What needs to happen to speedball to keep it relevant?

[PBSteve]

The culture of paintball seems more about ego protection, but that's just my take on it.

[morolen]

I wonder why it is like that, I have suffered it from time to time myself but I find I am having a tough time identifying why that is. What is the aspect of our sporting culture that has driven us to the seeming opposite extreme from most other organized sports?

This might be good group discussion for Russ and I to do in the Reload this week.

[cockerpunk]

I wonder why it is like that, I have suffered it from time to time myself but I find I am having a tough time identifying why that is. What is the aspect of our sporting culture that has driven us to the seeming opposite extreme from most other organized sports?

This might be good group discussion for Russ and I to do in the Reload this week.

because tournament paintball is a 15 year olds sport

if there is anything that describes a 15 year old male better than "insecure" i have yet to come across it.

[Pump Scout]

I and my guys might be the anomaly among paintball players. The last tournament we entered, we entered at a higher division than we should have.

The lesson was pretty brutal, and we'll drop down a division the next time we play, but we learned a lot, had a great time, and played clean ball. In that, I think we won the event... but we're a little different.

[PBSteve]

You always learn quicker getting your ass kicked.

Well, provided that's how you look at it.

[Pump Scout]

Indeed, and that's how we viewed it. The entry fee wasn't overly steep, and we got some very valuable education for our investment.

And would you believe that's the first time in my life I've used a ramping gun in a game? Never used anything other than semiauto previously in events or any games. It had been a LONG time since I'd played a tournament.

[Lurker27]

Excellent points re: ego driven. However, that seems to me to make it easier to "steer into the skid" and give some prestige to competing at higher levels - a culture shift seems very possible to me. The instituting of matchmaking in competitive counterstrike solved the EXACTLY analogous problem

[vijil]

Would standardising entry fees help? Instead of the creeping upwards cost, have everything from D3 up identical. Keep D4 and 5 cheaper for newbies perhaps.

Lurker - does there need to be a big advantage to particular marker types? If both teams are the same it becomes about who can use the mixture best. Most likely you'd end up with full noisers at the back and pistols up the snake. The biggest problem I see with a mixed marker setup is that incumbent speedball manufacturers would fear a drop in sales of highend markers. Of course Tippmann/Tiberius/Milsig etc. would love it, but they have no current interest in speedball.

[PBSteve]

It massively decreases ... cost for most players

sells more guns which is good for the industry (most players will want all three types)

I'm missing something, these statements do not agree with each other.

I'd rather use ammo caps than mandate particular marker types. Easier admin, more equipment flexibility.

[skibbo]

I think anything changed needs to have an additive approach rather than a subtractive one, ie paint caps vs limiting markers.

To me, you need to add to the current series rules, not take things away/start all over.

I think regional feeder series that pay for the top team(s) to go to world cup would be a good idea. The NCPA does this for high school teams (limited paint there too) which really can reduce cost.