Equipment gets tried and tested in the cauldron of playing. With being back on the field now much more regularly, documenting my kit journey and the lessons learned after each event should be something I get better at.
To that end, I've reviewed a bunch of changes to my kit and made a note of anything else I need to change going forward. The 130FPS rig is pretty mature at this stage and I'm very happy with it over all. There are minor niggles and changes that ought to be done but it's tweaking, nothing fundamental needs to be changed.
Tempus Blaster:
This thing continues to be a frustration. I got it on field this morning at the start of the event and rapidly realised that darts were fishtailing out the front and generally being difficult to keep on track. I swapped back to the Gryphon for the rest of the day but it's an aging platform that's wobbly and in need of it's own refreshment and upgrade. I pretty much concluded that I suck at building blasters and should stick to tactical gear. I'll see what I want to do with this. I might send it to someone to fix it or I'll take a period of time to properly work on it. Frankly, the former is more likely.
40MAX Shells
This was my first time trialling these in anger. For those not in the loop, they're compressed gas canisters that use Green Gas to propel darts from a blaster when it's actuated. I fire these from my Mayday Mk2. The test two shells I have here are for firing two MEGA darts (great for shield busting) or 10 half darts in a scatter shot which is great as a secondary in HvZ. The printed parts are from files created by Old Fusion Designs and screwed into the canisters. They go off with an almight crack or pop and spread foam down stream. You need to charge them between each shot so they're not the most efficient things but they're great as secondary options. Dual MEGA for shield busting and I'm investigating MEGA XL or Demolisher rocket for even more shield busting. I need to consider the mix of shells I want going forward since I've got 5 canisters to hand (and one lost to Royal Mail). I also need to modify the Skirmish Belt pouch for these since they're far too small and I can only carry them securely on my main vest.
OTG Eye Protection
I've relied on my spectacles for eye protection at 130FPS but the recent prospect of a high energy CQB game caused me to look at further options. I've looked around and OTG specs that sit over my main frames seem like the best option. With wrap around cover and no need to look into bespoke lenses, they're less likely to fog up, too. I wanted shooter yellow because it's easier on the eyes and reduces glare much better when you're out in the sunshine. These are a pair of DEX FIT OTG Safety glasses that I got from eBay. They're rated to the usual EN!66 which should allow them to dissipate any incoming eye shots and protect the expensive frames underneath. Thanks to Sam for the nod in this particular direciton. They didn't steam up today despite the rain and I'm pretty happy with the clear visual field they offer.
Hat!
Sun and sweat and whatnot mean that a hat is a good idea in any weather. I use a DPM boonie when I'm in my high FPS field kit but a field cap is a much better option for something like a low FPS game. I added some extra velcro to the front for a patch. My modern BritNerf patch seemed like a pretty good choice for front and centre. This is a cheapy Beechfield field cap off eBay but it's cotton so light weight and keeps sweat out, hair in and sun off my head.
Mayday Mk2 Holster
The Mayday Mk2 holster needs a slight adjustment in the form of a muzzle strap. I was finding it with was working it's way down deeper into the holster which opens the latch making it tricky to draw. A muzzle strap will support it in place and prevent that up/down movement. I might also consider half dropping it so that it's easier to grab when wearing the full over vest.
And finally a train related photo. Two GWR Class 802s wait beneath the Brunel designed ironwork at Paddington.
Small iterative changes ahead of the next game continue. I noted in my original specification that I'd need an auxiliary pouch on my vest. Given the need to carry spare spare gas for my Mayday, spare ring caps and other bits then having a standard small zip dump pouch to cover the last bit of black patching under the arm.
You can see in the background of that photo that I've started to populate the Velcro of my water bladder. The one of the best bits of this design is filling up the space with the various morale patches sourced from around the community.
Linen strap sheaths:
I picked up some linen for my new shemagh in royal blue and figured I'd use the off cuts to break up the black up even more. They're just a simple tube of linen with the straps threaded through and tucked into the ends. The additional thing about linen is that it'll be softer on my neck skin.
I've got a blue field cap en route that I'll add some Velcro to so that I can put some patches on that, too. The main thing with a hat will be to keep the sun off and my hair under control. Other next steps for the 130 rig will be looking at communications. Otherwise, I'm starting to mull porting the lessons learned on this rig over into my high energy DPM load out.
Oh and I need to get the Tempus field ready again but we don't actually need blasters to play this game, right? :D
I noted after my initial deployment of the Mayday Mk2 holster that it had a nasty habit of releasing the latch on the blaster preventing drawing or allowing the hinged muzzle to flap about.
I essentially just removed the sloped material at the spine of the holster and accidentally made it ambidextrous. The grip on the blaster is now essentially entirely on the muzzle of the blaster itself. There's precedent for that in other holsters so I'm not overly concerned about retention.
The trigger guard then also provides a very handy depth limiter to prevent over insertion and the blaster falling through. The muzzle shape doesn't make the return the smoothest but if you're trying to return this that rapidly then you've gone and goofed. Remember, the Mayday Mk2 fills a specific role for me: either as a shield busting system or a last ditch hold out scatter shot. Neither situation means return speed and transition back to primary.
I'll go back and review my specification post and see what's next. The next game I'll be at will be Bristol Blast on 20th July at Wigton Crescent. It's the last guaranteed game I can attend due to starting the full time post in August so I'll be sure to make the most of the day.
I might have mentioned in one of my after action reports that having the correct equipment for the environment you find yourself playing is essential. I'm not sure I ever actually posted that report but I do remember distinctly being in field and remarking on the necessity of grenades for breaking stalemates in enclosed spaces. Bristol Blast and Games of Foam have grenade rules that see these snap powered grenades clearing rooms if they go off. Of course, that means I need a means of carrying these. Fancy Impact Blaster did a wonderful job of putting my logo on the top of these.
The pouch also includes a slot for my phone and some pens as needed. There's also a slot pocket for maps and other documents as needed. It's a simple MOLLE mounted panel otherwise.
The orange and blue are slowly taking over the black of the base vest which is nice. I'll probably source a metre of orange linen in order to replace my black shemagh. There's a good chance then I'll be able to use the left over to make some linen wraps for the shoulder straps to cover them over. In terms of the remaining coverage, there's a small amount of black in the lower right region that I might co-opt for communications equipment. Bristol Blast doesn't typically need radios, the sites can be co-ordinated using runners. That being said, future proofing the rig and giving me the option is certainly something to think about.
I realised after putting my Bristol Blast May/June review that I hadn't actually remembered to post about the hardware I've acquired for the 130FPS load out.
I'd shared this on Instagram but forgot about putting it up here. We have a Tempus blaster as a primary with snap grenades and the May Day Mk2 that uses the 40MAX shells to fire a variety of ammunition. I've got dual MEGA and half dart scatter shot shells for use.
The Impact Grenades use cap gun charges to set off a bang. The folks over at Fancy Impact Blasters were able to pop the BoffTac logo into the caps so I can identify who the grenades belong to after I've thrown them.
I've been managing to get to Bristol Blast the last couple of months and testing out my 130FPS equipment load. I moved to London a number of years ago and being able to get back to my spiritual home and one of the UK's Nerfing back bones is fantastic.
Choo! Choo! We're a train blog now!
Now, Bristol Blast is a 130 FPS event run in a pair of chapels in Bristol, UK. Playing in the chapel and its grounds means you've got both corridor and open spaces to play in creating a mixed play environment. You have effective shield rules which see Demolisher Rockets and MEGA ammo have special roles but no snap grenades or pyrotechnics. There's a range of player ages and abilities and it really is a great entry point for players entering the UK scene.
Being back in the field, I was reminded of something I learned during my Master's degree: it's possible to forget stuff and sometimes you forget what you knew in the first place. This was the case with a few lessons that I rapidly relearned. At the top of the list being that Humans vs Zombies rounds require light, mobile play and that the vest isn't the kit for that. To that end, the skirmish belt with its four magazines and dump pouch are essential. I also plan to remove my water bottle from the skirmish belt and leave the hydration bladder solely on my vest in order to allow the belt to be as light as possible.
The holster I built for the MayDay Mk2 needs rebuilding as it has the nasty habit of the latch opening and spilling the shell from the blaster when drawing. I've got a few ideas on how to fix that. The shell holders themselves work fine but need relocating and I think a Demo Rocket shell or two might be in order rather than the scatter shot half dart shells I've got at the moment. Better that way around to give me shield busting capability. I've not had tactical situations where the scatter shot is more useful than portable shield busting.
The skirmish belt design itself is working out really well. The only draw back is the inclusion of hook tape on the inside of the panel to affix it to my duty belt which I modified to add loop tape to. The abrasiveness of the hook tape has damaged some of the orange edging tape around the edge of the belt. I think I'll either need to remove it or add some blanking tape for transport.
I initially wanted to run the Talon holder inverted but found I was dropping magazines during HvZ games when running at pace. Inverted was fine in human vs human games where I was rarely running but outright sprinting proved too much for the elastic retention. Upright, it's working fine and I've found a position where the mags don't argue with the vest too much when they're in place there.
The zip dump pouch works fine, I just need to add more patches to it in the same way as the hydration bladder because patches are cool!
Blasters:
The Tempus I debuted at Bristol Blast in May while the Gryphon served in June. The Tempus was on its debut outing and I rapidly ran into trouble with the trigger cluster. I hadn't accounted for thermal expansion and as the afternoon worn on, there wasn't enough tolerance in the moving parts and it began to stick. Follow up shots became maybe and given that most of my in field shots are two shot bursts with correction after the first shot, that is a problem. I took it home and stripped it down. Real life got in the way (Oh boy did it get in the way in short order) and I wasn't able to get everything together in time for Bristol Blast in June. To that end, I pulled my Gryphon off the wall, stuck a LiPo in it and ran it.
The problem with the Gryphon is that it has been in service a long time and is well over due for an overhaul/replacement. This thing has gotten a serious beating in its life and was built in a time before a lot of modern build standards and design. The stock point and muzzle block were screwed into plastic and the screws stripped over time finally failing during the event. I managed to tape things back together as seen above. There was just enough thread left in the flywheel cage to keep it attached but it needed constant tightening. The photo below also shows the residual damage from the time things fell off the wall and the blaster took the entire arsenal falling down on top of it.
Now, I don't have my own printer anymore since I prefer to let other folks do the tricky bit for me. Additionally, the rest of the plastic is sound so I'd rather keep it if I can. The use of heat set inserts would be perfect in this case since the holes are already piloted and I can just pop the inserts straight in for a tighter bond.
With these a little bit of thread lock, it should prevent a repeat of the failure.
The problem is equally visible at the back end. This can be partially fixed by the use of heat set inserts but in the long run that back piece of plastic is going to need to be replaced entirely.
All buttoned up and ready to run again. Working on both blasters side by side has taught me the value of soft factors in blasters. I mentioned above about forgetting things, well this another of those things. Sure, the numbers don't always mean things are the best and my preference for the Tempus over the Gryphon is the feel in hand which is a soft factor in itself. However, the Tempus is much, much less servicable than the Gryphon. I was able to remove the forward block of the Gryphon and repair the stock in less than hour with just a few screws. Configuring the Tempus' trigger group has involved entire disassembly of the blaster almost down to basic components. Side by side, the Gryphon is less robust and feels much lighter in hand which is not what I want from a primary blaster. However, if the Tempus proves to be less servicable once it's set up then it might just be out competed by it's svelter predecessor.
Future thoughts:
I don't have a compelling case for a 130FPS blaster in blacked out colours now that Green Cloaks has imploded. Any close quarters work done at high FPS games where I'd be using the DPM colour way can be completed by whatever secondary/sidearm that I opt for in that use case. To that end, the future for the Gryphon might be a reprint in blue/orange and reusing the existing hardware.
In terms of tactical gear, the changes I noted about the May Day holster need to be made. I also need to get some 40MAX shells reordered since my last lot when missing in the post. I still need an effective way to carry my snap grenades but obviously while I'm at Bristol Blast that's less of a priority given the lack of rules for them. It'll probably fold into an general admin pouch for myself anyway so I guess I'll revisit the spec I put together for it and go from there. Otherwise, I need some sort of field cap to keep my hair out of my face. That or a bandana.
I'll hopefully be headed for Bristol Blast on 20th July. I'm in the process of moving house and starting the new job so hopefully I can capitalise on life being more flexible until then. Once I start in August, it might be a little trickier to attend things. I've sorely missed classic 130FPS Nerf in the wonderful spaces that we get to play here in the UK.
Until next time, here's a Class 220 sitting at Bristol Parkway...
Has it been over 2 months since the last post? Yikes... I've not been keeping up with things. I should probably write up Bristol Blast and Caves bceause there's a lot to cover there in terms of gear and other bits. However, before I get to that I promised a good friend I'd throw together some thoughts in response to their podcast. The wonderful Archer has started their Fast Track'd podcast talking about all things Nerf foam hobby related. This episode, which you can see below, talks about medical cover within events and how we can keep ourselves safe.
So I'll answer the first question first: who am I? And why do I get to have an opinion? I'm a (fairly recently) qualified UK paramedic which makes me an Advanced Life Support responder that carries both a bachelor's and master's degree in healthcare related fields as well as multiple years in hospitals in various healthcare and nursing support roles. I've got the full gamut of assessment skills that come with the day job as well as a good chunk of experience dealing with illness, injury and everything in between. I can chuck drugs at you (legally) and have the authority to carry and adminster some medicines not available to the public without the need for a doctor's oversight. I also have medical liability insurance baked into my professional body membership for any volunteer work I do. That said, without my big yellow van and my drugs I'm mostly a very over qualified first aider. It will become very clear why that sentence is important over the course of this post.
Quick note on terminology
I will avoid using the term medics in this post and instead will use the term first aider to refer to non-registered healthcare providers offering their services at events. The reason for that is two part. First, medics is the shorthand we use at work for paramedics. In the UK that is a legally protected title that creates a specific set of legal duties of care and requires us to carry specific insurance when we are practicing to protect ourselves, our patients and the public. The second is to keep in mind the role that these volunteers are filling: that of a first responder dealing with low acuity injury and anything else needs to be escalated to those of us with the training and experience to manage it.
UK Context
For a quick context reminder, the UK has the National Health Service (NHS) where all healthcare is free at the point of delivery (well, for now, the Tories are doing their best to scupper it). That changes the dynamics since it's free to call an ambulance or stumble into a minor injury unit. The assumption in the podcast is that volunteer embedded first aiders patch folks up to allow them to keep playing. That's a powerful motivator to manage things on site but health insurance being a requirement in the US for care is probably a key difference worth noting.
UK Legal Framework - Organisers Edition
So event organisers here in the UK have a duty of care to reasonably ensure the safety of their attendees and that can be fulfilled with risk assessments and generally paying mind to the risk of injury and ensuring safety. We also require event insurance for most things that will cover liability up to a certain point. Insurance needs risk assessment and mitigation to be valid. Player on player injury isn't usually covered in the insurance since it's beholden to the player to act reasonably. However, if the injury arises from the failure of the organiser to take due safeguards then that's when claims arise. Interestingly, there isn't a set number of first aiders or other cover needed for specific events. Organisers just need to create a system that any reasonable person would consider safe. The courts have lots of opinions on what consitutes reasonable so when we get to larger events, event medical companies sell their services because they've taken the time to go into all that and do their thing.UK Game Organisers (GOs) are welcome to reach out to me if they need advice on medical cover for events.
UK Legal Framework - Responders edition
For most volunteer first aiders, the main thing you need to remember is your own scope of practice. If you've been trained to a thing, you can do a thing provided you're able to do it to a reasonable standard that your instructor would agree is reasonable. If you saw it on telly and try it, you're a mug and the courts will take a dim view of it. You have a duty of care to the person you're attending so if you fuck it up, you're liable.
When the courts consider things going wrong, they hold you to the standard of the training you say you've had. That can cause some hesitancy for us medical professionals to step forward to volunteer because we're expected to operate reasonably within our day job's level of professional competance but we don't have our gear, we don't have our systems of governance or the back up we get from operating within an institution. It doesn't mean we won't pitch in but it does mean that we have to be mindful of those factors.
Medicines
The podcast made an interesting point that I think bears expanding here. One of the folks mentioned about carrying aspirin and paracetamol (well, he called it Tylenol but we'll forgive him). Here in the UK, there's a common misconception that you can't give meds as a first aider. You absolutely bloody can give folks two categories of medication. First, their own prescribed oral medications. If it's got their name on it and it's been prescribed by a doctor for them and they're awake and able to swallow, you can give them their own meds (injectibles are a little different so please don't). Second, any over the counter medications you can buy without a prescription. Someone is in pain? Chuck 'em some paracetamol! Low blood sugar? Suck on a glucogel! Hayfever? Cetirizine down the hatch! Obviously, read the back of the box, make sure it's in date and follow the instructions accordingly. It also pays to ask if they've ever been allergic to the medicine before you give it to them. If you ever wanted brownie points from an ambulance crew or triage nurse, you can score them easily with self-administered pain relief and a good effort at self care.
Knowing when you need help
The biggest, biggest point I would take away from all this discussion is that game organisers for larger games need to have a serious discussion about the trigger points for calling an ambulance or (ideally) evacuating the player from the field and taking them to hospital yourselves. They need to sit down with their first aiders and agree that this is what we can deal with, anything else we call for help. Having set an effective ceiling on the scope of practice of in-field first aiders will often make them feel more comfortable knowing the bounds of their practice. It also sets an expectation in players that they can expect a certain level of care from their first aid team.
Then break the rest up into "Can the patient walk or be helped to the car to be taken to hospital?" and "Hmm... Maybe we should call for help on this one". The latter category is basically anything where the patient isn't awake, isn't breathing or doesn't have a pulse. Most bleeding you can pack out and put them in a car, you'll get them to help faster. If you call for help then you are at the mercy of response times which in the NHS vary wildly right now. Don't get me wrong, making the call between staying and moving the casualty is tough but if you've got a car and bodies to help and you can't deal on site then moving isn't necessarily a bad thing. The A&E triage nurses would prefer you brought them a warm, slightly bloody patient fresh out the car rather than a cold, very bloody patient in the back of an ambulance because you had to wait around out in the elements for a big yellow taxi while the patient leaks everywhere.
That being said, there is one very, very, very big caveat about having awake patients move. If they have fallen from a height of more than 1.5m (excluding their standing height) or is at any point presenting with pain in their necks after a traumatic injury or has had anything fall on their head from a height then do not move them and encourage them to minimise movement. Seek help and talk to the 999 call operator for advice.
What to do when you've do called for help
This section comes from my professional experience and frustrations of dodgy security companies trying to guide us to jobs on sites and making my life harder. Essentially, if you call for help and an ambulance is dispatched then please have two people at the gate to meet them. The first leads the attending resource to the injured party while the second stays on the gate for any further resources and marhsals them down. First person once they've dropped the crew off at the patient asks them if there are any further resources en route and goes back to the gate to await the next resource (or to tell person two that there's no one else coming). Either they'll meet it en route or they'll get to the gate where they can repeat the process. In the most serious cases, you'll be expecting an ambulance and a response car so please keep someone around to meet that second resource. If you start expecting helicopters to start landing then please don't ask me how to handle that, the police deal with it in my day job.
Next keep hold of the person who witnessed the event that seems the most reliable and keep them nearby then designate one First Aider to stay with the casualty and liaise with the crew. Clear everyone else out of the way. If your site is big enough, you can move play away. Do not crowd the injured party. They're having a bad enough day as it is.
The folks on the podcast made a great point about radios. We use them in the day job for a reason: it's push button and talk. No faffing with dialling numbers, just ask for help and give location. If your event is big enough and doesn't have line of sight with more than 10m walk between spots then seriously consider investing in some radios.
The wound sterilisation myth
Another thing that popped up in the podcast is the notion that you need wound sterilisation fluid to wash out wounds. Plain old bottled or clean tap water will do. If you can safely drink it, you can wash a wound out with it. Make sure it's a gentle flow so you don't force stuff deeper into a wound. Most superficial abrasions can then be patted dry with a clean towel (don't use tissue) and only need covering if they're going to be exposed to dirt regularly. Being too keen with dressings and plasters risks more infection since you're locking potential bugs into a warm, damp and dark environment that is really good for them to grow.
Skill fade is real
Skill fade refers to the fact that skills that don't get used, fade with time. Always bear that in mind and if you are taking courses, you need to refresh them every so often. If you've not used those skills before and you're not sure, defer to the lowest risk and ask for help. The only legal requirement in the UK for bystanders is to call for help. I could talk about bandwidth and mental load all day but skill fade and knowing your limits are the most important bits.
The power of self care
Finally, I'll make a quick note about the power of self care. Each of us is a playing adult with the capacity to make decisions and as such we all bear a level of responsibility for our own health and wellbeing. Sure, there are incidents where you lose that capacity to self treat (see concussions etc). However, a small pack of plasters, a sweet snack, some water and a pack of painkillers doesn't take much space in a pouch in your bag or on your person. I'd argue everyone should carry that as a bare minimum with the expectation to self treat as far as possible. Even if you do an oopsie and have a bit of a meltdown, someone can just go through your bag and find something to help you. If everyone does that then it's just a case of grabbing your stuff from your pouch and helping someone out.
Oh and yeah, if you've got an inhaler then please carry it with you! Salbutamol won't teleport itself into your lungs!
