Bringing Down the House: The Paintball Bazooka
Traditionally, the sport of paintball is a paramilitary version of the childhood-favorite Capture the Flag. Two teams each striving to protect their own flag and secure their opponent's flag, but with the added element of paintball guns. These guns propel paintballs using compressed air at speeds of up to 300 feet per second. On impact, the gelatin capsules break, dousing the target in brightly-colored liquid. This unique, intense game of warfare is popular both professionally and in amateur settings.
Recently, however, paintball has been given a new life. The military aspects of the sport have been revamped, and a new era of paintball, scenario paintball, has taken over. Gone is the friendly strategy of Capture the Flag; instead, paintball has become a sport of military prowess, of heavy armor and even heavier firepower. Gone are simple paintball guns, replaced with grenades, armored vehicles, landmines and, most strikingly, the paintball bazooka. The paintball bazooka is only one of numerous exotic launchers used in scenario paintball, a version of the game hoping to recreate and relive entire wars, giving the players the violence the sport originally tried to deny.
Heavy Artillery
A paintball bazooka, whether purchased or built from scratch, is usually made from PVC or iron piping. With a chamber of air and a valve, the piping becomes a gun, and whatever projectile is stored inside is pushed out with a large amount of force. A paintball bazooka can fire paintballs, but it can also be adapted to fire Nerf rockets which, when fired with the force of compressed air, can become very dangerous to other players. In fact, these bazookas, or anti-tank rockets, are dangerous period on the playing field; when made improperly at home, they often cannot withstand the force of the compressed air, essentially blowing up in the faces of the users.
Within the simulation game, there are numerous rules dictating the use of a paintball bazooka. The gun can only be used as anti-craft artillery and should never be used to target players, although in non-scenario games, this is often not the case. Players must announce to the referee when they are planning to attack a tank; the tank itself is painted with various targets, and a direct hit in the bull's-eye with the paintball bazooka results in the destruction of the tank. Here, Nerf rockets dipped in paint will simulate the larger ammunition of RPGs, but if the tank is missed, these projectiles become a huge safety concern to other players.
Once again, paintballs, or multiple paintballs, can equally take down a tank, especially when the only goal is to hit a moving target. Most paintball combat manufacturers have yet to indulge in the market of exotic launchers, since the market for scenario paintball games period is rather small. Consequently, the price of a paintball bazooka is not cheap, and many players would rather craft one at home from spare parts than concern themselves with the higher cost, even if safety is sacrificed in the process. Until companies are willing to answer the demand for anti-craft weaponry, paintball fields will continue to become unsafe environments.
