Community Help Please! - Describe Milsim Airsoft

[Blackthorne]

I thought I saw a thread on here recently about how one would relate what MilSim airsoft is to a non player. Indeed someone who doesn't even fully understand any type of combat sport.

As part of one of the charities I work for, I have a need to describe what airsoft is, MilSim in particular, so that the target audience can get a solid understanding of what it is and (perhaps more importantly) what it is not.

Does anyone have any links to a great description they have written/found on the internet?

We have a unique opportunity with the UK branch of our charity, and getting folks who have no idea about airsoft "up to speed" on the sport is CRITICAL to us seizing this opportunity.

[L473ncy]

You know what. I think NAG (National Airsoft Girls) has a pretty good description up already. I know they worked with a few charities for fundraisers, let me try and bring up a link for you, their old main website with their info articles got taken down and they are now operating on facebook exclusively. But if you try contacting Christina from their group maybe you can get a good description already written for you that's "friendly" to all walks of life.

[Renegade)]

Short simple answers that I have always gone by:

Skirmish= Short, simple, run and gun games sometimes with brief scenarios that end either by time limit or by sure winner. Usually skirmish games are 5 minutes to 30 minutes in length.

Milsim= Longer, more drawn out scenario games, usually with multiple respawns, command structure, scenarios that lead to other scenarios that lead to a common end goal. Milsims are usually non stop the entire day long, 8 hours to 24 hours in length.

Then theres a term I use,

Skirmsim= Healthy mix of both, you run and gun the players early to warm them up, then break off teams, give them some missions to do, assign a couple of leads or communication liaisons and run 1-2 hour games, but keeping them tight and fast paced.

[Armyissue]

Its Golf dude.
You can play single, a group of four, or a whole Tourney.
The Woody's , Irons and the Putters.
You select the right clubs for the holes that need plugging.
Score is generally kept on an Honour system
You can go to the Driving Range, Mini Putt, The First Nine or the whole 18.
Our players tend to carry their own clubs, occasionally there's a Golf Cart.
After a good round the fella get together at the 19th hole and tell lies about their Handicaps, their new clubs and the great Plaid Pants they saw.
New Guys tend to whack the shit out of the balls and go as fast as they can with way to many strokes on their cards, where the Old players calmly wait for the wind to be right and drop it on the green.
The critical difference is, our game has the golfers come into the feild from opposite sides and move toward each other. That's where the excitment lives.

[Gryphon]

I'll try tackling this one:

"Milsim", short for military simulation, is a style of live-play wargaming that emphasizes realistic procedures, scenarios, tactics, and strategy to emulate actual combat. The main difference between a milsim style game versus an actual military exercise is the emphasis on sportsmanship and entertainment, whereas military exercises are intended as training tools to prepare troops for battle and are not designed to be entertaining. Milsim games are hosted by civilians for civilians, occasionally for profit. Military exercises are held by a government's armed forces.

Milsim style games are typically played with replica firearms that discharge a low velocity, non-lethal projectile such as a paintball or plastic "airsoft" pellet in order to strike a player and count them as a casualty. A player will generally have the opportunity to rejoin the game after a period of time, being "healed" by a medic, or by returning to a staging area known as a "respawn" point.

Rules and objectives vary between events but milsim games differ from ordinary wargaming events mainly by emphasizing aspects of military operations by requiring authentic radio and interpersonal communication, uniforms and camouflage, styles of weaponry, and on-field behavior such as roleplay (i.e. after being hit a player may be required to act as if they are in pain while a medic applies a simulated bandage or other treatment). Players may be assigned to smaller groups, given specific tasks delivered as orders, and be led by commanders. In the strictest of milsim games players may be reprimanded for failing to comply with their orders or achieve their objectives.

Realistic props are often used including privately-owned military vehicles, and occasionally professional pyrotechnics to simulate explosions and gunfire. Due to the nature of the events they are held primarily in large rural areas that are either privately held or booked specifically for the event to prevent possible injury to the public from flying projectiles, and so as not to cause undue alarm from the sight of camouflaged and armed personnel.

These games are usually played with a large number of participants divided into teams, each with their own set of goals and instructions. Objectives vary from eliminating all opposing players to capturing an asset or location. Some games will run as timed events for many hours and points are awarded for achieving objectives, whereas other events will end after a certain criteria is met. It is not uncommon for games to span multiple days where players have the opportunity to camp overnight in the field of play while the game is running, adding a measure of excitement if they were to be attacked while asleep.

Copyright - me. Hope this helps.

[Blackthorne]

Thanks folks! All very helpful!

[Drake]

Milsim is (or should be) about realism.

It's not necessarily game length or complexity.

It's a player mindset where the BBs can kill, rather than a minor COD-style annoyance you'll respawn from after a few minutes.

It's a realistic approach to solving a given problem, where shooting is only one of many tools at your disposal (and not always the best tool to use); spraying off hicap after hicap is not an option (and realcap should be the way to go).

It's about realistic loadouts, etc.

It's about realistic operations.

Just about any game/scenario can be made milsim: the succes of milsim comes from the players not the organizers. An org can do everything to set up a milsim and people will just run around and shoot like idiots; similarly a simple "skirmish" can be milsim-as-fuck if everyone on the field can get their shit together and elevate their game.

[Metalsynth]

Watch the series combat school.

Those are actual milsims.

Once you have, adapt the airsoft tech to that environement and add an element of playability for the players to have a certain degree of fun.

That for me is milsim, having a blast with friends but not compromising proper training and combat techniques and efficiency.

Realistic gear comes second but should always reflect what you would be using in an actual combat situation since proper muscle memory is needed.

Milsim can also be considered closer to sparring in martial arts than gaming shooter style.

There is more to a soldier than just being a good fireing platform for an assault rifle.