Paintball tank

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The Special Ops Razorback is an example of a paintball tank built on the chassis of an Israeli Fast Attack Vehicle; note the turret on the rear, the central air system on the hood, and the gun ports in the side windows. Razorback Tank.jpg
The Special Ops Razorback is an example of a paintball tank built on the chassis of an Israeli Fast Attack Vehicle; note the turret on the rear, the central air system on the hood, and the gun ports in the side windows.

A paintball tank, also known as a paintball armoured vehicle (PAV) is a vehicle, or a portable structure that resembles a vehicle, sometimes used in the sport of paintball, usually with the intent of military simulation. The purpose of the tank is to provide a mobile shelter for one or several players, from which they may employ their markers against players on the opposing team. Small pneumatic guns, effectively low-powered potato cannons loaded with foam darts, are also often employed against other tanks.

Contents

Paintball tanks are commonly used for woodsball and scenario paintball games, and similar designs have also seen use in Airsoft scenario games, with varying degrees of similarity to a true tank.

Types and construction

Although the method of propulsion, crew size, physical dimensions and weight, and the number and location of "weapons", all vary depending on tank type, all tanks share some common features:

General construction

Apart from the most spartan of automobile conversions (replacing the windows with netting and calling it a day), tanks typically feature a superstructure/casemate assembled from thin sheets of paintball-proof material such as laminated cardboard, plywood, fiberglass, or sheet metal. attached to the vehicle's frame in place of some or all of the normal body paneling. If a suitable structural member is not available, a custom frame, typically built from PVC or ABS pipe, wood, or steel tubing, may be built off of the existing structure. In the case of scratch-built tanks, the entire "chassi" may be built this way.

The tank's armament usually includes at least one paintball marker, and may include a low-velocity potato cannon loaded with foam projectiles for use against enemy tanks. Rules permitting, the main cannon may also be used against buildings occupied by opposing players, and some tanks have been demonstrated firing canister shot consisting of several paintballs between two paper wads, or contained within a flimsy paper/foam sabot, to be used against players on open ground. [2]

Type classifications

Because of the great variety in physical characteristics and functionality between vehicles, even those made by the same builder, tanks are type classified according to their propulsion method. A tank's type classification may or may not be indicative of the tank's physical size or weight, crew size, or other capabilities. For example, automobile-based designs are usually the largest because of the dimensions of the vehicle they were built on.

Some event producers may provide additional temporary classifications depending on physical size, crew size, or armament layout, such as Light Tank, Heavy Tank, or Tank Destroyer. Such event-specific classifications may have an associated ruleset for how the vehicle is allowed to navigate the play area, and what effort must be undertaken by the opposing team in order to defeat it.

A Funtrak Panzer. It may or may not qualify as a scratch-built tank because of its mass-produced nature Funtrak-paintball-tank.jpg
A Funtrak Panzer. It may or may not qualify as a scratch-built tank because of its mass-produced nature

Scratch-built

These tanks are custom-built from the ground up, and as a result of the incredible freedom of design and influence of imagination involved in their creation, this group is the most diverse of all.

  • Walking tanks are generally built for smaller scenarios and fields. Technically a suit of body armour rather than a vehicle, walking tanks are the most common type. Weight concerns usually limit their armament to a pair of paintball markers, and occasionally a pneumatic gun. While perhaps lacking in visual impact, walking tanks can be cheap, and easily transported, while providing much the same benefit as more complex design. Walking tanks have been commonly referred to as PUGs after one builder produced what he called a Panzer Ultraleicht Gepack (very light backpack armor) constructed using a military backpack as a base.
  • Carry-along tanks are multiple-occupant walking tanks or Flintstone tanks without wheels, and are carried around on the field by their crew whenever movement is desired. These designs sacrifice either structural durability, armament, ammunition, crew comfort, or a combination of these, for increased off-road mobility when compared to a Flintstone tank. They commonly have several firing ports in the walls of their hull, and a pneumatic anti-tank gun may be attached to the tank, or carried by a crewman.
  • Flintstone tanks, also known as "push tanks", are multiple-occupant bunkers on bicycle or trolley-type wheels. As the name suggests, they are moved around by the crew grabbing a hold of the tank's interior and pushing it in a desired direction. Although generally poorly suited to uneven terrain, they can be fitted with heavier equipment than a walking tank, including manned turrets.
  • Motorized scratchbuilt tanks can be of virtually any size and internal layout, although most are fairly small. Some are designed as scale replicas of historical or modern tank designs, others for performance. They're generally built on wood or tube-frame chassis, and powered by a small industrial engine. Some of the more involved versions feature working tracks and motorized turrets.

ATV-based tanks

ATV-based tanks are ATVs fitted with weapons and protective coverings. The level of involvement varies here as well; some are simply quads or similar fitted with a removable netting cage, others feature scratch-built bodies and turrets and are capable of housing several players and their equipment. All-terrain vehicles, Golf carts, riding mowers and amphibious ATVs are the most popular bases for ATV tanks, thanks to ready availability, off-road ability and low price.

Automobile-based tanks

Automobile-based tanks are modifications to existing automobiles; ranging from minivans with firing ports and windows replaced by netting to near-replica vehicles featuring completely new bodies. The most common base vehicles are SUVs, Jeeps and trucks due to low cost and availability, although their high ground clearance and four-wheel drive is also helpful given poor conditions of many trails and roads in paintball fields. Minivans are also a common sight.

Rules and game involvement

While paintball has standardized (and very strict) safety rules relating to markers, masks, and other equipment used by players, putting those players, their markers and masks, and additional equipment in an enclosed vehicle (motorized or not) creates additional safety concerns. The following is an aggregate of rules which may or may not all be in use at the same time at any particular field.

Defence

One of the most important aspects of paintball vehicle design is the prevention of enemy players "painting", and thus eliminating, the occupants of the vehicle. Depending on its design, a vehicle may offer incidental, partial, or complete paint protection for its crew, but the vehicle itself is typically vulnerable to certain types of "anti-tank" weaponry.

As an alternative to the methods described above, some fields may use "paint boxes"; sets of plates (typically plywood or OSB) attached to the front, sides, and rear of the vehicle, which must be entirely covered with paint in order for the vehicle to be eliminated. Other options include "hoops" into which the opposing team must launch their AT projectiles to score hits against the vehicle.

Offense

Movement

Situational Awareness

*Some fields allow smaller 2' x 2' flags.

Infantry Interaction

In case of Emergency

Tankball

Tankball is a vehicle-only variation of paintball. It is a fairly expensive mode of play, and is therefore far less common. The basic form involves vehicles driving around the field, firing paintball buckshot, or Nerf Rockets at one another.

Depending on the exact design of the vehicles involved (specifically the protective qualities of their "armour", and the exclusive use of periscopes to provide vision), tankball may allow for the use of higher-powered cannons, firing denser projectiles at higher velocities (on the condition that all vehicles are driven with the hatches closed while on the field). The absence of infantry on the field, and the high-density, high-velocity projectiles, allow for faster vehicle movement and more realistic engagement ranges.

Although tankball is somewhat common on regular woodsball fields (using regular paintball vehicles and their standard equipment), the world's so far only purpose-made tankball field is located in Leicestershire, England. A small fleet of tanks (actually FV432 Armoured Personnel Carriers) are available for rental, fitted with cannons of the high-powered variety (firing 40mm diameter paint-filled pingpong balls). As previously mentioned, closed-hatch operation is mandatory as these super-sized paintballs have too much kinetic energy to safely impact unprotected persons.

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References

  1. "The Special Ops Razorback scenario paintball tank". specialopspaintball.com. Archived from the original on 2005-07-30.
  2. Tiger Paintball Tank V.3, archived from the original on 2021-12-19, retrieved 2021-05-30
  3. "Supergame". supergame.tv. Retrieved 2017-11-29.