Paintball is an exciting and dynamic game unrelated to military formations or violence. It is a hobby and sport, whose global popularity has soared.

Suffice it to say that paintball championships take place at all levels all the way to the international level. A graphic example is the European championship “Millennium”, championships among Nordic countries “Nordic Series”, and the world championship in Orlando, USA. The number of participants has already topped 100 and continues to rise.

Much like with other sports, paintball has dozens of professional teams that also earn handsome winnings. But there is more to come, if you consider that paintball has only embarked on its path, and the summit is still a very long way off.

The game itself is not complex: two teams gather at the playground (at least three persons per team without any restrictions as to age, gender, creed, sports shape, or military training). The only restriction is that children aged 12 or younger should be accompanied by parents or other adults. The participants are instructed about the game rules and conduct on the playground, and proceed to select the game type: title and final goal. Then the teams select weapons, ammunition, and protective gear.

The main paintball weapon is special pneumatic rifle called “marker”. It is different from a real weapon in that it propels balls using compressed gas without causing any injuries. Balls used for loading the marker consist of a gelatin shell filled with a washable coloring substance (it can even be injected without any harm to the body). When the ball strikes the target, it leaves a stain. Additional accessories include aiming sights, smoke grenades, and paints of protective color.

The objectives of the game vary. This may include ordinary clearing enemy elements off the territory, capturing a fortress, liberating a settlement from terrorists, rescue operations and much more. It is only limited by your imagination… Most often players capture enemy territory – all kinds of headquarters or fortifications. To make the game even more exciting, paintball grounds can be equipped with obstacles, trenches and fences.

A player hit and colored by a ball leaves the game as “injured”. If the ball does not break despite a direct hit, the player can continue the game. The team all of whose players have been “injured” loses.

The main thing is not to “kill” enemies effectively or spectacularly, but to enjoy the process that involves tracking down the enemy, setting up traps, sabotaging, staging ambushes, splitting into smaller units to mislead the enemy, etc. Now imagine three persons splitting into six small units. Isn’t that fun? It’s even more fun to play…