| If you thought paintball was just a game, think | | | | While a game of paintball can be as simple as a |
| again. For some people, paintball is a sport that | | | | bunch of friends going up the street to the |
| gives them a high adrenaline rush, keeps them | | | | paintball field for a few hours of blowing off |
| physically fit and mentally challenged. | | | | steam, there are also organized leagues, with |
| What Is It? | | | | sponsored teams or school groups with special |
| A strategy game that can be played outdoors or | | | | uniforms. Most informal playing groups will don |
| inside a special venue, the object is to hunt and | | | | military-style fatigues for camouflage, with special |
| eliminate competitors using paint as ammunition. | | | | masks and padding to protect themselves from |
| When you're hit, you're out. The game rules vary | | | | injury. The masks cover the entire face, with |
| from group to group, depending on the skill and | | | | special protection from paint for the eyes, nose, |
| organizational level of the competition. | | | | mouth and ears. |
| Players use special guns, mines, grenades and | | | | Venues |
| other paintball accessories to outdo each other | | | | Paintball playing fields are as varied as the rules. |
| and "splat" their opponent before they, | | | | Indoor paintball can be simple or complex, |
| themselves, are hit. Different colors of paint are | | | | depending on the type of facility. A large, empty |
| used for each team so that people can tell when | | | | warehouse can be an effective place for the |
| they've been hit and by which team. | | | | game when crates, barrels and ladders are added. |
| Team Versus Individual | | | | Variation of light changes the difficulty for the |
| The game can have many participants, either with | | | | competitors. Black light can even be used to |
| each individual vying to be the last one standing, | | | | make special paint glow in the dark, so players |
| or with teams competing against each other to | | | | can clearly see when someone has been hit and |
| eliminate opponents until only players from one | | | | by which team. |
| side are still standing. | | | | In outdoor games, the play is more in a military |
| For multiple individuals playing against each other, | | | | style, as teams compete in wooded areas or on |
| the end of the game resembles an exploding | | | | professionally designed courses. Close-up combat |
| rainbow with paint splotches on the ground and all | | | | requires players to hide behind bushes or barriers |
| over stationary barriers used for defense and | | | | for protection. Some outdoor games rely on |
| protection. Two-team matches are less colorful | | | | teams to advance to the other side's base to |
| but just as entertaining to watch, as players | | | | capture a banner or flag without having its own |
| assume different roles, whether attacking | | | | team members eliminated in the process. Others |
| competitors or defending teammates from | | | | are simply a matter of moving about the playing |
| paintball assault. | | | | field while hitting each person on the other team |
| Organized Play | | | | with paint and avoiding the "splat" themselves. |