Mask Paintball

Mask Paintball

How to Be a Paintball Sniper - Strategies for a Sneaky Kill II

Playing the sniper position on the paintball field can be one of the most invigorating spots in the action.  Sneak around to scout out the best spot for a precision kill or sit tight and pick off key players one by one.  The sniper position is great for someone with patience who can sit and wait for the perfect shot.  It's also a good position for someone who likes to be active in the game; tracking or hunting down opponents and searching for the best vantage point can take some athletic prowess.

One of the main things that separate the sniper from the other positions is his gear namely the sniper paintball gun.  Just about any paintball marker can be a sniper, as long as it has certain characteristics.  It must have a long sniper barrel (generally 18" or longer) and a scope of some sort.  Other parts that help (but aren't absolutes) are a bipod or laser sights.  Other paintball equipment that helps is camouflage clothing or even a ghillie suit to help disappear in the environment better.

Snipers generally use three types of strategies (or a combination of which) in their game, depending on the situation; ambush, flanking and higher ground.  The ambush snipers are usually the most patient.  This strategy involves hiding and laying in silent ambush, waiting for your opponent's team to pass you by.  After they've gone by, the ambush sniper can single handedly pick apart an opposing team and make a tremendous difference dwindling their squad.

The sniper who plays the forward position can also use a flanking strategy as an effective means of eliminating opposing players.  As opposed to the silent sniper, this position is extremely active; a sniper who's willing to crawl or sneak into position can get behind or next to his enemy for a precision shot.  In this position, camouflage clothing along with the paintball goggles and mask will allow quick movement; a ghillie suit may not be your best choice.  A forward player sniper would find an electronic trigger offering fully automatic firing on his marker to be quite helpful however.

Another great strategy for the paintball sniper is to look for higher ground as a perch.  The fact is one sniper paintball gun doesn't shoot much farther than another. However you can add more range to your shot by shooting from a higher vantage point.  Snipers on higher ground will have the advantage of a bird's eye view - helpful in picking off key targets but also a good way to see how the overall game's shaping up.  An overview of the battlefield can give your team an advantage regarding opposing player positions and enemy strategies when communicated properly to your other players on the field.

About the Author

Dan Levesque is the owner and operator of a successful online paintball retail store, ChoicePaintballGuns.com.  He also owns and operates several other successful businesses and is the treating doctor at a full time chiropractic clinic.  He is also a professional powerlifter and trains several top level strength athletes.

What is a good paintball mask that does not fog up?

Also a mask that is reasonable in price, I have a mask that came with my Tippman 98 that keeps fogging up.

All paintball masks will fog up, but the best ones you can get are the ones with a thermal lens. I would not buy a mask without one. The masks without thermal lenses are called single lens masks. Do not buy these. The masks with thermal lenses are actually two lenses, one on top of the other. This prevents fogging big time. But if you are playing in really cold or really hot weather, your mask is gonna fog up no matter what. Another option you have though is a mask that also has a fan. I have a Dye I3 Invision with a thermal lense and a fan. Honestly, this is the best set up out there. But unfortunately it is really expensive (around $100). Down below are some good masks with thermal lenses and are also reasonably priced. Hope this helps.

PCS 20/20 (This one has a thermal lens and also has a fan, but is $50)

http://www.actionvillage.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/BrowseCatalog-Start;sid=8iDud4lJhsPuyc7-Q-ku34OdTY-XfkpVNZs=?CategoryName=paintball-goggles-and-accessories-goggles-pcs-goggles

JT nForcer ($35.75)

http://www.actionvillage.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/DisplayProductInformation-Start;sid=8iDud4lJhsPuyc7-Q-ku34OdTY-XfkpVNZs=?ProductID=q9SsFAY7VVoAAAD390WlA_2t

V-Force Pro-Vantage (this about the best thermal mask your going to find for the price ($24.95))

http://www.actionvillage.com/is-bin/INTERSHOP.enfinity/eCS/Store/en/-/USD/DisplayProductInformation-Start;sid=8iDud4lJhsPuyc7-Q-ku34OdTY-XfkpVNZs=?ProductID=YLjAqArb24cAAAEB34DeIgF9

This is the setup that I have:
Dye Invision I3 2006

http://www.pbloverz.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=373&ccSID=bc3e8d43f823ccd5969f9ffdcc999695

Dye Invision Fan

http://www.pbloverz.com/index.php?act=viewProd&productId=395&ccSID=bc3e8d43f823ccd5969f9ffdcc999695

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