Good tactics are not always about running to the line of fire as quickly as possible. Sometimes the best tactic is to run away. Not because you are afraid of who’s coming at you, but because you want to eliminate them. A weekend not too long ago, Eric “Mad Loki” and myself walked into a classic trap that consisted of the other team running away. Click read more for the details…

Loki and I were a two-man fire team on point, when we walked right up on four or five of the enemy players. I had just purchased a new marker and we opened up on the squad full auto and they immediately turned tail and ran. We could see that they were younger than us and have figured them for newbies. Sweatshirts and blue jeans were running everywhere.   As soon as they had run out of range, we began advancing forward. We were very proud ourselves feeling like we chased off a larger squad of less experienced players and I turn to Loki and said, “That was almost too.. SPLAT!” I didn’t actually say the word easy or splat, but that was the sound I heard as the paintballs ripped across my goggles and forehead. The next words I heard was me swearing like a sailor,  because the shots just about took off my head!

As it turned out our “newbies”, had laid a great trap for us. The bait was the four we chased off and the trap was the one they left in the wood pile behind them. He stayed tucked down in there and just waited for us to walk upon him. It worked. Eric managed to duck for cover while the stars were still circling my melon.  Since we were the point men for our group, it was only just a matter of seconds before our squad crushed the sniper. to his credit, he asked me both on the field, and later off the field, if I was alright. He also asked me later for advice on whether he should have tried to surrender us or not, as the shots were fairly close, but maybe not within the 10 foot range.  I honestly told him that he did the right thing because I had enough cover to duck behind and was far enough away that I would’ve probably try to shoot it out with him and Eric would’ve lit him up for sure. It also turns out that the other newbies that we thought we chased off have also become members of Team Tango.

What have we learned Dorothy?

• Don’t get cocky. We were too arrogant and walked immediately into a trap that a teenager set for us.
• Just because they’re running doesn’t mean they’re scared. They were just suckering us in.
• Appearances can be misleading. These kids were all wearing sweatshirts and jeans and we assumed they were newbies. When in fact, they outsmarted and outplayed us completely.
• The next time something looks too easy, it’s because it probably is. If a superior force is running away from you, you might want to ask “why?”
• Goose egg sized lumps take three weeks to heal.