Spotters: useful or not?

At a few of the fields I play at they prefer new guys dont use a bolt action rifle mostly due to the newer guys dont know to judge engagement distances, they arent as mature as someone who has been playing for awhile. Not my rules, just some people got together one day and decided it. I dont really agree.


As for the spotters. I dont like to have a tag a long with me very much. Most people tend to either slow me down, hold me back or blow my cover so I prefer to run solo! I dont really worry about getting outgunned or out numbered very much, if I see too many enemy coming my way I usually lay silent till the time is right to make my move, whether it be to open fire or to move to a different location. I normally radio in my and their location and describe how many and what weapons, etc... Depending the situation I may even take them out myself before the assault team gets to me. I like a weaker spring so I can rack the bolt fast and get more rapid fire.

At our field maybe 30% of the players have BA's(!) and 25% of them have these crappy miltec ''ghillies''(rest of them has normar loadout). Now I'm not saying that I would be great in concealment or in proper sniper work but still. And many of those BA users are very young------> they don't even know how to zero their scopes!

But to be on topic, I like to have someone with me. With sniper rifle or AEG. If aeg he can take care of enemies that are too close and it also provides a bit more firepower when needed. But guy with ghillie and sniper rifle ''feels'' better since Then we are both invicible>...... Right? Next weekend I will find out how it works out when I go to a bigger scenario with friend, both ghillied up and BA's. Roughly estimated 300 players and we will be working as a two man sniper team. I expect something awesome like.... like..... enemy commanders head?

The problem that I have with my spoter, is that he is too young to play...



Now under normal conditions of game, after eight years of playing airsoft, only one player I would say that I trust to have near me.

Usually I move on my own.

A few days before the game I make my study for the ground according to the script, so I move deliberately on points with specific routes, knowing distances so I know when to shoot and to inform more specifically my team for the positions for the enemies.

Dulas

Bushmaster Recon said:

Its quite rare where i play to find anyone that is really into concealment and being sneaky.
There are plenty of bolt action users and even some with ghillies,but they seem to think just wearing a bought ghillie makes them invisible.

Click to expand...

I know what you mean.[/QUOTE]



Spotters: Never leave the Staging area without one! The 2 man system is great but only works if your spotter is actually a sniper and not a rifleman. IE he has been playing as a sniper for X amount of years and knows the "craft." The spotter on the team is usually the more experienced of the 2 players. The reason most of you guys dont have spotters is because it takes awhile to to find a good spotter and practice together. You cant just yank a player with a AEG and expect miracles to happen. Good spotters are usually snipers first.

If you have someone with the mentality of a rifleman as your spotter you wont get far. He wont know how to stay quiet, how to move, and most importantly patience. The minute he sees a group of people, he'll blow your cover and shoot at someone. He may get bored and decide to stand up; move around, and leave your FFP making all the noise in the world. He will whine and complain about who should be in charge, ect ect. I had it happen to me, it sucked horribly. I set up a ffp in a misquote infested swamp, and my spotter whines "Why are we near this swamp! there are misquotes here and no one in 100 ft would want o be here!"

Ive always been in a 2 man team. Im usually the spotter, but if the person Im paired up with has more experience, then hes the spotter. The spotter on my left(your right) is particularly good.I have a good spotter, who can do everything from reading wind, to sneaking up and grabbing crates/HVTs/shooting said HVTs. I remember one event we got spotted and my spotter took on 10 people and broke contact leaving the area with 9 wounded. He's retired Army, but most of the players who assume the snipers/ spotters I play with I have practiced with and usually can produce similar results. The reality is spotters are invaluable if they know how to play both roles and can shoot and communicate well. Its rare to find a good spotter, as it takes some practice and usually someone who has been playing the role of a sniper for a long time. Most arisoft players just dont have the attention span for it. I know this is just a game, and the real thing is MUCH more complicated, but mixing some real world aspects into airsoft can be rewarding within itself.