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TV Tropes & Idiodoms! Start of the Latest Storyline!

2006-09-15


          

Notes from the Author:
A reader asked about our use of duct tape-

"In one of your recent comics you showed a new player inquiring
the ref(Doc) what to do because he had lost his barrel plug/bag.
It looked like Doc duct taped the fellows hand in front of his barrel.
Don't you think that might give inexperienced players that read your comic
kind of a bad view of refs or how they might be treated when they have legitimate concerns.
"

First off, the use of duct tape as shown in TWB is purely my invention.
I don't know of any field that uses it that way- It's simply comedic exaggeration.
In the same vein, I'm not actually a polar bear, I've only eaten an
entire walrus once, and that was just on a dare.

That said, the tape technique has some merit.
Goggles are a mandatory safety device, as necessary to the sport
as a space suit is to the guy going out to fix the Hubble Telescope.

New and inexperienced players can almost be counted on to pop their
goggles off at least once, and once is all it takes to lose an eye.
Most players learn after being yelled at once or twice, but sometimes
you get that one kid that thinks the rules don't apply to him. "It'll be
okay", he thinks, "they're not shooting at me right now."

For these, a bit of embarrassment goes a long way. A quick strip of duct
tape serves both as a firm reminder for the player, but also a visible
warning for the others, but not physically harming anyone, and not
adding any additional safety risk.

When I visited WestWorld in Phoenix in 1992, their method of handling
a player that had taken his mask off on the field, was to haul him out into
the street and shoot him. Seriously- they gave him a padded vest and a spare
goggle to hang from his belt, and let three other players shoot him. (Once each.)

Due to the protective vest, there was no harm or injury, but the player got a bit
of mild embarrassment, and the rest of us watching got a firm reminder.

It only happened once while I was there- the rest of us needed no reinforcement.

As far as barrel plugs/barrel bags go, that's another safety issue.
Depending on the field, typically the player keeps track of his or her own blocker.
If the player loses it (or sometimes steals it) that's both a safety issue and
a recurring cost to the field. Again, a physical reminder and a bit of embarrassment
could help the players keep track of their blocker as well as reinforcing the
safety aspect. (I've played some outlaw 'ball lately, and maybe one out of
ten players even owns a plug/bag/blocker, and taking goggles off while not
only on the field, but in the middle of a firefight is all too common.

So yeah, using tape in the comic is done for laughs,
but it just might work as well in the real world, to

Click to jump to the start of a storyline. New reader? 'The Fridgemonster' is a good place to start reading!
The Paintball through Time!
Deep snow ball
Bandit, Shoey, Rainy, Jinx and Jake!
Yes, even the ladies play!
It came from the refrigerator!
And wins!
Plus, there's paintball!
The Craigslist Keyhole saw
Skronch!
Fully Justifiable Carnage!
The
Wormhole
Gun!

Paintball
in the
winter!

Let's try a
Tourney!

Sandy's
First Game!

The
Fridge-
monster!

Pirta
plays
Paintball!

The impromptu
PVP crossover!

The
Craigslist
Strip!

Doc OD's on
caffeine!

Zombie
Apocalypse!

Kasi hates Christmas
Fun with a pair o' Docs!
The start of the 3-man tourney
Doc meets the Jackal again
Full, glorious Technicolor!
Tourney practice
Golf!
Automotive repair
More zombies!
The snowball fight
Kasi at
Christmas

Doc plays with
wormholes!

The start of the
3-man tourney!

Doc meets the
Jackal again!

TWB goes
Full Color!

Their first
Practice!

Doc & Roger
play Golf!

Doc & Roger
fix Sandy's car!

More
Zombies!

The Big
Snowball Fight!

The Beer Replicator Incident
How to use a CO2 fill station
The Espresso Machine
Pirta gets propositioned
Jinx turns green
The Rocket Couch
More tourney practice
The Longest Day, prologue
The Longest Day Begins
Doc Saves The Day!
The Beer
Replicator
Incident!

How to use
a fill station!

The new
Espresso
machine!

Pirta gets
propositioned!

Jinx turns a
little green!

The Rocket
Couch!

More Tourney
Practice!

The Longest
Day, Prologue!

The Longest
Day Begins!

Doc Saves
The Day!

Introducing Radar!
Doc goes on a rampage!
Doc takes a grenade to the face!
Last game of the day!
Everybody heads for Howie's!
Introducing Cara!
The Kiss
The Longest Day Ends!
A new day begins
The Big Move!
Introducing
Radar!

Bear on a
Rampage!

Grenade to
the Face!

Last Game
of the Day!

Everybody
heads for
Howie's!

Introducing
Cara!

The Big Kiss!
The Longest
Day finally
Ends!

A New Day
Begins!

The Big Move!

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