KEY points to paintball victory

by Taylor "Kahuna" Schnell
(Ponoka Alberta Canada)

I would say the two key things that separate good paintball teams from amateurs is communication and positivity. For example, Instead of saying "Man, you absolutely sucked that game", try saying something positive such as " Good job out there, but next time remember to ... (Add pointer here)". Saying negative comments only makes the team feel as if they aren't good, which directly correlates to how you play in game. Also, by stealthily slipping in helpful pointers and having practice, you progress your team's strengths and lower your weaknesses. Communication is also a key factor in paintball. When in game, make sure to always let people know where all of the opposing team is, even if you think that your teammates already know their location. This way, everyone knows and can adapt to the game's situation without having to worry about things such as "hmm... is a guy on the other side of that bunker I'm running to?" . Also, by calling out your hits and when you're out, you can help your team keep track of what their situation is. For example, if you have one guy run ahead and while the rest of the group is coming they get flanked, your single guy up front is still thinking he has a whole team behind him (Unless he is pretty close in which case he can turn and retreat to help his teammates) and will tend to act a bit more aggressively because he thinks he still has that strength behind him to fall back on. However, if you call out your kills and outs, that front man can hide back and take more defensive measures depending on how many players he has left. Also remember that although paintballs can hurt, you need to be able to take a hit in a game. Whether this means being the one guy on a 2-1 flank and basically committing suicide while your teammates get behind the enemy or just running to get a better spot or create a distraction, sometimes you need to take a hit for the betterment of your team. I'm hopefully going to put up more tips in the future when I get time, but for now I hope this helps!!! Thanks for reading.