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paintballimpact.com / Rules / Start of Game Signal
Start of Game Signal
The Start of Game Signal tells players the game has commenced. The Start of Game Signal may be verbal or visual, its important thing is that all players involved see it or hear it. One common visual signal comes from the referee, as he stands in the middle of the paintball field. When the player are ready for game action, the referee stands tall, and holds up a white towel, signaling for all the players involved to get ready. When the referee brings his towel down, that is the Start of Game Signal. For the signal to be useful, the referee must be in a position of the field where all the players can see it.
In most paintball games, the ref will use both a verbal and visual signal. When the ref brings the while towel down, he will shout Game On! And all participants in the game will then make their move. The visual signal must be in clear view for all players involved, especially when hearing impaired players are participating. If the playing field is very large, a whistle or bullhorn is used, as the signal needs to be heard simultaneously by both teams.
Preceding the start-of-game signal, the referee will usually give two countdowns to get the players ready for the start of game action. The referee may give a one minute warning, or say "Game Starts in one minute". Or the ref may give a countdown prior to game start say "5-4-3-2-1-, Game On!". If your team is well trained and all prepared for the game, then each individual will have a bunker or cover point to go to as soon as they hear the start signal. Well prepared teams come into the game with a game play, including knowing where team a team member is expected to go, who will lead the charge, and who will follow to provide backup. In tournament games like speedball and hyperball, players are trained and practice to think moves ahead, like a chess game. As son as a player hers a Start of Game Signal, they are to move quickly to make it to that first bunker that was picked out before the game. Paintball players are even assigned different positions, depending on the skill level and experience of each individual player. Some of these positions include the sniper, point man, rover, the coach, and the safety. The safety is like the safety in football. The safety is the last line of defense and often the last person that the oppositions must get by to score the flag or complete some objective. If the format of the game is capture the flag, then the safety is the last line of defense that the opposition must bypass or eliminate before the flag grab.
It is essential that all players hear the Start of Game Signal, regardless of their positions. In games with very large fields and games played without a referee, players communicate the Start-of-Game-Signal via a whistle blow that everyone can hear. In this situation, one team blows its whistle when it is ready to go. The other team blows its own signal, confirming that they have heard it and are also ready to go. The first team then blows again and the game is on. This is an effective maneuver often used on large fields.
On fields where a whistle is used to signal the start of the game, the signal caller leaves the whistle in plain view near the flag. The whistle is blown again when the other team capturers the flag, signaling the end of the game.
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