Paintball VS. Speedball

Though paintball is a sport of extreme variety, when narrowed down there are two basic courses for the playing of paintball. The first is the traditional and more natural method of playing on a wooded course, using trees and bushes as cover from enemy fire. The second is an adaptation that involves many man-made obstacles, from tires, to crates, to shelters, to empty oil drums and plywood walls. The urban-like setting makes this second method of paintballing more rapid in nature, which is why it is often referred to as Speedball.

In traditional paintball, players take positions in a large field that is enclosed on all sides by a special kind of netting to prevent stray shots from hitting innocent bystanders. The ground throughout the course may be sloped or uneven and is generally covered with trees or bushes of some kind and a few man-made obstacles placed at strategic locations. Players use stealth to move around the paintball course undetected and through the course of one game may cover the entire field. Often paintballers will dress in camouflage clothing and the more hardcore players may even use camouflage guns and masks to aid in their efforts. Given the stealthy nature of this more classic method of paintballing, traditional paintball is a game that has potential to take some time.

On the other hand, speedball is more rapid in nature and is generally played on a much smaller, much flatter course which is also enclosed with paintball netting on all sides. Throughout the course there are manmade obstacles for cover from enemy fire. Though these obstacles may be strategically placed, they can also seem to be haphazard and chaotic in their locales. The materials used for cover and hiding in speedball comes in many shapes and forms. There could be tires of all shapes and sizes that are heaped into a pile on top of another. Often crates or empty oil drums are lined up, or spaced apart to provide inconsistent cover. In some cases more elaborate shelters are provided, such as small forts or even two story shelters with windows from which to shoot competitors. Still other courses may look like a junk yard with shells of cars and trucks lying around, and even broken and rusty old machinery.

There is practically no end to the variety one can find in a speedball course, if it is imaginable, it has probably been done. This more modern version of a course if used for less stealth and more fast-paced movement in the playing area. Players are not as concerned about staying completely hidden from other competitors, and therefore camouflage is not necessary.

While these are the two general modes of playing paintball, there is much variety between the two. Physical landscapes for the traditional paintball course vary greatly from place to place. The different altitudes and foliage coverage adds dynamic changes to the game itself. In speedball, the limitless possibilities for man-made obstacles also contribute to the dynamic range of playability in paintball. When the two courses are combined, placing man-made structures and obstacles in a natural environment, even greater possibilities can be attained, making paintball a sport of incredible variety.