Super Soaker Central

• Ridgewood Militia vs Self @ Goffle Park
• Game Family: OHK
• Game Type: Scenario-Based OHK Elimination
• Score: NA
• Strength: 3v3, later 3v2 and 2v3
• Length: 4 Hour Day
• Class: Unranked Intra-team Skirmish
• MVPs:
• Dan [3 scenario wins]
• UN1 [New fighting styles]

Players [all Ridgewood Militia]:

• Rob: CPS 1100
• Dan: CPS 2500
• Dave: CPS 2500
• UN1: CPS 2500, later MI Flash Flood
• Mike: CPS 2100
• Hogan: MI Flash Flood

"UN1" is my designation for a player whose name escapes me at the moment - I'm bad with names of people who have never fought before.

One might find it interesting to note that this was the first OHK battle that the Ridgewood Militia has ever fought! As surprising as it sounds, we've never done OHK. I used to call our usual game type "OHK Lives", however it is really "Standard OHS", as OHK Lives is different than what we do. This was also the first scenario-based skirmish we have fought since 2005 and certainly the first with elimination after one death.

What was going to be a 10-16 person turnout ended up being 6. Not that bad for a war, but low for a skirmish. We fought 4 scenarios and I lost most of them, not surprising considering the strength of this team. Firepower was about equal across the board, same with physical ability, so it came down to the one-on-one dueling. I am fine at dueling, but when the guy next to you dies, that can be a problem. The Outnumbered Defense was totally shut down, so Killing Rushes ensured your own death when used in this defense.

Overall, the most interesting observation is that this year's new members have really changed the face of this team. The 2007 RM is more aggressive, prolific at killing, fast, and physically skilled than our past teams.

Action in a Scenario-Based battle is divided by each scenario rather than early, middle, and late.

Scenario 1: Defend High Point

This was a classic objective - one defending team of 3 [Dan, Mike, and Dave] had to hold High Point against the attacking team of 3 [me, UN1, and Hogan. I was at a disadvantage with 2 new members against 3 veterans, but I had the element of surprise. We boldy crossed the brook via a fallen tree and quickly moved around the base of High Point. The way the defense was positioned made it difficult for them to see us, otherwise they would have blocked Corning and the Back Path. We rushed through the gap at Corning completely uncontested. However, the engagement became man to man, and Hogan was hit. I had no left flank and took 1v2 pressure. When Dan moved for an Instant Flank, there was little choice but to use my life to take his. UN1 survived his 1v2 for a couple minutes, but was hit without getting Mike or Dave. So we lost that one kinda badly.

Scenario 2: Trench Warfare

The RM Classic was full of firsts, this being one of them. There are about 15 long mounds of mulch in the open lot. Since we were right there, we decided to start at opposite ends and attack each other via moving up and over the mounds. Teams remained the same. It was a good idea, but once in progress, our shoes and socks were ruined with dirt, mulch, and the such. The enemy had the wind the entire time - I had about 25-30ft against Mike while he could shoot 65-70ft against me. We would have lost that except for Hogan falling and hurting his left leg. Instead of playing the rest of it out [I was the only one alive by that time], we moved to the upper dam. Due to the water being high, we had to jump it. Both sides ended up escorting Hogan back to his car, since he could hardly walk. After he left, it became 3v2 or 2v3, so we needed scenario areas that matched those numbers.

Scenario 3: Defend the Treehouse

We used the upper treehouse in this skirmish. Dan, Dave, and UN1 defended against Mike and I attacking. Historically, defenders here have been slaughtered, but UN1 changed fate today. He managed to climb onto the roof itself, preventing the attackers from getting within slaughtering range. They killed Mike with a lucky shot and almost me several times. When I only had a single pc left, I rushed up to attempt to score that shot. It almost worked, but no. First time the attacking team not only couldn't kill a treehouse defender, but also was wiped out. That roof position was really decisive.

Scenario 4: Defend the Forgotten Bridge

This is in the far northern corner of the Goffle, usually OB. However, we needed one more place where 3v2 could work, and this was it. The steep, narrow hill leading up to the forgotten bridge is an ideal defensive location. I defended with UN1 against Dan, Mike, and Dave. We let them climb mostly up the hill though, otherwise it would have been a totally impossible fight. Mike took a while with his flanking action, so the 2v2 pressure was easily handled. When UN1 killed Mike, we were backed up almost to the edge of where the actual bridge structure once was. We invented a new tactic here, the Right Angle Defense. My tree and UN1's tree were about 30ft apart and our positions formed a right angle. Dan and Dave could not use an overrun against either for fear of being flanked by the other. The narrow area prevented them from spreading out enough to break our defense. Dan managed to press enough to make a risky Killing Rush that paid off. That left me alone with an enemy on either side of the tree. Retreating was not an option, nor was standing behind that thin tree. So I made a Killing Rush, got Dave, but didn't get any farther.

There will be some interesting stuff in the analysis I'll be typing tomorrow morning. This team is really different now that it was even three battles ago. The learning curve used to be several wars, then one war, and now it is as short as a single engagement. Both Hogan and UN1 came away with veteran-quality experience. Dan earned a bump from Captain to Colonel, while Dave earned Captain rank. The ideal thing would be for nearly all members to have a rank, for that would move us closer to Full Fluid Command.