Operation Overnight 2013
Airsoft is a multifaceted sport and it covers many styles of play. That’s what makes the sport so great. The environment you are playing in often determines the style of Airsoft you will be playing. Fast paced close quarters battle Airsoft takes place in urban and indoor environments, whereas Green Ops style of Airsoft is played in forests and jungle environments, allowing players to use camouflage combat gear and stealth tactics.
Another style of Airsoft is Milsim. Milsim stands for military simulation. Milsim Airsoft is at the far end of the spectrum with very long games in huge areas, often whole forests kilometres long. Close quarters battle would be at the other end of the spectrum, with short games in small arenas.
Operation Overnight is one such Milsim. The event is run every year around labour weekend. This years was the fifth event. It was played in a forest in the Napier/Hastings region from 10am to 5:30pm the next day. The game never stops once you enter the field. You are always playing, whether you are attacking an enemy position a kilometre away, going on a four hour patrol to protect territory, or cooking breakfast at 4am after a 3 hour stint guarding your teams base.
This year around 40 players from all over New Zealand attended. Three of those players were from Nelson, and I was one of them. My team consisted of two players taking on the roles of commanders and 3 squads of between four and six players. Commanders do the planning and make tactical decisions for the squads. Every squad has a squad leader, and each member of the squad has a role to play. You could be a medic ‘reviving’ your squad mates when they have been hit by enemy fire, or an engineer who carries and deploys the interactive props for the game, such as ‘explosives’ and ‘mine field equipment.’ All the elements add several layers of enjoyment, from the roles players have, to the size of the game, to the constant danger from enemies raiding your base.
But Operation Overnight isn’t just about surviving the enemy attacking your base or squad while you’re out on a mission. You also have to survive, literally. This years Operation Overnight was the first to have no player suffer from hypothermia during the chilly night operations or dehydration from the extensive daytime missions. Some came close, but everyone walked out under their own steam at the end of the game.
Sleep too, becomes a truly valuable commodity. Often players have gone without sleep for the entire event so they could continue planning missions or defending their base. As the pressure builds from lack of sleep and continuous physical exertion, many players had to bow out of their duties for portions of the game to recuperate, relying on their team mates to replace them.
I went on several brilliant missions this year. My favourites were attempting to crawl into the enemies base with a fellow sniper to eliminate the enemy commander, and reconing a lake and capturing a whole enemy squad. But the part I enjoyed the most about the whole game was knowing I had done my job for my team and squad. Being a reliable team mate means a lot to me and milsim Airsoft games like this are a good way to test your skills.
The more effort you put into Milsims, the more enjoyment you get out of them. This is true of many facets of Airsoft. Operation Overnight isn’t for everyone. Despite players leaving tired, sore and sometimes defeated, they still come back year after year. And so will I.
I cant wait till next year’s game.
Zimmer, NAC.