RBDA - Arbee Does Airsoft

[Arbee]

Hello, I'm Arbee. The older members know me, I used to play, then I used to show up to random games to take pictures, and then I sort of disappeared for awhile. Now I'm back in full force, not only to take pictures at games, but to partake in a bit of airsoft journalism as well. I'll be showing up to games to take notes and pictures and do other stuff.

RBDA is my blog, which I'm hoping will go over well with you guys, in which I'll be chronicling events, along with random guests, who will help me cover the entire game. Hopefully, I'll be able to use the notes I take along with my Twitter commentary and piece together an accurate and enjoyable review for each game that I attend.

For the field owners and event organizers out there, I'm doing this completely free of charge. I don't expect to be paid when I show up, and the extra bits beyond just taking pictures are sort of to show my gratitude to you guys, for letting me participate, for allowing me onto the field, and giving me a chance to contribute to airsoft in the southeast.

If it sits well with the mods, I'll be using this thread to keep you guys updated on where I'm planning to be. If you have any questions about RBDA, or if you'd like to contribute, feel free to send me a PM or to e-mail me at arbeedoesairsoft@gmail.com and we'll work something out.

You can view the RBDA website at http://arbeedoesairsoft.com

You can follow me personally on Twitter at @Bennett5689

You can follow RBDA on Twitter at @RBDAirsoft

Here's my planned itinerary for February:
https://arbeedoesairsoft.wordpress.com/ ... uary-2015/

[Dominum]

I think this is a great idea and I'm excited to see how it does. You'll be happy to note that it is standard AOSC policy that noncombatants are not charged field fees. I think having a combat reporter/photographer at games will contribute to the immersion.

[Arbee]

Made a separate account for RBDA, @RBDAirsoft, because you guys probably don't want to read through my inane chatter. I'll be providing the live commentary through that account instead of my own.

Dom, I'm glad that you're excited about this. I'm pretty excited about it, too.

[specter]

I personally think this is great, mostly because it could potentially bring some new blood into the AOSC.

[Arbee]

Dom, don't forget that you agreed to pin this for me.

The pictures from today are going to take awhile to upload, so I apologize in advance, I'll try to have them posted up sometime tomorrow afternoon. They're large files and I took A LOT OF THEM. Thanks for your patience!

However, you don't have to wait for the post-game review, which I've already written, and will post here. However, I would appreciate it if you would also at least look at it on my site, too, so that I can benefit from the hits. You can do that at the following link:

https://arbeedoesairsoft.wordpress.com/ ... -01242015/

As promised, here it is. It's a little long, so forgive me, but there was a lot to cover, and a bit of sentimental shit on my part:

Rattlesnake Ridge 01/24/2015

Back in the day, when the SCAA was still big and the AOSC wasn't even a gleam in its founders' eyes, I went to a game day at Rattlesnake Ridge, all kitted out in M81 woodland camo and ALICE gear.  It was my first organized airsoft game, it's where I met Henry (aka "Dominum"), it's where I got started, and it's funny that it should be the first place for me to try out this newfangled RBDA business.  Completely unplanned, by the way.

Today was a good day to dive back into airsoft.  There were very few incidents with rule violations and the admin, Matthew Ives (aka "Mives") handled them quickly to the point where they were almost a non-issue.  Though conducted with a bit more flair and enthusiasm than in the past, the safety briefing was informative and easy to follow, and Mives made sure that everyone present understood the rules and conditions.

About forty players showed up to play today, and Green and Tan (hereon referred to as Alpha and Bravo, respectively) were evenly matched, eighteen versus nineteen players.  There were a handful of new players, a group of them even coming from as far away as Augusta, GA, some veterans and a few old hands.  Having been away from the sport so long, I only recognized a few faces, perhaps had some awkward re-introductions, and I apologize to anyone for forgetting who they were, but I was treated very respectfully, only got shot directly a couple of times (the rest were ricochets in the barn).  I've got to say that I'm grateful for the receptiveness from the AOSC representatives, as well.  It feels nice to actually be wanted on the field.

Speaking of which, for those of you who don't know, Rattlesnake Ridge is a relatively small field--at least the parts we played on today--that's comprised of dirt roads and woodland surrounding a large sand pit, the rim of which consists of a high ridge and a low ridge.  There's a ravine running off of the low ridge, and a wooden bridge over the ravine.  The pit has two buildings in it, which were the CPs (control points) for today's game.  We were also allowed access to a large barn, surrounded by flat, open horse pens.

The first scenario of the day consisted of capturing the CPs mentioned above.  Alpha made a strong push at the beginning and managed to be the first ones to capture the pit.  However, Bravo took a large risk and launched an assault on the pit from the lower ridge, pushing up through the ravine and over the rim, and took control of both buildings after ten minutes of fierce close-range fighting.  This is where Alpha lost its advantage by becoming overly cautious.  Rather than assaulting the pit directly, they attempted to surround it on the ridge before moving in.  One soldier, John Butler, made a nice attempt to clear the pit with a far-flung grenade, but the explosive failed to go off.  One or two other members of Alpha attempted to rush the buildings, but to no avail.  The rest of the force kept its distance and Bravo managed to maintain its hold on the CPs for thirty minutes, thereby winning victory in the first match.

We trooped up to the barn for the second part of the game.  The objective was simple:  one team, with zero respawns and limited revives, was going to hold the barn while the other team, allowed one respawn per player and limited revives, assaulted it.  Whoever had the barn after everyone on the opposite team was killed would win.  Bravo held the barn first, but by this point Alpha had revised its tactics and managed to clear the barn rather quickly.  Roles were reversed, and Alpha managed to hold out solidly, but not much longer than Bravo had.  Alpha's defense finally crumbled as Bravo obscured their vision with smoke grenades and lined up to breach the barn.

There was a small game featuring pistols and shotguns during the lunch break... I don't know what went on, because I was eating and resting, but everyone who participated seemed to have enough fun, which is what matters.

After lunch, we returned to the barn for a new mission.  One team would be split up and given a briefcase.  One part of the team would be required to secure the barn while the other part of the team moved the briefcase up to it.  The other team would attempt to disrupt the defenders and snatch the briefcase for themselves.  Bravo started off with the briefcase, but they weren't ready for Alpha, which split into two separate forces themselves.  The first group went after the briefcase, the second managed to clear and hold the barn.  With that done, Mives attempted to switch things up to make it interesting, swapping the spawn points for Alpha and Bravo, but this backfired due to miscommunication.  Alpha managed to get the briefcase and run it to their new spawn, though it was extremely close.  Cleric nearly managed to shoot down the carriers right at the woodline, but despite his efforts, Alpha secured victory.

The roles were reversed, but the spawn switch was not repeated.  Bravo moved slowly starting out and Alpha managed to get the briefcase into the barn without any trouble.  From there, they managed to effectively hold the barn, despite Bravo's best efforts.  With Henry barking orders and the other members of Alpha dominated the field in front of the barn, they mounted a solid defense.  Bravo managed to catch them off guard multiple times, charging the front door twice and attempting to rush through the field and to flank around the back, but to no avail.

Mives attempted to spice things up again by taking away Alpha's M60 (even to the point of grabbing it and running off), but it was a done deal.  Bravo's resolve had been crushed, they were already feeling defeated, and Alpha had secured a hard-won victory.

After a brief rest to hydrate and reload, Mives called everyone back for the final event of the day, and the one I had been looking forward to the most:  Chaos.  The players were divided into four-man teams and sent off into the woods around the pit.  The teams then hunted each other, and the players they killed were revived and added to their team strength.  I came across Team M60, who had just acquired a few new members.  They were ambushed by another team, and then again when Team DeathStar came in from the rear and absorbed them.  Team DeathStar absorbed a few more teams, but was eventually defeated by Team Turtle, lead by none other than Henry himself.

After Chaos was over, players started to break off and leave.  Those who were willing played a small post-game game to unwind, and I stayed long enough to take a couple of team pictures at the end of the day.

I know that this is a lot to read, but there was a lot that went on at today's game.  I had fun, despite not playing.  I'd like to think the AOSC again for allowing me onto the field, to Mives, who was extremely accomodating and even loaned me a radio after mine crapped out, and to the players who could have easily picked me as a free target and chose not to.

I'll see you all again February 7th.  Thanks again for the great day!

[Dominum]

Great write up, except no one knows Henry. Your first game at RR was also my first organized air soft game too, that was over six and a half years ago now 0_0.

[Arbee]

Yeah, but I knew you as Henry waaay back then. Old habits die hard, I guess, haha.

[Arbee]

THE MANY AND THE FEW

“It takes one bad apple to ruin the bunch.”

It’s a quote we’ve heard many times, and it almost proved true for Operation: Stone Breaker. The whole reason for the event, according to Danny Johnson, a local player and one of the event’s administrators, is “to introduce players to MilSim, as well as provide a national-level game at a price players can afford.”

MilSim (an abbreviation for “military simulation”) events are generally known for their adherence to realistic scenarios. Players are encouraged to use low-caps (low-capacity magazines) or mid-caps (mid-capacity magazines) rather than hi-caps (high capacity magazines, which are capable of holding 300 or more rounds and need to be wound up periodically), which adds to the realism of the event. The rules for Stone Breaker would allow players who aren’t regularly equipped for MilSim events to carry up to two hi-caps on their person in the field. However, this wasn’t good enough for some. One player unknowingly informed one of the game’s administrators of his intention to cheat by carrying extra hi-caps, which in turn caused the admins to rethink their stance altogether.

Read more [918 Words]: https://arbeedoesairsoft.wordpress.com/ ... d-the-few/

[jarhead904]

Nice write up arbee. I really enjoyed hearing it (i was feeling lazy so i used a text reader.)

[Arbee]

Thanks, man. Remember, if you liked it, rate it. You don't have to be signed in to do that.

[Arbee]

Now for a shameless post to let you guys know that RBDA accepts donations. From our "We Accept Donations" page:
https://arbeedoesairsoft.wordpress.com/donate/


RBDA is and will always be a free service to the airsoft community. We will never demand payment for covering games.

However, as with any hobby or venture, there are expenses, such as gas to get to games, website dues, and equipment for us and our volunteers, and we're currently paying for all of this out of our own pockets. If you're in a giving mood, we'll happily accept donations of any amount, with the understanding that donations do not imply a contract or obligation of any sort on the part of RBDA, other than to keep doing what we're doing and do it well.

Of course, we might be willing to give you a sweet beard if, after you donate, you e-mail us your name and a picture, subject "I Donated, Now Beard Me!"

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You can donate by sending money via PayPal (choose "send to friends and family" so that we get the full amount) to arbeedoesairsoft@gmail.com. Remember, there is absolutely NO obligation on your part, but for those of you who are feeling generous enough to donate, we thank you and promise your donations will be put to good use!

Sincerely yours,

The RBDA Team

[captainkirk05]

It's great that your out here doing this. I haven't been to any games since November, but I hope to make it out again soon.

For the AOSC to really grow the sport and player base, we need media and marketing support. You coming out to games and publishing pictures, videos, and reviews in good light will hopefully attract new players. The biggest reason people don't show in mass at games is because the general public, airsofters included, has never even heard of the AOSC. You can go to Battlecat Sports in Anderson and maybe 1 out of 15 people there would know what you were talking about.

[Arbee]

Thanks, man.

I'm trying to get people interested, maybe motivate some to come back to the sport or to come out more often. You'll have your picture somewhere, and if you're not sure whether you got a picture during the game, I'm always willing to take individual pictures or team pictures on and off the field.

So far, I've gotten a pretty positive reception from the community as a whole, though some players still don't understand how I can have fun not playing, haha. It's nice, though, when people appreciate what you're trying to do for them, and I'll continue to do it as long as you guys'll have me around.

[Arbee]

We have a shorter URL now: http://arbeedoesairsoft.com

The old one will redirect here.

[Arbee]

KING OF THE HILLS 02/07/2015

It was a perfect day for airsoft at the Air Farm in Newberry.

For those of you who are unfamiliar with the Air Farm, it's an expansive field, one of the larger AOs (Area of Operations) in the state, with a generous mix of rolling hills, open fields, and forested area, with multiple structures scattered around, from wooden buildings to fortified trenches.  Vehicles, such as airsoft tanks or even, at some events, a deuce-and-a-half (a military supply truck), are often mixed into the gameplay, often mixing player transport and mobile firepower.

Here's a link to a satellite map of the Air Farm, provided by the AOSC: http://i.imgur.com/SINbtF1.jpg

The objective of the "King of the Hills" event was as follows:  The admin would designate one of the structures in the AO as the Hill.  The team who controlled the hill would be afforded two heals, but no respawns, meaning that they only had a limited number of personnel to hold the objective.  Two nearby structures were appointed as respawn areas for the other two teams, they would be given two heals and an infinite number of respawns until they took the objective for themselves.  Because of their low numbers, Charlie was provided a technical (an armored pickup) to use throughout the day.

Read more [1076 Words]: http://arbeedoesairsoft.com/2015/02/08/ ... 5/#more-74