Winning a tournament is like playing a game of chess. He is very strategy oriented. Even in entry-level competitions, if your team doesn’t have a plan or some sort of working strategy, there’s a good chance you won’t even make it past the first round. While there are many different strategies used by very successful players, the best advice is to practice several and stick with what works in the most situations. The variable is not knowing what the other team is going to do and you should be ready to switch to another plan very quickly if you find your original strategy isn’t working.
For a 3-man event, your number of weapons is quite limited, but it will be important to distribute as many as possible around the field from the whistle. The best thing is to try to open up in the field. This means trying to send at least one player into a corner bunker or side bunker as quickly as possible. The corner works well, or the first snake bunker (snake 1) or even the snake insertion bunker. The reason for this is to expand your team’s base of fire to make it more difficult for the opposing team to get close to your side without going through the crossfire. This is called a ‘delay pause’. An example of this strategy would be to have 1 player occupy the snake side of the field, 1 player on the dorito bunker side of the field, and the third player in the snake insert or corner bunker. Players would then shoot constant streams of paintballs while trying to copy their opponents’ movement, moving into the same (but opposite) bunkers as them.
The delay rest is beneficial because it will allow your team to move without being seen. When opponents slip behind their bunker, the player will make an equal move towards the mirror bunker. Since the opponent will slide into his bunker, he won’t see the player move into his bunker. This means that when the opponent leans out of his bunker to shoot at the player, he will be shooting at the wrong bunker. This tends to leave the opponent overexposed in their current spot, allowing the player to take an effective shot. If the player misses his shot, he should get smartly aggressive with an immediate forward move. However, the aggressive move should only be made during windows of opportunity. The player will fire at the opponent, which will cause the opponent to get behind their bunker, then it will be safe for the player to move to the next bunker. This will give the same effect as the delayed rest. The opponent will go out shooting into the wrong bunker giving the player the opportunity to make a more effective shot at his opponent.
If the player finds that he cannot shoot his opponent, he must communicate the opponent’s position to the rest of the team. The team must also communicate where the other 2 opponents are on the field. Once all of the opponents’ positions have been voiced to the other members, the team must “cross the field”. This means that players on the left side of the field will shoot at players on the right side of the field and vice versa. However, players on the right still need to pay attention to the right side of the field and vice versa. Don’t get stuck tunnel vision looking at the opponent you’re aiming at. This is a common distraction and can lead to the destruction of this strategy. By ‘crossing the field’ with fire, it often causes opponents to lean too far to the opposite side of the bunker they are hiding behind. For example, if a player on the left side of the field shoots at an opponent on the right side of the field, he will cause the opponent to lean more towards the right side of the bunker, leaving a chance for the player on the right. field side.
When any opponent has been eliminated, the communication to the other team members is an alert for the team to start moving down the field behind the remaining opponents. In a three-on-three game, when one player is eliminated, the odds are very high against the remaining two. A smart three-man full team will turn up the heat and aggression to quickly try to corner the other opposing players. Trying to group them into a tight group of two is a great strategy whenever possible, though difficult if the remaining two are far apart. When you practice, set up situations like this and assign each player a specific role. Make sure the other players know about each other’s jobs and can take another spot in case one is eliminated. With teams this small, this is a key point and needs to be done very quickly when a player goes down.
For a three-man team, the different roles include Delay Break Player, Home Player, and Runner. The runner’s job is to move as fast as possible towards a predetermined bunker; he will not give the initial whistle but will immediately run to his place. The Delay Break Player will provide covering fire for the running back on the opposite side of the field the running back is on until he gets to his spot. Once the runner succeeds, the Delay Break player must move to the mirror bunker opposite the runner. Outside of half-time, the home player will provide covering fire on the same side of the pitch as the running back until he reaches his bunker position. Once this happens, the home player must constantly communicate everyone’s positions to the other players, as well as information about the opposing team’s movement. However, communication is not just the job of the local player; the best teams communicate information as they receive it, no matter what position they play.
While there are many movement variations and almost endless scenarios to practice, these are just a few of the strategies used in 3-man events to get the thought process started. The best strategy is to be prepared by practicing several different plays so that you are ready to change gears when necessary at any time. Knowing how to read your opponents is something that comes with experience, but it will be an important part of making adjustments to your strategy on the spot. Find a strategy that works and stick with it. Once you find several strategies that work, use them until they don’t; don’t fix something that isn’t broken or make sudden new changes at the last minute that you haven’t practiced. Experienced opposing teams will know you’re flying for the seat of your pants and take advantage of it immediately. It’s best to stick with what you’ve practiced and take notes on what worked and what didn’t. Changes must be made during practice sessions and not in the middle of a competition.
