I recently went out to play some paintball and it’s a blast!  The paintball fields are starting to get eaten up by metro Atlanta development, though, so I’m not sure how much longer they’ll keep the range going before selling out to some developers.

Getting geared up for paintball makes fencing look cheap!  While you can just come in your jeans and a t-shirt (if you want to get marked up really quick!), you have to have a paintball mask. Just like in fencing, those paintball pellets come at you fast and hard and you don’t want to get hit in the face without some protection.

So, going out to play with a group of friends, we get set up in teams and are given the basic, bare bones semi-automatic markers (the term for paintball guns.) This one guy shows up and wants to join in, but he’s got this Tippmann fully automatic rig and loads of ammo making him look like Arnold and us like the PFCs that are doomed to die. Thing is, he didn’t know how to use what he had. He spent all of his time hanging back and being defensive and was more of a liability to the team he was on.

Having great gear didn’t help him out b/c he wasn’t aggressive in his use of it and continually was one of the first out in each game we played. Moral - don’t get freaked out by someone’s gear, they still have to prove they can fight.

As to the gear, if you want to get into paintball, then check out Ultimate Paintball.  They’ve got a really extensive site and some really good prices.  (Though, I’d go up to the mid range or high end for masks/goggles - full face coverage and throat protection are a must!)  Just for fun, browse around and see how much stuff there is and how you would outfit yourself for team combat on the range.