Paintball snipers -- real or imagined?

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The Loch Ness Monster, Bigfoot, and Paintball Snipers…

To many paintball players all three of those are fictional characters and none of them could get to the dollar bill.  If you don’t get that reference go rent “Chasing Amy”.  That’s all I’m saying. 

But back on topic.  Do “Snipers” exist in paintball?  Short of the ever present “What marker to buy” threads, posts about snipers in paintball rank high on every single paintball forum and yet no other topic will stir up as much of a debate as this one.  So is this to be the end all discussion on the topic?  Hardly.  As a matter of fact, it is more of what, after many years of endless and sometimes painful debate, what I think of the topic.  So you may agree, you may disagree, but this is nothing more than my opinion and like most of the other posts on here always open to debate. 

Sniper up!

The main argument against snipers in paintball is the question of range.  It is firmly believed that because all paintball markers shoot equal distance (Flatlines/Apex/Hop Up barrels notwithstanding)  that you cannot have snipers in paintball.  However, what that is really saying is that in order to be a sniper your “gun” must outshoot the other guy’s. 

So really, the argument isn’t whether there are snipers in paintball but rather just what, exactly, makes a sniper a sniper?  In a quest to answer this I’ve recently gone over several first person sniper stories that have ranged from revolutionary times to present day and have covered both military and paramilitary snipers (i.e. police SWAT snipers).  There are many things that go into being a sniper and yes, accuracy at long distance happens to be one of them but it took more than just a good shot to become a sniper even in the military.  So let’s break down some of these criteria.

• Marksmanship - All snipers have to be good shots.  They have to compensate for variables such as wind, humidity, distance, terrain, target movement, time of flight for the round from shooter to target, and relative elevation of the target to the shooter.  Compensating for all these variables to make sure the sniper’s first round is the only round he needs to shoot takes months of training and tons of skill especially if the shot was extremely long range.
  
  
• Equipment - The sniper’s equipment included not only a scoped weapon but also things such as ghillie suits, rations for spending days in the brush, drag bags, radios, notepads, and other various tools of the trade.  Sometimes, and in more modern units, the sniper’s role has expanded from just expert marksman to scout/recon as well so their equipment bundles have expanded to match.  However, the main tool of the sniper is his rifle and usually, but not always, the magnification scope sight attached to it. 
  
  
• Stealth - A sniper was more than just a well equipped marksman though. Snipers many times operated behind enemy lines and needed to avoid detection.  Whether they stayed in a hidden location while the rest of their troops pulled out leaving them to wait until the enemy troops moved in or inserting themselves into enemy occupied territories the sniper had to avoid detection.  Often times he used a combination of stealthy movement and advanced camouflage to achieve this.  Either way, being stealthy is just as important to a successful sniper as his marksmanship because it doesn’t mater if he can hit his target if he can’t get to it.
  
  
• Mental Fortitude - This is something that is sometimes hard to measure.  Snipers had to have a certain attitude in order to look at a man’s eyes through his scope and still be able to pull the trigger.  Snipping is a very personal type of warfare.  However, they also had to have the mental ability to exercise incredible patience to stay in hidden locations sometimes days on end defecating in their pants while being eaten alive by bugs in order to get off that one critical shot.  Also, the sniper has to be able to distinguish when he should take a shot and when he shouldn’t.  He has to be able to determine which targets are important and which are not.

These are the main things that I feel define a sniper.  As they said in the Marine Corp though, you’re a Marine first and a Sniper second.  This means that snipers could perform all the tasks that a regular grunt could perform and his sniper abilities were in addition to his ability to perform as a regular infantryman.

Paintball Snipers don’t exist!

 Or so they say.  The best way I can think of starting this is to go over just what the argument is against paintball snipers. 

• Paintball Markers all shoot the same distance - True.  Even with the range extending barrels out there you still have to get the ball to break on the target for it to count and sometimes this can be a problem at extremely long ranges.
   
  
• Snipping is another term for Camping - It is true that some “form” of snipping can be considered camping.  If you’re setting still in a certain location where you know opposing troops will be advancing and are concealed your team mates may call that being in a “sniper hide” but your target is going to tell you that if you want to camp like that to join the Boy Scouts.
  
  
• Paintball guns are too loud - Also can be true but there are also some wickedly quiet guns out there.  Don’t expect a Spyder to be quiet as no stacked tube blowback generally is but cockers, electro-pneumatics, and pumps can be extremely quiet.
  
  
• You have to be close to make sure you hit your target - Also true.  To make sure you hit your target and that the ball breaks requires you to be very close to your target thus making it much harder to stay concealed after the shot. 
  
  
• Just because I sneak up on someone and shoot them unexpectedly doesn’t make me a sniper - You’re right, it doesn’t.  This is true too in the military that often times a trooper may sneak up on an unsuspecting enemy and get a kill without the other person knowing where it came from but that doesn’t mean they get sniper pay.
  
  
• Snipers take out only important targets – Partially true.  The hitch is define “important”.  Most will take it to mean important people such as heads of state, generals or other high ranking officers, and the like.  However that isn’t always true.  Yes, snipers have been called on to take out such targets but they usually are called on for much more.  More often than not, snipers will augment regular troops.  For instance, in Vietnam when a platoon entered a suspected VC village the VC would know the platoon was coming and start sneaking out the opposite side of the village.  One way U.S. troops countered this was to place sniper teams at the “back door” to take out those VC that tried to get away.  After one or two of their comrades fell to the sniper’s weapon the rest usually took cover and thus would remain in the village.  Thus, in these missions, the first couple of enemy troops were the “important targets” even though they were nothing more than common troops.

So with all that sniper’s can’t exist in paintball, right?  Not exactly.  First let me start by saying that I do believe the ONLY place you COULD have a paintball sniper is during a scenario or “big” game.  Most recreational fields are not conducive to true snipping tactics.  Let’s break some of these arguments down.

• Paintball Range - Saying that because all paintball markers shoot the same distance thus you can’t be a sniper is assuming that a sniper’s weapon MUST shoot further than his target’s or he is not a sniper.  This is FALSE.  In the years before Vietnam often times the only difference between a “Sniper” weapon and the weapons carried by normal troops was nothing more than the shooter’s ability to hit his targets better than his targets could hit him.  German snipers in World War II would use concealment to “ambush” American patrols and thus slow their advance.  Even in Vietnam, there are many stories of snipers lying still while the enemy’s bullets would pepper the forest around them because they didn’t know where the sniper was but it was certainly clear that they were still within range of the enemy’s weapons.  Also, many “sniper” engagements…especially when you are talking about SWAT snipers…occur at ranges of 400 yards or less, a range well within any assault or hunting rifle.  Thus the range of one’s weapon does NOT SOLELY determine if you are a sniper or not no matter if we are talking paintball or real warfare.
  
  
• Snipping is Camping - Okay, this one is really a matter of opinion.  If someone sneaks through the opposing team’s line and sets himself up somewhere in their rear where he has a clear shot at an area where he knows the other team’s players will come through AND by eliminating them he is making a substantial contribution to his side (i.e. stopping said opposing players from completing a mission) then I would say he IS NOT camping.  Same holds true if he positions himself in a place and allows the opposing team to over-run him but does not fire until his shots are going to make a critical difference.  The player that just hunkers down behind a bunker somewhere and shoots the first opposing player to walk by regardless of the outcome IS camping.
  
  
• Paintball guns are too loud - This is assuming that real world guns are quiet.  Even the loudest paintball marker is quieter than MOST sniper weapons.  You see, only silenced weapons are truly quiet.  However, the first rule to a silenced weapon is that the round MUST be fired at sub-sonic velocities.  This means range will be significantly reduced as any round that can travel over a mile would need to leave the barrel at supersonic levels.  Even when not firing at long ranges, most sniper weapons were not silenced as it tends to reduce accuracy.  Thus the loudness of a paintball gun would not eliminate it from being used as a sniper weapon.  Actually, many paintball guns can be made to be MUCH quieter than any suppressed firearm making those kinds of markers even MORE “Sniper-ish” than the real deal! (Yes, I’m making up words now…)
  
  
• You have to be close - This is the biggest obstacle to the paintball sniper.  Sure all the weapons shoot the same distance and we’ve shown that the same holds true for most real world snipers as well.  However, real world battles with snipers are fought over hundreds of yards.  If you can get an accurate shot with a paintball gun at one-hundred feet you’re doing good!  The places you can hide over a length of 400 yards are far greater than the number of places you can hide at even 100 feet.  Thus after your first shot it will be far easier to find a shooter in a paintball environment than a real world environment. 
  
  
• Anyone can sneak up on someone and eliminate them but that doesn’t make them a sniper - As was said this is true but this also holds true in the real world.  The difference between a sniper and a regular “grunt” if you will is his ability to move with stealth and be able to eliminate the opposition regularly from a concealed position without being detected.  A Sniper should be able to get in behind enemy lines and scout on the oppositions movements.  He should be able to decide when a target is worthy of him risking exposing himself to take the shot such as if he’s presented with the opposition’s general or the chance to stop the other side from completing a mission.
  
  
• Snipers only take out important targets – Many believe that there are no important targets in Paintball for a sniper to target even if he existed.  Some have stated that only Generals and tank crews in scenario games would qualify.  I agree that it is only in scenario games where a true “sniper” role can exist.  However, their targets are far more than just Generals and tank crews.  Medics, engineers, special characters, Anti-Tank crews, “machine gunners”, other snipers and any player on the opposite team attempting to complete a special mission are all “important targets”.  Also, there are some missions that are tailored to include a sniper.  If a team is sent out to capture a key prop if possible but at best to keep it out of the enemy’s hands a sniper can be set up in an Over-watch role to keep enemy players from reaching the prop.  

In the “Real World”…

So what are some real world sniper experiences?  Here are a couple of stories from the “Real World”.

In Beirut in the 1980s, the U.S. Marines were stationed at an airport and were charged with protecting the perimeter.  They were stationed in outposts around the airport but just inside the wire.  They could not fire at someone outside the wire unless they were fired on first or had a weapon aimed at them.  After a number of Marines were killed by enemy forces, the command determined that they would send out sniper teams to take out these enemy irritants.  Firing at ranges under 400 yards, the Marine snipers made their presence known by taking out a number of the enemy and relieved pressure on the Marines in the outposts.

In a suburb of Los Angeles, LAPD officers were called to a house where a man had barricaded himself inside with a high powered hunting rifle.  He took a couple pot shots at officers when they had approached the house and SWAT was called.  A SWAT sniper team positioned themselves on the roof of a house across the street to cover the front of the house.  Two LAPD officers had taken cover in the man’s driveway behind his car after the man had taken a shot at them.  The man came out of the house and began stalking across his front lawn in order to try and get a clean shot at the officers who did not know they were in danger.  The SWAT sniper team was holding fire waiting for a green light to engage the man when they determined the officers’ lives were in danger and took the shot just as they received the green light to shoot.  Range was under 100 yards.

In Vietnam a U.S. Marine sniper team was out on patrol with a squad of Marines.  As they approached a crest the squad leader called for the sniper team to come forward.  In front of the squad was a river at the bottom of a small ravine where a VC scout was checking for a place to cross the river.  The sniper team held their fire until the scout motioned forward the rest of his unit.  Once the lead elements of the unit were half way through the river, the sniper team shot the scout and signaled the rest of the Marine squad to open fire.  During the fire fight the sniper team accounted for two more kills.  Range was around 200 yards.

Well?  Do they or don’t they?

So, do Paintball Snipers exist?  Yes, they CAN.  However, it’s not a long barrel, a scope, or a ghillie suit that makes a paintball sniper.  So while we have kind of gone over the opposing viewpoints, let me try and quantify my position here.

Scenario 1 - A player has found a nice little place to hide on the field during a scenario game.  He has gone out on his own and doesn’t know what side of the lines he is technically on.  He has no mission card nor does he know if any missions are being ran in the area.  After a while he sees one player from the other side walking towards his general direction. When in range, the player fires a number of rounds at the enemy player eliminating him.  Is this a Sniper?  No, it’s a camper.  First, he isn’t trying to find a spot where he can influence the outcome of the game.  He just figured out someplace to hide and wait for someone to wander by not even knowing if someone would or not.  Secondly, the target he picks has no outstanding value.  He doesn’t have a prop, he doesn’t look like he’s on a mission, and he’s just wandering through the field.  Third, when the camper does fire it’s not a controlled, single shot but rather a barrage.  This is closer to an ambush of one rather than a sniper. 

Scenario 2 - A player finds out there is a mission being ran that entails his team to go to a location on the field, find, and then retrieve a certain prop.  This player figures that the enemy may have a similar mission for the same prop.  Rather than go to the prop he decides to place himself between the area where the prop is and where he feels the enemy may advance to the prop area from.  He finds a good hiding spot and conceals himself.  A few minutes pass and sure enough, here comes the opposing team down a trail.  He takes a shot at the front man at about 75 feet and eliminates him.  The rest of the unit takes cover and tries to figure out where the shot came from.  As one pokes his head out, and looking to the shooting player’s right, the concealed shooter takes a shot but misses by about an inch.  The target turns towards the concealed player’s location but does not see him.  Instead he fires a bunch of rounds at the general area he thinks the shot came from.  The concealed player’s hide is made up of thick branches that break any balls that manage to make it his way and the player stays put not firing back.  As the target player turns to say something to his comrades that concealed player takes another shot and this time eliminates the target.  After this, the concealed player lays still and doesn’t return any fire.  He makes himself as concealed as possible and allows the now nervous opposing force to pass him by.  When they have left, he follows their trail.  He sees them engage what he feels is his team trying to take the prop and they hunker down again.  He finds another good hiding place and proceeds to eliminate two or three more of the opposing force from behind before he himself is eliminated.  Is this a sniper?  Yes.  His delaying of the enemy unit may have bought his team enough time to get the prop before the other team arrived.  He used controlled shots, concealment, and a quiet marker to keep the other team from figuring out his position.  Also, by allowing them to pass then following after he kept himself in the game and supported his team by providing important support from a direction the enemy wasn’t expecting.

Scenario 3 - A tank is moving up to try and break through the opposing team’s line.  Our player has moved up with it to try and give it some infantry support.  Looking through his magnification scope, our player sees an enemy Anti-tank team moving into position further up the road to try and take out the tank.  Our player maneuvers himself into a position on the opposite side of the road to try and get a shot at the AT gunner.  He moves low but quickly keeping cover between him and the last place he saw the AT gunner.  He gets to a spot where he thinks he should have a good angle and peers out to see the AT gunner looking around his cover down the road at the tank. Using his red dot sight, our player estimates the range at over 50 feet but under 70 feet and adjusts accordingly.  He squeezes off one round and is rewarded by a splat of bright orange paint on the AT gunners shoulder.  Is this as sniper?  Some will say yes, others no.  I’d say yes because the equipment and type of play this person is using would qualify him as playing in a “sniper” style.  First, he was using a marker designed for single shot eliminations and scouting, both of which are roles of the sniper.  He also moved using cover to keep himself out of sight to his target.  However, other types of players do this too and yet not be called snipers so this isn’t necessarily what makes this player fall into the “sniper” category even though concealed movement is certainly in the sniper’s bag of tricks.  Most importantly though is that he took out an “important target” at the moment with a single shot in order to keep from exposing himself to others that may have been with the AT gunner or from other AT gunners further up the road so that he could continue to support the friendly tank that was moving up.  Again, this could be called either way depending on how you wish to look at it.

Conclusion

Well, there you have it.  Is there a place and a role for “snipers” in paintball?  I believe so under certain conditions.  To avoid starting any fights are arguments on the field I would never refer to myself as a sniper though.  I’d prefer to just play the way I like to play and let others label me however they want.  So long as your making the contribution, who cares how you do it so long as it’s within the rules?

Good luck and remember, it is all about having fun!

- Robotech

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