Airsoft is a game, based around combat, which has similarities with paintball. In most scenarios, participants aim to eliminate opponents by hitting them with 6mm (or occasionally 8mm) plastic BBs launched from airsoft guns. Airsoft guns are most commonly powered by one of three sources: Gas, spring-loaded or gearboxes. Participants typically use varying types of weapons designed as replicas of real firearms, tactical gear, and accessories used by military and police organizations. Airsoft has been popular in Asia for a long time and there is now a growing interest in airsoft weapons and events in North America and Europe.
Many law enforcement departments, military units, and protective security companies are turning to airsoft for an effective, low cost, anti-inflammatory, and safe means of force-on-force training. The low-impact projectiles allow military/law-enforcement/protection agencies to train anywhere - schools, businesses, airplanes, etc. Training in real-life environments conditions allows them to deal with real life situations and improve their skills. The most common airsoft gun law enforcement departments, military units, and protective security companies use would be the Systema Professional Training Rifle. The inexpensive ammo lets military/police train more frequently and repeat drills dozens of times in each session with minimal budgetary impact, to the relief of taxpayers. Since minimal protective equipment is required, this allows them to train with their actual duty gear and equipment. Using airsoft guns for training minimizes liability to both trainees, instructors and by-standers, as well as property owners.
The 'honor system' is employed whereby the players rely on each others' honesty to admit to being hit, because unlike paintballs, plastic pellets do not leave a surface mark distinguishable at a distance. While airsoft pellets that contain paint do exist, they are very rarely used by serious players due to their ineffectiveness.
Depending on the muzzle velocity of the gun and distance from which a person is shooting, the person on the receiving end of the shot will usually feel the impact, but the pellets may sometimes not be felt by a player at very long ranges, when distracted, or when running strenuously.
Simulated 'knife kills' can, at the venue's discretion, be performed when a player touches or taps an unaware opponent. This prevents the player being forced to shoot him or her at point-blank range. Similarly a 'courtesy kill' occurs when a player refrains from shooting an opponent at close range while enforcing that opponent's surrender. Players are usually prohibited from firing blindly when not able to see their target, especially around corners. Players are expected to avoid the shooting of an opponent who has already admitted to being hit. Harsh language and forceful physical contact between players is strongly discouraged and even penalized. Players are expected to resolve disputes politely and with proper decorum (99.99% of the time they do).
All airsoft players are required and expected to acknowledge being hit even if they are in doubt. Those who acknowledge being hit are generally expected to do the following: (1) Shout "I'm hit" loudly; (2) Raise their hand or gun high and/or display a 'hit indicator' while walking back to the safe zone. A hit indicator can be either a bright-colored cloth during daytime or a blinker or mini-flashlight when in dim light or darkness. Dishonest players who fail to follow the rules or acknowledge their hits run the risk of being labelled and ostracized by the local airsoft community. They will from then on be observed more carefully or possibly be even banned from playing in the area.
Due to the nature of the honor system many feel airsoft requires high moral values and gentlemanly ethics to play well without the need for distinguishing hit marks. Most airsofters will be out if other players saw they were hit and call it.
While airsoft guns are safe some of the safety precautions that anyone who is handling or shooting an airsoft rifle followed are: to wear protective lenses or goggles, to keep their finger off of the trigger until ready to fire, and only point the gun in a safe direction. Shooters are advised to never point their weapons at unprotected or non-playing people. The power source of the airsoft gun, be it gas, a manual cocking spring, or an electric motor does not affect how safe or unsafe the gun is.
A standard of safety guidelines and equipment has evolved in the airsoft community to protect the eyes and face. The minimum safe level of gear required to participate in most games includes a pair of fully-sealing impact-rated goggles to protect the eyes of the participants. Traditional prescription glasses and sunglasses are almost never accepted as they will not prevent serious injury. Goggles not designed specifically for use with airsoft or paintball guns may break or shatter upon being struck, causing eye damage.
For this reason many organized groups of airsoft players and fields require that eye protection fully seals the area around the eyes. Some players opt for paintball goggles, which are held to higher impact rating standards.
According to ANSI publications as of June 2006, The ASTM is currently developing a more specific standard for airsoft - ASTM Z1535Z - Standard Specification for Eye Protective Devices for Airsoft Sports.
Most Airsoft guns are capable of shooting from 150 FPS (Feet Per Second) to 400 FPS, though it is also possible to purchase upgraded springs for some Airsoft guns that will enable 400 to 600 FPS projectile velocities. This is highly unlikely because it will cost too much money to upgrade the weapon and may lead to internal failure in the gun because of the increased spring tension.
A hop-up unit, if present, puts backspin on the BB. This backspin generates lift and gives the BB a further effective range. Too much applied hop and the BB will ark skywards, too little and the BB will fall to earth prematurely. Hop up can vary with the weight of the BB, .12 gram BBs are more effected by the backspin than the heavier .20 gram BBs The range of any Airsoft gun depends on both the fps at the muzzle, and the amount of HOP applied. Airsoft guns can have a range of 250 feet or more with enough power, the right barrel, and ammunition as well as a good hop-up unit. The hop-up rubber or bucking is also what retains the BB in the barrel until firing.
"Skirmishing" is the most common form of play. Players may use methods and equipment that may differ from a realistic battle. Most players in this group dress in BDUs(Battle Dress Uniform or military camouflage) and have guns ranging for $50 to $2000 in price. These battles can take place any where from an abandoned building, an area of woods, to a farm.
CQB, an acronym meaning Close Quarters Battle, or CQC, Close Quarters Combat, is a popular way of playing airsoft. The basic idea is for people to play in an enclosed arena at close quarters, resulting in fast action combat or multiple surprises. Often the arena may be set up as if it were in an urban war zone or in terrain filled with enclosing walls, gates, doorways, stair ways, tunnels, apertures, overhead openings, or below-ground approaches that enable one player to shoot at another from a distance of a certain amount of feet. CQB can also take place in night games or in dense vegetation such as tall grass, shrubbery, and closely packed trees. In these types of combat, the FPS (Feet per second) of the guns may have to be lower due to the closeness of the combat.
MilSim, short for Military Simulation, generally combines airsoft play with some military live-action role-playing elements. Several goals or missions are assigned to each team, along with a basic load-out of ammunition (6 millimeter pellets), rations, batteries, and other suitable equipment, such as short-range radios and head-sets. Sometimes such equipment is provided whilst other times players may bring them at their own discretion.
The teams will remain in the field for the duration of play, only returning to a staging area or "safe zone" for medical emergencies, or other such circumstances. Military simulation games often last several days, for example the large BERGET event in Sweden lasts 6 days in a row, with no breaks. In larger scale MilSim operations players may utilize vehicles such as painted vans and trucks.
Airsoft games are not only limited to MilSim or CQB, however. There are many alternate game scenarios.
Game Name: Ammo Grab
Objective: To get to the ammo box in the field and secure more ammo for your team and eliminate the other team or simply team deathmatch with 3 respawns per player and ammo restrictions.
Respawn: 3 lives per player, 1 hit and your "killed".
End Rules: Game ends when opposing team is eliminated.
Ammo Restrictions: Autos(Electrics)= 100 rds | Springs= 35rds | Snipers= 15rds | Pistols(all types)= 10rds
Inside the Goodie Box(Ammo box): Full speed loaders, number of speed loaders depends on people attending game.
Ranks (USMC Rank Structure) |
Roles |
Clothing Items and Gear equal so many points and so many points is a certain rank |
Roles are now a green light
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OR 2 kills = 1pt
OR 1 win = 1 pt (prefer this one easy to track and slow progress)
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