Discussion on fieldcraft-tips-and-tricks
TMAphantom
It is important to withdraw from an area way before opponents start to
infiltrate it. Once you spot an opponent try to predict his intended
route and reposition to a new area to ambush that predicted area.
Keeping opponents at longer range is the best way to level your
chances against AEG's. Keep them over 30m away whenever possible.
Evasion will keep you in the game. Have the mind set, that staying
safe is more important than getting the hit, on the target. I forgot
that guideline recently, and it cost me a point.
Do not rely on your sidearm to get you out of trouble. Try not to get
into such situations in the first place. Withdraw early. This hit and
fade tactic will annoy your opfor; after a while and they will tend to
move up quicker, in an effort to keep in contact with you. Use this to
your advantage and now and again ambush them early rather than
completely evading, if they get sloppy.
Evasion sometimes involves running, sometimes crawling or a
combination of the 2. Do not evade in a straight line, as your route
is too easily predicted by anyone following up. Vary your evasion
tactics and do not use the same routes or areas that could be learnt
by the opfor.
Stay one step ahead and if in doubt, don't hang about, just reposition
instead.
TMAphantom
Say the word "Sniper" and people suddenly conjure up thoughts of
ghillied individuals, crawling slowly an inch at a time, across the
forest floor. Spending hours moving into a firing position to take a
single long ranged shot. Hitting the mark and then slowly crawling
away again to a new position.
Many peoples thoughts are based on films they have seen, or
photographs of the military snipers in action.
However, that is not the reality of using a short ranged 6mm gun in an
Airsoft game (or even many real modern military situations).
......
Say the word "Hunter" and people imagine a camoflagued man sneaking
through the undergrowth and looking out for quarry to shoot or track.
His shots are more oppertunistic and after shooting he moves off to
look for more quarry or to follow up his shot.
Now to me, this sounds like many Airsofter players in reality.
.......
Both HUNTER and SNIPER use the same tactic of laying ambush. Now and
again they stop moving and watch for sign of a target coming their
way.
What are the advantages of the two styles and the downsides too?
Well, crawling is great at keeping you undetected at a glance, even in
more open areas. A crawling stalker can easily freeze at any stage and
become part of the forest floor. However, when it comes to several
things, crawling is disadvantagious. Crawling through cover and hiding
amongst it, is great, until you realise your own LOS is vastly reduced
and therefore the possibilities of firing at longer range can be
vastly reduced, unless the contours/terrain favour it.
Crawling means you are limited to facing one direction without lots of
movement. This can mean you can be flanked without being aware of it.
Indeed, crawling means you can get close to people without them
knowing, but also means they can be close to you and not seen too.
Indeed, if you are amongst grass then your eyes are low down and
limited by the foliage. However, your head and back could still be
high enough for them to be seen at longer distance. Many would say
that is what a ghillie suit is for, but no matter how good your suit
is, movement is what gives you away.
Meanwhile the upright stalker has many differences to the crawler.
Firstly, he is upright and therefore his eyes have far better LOS over
the foliage. This is like ancient man as a hunter on the plains of
africa. He is tall to see prey at far longer distance. He can look in
all directions without much movement of his body and can keep an eye
on his rear and flanks easily. OK, his concealment is far harder and
no matter what his ghillie is like; while upright he is often obvious
from long distance.
Stalking a target upright means you can cover ground far quicker and
also get away in 1 second too. If the prey is not looking your way,
you can use your upright advantage to move up into range quicker or
cross a gap in cover.
So there you go: stance is a trade of Concealment vs LOS vs Movement.
Therefore in short, crawling is a stalking technique, that is best
suited to a player who wants concealment over observation. I suggest
the best combination is therefore to start stalking upright (just like
a lion does) until the prey is spotted. Once the lion reaches a
position where it feels that the quarry is unaware of her presence,
she starts to crawl slowly forward until within striking distance.
Crocodiles do similar. They float on the surface where they have best
LOS until they see an oppertunity. They then note the targets location
and dissappear under the surface. They crawl along the bottom until
they are within striking distance.
Take a leaf out of the natural predators book and adopt this style of
stalking to get success.
Personally, I hardly ever go prone, other than for stationary ambush.
Often I can get close enough upright to take the shot unseen. I
suggest a player who mainly crawls all day, will get far fewer shots
than one that stalks upright (to start with).
The Crimson Falcon
Crimson
P.S. You want this posted under TMAPhantom, or The Bushman?
Ekibyougami
Spotting Targets
While you search for enemies you need to look for more than just a
person. You should look for shine, shape, silhouette, color
differences, and movement. Basic shapes you should look for are
perfect circles, straight lines, and the round top of a helmet.
Silhouette is pretty basic; the human eye can pick up the shape of a
human even when camouflaged and behind some vegetation. For color
differences you should look for black items, orange tips, and an area
that is a different shade than the surrounding vegetation. Movement
draws the human eye quickly, watch for brush that is moving when the
wind is not blowing and people walking. If you are playing against a
sniper remember to look for vegetation that does not match the
surrounding vegetation. Experienced players will avoid areas with
sunlight and trails as much as possible so watch the dark areas.
Once you have your position set up you should scan the area with your
eyes for movement. After you should make a rough drawing including
trails, and possible hiding areas, split your drawing and viewing area
into squares between 25 and 125 feet depending on your location and
field of view. Start scanning each section with your optics paying
special attention to hiding positions that you noted. While you scan
each square you should remember to glance at the trails and to watch
for movement through out your field of view.
Wow TMA phantom that was written extreamly well.
TMAphantom
Spotting your opponent first is very important espescially, in a 24
hour game. Otherwise you may well be HIT, before you know it. If you
can't see anyone, then you can't shoot anyone. So a vigil must be
kept, to spot any snipers or incoming attack.
Some players are more observant/alert than others. The key to good
observation is to slowly scan the terrain, looking at all "suspect"
locations. Moving your eyes to scan, is better than turning your head,
as this can compromise you. Indeed, it is often movement that gives
someone away, as the human eye picks up on it quickly.
When moving in a pair, players still take it in turn to OBSERVE. This
is called MOBILE OVERWATCH, where 1 man moves and the other OBSERVES
for the opposing team. This is a key skill to limiting damage in an
ambush situation. Look for danger areas, within range and keep them
under your watch.
Observing at night is harder and relies on your night vision kicking
in after 15-30mins, without artificial light. The best technique is to
look to the side of your intended target (known as "Looking Off").
This uses your more sensitive peripheral vision to pick out shapes.
Optics can really help, espescially if looking over long distances.
The most handy optic is a telescopic sight mounted on your gun.
Indeed, many players use scopes more for spotting than shooting. 3 - 9
Zoom magnification, being excellent for any conceivable Airsoft
situation. Binoculars are also good, as they are easy to use for long
periods of time. Those players with poorer vision, will not make good
"snipers".
A cap can be a useful visual tool, when the sun is low and glares your
vision. Use a short peaked cap to shade your goggles, this also stops
the tell tale reflection, that can sometimes compromise an airsofter.
Good obserbation skills are critical to Snipers, as they need to spot
targets first in order to initiate their stalk. While relaying
information on targets spotted, via radio; is also a major role of a
24 Hour sniper or scout. Playing on the flank in a pair or sniping
solo, requires good observational skills. Otherwise, without the
support of team mates, it is easy to be picked off.
Lastly, observation is dependant on a player's patience. Should the
players mind wander or boredom set in; it is less likely that an
opponent will be spotted. This happens often, if a players sentry
duty, goes for too long without relief. It can be hard in a long
endurance event, but try to keep alert and switched on; checking your
surroundings at all times.
The Crimson Falcon
part of the Fieldcraft Tips and Tricks Guide. It's becoming an
excellent read. Keep it up!