Fundamentals of Movement ...

Paintball is a sport that you win by making and taking advantage of opportunities. The way you make opportunities is to move. You move behind bunkers. You move to a better shot. You move to grab a flag. You move to cover a teammate.

Movement comparably, is more important than shooting.

The Sprint

When the game begins you can do a lot to insure a strong push. The teams that I watch are in a track stance at the start of a game. When the whistle blows, they are gone. They rush to the furthest safe spot and begin the process of taking space. This looks real easy but is very hard to do right.

The first aspect of the sprint is making sure you are spread out from other players. It sucks trying to share a tree for cover. The best way to cure this is to pick your spot, out loud, before you start. If someone is telling you were to go in a rec game, use your best judgement.

You have picked your best spot. What does it have to offer? Do you have sufficient cover? Do you have easy access to bunkers ahead? Can you retreat safely? Do you have a good shot? These are all questions you have to answer quickly.

Pick places to start that are easy to navigate. If you get to a bunker on the front and have no cover to move ahead, you have wasted a good sprint. I like to find the less traveled but heavily covered area. This allows me to keep moving forward without to much exposure to my enemies.

Working a bunker

Every field has some sort of cover or bunker. So thinking logically, it would behoove you to learn how to "work a bunker". The first key to a bunker is to get behind it! This sounds simplistic but you would be shocked at how many players put unnecessary body parts outside the safe area.

If you just arrived at your new bunker and don't hear any paint thuds, your doing well. This is a sign that no one almost had you. If you do hear some shots hitting your bunker, pay attention to where they are coming from. This will give you an indication of what area to stay away from. You hear it on the right side so start to the left.

This next technique is a military move. It is called "cutting the corners". From behind your cover, you will angle around the corner. When doing this you can effectively turn a corner clearing the area ahead. This is a slow movement for two reasons. One, you are keeping aim. Two, if someone is behind cover they will only pop out every few seconds. Now that you have cleared one side move back to the other. Slowly repeat this maneuver on the other side. Pay careful attention not to expose any body mass.( Chest, back, legs, and even shoulders.) Learning to cut the corners well gives you an edge over everyone who does not. You can not be surprised if you cut a good corner. The best part is the only defense to a cut corner is a great shot.

Now that you have cleared your corners, its time to move. You saw the field and know what is safe.

Moving in hot spots

The paint is moving and you are too. The sprint got you good position. You now have to use your combat movement. This is moving fast under control. You lower your head and move. It's near impossible to shoot on the run with any accuracy, so just get to the next safe spot without getting tagged. The idea is to make a lot of short safe moves. If you have a long way to go or a large empty area to cross, you have to zigzag. The zigzag is a gamble. It opens you up, making you an easy target. The movement is just like it sounds.

In high school, I got into a little trouble, and usually talked or weaseled my way out of it. My Dean of Discipline called me a zigzager. "One of these days you're gonna get caught zigging when you should have been zagging." If you zigzag you can expect to get hit a few times. Then again, you wouldn't have to zigzag if you had picked a better position from the start. Hmm?

The Crawl

Ding Chavez said it best in CLEAR AND PRESENT DANGER. "The sniper approached the Captain by being a sneaky bastard, Sir!"

I have never been a fan of the crawl until I watched a lady decimate six guys. She crawled almost everywhere. She crawled so well. She could get directly next to someone, grab his or her marker, and offer surrender. The biggest quality to her crawl was that she would find an opponent that was focused somewhere else. She then made a quick dive and scooted right up to his bunker. She made an aggressive move that was so unexpected; no one could keep track of her. I think that is the secret to the crawl. Be aggressive and do what they are not expecting. The crawl is also a pretty effective way to move. Your body is low and moving, this adds to your opponent's difficulty. This difficulty is enough time for you to get a three round burst back at a big target. Remember Chavez was the only guy to get out alive.

Be the Ninja

This is going to sound funny but it works for so many reasons. It is funda-"mental". I want you to picture yourself as a swift moving ninja. Make every movement a smooth, efficient move. Each move must be strong and controlled. Move into the groove. Go with the flow. Get down on it. Get jiggy with it. Now get in the pit and love someone, and about every other cliché, you can think of.

The idea is to make your style conservative. Wild movements only work in movies. A good rule of thumb is if it looks good, it probably doesn't work. The way I was taught this was as a defensive back in football. Our coach always said move like a ninja. It gave me a style to emulate. I was swift to the spot and would hit like a snakes strike. Quick, effective, and deadly. It also brought a peace to my game. I pictured a ninja as a silent, sneaky character who only lets his presence known when he wants it known. This lends itself well to paintball. You can draw the obvious conclusions. I don't suggest being a ninja to people who have already adopted a playing style. This is for those who have never thought about this matter. Now you are either laughing at me or saying, " I've never thought of that". Trust me. We had a great defensive backfield.

Keep moving

Whether you are playing an objective or elimination game, you can not win without making forward progress. You should never stop moving this makes you a sitting target. It also does not allow you to get a shot you can hit. Remember the idea of good movement is to allow you to make the best shot. If you are not getting elimination's then you are not moving effectively. Because the guns work.

By Jason "Boss" Morton

Original Article available at paintball.com