2008 Wanganui Speedball
Wanganui Speedball was a five-player tournament paintball series held in Wanganui (now Whanganui), New Zealand, during 2008. The competition was associated with Splatterzone and was also described in contemporary records as the Splatterzone Paintball Competition.[1][2]
The series consisted of seven documented rounds between February and November 2008. Teams accumulated points across the season, with a special double-points round supported by Paintball Direct.[1][2]
Bio Hazard of Wanganui finished first in the published season standings with 4,150 points, followed by Slipknot of Palmerston North and Death Wish of Taranaki.[2]
History
Establishment
The competition was active by February 2008.
A March 2008 announcement on the NZ Paintball Message Boards described a newly established Wanganui speedball series, with rounds planned for the last Saturday of each month.[3]
The competition's website identified Benjamin Crockett as its contact and described the events as informal social tournaments intended to encourage wider participation in competitive paintball.[1]
The tournament operated with five-player teams and a limited-paint format.
2008 season
The first documented round took place on 23 February 2008.
The original competition website records seven completed rounds:
| Round | Date | Winning team | Team location |
|---|---|---|---|
| 1 | 23 February 2008 | Bio Hazard | Wanganui |
| 2 | 29 March 2008 | Slipknot | Palmerston North |
| 3 | 26 April 2008 | Splinter | Wellington |
| 4 | 31 May 2008 | Bio Hazard | Wanganui |
| 5 | 26 July 2008 | Slipknot | Palmerston North |
| 6 | 27 September 2008 | Death Wish | Taranaki |
| 7 | 29 November 2008 | Slipknot | Palmerston North |
Source: Wanganui Paintball competition website, archived March 2009.[1]
The September competition was listed as the Paintball Direct round in the published points table.
The November event was identified as the final round of the season.
Participation
The series attracted teams from Wanganui and other parts of the lower North Island.
Contemporary forum discussions reported ten teams registered for the April round.[3]
Following the event on 26 April, participants reported attendance exceeding 60 players, including three teams new to the competition.[3]
The final published championship table lists 18 different team entries across the season.[2]
2008 championship standings
The original competition website preserved the cumulative points earned by teams across all seven rounds.
Bio Hazard finished first with 4,150 points, ahead of Slipknot on 3,550 and Death Wish on 2,835.[2]
| Position | Team | Points |
|---|---|---|
| 1 | Bio Hazard | 4,150 |
| 2 | Slipknot | 3,550 |
| 3 | Death Wish | 2,835 |
| 4 | EMB | 2,660 |
| 5 | AssasainZ | 1,855 |
| 6 | Spartans | 1,760 |
| 7 | Skullz | 885 |
| 8 | Da Mercs | 840 |
| 9 | Splinter | 775 |
| 10 | Untouchables | 450 |
| 11 | C-Unit | 315 |
| 12 | Blackout | 255 |
| 13 | Blind Assasains | 215 |
| 14 | A-Team | 180 |
| 15 | Team Omerta | 55 |
| 16= | Vipers | 50 |
| 16= | Randoms | 50 |
| 16= | Bad Boys | 50 |
Source: Wanganui Paintball, 2008 Points.[2]
Team spellings follow the contemporary standings.
Individual round points
The original website also recorded each team's results by round.
| Team | Feb | Mar | Apr | May | Jul | Sep | Nov |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| Bio Hazard | 665 | 540 | 510 | 640 | 445 | 800 | 550 |
| Slipknot | — | 640 | 680 | — | 665 | 960 | 605 |
| Death Wish | — | 310 | 475 | 470 | 200 | 1,130 | 250 |
| EMB | 430 | 360 | 65 | 330 | 535 | 695 | 245 |
| AssasainZ | — | 625 | — | — | — | 805 | 425 |
| Spartans | 50 | 200 | 285 | 190 | 180 | 525 | 330 |
| Skullz | — | — | — | — | 115 | 530 | 240 |
| Da Mercs | 215 | 50 | 295 | 50 | 50 | 125 | 55 |
| Splinter | — | — | 775 | — | — | — | — |
| Untouchables | 135 | 50 | 140 | 125 | — | — | — |
| C-Unit | — | — | — | 315 | — | — | — |
| Blackout | — | — | — | — | — | 50 | 205 |
| Blind Assasains | — | — | — | — | — | — | 215 |
| A-Team | — | 50 | 50 | — | 80 | — | — |
| Team Omerta | — | — | — | — | — | — | 55 |
| Vipers | — | — | 50 | — | — | — | — |
| Randoms | — | — | — | 50 | — | — | — |
| Bad Boys | — | — | — | — | — | — | 50 |
Source: Wanganui Paintball, 2008 Points.[2]
A dash represents N/E (not entered) or a blank entry in the original standings.
The September column corresponds to the special Paintball Direct round.
Competition format
The competition used five-player teams, with games scheduled for five minutes.[1][4]
The organisers advertised approximately six to eight games per team during each round, depending on the number of entrants.
Players were permitted one hopper of paintballs and one additional pod per game.
The initial entry fee was NZ$10 per player, with teams generally responsible for supplying their own paintballs and compressed gas.[1]
Equipment hire was also advertised through Splatterzone, including a marker, loader, gas supply and protective mask.[5]
Scoring system
The competition used a cumulative points system based on flag objectives, player eliminations and losses.[2]
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Flag hang | +50 |
| Flag grab | +25 |
| Opponent eliminated | +5 |
| Own player eliminated | −5 |
The organisers also introduced a minimum score of 50 points for a team participating in a round.
This rule was intended to prevent a competing team from finishing below a team that had not entered the event.[2]
Special rounds
Sponsored special rounds awarded additional points.
The published rules identified the Paintball Direct round as a double-points competition.
For that round, the website specified:
| Action | Points |
|---|---|
| Flag hang | +100 |
| Flag grab | +50 |
| Opponent eliminated | +10 |
| Own player eliminated | −5 |
The minimum round score remained 50 points.[2]
Death Wish recorded 1,130 points in the Paintball Direct round, the highest single-round total in the surviving 2008 standings.
Equipment and safety
The tournament's published rules required markers to operate at no more than 300 feet per second.
Players were required to wear protective masks outside designated safe areas and use barrel-blocking devices when not on the playing field.[4]
The rules also prohibited wiping paintball hits and required eliminated players to proceed to the dead box.
Following the April 2008 event, participants discussed improvements to safety-netting arrangements and enforcement of barrel-cover requirements.[3]
The competition website subsequently emphasised that players failing to use barrel plugs or covers could face penalties or removal from the event.[1]
Commercial support
Paintball Direct was acknowledged on the original competition website for arranging paintball supplies.
The business was also associated with a special competition round carrying additional championship points.[1][2]
The site advertised equipment hire through Splatterzone and food and drink facilities associated with participants from Da Mercs.[5]
Later history
The original competition website recorded the completion of the 2008 season and referred to plans for 2009.[1]
However, the surviving pages do not establish a complete 2009 championship calendar, results or whether a subsequent season was conducted under the same name.
The competition's final operating date has not been established.
See also
- Paintball tournaments in New Zealand
- NZ Paintball Message Boards
- Paintball Direct NZ
- Paintball in New Zealand
References
- Wanganui Paintball – Splatterzone 2008 Competition. Original competition website, archived 30 March 2009. Contains the completed round calendar, event winners, entry arrangements and safety requirements.
- Wanganui Paintball – 2008 Points. Original championship standings and scoring system, archived 1 April 2009.
- NZ Paintball Message Boards – Wanganui Speedball. Contemporary discussion beginning 25 March 2008, archived 31 March 2009.
- Wanganui Paintball – Rules. Original competition rules, archived 30 March 2009.
- Wanganui Paintball – Costs. Original competition information, archived 1 April 2009.