My First Scenario Game

By Scott Habowski

I first remember arriving early Saturday morning and setting up my tent. Did I ever feel nervous as I checked out the other players' equipment! Would mine measure up? Would I be able to "square off" with these well-outfitted players and experience victory?

After setting up my tent and getting my registration squared away, I attended the Players' Briefing, led by BlackCat and his sidekick, Kitty. We were introduced to the Generals: General Robert Hodges, decked out in full camouflage, was in charge of the Government/Law Enforcement forces and Henry Blankenship, in business suit and tie, was the leader of the Kopeck regime. We were also, at that time, introduced to some of the many props BlackCat brought to the game. I was especially intrigued with the dynamite! It then seemed that I had just enough time to turn around, get chronoed in, and be ready to go for game on!

As I gathered with my team around our base for our team meeting (the first mission of the game), I remember thinking, "what have I gotten myself into???" and "this is nothing like the games at my local field!!!". I pushed past these feelings, and decided to "get into the game" by volunteering to guard the base. That didn't last long, though-I was soon called upon to go on a mission and I was pumped! Our mission was to clear the other side of the river, and I remember feeling nervous and excited. After we completed that mission, the intensity and the action of the game seemed to grow by leaps and bounds, and before I knew it, it was time for the final battle before dinner break.

I remember thinking about the afternoon during our dinner break. It all seemed so exciting and crazy! So much paint traded during battles-what seemed like instant reinsertion after we were eliminated (really every 30 minutes)-it felt like a battle for the ages! I remember, though, being amazed at how little I was truly eliminated during the afternoon. Only twice-not bad! (Far less than my expectations).

After a hot dog and a couple of humorous stories, it was time for night play. This was so different from the game that I experienced during the day. Feeling a little more confident with my skills, I set off to find a good spot to eliminate some of the enemy. While I was camped out at my spot, I noticed a strange glowing object-coming my way! At first I had no idea of what was happening, and wanted to rub my eyes in disbelief, but I soon realized that this was part of the fun and excitement of scenario play! I then discovered that this strange glow was a character in the scenario, (one of the "Three Sisters") suddenly appearing on the field, carrying a "lantern" and information for our team. What strange occurrences would happen next? Only time would tell . . .

Toward the end of night play, I was chosen to help out some of our forces at the Mounds Field carry out a mission. We had several players there already, but we were severely outnumbered. I looked for any of our forces I could find, found two, and hunkered down. There was only 20 minutes left to go of the mission and the clock began to tick in my head. Every couple of minutes, we would come across a stray opponent and bang! Our opponents then discovered us, made a desperate attempt to run us down, but failed just as time was up. We got out of there as fast as we could!

At this point, my adrenaline was pumping like crazy! I was having the time of my life, and I felt as if I could have done anything. Even though I felt as if I could play all night long, night play wound down at 1:00 a.m. and I suddenly discovered I needed my well-deserved rest.

Back at my tent, I took a quick nap, and then it seemed that play began instantly. I mingled with others on my team and gathered important information about what had happened throughout the night. Apparently, several more unusual characters had made appearances throughout the night including a "bogus" small arms dealer who was detained and eliminated. Once again, I discovered the twists and turns in scenario play.

When morning play began, our forces were in the lead, but during the day the opposition made a huge push. Toward noon the fighting became even more intense, and with reinsertion every thirty minutes, the sides remained steadily even and the firefights continued.

Toward the end of the 24 hours, I knew that the final battle was drawing near. My army was in the lead, but barely, so this final battle would determine the outcome of the event. When the final battle began, heavy fire was traded between the two forces, but in the end, our team prevailed!

I had many expectations going into my first 24-hour scenario game. I expected to get blasted on, but I did some blasting myself! It seemed at first that everyone had equipment superior to mine, but I soon discovered that it didn't really matter. I had my fair share of eliminations, but I got it a couple of times myself. I also expected to get left behind by the more experienced players, but I was wrong on that one also. I can't begin to count the number of times a more experienced player helped me out. Also, I asked many players questions, and I can't remember anyone being rude to me-everyone was helpful and friendly. I also found out that the scenario aspect of the game kept it lively and interesting. It sure made paintball more fun!