Game fixing

I have been tossing and turning in bed this morning since 5am with my brain busy composing a rebuttal to rumours, perpetuated mostly by the mentalist. It won't go away so I had to get up and type it out.

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Comrades in Arms statement

Being there.

Word keeps filtering back to us that despite the monumental effort we put into organising events for the enjoyment of all, we are accused by a small number of people of 'match fixing'. That no matter what anyone does your side is predestined to 'lose'.

This is factually incorrect and completely misses the point of Comrades in Arms events which strive to be distinctively different to anyone else's events. And I'll try and explain to those that don't understand just what it is that makes CiA events different.

To start with, you have to understand where the five CiA organisers are coming from. We all have had our fill of airsoft in it's 'open day' guise - long lost the buzz of legally being allowed to run about pretending to be soldiers carrying toys that look like real guns and actually shooting at fellow players. Yes, it was awesome but after a while you want something a bit more satisfying than that. And poncing about in your 100% accurate dressing up clothes fails to impress. All this misses out on the reality of warfare where uniforms are just your work clothes and guns are just the tools of the trade. And how would it be if we combine reality with our deep interests in WW2? Real reenacting, living out the past, looking into the heart, soul and mind of a front line soldier.

And this is the basis of Comrades in Arms events. Being there. Not the airsofter's open day game where after a half hour one side wins and one side loses. Not fettling your gun so it out ranges your opponent by three feet. Not by cheat calling or complaining about teflon warriors. Not having a gentle day out and a chat with the lads. Not settling down for an hours lunch with a packet of crisps and a tin of Fanta. Not posing in uniforms that are better than anyone else's. Not spraying three bags of BBs towards the enemy.

OK, so what does 'being there' mean? No two ways about it, war is a grim and dirty business. Curiously, it can also be fun. Plenty of vets will tell you of the best days of their life, the camaraderie, the sense of purpose and duty, overshadowed by the times of utter carnage, futility, frustration, exhaustion. And the omnipresent fear of losing your own life and all that is dear to you.

Clearly, Comrades in Arms events are just a day/weekends entertainment - we realise the reality of it (and we haven't killed anyone yet). But within this weekend we aim to bring a flavour of just what it might have been like for those fighting for their country 70 years ago. The fear, the frustration, the physical exhaustion, the exhilaration, the futility, the camaraderie - all the highs and lows of front line life.

I distinctly remember an episode at Bryansk where we were all loaded on transport and trundled down a narrow track. No way to turn round. Dense cover each side of us. This was an ambush waiting to happen. We had orders to follow, we had no option other than to drive on. And for a moment I had a cold sweat - I felt my life was in peril. If this was for real how dreadful would this have been? And an episode at the start of Op Husky where we had to fight up a steep hill, enemy a-top. Blummin impossible with fire bearing down on us. But the feeling of elation having reached the top, utterly exhausted, to have not only beaten the hill but the enemy as well, was immense. And at Ariel when I was caught on my own with an enemy making their way slowly towards my location, huddled in a small gulley. What do I do - leg it or hide and hope the enemy passes by? I thought I was going to have a coronary - my heart was pounding not from exertion but from terror. And at Autumn Mist eating the shittiest cooked food I have eaten in my life - sobering to think this would have been a banquet for those in real life. And witnessing the carnage at Boryszyn as the pile of Russian bodies grew, cut down by merciless German machine gun fire. You get the picture?

So, this is what Comrades in Arms events are all about. They aren't airsoft 'games' in any conventional sense. Indeed, airsoft is almost incidental. After all, players frequently have an awesome time with even firing a shot. It is impossible to 'win' or 'lose' a CiA event. You can take part, you can fight to the last, you can give it everything you have got. You may die, you may survive. Your commanders may put you in impossible positions but as in real life, orders are orders - you have to make the best of things, use your skill, cunning and determination to make the best of it. Re-enacting the past in a way that goes deeper than just wearing the correct attire.

I did say It is impossible to 'win' or 'lose' a CiA event. In respect of an ordinary airsoft 'game' this is true. However, consider yourself losers if a bit of dirt on your nice uniform was an issue, if a picnic at lunchtime is the best part of the day, if you refuse to advance because someone might shoot you, if you don't want to walk more than 100 yards, if you think the more rounds you use in a day the better you have done. But consider yourself winners if you put 100% personal effort into the event, did everything asked of you, shed some sweat, got utterly frustrated, got immensely elated, worked as a team and supported your fellow troops not went for personal glory. And consider yourself a winner if you took part in something special, and you were there. For 'winning' a Comrades in Arms event is an attitude of mind, not a tick on a score sheet.

Comrades in Arms events are few and far between. We try to make each of them memorable in terms of location and scenario and spend hundreds of hours making our events different from anyone else's. All players are winners, all players should feel they have got something personal out of it - be it personal endeavour or an insight into the hell that is war. Anyone who thinks they 'lost' probably didn't read the briefings and booked onto the wrong event!

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Heh, got it all out of my head and typed out in two hours - hope my brain will stop fizzing now!