[mako]

Okay, many people avoid playing paintball at night because they fear the other side has night vision. Over the years I have done tons of research on how to get the advantage over those that can see through the darkness. Here are some basic tactics that will leave you and your team in the driver seat during night time engagments with night vision.

First know how knight vision (NV) works. The science behind it is real cool, the bottom line is the NV device snatches all the available light and generates an image.
Second most NV devices do not generate an imagage that accurately gauge distances between foreground and background, That is not to say they don't or that the operator hasn't developed a system of determaning distance.
Third NV devices MAY be suspect to too much light. MAY!

okay so how do we overcome these very clever NV devices and operators.

First operate with your squad an assume you will encounter NV. You must have a clear leader in the squad that will determine position and formation the second you make contact with and NV device! You must take the initiative away from the NV operator with superior firepower and numbers. You must actively search out the NV operator and eliminate him.
Second take the proper tools onto the field to do the job right. Make sure to follow all the fields saftey rules. You will need light...lots of it...lots of it. One tac light will not get it done...two tac lights will not get it done..every one in the squad needs to have a tach light. Preferably one with a strobe feature.

Okay here is the set up. 24 hour scenario game. NV is on the field with an expirienced operator. He is off a highly used trail. There is plenty of cover to sheild him from paint, and he has found himself a kill-hole to shoot through.

Your squad enters the field. Squad leader is in the back. Point man up front. Set up 5 yard intervals with a reversed v formation. Remember point man's job is to be a rabbit for the NV user to shoot at. Talk openly and loud for direction. You will not have time for radio button pressing. Now, with alternating users light up the covered areas! Only do it for a couple of seconds..3 to 4 secs at the most. Guns up and at the ready.

When the NV user sees you coming...and he will. He will have to decide. Lay low and let you pass..and hope you don't find him, or move. Either way you have silenced him..you win.

If there is an NV operator working in conjunction with a fire squad, your primary mission must still be to eliminate the NV operator. When engaged in squad sized firefight at night remember to keep the targets in the light..effectivly bliding them. Continue to move to their flanks and press. Always alternating your light source form one tac light to another.

If you have strobe light even better. You can effectivly blind an entire squad with one light source. Don't worry about epilepse enduced symtpoms anyone that is suspect to epilepse knows to look away.

Bottom line..respect the NV and operator, they can play havoc on a paintball field. However, don't miss the rush of night fight because you fear the NV.

We roll out at every event and we are always the last team to leave the field...and we have NEVER used NV. Infact it is too slow and cumbersome for us to use.

Mako

[Thalion]

Gen3 NVs aren't impacted nearly as badly by strobes as Gen1s or Gen2s. I would say that you will be just as disoriented by it as they will, unless you manage to put it directly on them.

And honestly, I've never heard of someone not playing at night because the "other guys might have NVGs." I have heard of quite a few people who would rather not for their own safety (easier to see hazardous terrain under daylight).

[GUNFU]

All NVGs will have a safeguard system to protect themselves from damage if there is too much ambient light present even if you use the special filter lens. Like mako said NVGs or NOGs filter in any available light through special lens. These lenses are very sensitive to light and can become permently damaged if subject to straight ambient light. Most manufacturers will have a shutdown feature to save the system and prevent any disconfort to the user. Many of the cheap brands or knock offs aren't true NVGs because they need to rely on an IR light to augment the filter effect. You can always spot IR with NVGs but not with the nake eye. (Infra Red) So any direct light from a tac light would temporally disable or hinder the proper use of any type of NVG plus if they would remove them they would still have to regain their natural night vision that usually takes 5-10 min. Also night vision does poorly on overcast nights with no light pollution around. (light pollution is any ambient light that would be produced from a distance example city lights would emit a glow from a distance but is enough to feed the NVGs.)

This post has been edited by GUNFU: 20 January 2011 - 01:36 PM

[Locknpump]

Strobe Light or any light=a big target on you, instead just set up an ambush and where gear that mixes up your lines so it is harder to to pick you out of a scene. Wait for overconfident people with NV to walk by and paste them.

[GUNFU]

Locknpump, on 20 January 2011 - 02:34 PM, said:

Strobe Light or any light=a big target on you, instead just set up an ambush and where gear that mixes up your lines so it is harder to to pick you out of a scene. Wait for overconfident people with NV to walk by and paste them.

One thing about that is most clothes and even deteregents have optical brightners that enhance colors and make clothes last longer. That also reflects and multiplies the light bouncing of of you. Unless it's true military issue gear and it states that they have been treated to prevent light from bouncing off (NIR) might as well use a Tac light. Trust me you look like a Christmas Tree to tue guy with NVGs. No matter what type of pattern or shapes it may have it's useless because there is no depth perception to create any optical distortions between shapes or shade. Like I stated before NVGs pick up all light so if you have anything bounce off of you your " light" silhouette would give you away.

[Ka1iBuR]

Locknpump, on 20 January 2011 - 04:34 PM, said:

Strobe Light or any light=a big target on you, instead just set up an ambush and where gear that mixes up your lines so it is harder to to pick you out of a scene. Wait for overconfident people with NV to walk by and paste them.

You would actually be surprised how hard it is to even focus on a strobe light at night, much less to actually hit it. They're very disorienting.

[alexspawn3000]

Ka1iBuR, on 30 April 2011 - 12:30 PM, said:

Locknpump, on 20 January 2011 - 04:34 PM, said:

Strobe Light or any light=a big target on you, instead just set up an ambush and where gear that mixes up your lines so it is harder to to pick you out of a scene. Wait for overconfident people with NV to walk by and paste them.

You would actually be surprised how hard it is to even focus on a strobe light at night, much less to actually hit it. They're very disorienting.

I know a squad back in Colorado that all used strobe lights on their markers at night. They flashed at different intervals and walked in a line. Let me tell you...IT SUCKED! i had no clue where any of them were. Most think you can just focus right on a strobe...but a well trained squad working together will prove that wrong!

[Cuy'val Dar]

Sunlight

/thread

[Household Dog]

It probably helps to shoot them directly in the goggles.

They can spend the next hour, cleaning the gunk out.

[Warpaint]

Camouflage, cover, and stealth. NV is an advantage to the other team if your team doesn't have it in the dark, but just as ghillie doesn't make you invisible, NV isn't invincible, either. NV doesn't make people using it invisible...just easier for them to spot you...when they do find you, just make them sorry. Same tactics used against each other in the daylight when everyone has the same eyesight will work against NV. Less expensive units are more prone to light shock and associated recovery time. NV is more practical for recon and surveillance, than combat.