i would like to try some of these drills to improve our game. i'm sure some of you dont but w/e, suck all you want.
1. Snap Shooting.
This tactic should not be confined to the sup air field. I have claimed many a kill with the aid of this tactic. Now many of you are probably asking how to I snap shoot with a stock on my shoulder?? EASY!! This was taught to my by Geoff Schurer at National Paintball Fields, Blacksoil, and I am a better player for learning it. Tuck your stock up onto your shoulder, below your mask, and tuck your elbow in, thus reducing your profile when you snap out at your opponents. And practice snapping out behind a bunker, be it a large façade or a small pallet sized bunker. Practice this drill standing up, crouching and kneeling…and possibly lying down, popping upwards. (Sounds silly but what’s the old infantry saying…you learn to hug mother earth in battle) I was taught to snap shoot from the hip, don’t step out, lean out from your hip and pop back in. that way you’re not stepping out and giving your opponent more to shoot at.
2. Shooting with both hands
I know this can be difficult if you are using a coiled remote, as it limits your movement with the marker, but it is a good skill to have. I'm a lefty, so in an ideal paintball game every corner I turn would be right, however this is reality. Learn to feel comfortable shooting with your opposite hand. Set up an empty soft drink bottle (mountain dew if you’re a Tyger fanboy hehe) and practice shooting at it, now at first you don’t have to hit the thing, you just have to get very close to it. If you practice this regularly over time you should be able to hit that bottle. Once you feel comfortable enough now start practicing snap shooting. The better you are shooting with your opposite hand, the less of you have to expose when you’re shooting at that pesky opponent determined to eliminate you.
3. Body position.
This is just as important hiding behind a pile of branches as it is behind a small dorito. A lot of new players and some experienced players will shoot, with the bottle or stock tucked into their shoulder, and their elbow is sticking way out, Tuck it in!!! Not only will this reduce your profile to what the opponent will see, but will increase the chance of a body shot now bouncing off your elbow pads.
Know where your feet are!! Many a bushballer and sup air player have been hit on the foot during a game (Yes Wade I know!!) by having a there foot or ankle just showing from behind a bunker. Say you are crouched on one knee and lean out the left side of the bunker to shoot at, which knee you on? Left or right?? From personal experience I would be on left with my right tucked in against the bunker. Either way use your leg to push u back behind that bunker.
4. Reloading
This is a great skill to have when you are in the middle of a heavy firefight, or need to giving suppressing fight and need to reload. Ever watch a sup air player and he pulls a pod, dumps the contents into his hopper and tosses it in a matter of seconds?? No I’m not suggesting you throw your pods into the bushes never to be found again, Kahn is evidence of that as he is seen roaming the fields looking for his pods!! The idea of loading your marker in a matter of seconds is critical in bushball. From the positioning of your pods in your pack to the method fill your hopper.
Go put your vest on and grab a couple of pods. With your preferred hand position your hand as you are going to open the pod, then put it straight into your pack. The idea behind this is that you are not fiddling with the pod, turning it in your hand to open it during a fire fight.
Now how many of you out there have pulled a pod out of your pack then opened the hopper? I know have whilst panicking. Get in the habit, and even practice opening your hopper then pulling the pod, that way you pull, flip, reload and nail that noob who is about to bunker you because he thinks it is going to take you forever to reload.
Another idea, depending on how many pods your bushball vest holds, is to only fill the pods with a ¼ of their capacity so you are not using as much paint, and have to reload more often. This way you don’t use as much paint, and you have the opportunity to practice it more.
Another idea is to practice reloading whilst you are shooting with your opposite hand because the situation is going to arise out on the field, and you are going to need to do it fast!!
5. Filling your pods
Many bushballers out there do not know how to fill their pods correctly which comes back to bite them in several ways out there on the field. When you are filling your pods, fill the pod up to the bream. Cup your hand over the top and shake the pod up and down gently. You will notice that the level will drop a bit, allowing you to put some more paint in. now don’t over pack your pods, just fill them, close the lid and give it a shake, you want as little sound as possible. This is for two reasons. 1 you make less sound running about the field. And make it harder for people to find you. 2 if your balls are bouncing about in the pod you increase of them breaking and becoming soup, therefore useless if it’s your last pod and you need it for your moment of glory.
6. Field Walking
Yeah we have all seen the sup air players wondering a field, taking hours knowing each and every bunker inside and out crouching looking at the angles. These boys and girls are onto something here. Walking the field allows you to memorize the layout of the field find natural and man made bunkers, ambush points, fall back points, hidden gullies or wash out, fallen trees. For those that play “sniper” or playing away at a new field this is a must for you where possible.
Knowing where the respawn points in big games or scenario games is a must. Know your teams respawn points and your opponents. Knowing your opponents is critical, as it will allow you to lay down fire as they respawn and will stop you being shot by 20 guys respawning.
7. Communication
A good sup air and bushball team will communicate very well. In bushball you will see teams communicating verbally and non-verbally. With the on set of technology many experience bushball players will have some uhf radios. Yet many teams will forget the basics.
Establishing a team code will allow you and your team mates to communicate freely without giving too much away to your opponents. And will confuse any opponents who might be listening in to your radio chatter.
Basic hand signals are a must for bushball, establish the common basics with your team and build up a number of them which everyone knows.
8. Knowing the Rules.
This isn’t really a skill which a lot of sup air players have. With many on both sides of the fence interpreting them or making them up to suit themselves. Read the rules, it’s as simple as that, and seek clarification from the organizer or ultimate referee. This way it eliminates hostility and confusion amongst players and gives you a leg to stand on if you have a polite disagreement with the referees during competition. For the “snipers” out there know the fields’ rules regarding ghillie suits.
9. Running and Gunning
This was suggested to me by Kahn, and I can’t believe I didn’t think of it myself. Practice running from point A to B, shooting at a target, this is where the empty soft drink bottles can come into play again. Practice using both hands, and in different directions, shooting forwards and sideways. This will improve your accuracy as you are sprinting to get behind a bunker and will reduce how much you have to rely on your team mates for covering fire.
Now don’t just set this up in the same spot over and over, move it around the field, make it a challenge to hit those bottles, even have a team mate walk through an area placing X amount in a particular spot on the field, and have to go through looking for them without stopping. This will force you to scan the field, keeping moving and scanning for targets. Make it a game, with the team mate with the lowest scores having to buy the team a round of drinks after a hard days training.
This next suggestion might be difficult to practice in the bush depending on your field layout and might just need you to step foot onto a sup air field. We have all seen movies with knights on horse back jousting, well the idea is the same with this drill. Have one team mate on the left tape line on either side of the field, with a third yelling 3,2,1 game on, and the idea is to run along that tape line shooting at a moving target, this will give you practice and experience at shooting at a moving target. Try it from both sides of the field, on the left and the right. Switching it up and using your opposite hand should also be done. Giving you more experience shooting with your less dominate hand will enable you to teach yourself how to aim properly.
10. Have set game plays, strategies and contingency plans
This could be incorporated with your field walking. I saw the Sydney X fighters’ spending hours developing their set plays at the South Pac’s a few months ago. The idea being that you and your team develop a number of set plays so that your team mates will have a good idea of where you are located on the field and avoid the possibilities of friendly fire (it really isn’t to friendly is it??)
Also develop strategies and contingency plans for when a team mate is eliminated because lets face it not all things go according to plan. Develop strategies to compensate for the loss of team mates, factor it into your game plans, and will that plan still work if you lose 3 or 4 plays. Think worse case scenario and strategize before the heat is on. Walk through these plans also, this will not only help you with field walking and familiarizing the field but will help determine which strategy works best.
Over time with practice, determination and game practice using and adapting these skills and drills into your game play will improve your personal and teams success in the bush. You are not going to get it first time and every time however overall these skills should improve your game
1. Snap Shooting.
This tactic should not be confined to the sup air field. I have claimed many a kill with the aid of this tactic. Now many of you are probably asking how to I snap shoot with a stock on my shoulder?? EASY!! This was taught to my by Geoff Schurer at National Paintball Fields, Blacksoil, and I am a better player for learning it. Tuck your stock up onto your shoulder, below your mask, and tuck your elbow in, thus reducing your profile when you snap out at your opponents. And practice snapping out behind a bunker, be it a large façade or a small pallet sized bunker. Practice this drill standing up, crouching and kneeling…and possibly lying down, popping upwards. (Sounds silly but what’s the old infantry saying…you learn to hug mother earth in battle) I was taught to snap shoot from the hip, don’t step out, lean out from your hip and pop back in. that way you’re not stepping out and giving your opponent more to shoot at.
2. Shooting with both hands
I know this can be difficult if you are using a coiled remote, as it limits your movement with the marker, but it is a good skill to have. I'm a lefty, so in an ideal paintball game every corner I turn would be right, however this is reality. Learn to feel comfortable shooting with your opposite hand. Set up an empty soft drink bottle (mountain dew if you’re a Tyger fanboy hehe) and practice shooting at it, now at first you don’t have to hit the thing, you just have to get very close to it. If you practice this regularly over time you should be able to hit that bottle. Once you feel comfortable enough now start practicing snap shooting. The better you are shooting with your opposite hand, the less of you have to expose when you’re shooting at that pesky opponent determined to eliminate you.
3. Body position.
This is just as important hiding behind a pile of branches as it is behind a small dorito. A lot of new players and some experienced players will shoot, with the bottle or stock tucked into their shoulder, and their elbow is sticking way out, Tuck it in!!! Not only will this reduce your profile to what the opponent will see, but will increase the chance of a body shot now bouncing off your elbow pads.
Know where your feet are!! Many a bushballer and sup air player have been hit on the foot during a game (Yes Wade I know!!) by having a there foot or ankle just showing from behind a bunker. Say you are crouched on one knee and lean out the left side of the bunker to shoot at, which knee you on? Left or right?? From personal experience I would be on left with my right tucked in against the bunker. Either way use your leg to push u back behind that bunker.
4. Reloading
This is a great skill to have when you are in the middle of a heavy firefight, or need to giving suppressing fight and need to reload. Ever watch a sup air player and he pulls a pod, dumps the contents into his hopper and tosses it in a matter of seconds?? No I’m not suggesting you throw your pods into the bushes never to be found again, Kahn is evidence of that as he is seen roaming the fields looking for his pods!! The idea of loading your marker in a matter of seconds is critical in bushball. From the positioning of your pods in your pack to the method fill your hopper.
Go put your vest on and grab a couple of pods. With your preferred hand position your hand as you are going to open the pod, then put it straight into your pack. The idea behind this is that you are not fiddling with the pod, turning it in your hand to open it during a fire fight.
Now how many of you out there have pulled a pod out of your pack then opened the hopper? I know have whilst panicking. Get in the habit, and even practice opening your hopper then pulling the pod, that way you pull, flip, reload and nail that noob who is about to bunker you because he thinks it is going to take you forever to reload.
Another idea, depending on how many pods your bushball vest holds, is to only fill the pods with a ¼ of their capacity so you are not using as much paint, and have to reload more often. This way you don’t use as much paint, and you have the opportunity to practice it more.
Another idea is to practice reloading whilst you are shooting with your opposite hand because the situation is going to arise out on the field, and you are going to need to do it fast!!
5. Filling your pods
Many bushballers out there do not know how to fill their pods correctly which comes back to bite them in several ways out there on the field. When you are filling your pods, fill the pod up to the bream. Cup your hand over the top and shake the pod up and down gently. You will notice that the level will drop a bit, allowing you to put some more paint in. now don’t over pack your pods, just fill them, close the lid and give it a shake, you want as little sound as possible. This is for two reasons. 1 you make less sound running about the field. And make it harder for people to find you. 2 if your balls are bouncing about in the pod you increase of them breaking and becoming soup, therefore useless if it’s your last pod and you need it for your moment of glory.
6. Field Walking
Yeah we have all seen the sup air players wondering a field, taking hours knowing each and every bunker inside and out crouching looking at the angles. These boys and girls are onto something here. Walking the field allows you to memorize the layout of the field find natural and man made bunkers, ambush points, fall back points, hidden gullies or wash out, fallen trees. For those that play “sniper” or playing away at a new field this is a must for you where possible.
Knowing where the respawn points in big games or scenario games is a must. Know your teams respawn points and your opponents. Knowing your opponents is critical, as it will allow you to lay down fire as they respawn and will stop you being shot by 20 guys respawning.
7. Communication
A good sup air and bushball team will communicate very well. In bushball you will see teams communicating verbally and non-verbally. With the on set of technology many experience bushball players will have some uhf radios. Yet many teams will forget the basics.
Establishing a team code will allow you and your team mates to communicate freely without giving too much away to your opponents. And will confuse any opponents who might be listening in to your radio chatter.
Basic hand signals are a must for bushball, establish the common basics with your team and build up a number of them which everyone knows.
8. Knowing the Rules.
This isn’t really a skill which a lot of sup air players have. With many on both sides of the fence interpreting them or making them up to suit themselves. Read the rules, it’s as simple as that, and seek clarification from the organizer or ultimate referee. This way it eliminates hostility and confusion amongst players and gives you a leg to stand on if you have a polite disagreement with the referees during competition. For the “snipers” out there know the fields’ rules regarding ghillie suits.
9. Running and Gunning
This was suggested to me by Kahn, and I can’t believe I didn’t think of it myself. Practice running from point A to B, shooting at a target, this is where the empty soft drink bottles can come into play again. Practice using both hands, and in different directions, shooting forwards and sideways. This will improve your accuracy as you are sprinting to get behind a bunker and will reduce how much you have to rely on your team mates for covering fire.
Now don’t just set this up in the same spot over and over, move it around the field, make it a challenge to hit those bottles, even have a team mate walk through an area placing X amount in a particular spot on the field, and have to go through looking for them without stopping. This will force you to scan the field, keeping moving and scanning for targets. Make it a game, with the team mate with the lowest scores having to buy the team a round of drinks after a hard days training.
This next suggestion might be difficult to practice in the bush depending on your field layout and might just need you to step foot onto a sup air field. We have all seen movies with knights on horse back jousting, well the idea is the same with this drill. Have one team mate on the left tape line on either side of the field, with a third yelling 3,2,1 game on, and the idea is to run along that tape line shooting at a moving target, this will give you practice and experience at shooting at a moving target. Try it from both sides of the field, on the left and the right. Switching it up and using your opposite hand should also be done. Giving you more experience shooting with your less dominate hand will enable you to teach yourself how to aim properly.
10. Have set game plays, strategies and contingency plans
This could be incorporated with your field walking. I saw the Sydney X fighters’ spending hours developing their set plays at the South Pac’s a few months ago. The idea being that you and your team develop a number of set plays so that your team mates will have a good idea of where you are located on the field and avoid the possibilities of friendly fire (it really isn’t to friendly is it??)
Also develop strategies and contingency plans for when a team mate is eliminated because lets face it not all things go according to plan. Develop strategies to compensate for the loss of team mates, factor it into your game plans, and will that plan still work if you lose 3 or 4 plays. Think worse case scenario and strategize before the heat is on. Walk through these plans also, this will not only help you with field walking and familiarizing the field but will help determine which strategy works best.
Over time with practice, determination and game practice using and adapting these skills and drills into your game play will improve your personal and teams success in the bush. You are not going to get it first time and every time however overall these skills should improve your game
