Rules and Regulations

General Rules and Regulations

1: Each player should know the rules and obey them. Waiver forms required by the event organizers and field owners must be filled out completely and signed prior to the start of an event. Any questions should be directed to the event organizers.

2: Each player is personally responsible for his/her safety and equipment, whether owned, borrowed, or rented. If you break or damage property, you will be held responsible for those damages. Accidents do happen, but please be careful and play responsibly.

3: A blown whistle stops all game play, but players should leave their eye protection on until in a “safe” designated area. Whistle use is for ending engagements and for emergencies such as a lost player, hurt player or non-player personnel within event boundaries (any area where the individual(s) might be injured or might deem the airsoft replicas as a threat).

4: Use of fireworks or pyrotechnics by anyone is prohibited unless pre-approved by the field owner. Players should assume that these items are prohibited unless specifically informed otherwise by the event organizer and field owner. Players who disobey event firework rules, especially by use of illegal fireworks, will be immediately removed from the event, with every attempt made to ban the offending player from future events.

5: Leaving the engagement boundaries through avenues other than those expressly for exit and entrance is prohibited, unless with the event organizer’s consent.

6: Knives, sharp or bladed instruments, bludgeoning devices, bows, real firearms and other “real steel” weapons are not allowed at any event. However, tools with small blades or pointed tools are permitted for their intended work use only and should be kept in a secure location outside of the playing field.

7: Laser sights and flashlights may be used. Laser-sights must have less than 5mW optical effect. Special care must be taken when using such items.

8: All participants in nighttime events or events that may involve nighttime engagements are required to carry 2 working flashlights.

9: The event grounds must be left in the same or better condition than at the start of the event. Therefore it is the responsibility of each individual to discard any waste materials or to put in order any area they have disrupted.

10: Illegal drugs or alcohol are strictly forbidden from any event.


“Safe” Staging Area Rules

While in the staging area there is no firing of any weapons. Firing towards the pond or race tracks will result in an immediate removal from the property and banning from future events. Any airsoft replica that is being handled in any manner (i.e. cleaning, repairing, reloading) must have the magazine removed. If the replica has a working mechanical safety the safety must be “on”.

Engagement Rules

The following are the minimum distance engagement limits for airsoft replicas. This is the closest a player can engage another player with a replica rated in the following feet per second (fps) categories using full-auto, semi-auto, or single shot capability.

OUTDOOR/OPEN FIELD ENGAGEMENT LIMITS
• 1.0 - 350.9 fps - Arms length engagement limit
• 351.0 - 410.9 fps - 20 foot engagement limit
• 411.0 - 550.9 fps – 50 foot engagement limit, bolt action or permanent* semi-auto replicas only
• 551.0+ fps - Prohibited or allowed with permission of event organizer only

*Permanent semi-auto refers to replicas that do not have full-auto fire capability, no matter how the selector switch or other user input device is manipulated.

INDOOR/CLOSE QUARTER BATTLE (CQB)/ENCLOSED FIELD ENGAGEMENT LIMITS

• 1.0 - 350.9 fps – Arms length engagement limit
• 351.0+ fps – prohibited or allowed with permission of event organizer only

Engagement limits are based on averaged fps readings using .20 gram weight bb’s only. The method for acquiring an airsoft replica’s average fps is to fire multiple (more than 2) shots through a chronograph, record the readings, add the fps readings together and divide by the total number of readings.
Gas operated airsoft replicas should be chronographed using a “warm” ambient temperature gas supply (i.e. magazine), or with heating device functioning if used during the cold season.
No allowance is made for airsoft replicas that have an average reading close to the lower end of the next highest fps category. Example- if the replica has an average reading of 351.5 fps it falls within the 20 foot engagement limit.

Eye Protection

Eye protection must be worn at all times, except in designated “safe” staging or preparation areas. Event organizers will inform the participants of such designated areas prior to the start of the event. It is recommended that players wear their eye protection at all times. Safety is the first priority. Lenses must meet the minimum rating of ANSI Z87.1, MIL-V-43511C, or ASTM F 1776-01. It is strongly suggested that all eye protection be secured with a strong elastic strap/band (the type intended for such uses).

• Players over the age of 18 must wear full coverage eyewear that wraps all the way around the sides of the face. Open sides and eyewear with large gaps will not be considered full coverage.

• Players under the age of 18 must wear full seal eyewear. There must be contact with the eyewear frame and face, fully surrounding the eyes.

• Players under the age of 16 must wear full seal and full face coverage eyewear. (IE paintball mask)


Eye protection in question will be examined by the event organizers and/ or the field owner who may decide to perform a safety test before determining if the eye protection is suitable. Any player wearing questionable eyewear be refused entry to the playing field. Safety is the first priority.

Calling “Hits”

1: A player who has been hit by a bb is considered “out, dead, incapacitated, eliminated, removed or wounded”. A hit is considered as a sufficiently mobile bb that has contacted any part of the player’s person, clothing or gear via a direct shot. This does not include a direct or ricochet hit to a player’s weapon. However a hit to a player’s replica that ricochets into the player or gear is a valid hit to the player.

• In the event that a player is hit by someone on his/her own team the hit is considered valid. This is called “friendly fire” or “fratricide”.

• In the event a player does not feel, hear, or see a hit it is suggested that the shooting player continue firing until a hit is recognized.
A player clearly not calling a hit(s) is considered cheating and that is expressly forbidden. Players should notify the event organizers or referees of persons who may be cheating, but they should not try to rectify the situation themselves. Players who are consistently reported as cheating will be removed from the playing field.

• If a dispute arises concerning the validity of a hit refer to the event organizers or appointed referees.

• Purposely targeting and shooting an opponent player’s head is prohibited unless the opponent’s head is the only target presented. As always, the fps/engagement limits apply. Extreme care must be taken and shooting players in the facial area should always be avoided. Safety is the first priority.

• “Knife kill”. If an opponent player is within arms reach a “knife kill” should be used to eliminate the player. This involves touching, not hitting, the player with a hand and declaring a knife “kill”. No “real steel” knife or sharp instrument should be used to institute a knife “kill”, but replica rubber knives/bayonets are permitted. Please use great care when using such items.

• “Sniper Surrender”. If an opponent player(s) is within the shooting player’s engagement limits the shooting player should consider asking for the opponent’s surrender. It is not mandatory that a player asked to surrender, surrender unless the shooter calls "Sniper Surrender". In which case the player asked to surrender will surrender with the understanding that the airsoft replica held by the shooter is high-powered and observance of engagement limits would prevent firing. In simple terms the shooter with a high powered replica should call "Sniper Surrender" if and when they have a clear surrender advantage over an opponent, but the engagement limits would prevent them from firing. The player asked to surrender must surrender to a "Sniper Surrender" call. All other surrender calls (not involving high-powered replicas) are left to the judgement of the players. Surrender may or may not be accepted when presented. Questions concerning surrender will be answered by the event organizers or appointed referees

• “Safety Kill”. If an opponent player(s) is within the shooting player’s engagement limits the shooting player should consider asking for the opponent’s surrender. It is mandatory that a player asked to surrender, surrender if the situation clearly indicates that the opponent could have been eliminated by the shooting player. Questions concerning what types of situations clearly indicate surrender will be answered by the event organizers or appointed referees.

2: A player who has been hit and is eliminated should immediately shout “HIT” or “OUT” or some similar indication that they have been eliminated from the engagement. A red “kill rag” should then be displayed by the eliminated player in a highly visible means, either placing it on their head or waving it. The eliminated player should then proceed to the “safe” designated area to await the end of the engagement or to respawn or to follow the instructions of the event organizer.

• Eye protection must be worn until the engagement is over or until the player has reached the designated “safe” area. Refer to the event organizers if in question.

• An eliminated player is not allowed to fire his/her airsoft replica at anytime after being eliminated from an engagement (if the engagement is still active). Doing this may mislead other active players into believe that the eliminated player is still in action.

• Eliminated players are not allowed to communicate any pertinent information to active players, such as opponent location, movement or the like. It is suggested that eliminated players should not talk, except to say they’re out…”Dead men don’t talk”.