboarding. While the overwhelming majority of | | | | opponent by the time he comes out of his bunker to |
| frequent players are young adult men, women and | | | | fire at you. |
| families are also getting into paintball as a fun sport and | | | | You do this by playing on the odds that you can be |
| group activity. | | | | successful when your opponent has been pushed |
| One reason for the increasing popularity of the game | | | | back under cover and you are sighting your marker at |
| is that it now features better equipment that is more | | | | him. |
| reliable, safer, and less expensive. For around $25 a | | | | Here are a few pointers to playing into your |
| head, players can rent the equipment they need for a | | | | opponent's psychological state to your advantage. |
| day of playing paintball. | | | | Remember that if you are firing continually, no |
| There are a few basic paintball skills that will make | | | | opponent is going to come out from under cover. You |
| your game much more enjoyable and exciting once | | | | don't have to wait for your opponent to be visible to |
| you master them. The first basic skill is perfecting your | | | | you. If he is, he can fire first if he's a decent shooter. |
| stance. | | | | Make an educated guess as to where he will go next, |
| Perfecting your Stance | | | | and then time your shots in that direction at the time |
| While it sounds almost too simple, your stance behind | | | | you estimate him to go there. Even if you miss, a close |
| a bunker is one key to whether you will be taken out | | | | call can seriously fluster your opponent. |
| early, or whether you will last in a given round. Intuition | | | | Run-Shoot-Run-Shoot |
| tells the beginning player to face the bunker they are | | | | Another basic paintball battle tactic is the |
| standing behind. But this actually results in more | | | | run-shoot-run-shoot technique. Practice this before |
| unstable balance and a slower response. | | | | using it in combat. To begin to master this technique, |
| Instead, you should stand with your side to the bunker. | | | | learn to walk and shoot at a single target. Once you |
| If you are right-handed, put your left foot forward, and | | | | have this technique down, speed up until you are |
| if you are left-handed, put your right foot forward. | | | | running full speed, as if you were in a real game. |
| Keep the tank of your marker pressed against your | | | | Squeeze the tank tightly, and look over top of the |
| ribs and support it with the lower part of your arm | | | | loader. Run at full speed. Keep your upper body as still |
| underneath the tank. It is better to look over the top of | | | | as possible, but when you run, lift your feet to make it |
| the loader. If you need to sight your target better, | | | | less likely that you'll trip on a tree root or something. |
| lower your head to the gun rather than bringing the gun | | | | Short, quick strides will make it easier for you to keep |
| up to your eye. | | | | control over your upper body and gun. |
| Position your marker so that the loader is hidden by | | | | There are a number of paintball battle techniques to |
| the bunker. With a balanced stance, you will be able to | | | | master, but these three - the stance, the psych-out, |
| aim at your target by simply moving your upper body | | | | and the run-shoot-run-shoot technique are three basics |
| a few degrees in the proper direction. | | | | that will take you a long way in being successful at |
| "Psy Ops" | | | | paintball. |
| You may think that psyching out your opponent is just | | | | |