Nerf war

A NERF war is a competitive activity involving NERF dart blasters. The term covers a wide range of games and gatherings, from informal shootouts in offices and basements to well-organized outdoor battles with high-powered modified blasters. Since foam blasters are relatively safe and cheap, Nerf wars can include participants and battlefields otherwise unsuitable for airsoft and paintball. Note that in the context of wars, the term 'Nerf' is a blanket term for foam-firing toy weapons, regardless of manufacturer.

Venues

Nerf war locations are highly varied. Any area with a good balance of open space and cover can be a candidate. Basements, offices, and backyards are common locations for informal games. For larger wars with more participants, bigger venues like gymnasiums, public parks, forests, ravines, and schools make good battlefields. When planning a Nerf war in a public area, the organizer typically reserves the space and watches out for non-participants to reduce any liability. The ability to play in free locations is an important element of a Nerf war's accessibility.

Organization

Informal wars are usually ad-hoc games played in an office or backyard. These are usually all-out free-for-alls that break out spontaneously and last until the supply of darts has run out. Informal wars in a workplace are a cheap and exciting relief from daily tedium, and an interesting method to build camaraderie.

Organized wars are usually more intense, larger in scale, and well-publicized. Typically planned in advance by a group of friends, a Nerf club, or the Nerf Internet Community, these battles are held in large public areas, attract Nerf hobbyists, and usually have standardised rules. Because the games are more competitive and the battlefield larger, blasters are usually modified for increased range.

Internet Community NERF Wars

Many wars across the country are organized and promoted through the forums of enthusiast sites like Nerfhaven, NerfHQ, and Foam Universe. The members of these forums are collectively known as the Nerf Internet Community, or NIC.

The NIC holds large annual wars on both the East Coast and West Coast of the United States and certain locations even have bi-annual or monthly wars. Some colleges and youth groups have active clubs and associations that host Nerf Wars regularly.

Rules of participation are set by the war's hosts to create a safer and more balanced game. Over time, the NIC has centred on a widely accepted set of standard rules, regulations, and game types.

Common Game Types

Assassin

Teams: Three people in total, 2 people and one assassin

Objective. is for the Assassin to eliminate the opposite team. Not be the assassin

Overview.The assassin hides and waits for the 2 other people from the other team. The assassin gets 2 hits/a set amount and the other team gets 1 hit per person. If a team-mate from the non-assassin team gets hit they are out until the next round. If the assassin gets both of the people the first one hit is the new assassin. A new round starts.

Elimination

Teams: Two or More

Objective: Eliminate all opponents.

Overview: An elimination is the most simple Nerf game and has the most flexible rules. The most common variant in NIC Nerf wars is 3-15 elimination, which features lives and respawning and creates fast-paced, brief games.

3-15: Players enter the game with three 'lives'. When a player is tagged, they lose a life and leave play for 15 seconds. After the time has elapsed, they can re-enter the game by moving outside of combat and yelling "clear". A player is permanently eliminated when all of their lives have been lost.

4-20: This style has identical rules as 3-15, but each player is given four lives and counts to twenty. 4-20 creates a longer game than 3-15.

00-15: A "count-up" variant, also known as a 'deathmatch'. Players do not use lives. When a player is tagged, they leave play for 15 seconds and the shooter records the hit. After a time limit, teams total their points and the team with the most hits wins. Results in 00-15 are often skewed when players inflate their totals or simply forget them.

Wingman: Identical to 3-15, but played with two-man teams. Also known as Tag Team.

Shields: When a player is hit, they count down from 15. If the player is hit during this time, they're permanently eliminated. Because players must be hit twice during a short window of time, Shields games encourage teamwork and blasters with a high rate of fire. This variant was inspired by the recharging-health mechanic of games like Halo and Gears of War.

Another form that was popular on the East Coast involves having a total of 10 hit points. When a player is hit, he or she continues playing without waiting and loses a hit point. When a player's hits reach zero, that player is considered out for the rest of the round. This style causes arguments when automatic or scattering weapons are used, since it's difficult to track the number of hits from a salvo.

Gunslinger Heaven

Teams: Two or more

Objective: Eliminate all opponents.

Overview: Gunslinger Heaven is a distant relative of elimination that encourages strategy and daring moves. The game is played with two-man teams, and each player is limited to a single spring pistol. When a player is hit, they remove themselves from the game for 15 seconds and don a flag. When a player wearing a flag is hit, they're permanently eliminated from the game. If a player wearing a flag eliminates another player wearing a flag, the shooter may remove his flag and regain the extra 'life'.

Gunslinger Heaven is best played in a small area with plenty of cover, to prevent standoffs and keep teams from hiding. It creates very short and exciting matches, and is a common game at Nerf Internet Community wars.

Assault

Teams: Two or more

Objective: Complete a team goal, or prevent others from doing so.

Overview: Play centres around an objective, usually a building or object. The defending team is usually given a terrain advantage and time to entrench, and the attackers have more players or lives. The attacking players have a set amount of time to claim the objective or eliminate the defending team's players.

In many games, the attacking teams can re-enter play an unlimited number of times while the defenders have a finite number of lives. To add variety, the attackers may need to complete a challenge to claim the objective, such as removing batteries from a stopwatch 'time bomb' or taking a piece from a Jenga tower.

Aggro Crag: Attackers have a predetermined amount of time to claim an item and return it to their base. Each round, the teams switch and try to beat their opponents' time. The item is traditionally placed high on a playground slide, which players must aggressively climb like the eponymous Nickelodeon GUTS challenge.

Defend the Core: Attackers have a set amount of time to fire darts into a box-like target. After the time has elapsed, the teams switch and the attackers must beat the defenders' score. The Core can be a simple cardboard box with a hole, or have special features to prevent darts from bouncing out. Defend the Core is becoming increasingly popular in NIC wars.

Capture The Flag

Teams: Two or more

Objective: Retrieve the opponent's flag.

Overview: This game is generally played with two teams. Capture the Flag games typically don't include permanent elimination, which moves the emphasis from the players to the flags. CTF is uncommon, as rounds tend to be longer than deathmatches and require more running. Multiple CTF variants are played.

Capture the Flag: The classic game. Each team has its own flag. A team wins by retrieving the opponent's flag and returning it to their own base. Often, a team must have their own flag in their base to win the round.

Centre Flag Push: Also known as soccer. A single flag is placed in the centre of the battlefield. A team wins by retrieving the flag and putting it in the opponent's base.

Centre Flag Pull: A single flag is placed in the centre of the battlefield. A team wins by retrieving the flag and putting it in their own base. These games often turn into footraces when quick players can outrun the opposing team and simply snatch the flag.

Battlefield selection is very important for a fair and fun CTF game. A good field is symmetrical and offers many routes to the flag, for balance and variety. In addition, plenty of cover should be available around the bases to allow each team to effectively defend their territory. Because this game involves plenty of running, the field should be fairly small.

Humans vs. Zombies

Teams: Two

Objective: Be the last survivor

Overview: Humans vs. Zombies is a cross between death match and tag. A group of 'survivors' attempts to survive a "zombie outbreak" by avoiding a growing number of 'zombies'. A small number of players begin as zombies, and the rest are survivors. Survivors can use weapons, but zombies can only tag players by hand. If a zombie touches a human, the human becomes 'infected' and joins the zombie team. Zombies are temporarily stunned when tagged, but are never eliminated. This game is typically played in a bounded area that players can't leave, and often has a time limit. This distinguishes it from the popular campus game, which is played over a number of days.

VIP

Teams: Two

Objective: Defend or tag the VIP as he moves to a base.

Overview: The game involves one VIP who attempts to move from a start point to a distant base. Two teams fight over him: The bodyguards who defend the VIP and the assassins who attempt to take him out. The bodyguards are generally loaded with better fire-power, but are almost always outnumbered by the assassins. The VIP himself is generally very lightly armed, or not armed at all. The VIP is always killed with a single shot, and the others usually follow 3-15 elimination rules.

For an interesting reversal of the game, the bodyguards may be required to "rescue" the VIP before taking him to safety.

Medic

Teams: Two or more

Objective: Eliminate opposing team.

Overview: This game involves a designated medic. One member of each team is selected to be the medic, he/she is armed with one sidearm eg. N-strike Maverick and wears or displays an item showing that he/she is the medic. Every player has one life, when a player is hit by the opposition they lie on the floor. The Medic has the ability to heal teammates by placing 'two' hands on the incapacitated player and yelling heal, that player is then back in the action. Placing two hands on the downed teammate makes the medic vulnerable, as he/she has to place their weapon on the ground to heal. If your medic dies he/she cannot be revived.

See also

NERF

N-Strike

Humans vs. Zombies

Further sources

• Sock It to Me: Competitive Knitters Get Deadly Serious; Based on 'Assassin' Game, This Contest Has Players On Pins and Needles. Kevin J. Delaney. Wall Street Journal. (Eastern edition). New York, N.Y.: Dec 17, 2007. pg. A.1
• The war of the zombies vs. humans rages in Athens. Nick Claussen. The Athens News. Athens, Ohio: Oct 30, 2006. 1 pgs
• ALL WORK AND SOME PLAY BRINGING JOY TO THE OFFICE; [FINAL Edition] RODD AUBREY THE ASSOCIATED PRESS. Seattle Post - Intelligencer. Seattle, Wash.: Jul 7, 1998. pg. C.2
• Title:Nerf Guns Strike a Nerve on Campuses. (cover story) Authors:Young, Jeffrey R. Source:Chronicle of Higher Education; 4/25/2008, Vol. 54 Issue 33, pA1-A8, 2p