Getting started in Airsoft might seem a daunting task, but here’s a guide to explain what you need to know. Facebook is an absolute minefield of information both good and bad, and due to the vast media content out there, it’s generally a bit distorted and edited. And there’s a lot of information scattered everywhere making it hard to find. Putting everything for the new player in one place makes it easier if you want to give it a go. Airsoft is a vast hobby with a huge amount of information out there, but in this article I’ll just go over the basics for getting your first couple of games in and give you an idea of what to expect. I’ve seen countless times the same questions cropping up again and again so hopefully this answers a lot of it.

Sites

Ok, this article will be UK focused and I know some countries do things slightly differently, but if you want to play you need to do it at an insured Airsoft Site. These are insured arenas, woodland areas, buildings, disused quarries etc that run game days for you to attend and go and shoot people. They come in all shapes and sizes and cater for lots of different play styles. For the most part, these sites can be thought of as clubs and most of them run on Sundays, when people are off work to host and attend game days. Some busier sites may run Saturday and Sunday games, and some smaller indoor ones might do a midweek evening session too. There’s a pretty comprehensive UK map at GSG Airsoft but you can always just search “airsoft sites” on Google and see what it throws up. All you need to do is turn up with some basic kit (more on that shortly) and they’ll be able to take you through a game day. Usually expect to pay between £10-£40 per game day depending on where you are, but some of the bigger events can cost a bit more especially if you’re doing a two-day event, which can cost in the region of £50-£150. But that’s for further down the line. Most sites will have a membership scheme where you pay a fee to become a member, and get cheaper game days as well as being registered on the UKARA database, which is a national database of registered players that retailers use to check you’re legit before they sell you guns. And let’s be honest, you want that.

Sites can be split into woodland, urban and CQB categories. Urban are commonly military training towns and villages, whereas CQB are more small indoor arenas to escape the weather and keep your kit nice and clean. Airsoft is many things to many players, and in time you’ll discover what you like and what you want from your weekend experience. Some go to let off steam and have a laugh after a long week, others collect kit, some are competitive.

Play Styles

We refer to the average Sunday game day as “skirmish“, and you could think of it as a fairly casual gathering of all sorts of players for some light hearted, easy games for everyone to have a bit of fun and give their kit and skills a run out. Short, perhaps hour long games with a variety of game objectives and types to suit all levels of player. Capture the flag, deathmatch, VIP targets, setting bombs, and all the stuff you might be familiar with from online gaming. This is where we all start out learning the basics before perhaps looking into more specialised events, and is the regular weekly meet for most of us.

Milsim (military simulation) is like hardcore mode, commonly spread over a full weekend, where you immerse yourself in a real life scenario and get to play soldiers as closely to the real thing as possible. Despite what you read about Milsim, it’s actually not an elitist atmosphere but the guys do take it seriously and can be seen sporting some serious(ly expensive) kit. You don’t have to, in fact you’ll usually find real military kit is cheaper than the cheap quality Airsoft replicas although there may be a need to dress up as a particular faction or unit. Expect a full weekend with overnight camping and less shooting, with more patrols and manoeuvres. You will need more kit for this, especially on the camping side of things and being able to feed and water yourself.

Battlesim is growing in popularity and is like milsim light, sitting somewhere between skirmish and milsim. It could be a skirmish game day with one long game, more detailed missions and objectives, and perhaps a loose camo requirement for each team.

Filmsim is uncommon, but a term for a simulation based on a film. See how we love that “sim” word.

Speedsoft isn’t simulation though. It’s based on Paintball and is usually played in a small inflatable arena. Fast paced, players usually wear bright gamer-type team uniforms and have kit that is set up to be as fast and efficient around the arena as possible. The guns arent realistic but are brightly coloured and have a “competition” look and feel to them. It’s about winning, and being as competitive as possible.

Your First Game Day

So, you find your way to a site and pull up in the car park. What happens next? You’ll be looking around the car park at all the other players busy finishing off their McMuffins, showing off kit or getting dressed for the day ahead. Don’t worry about all the gear, I’ll cover that in the next section. It can look intimidating and there are often a few steely gazes or hungover faces, but on site most players are very friendly and approachable, despite standing around in their little groups and teams. Don’t be afraid to say hi. This area, usually the car park, is the “safe zone“. It’s where we hang out in between games and is exactly that – a safe area without any loaded guns.

First of all, you’ll want to find the reception or office. In woodland sites, this could be a portacabin or the back of a van, in indoor sites a room near the entrance. You’ll need to pay first and fill out some waivers and details (contact numbers etc). It’ll usually be staffed by the site owner or event organiser, so go and say hi and tell them it’s your first time (they’ll usually ask anyway) and they’ll sort you out with what you need to know. Don’t take it personally if they seem a bit stressed, most site owners are trying to get a lot of people organised in a short space of time. You’ll usually be handed your rental gun and ammo and be directed to a marshal who will explain how it works. Marshals are site staff who will usually wear a high-vis jacket or vest, and come into games with you to monitor them. Do pay attention when being given instructions. DO NOT PUT THE MAG IN THE GUN OR OTHERWISE LOAD THE WEAPON unless you are at a designated shooting range or in the game. Accidental firings in safe zones can do a lot of damage to people, cars and equipment and you will get shouted at for doing it.

Normally site gates open around 8am, and the first game will start at 10am. It’s worth getting there as early as possible. The two hours seem like a long time, but it’s time used by the players to have breakfast, get dressed for the first game, put boots on, set up radios, load mags, test equipment and just get themselves sorted. It’s also social time, to catch up with people and see what new kit they have. It’s also time to perhaps visit the on site shop (99% of sites will have one because it makes money) for ammo or pyro. Pyro (pyrotechnics) is anything grenade related, think of them as fireworks so be careful with them. Not essential, but fun. Expect to pay £2-10 per grenade depending on type. More expensive isn’t more effective – as a rule anything that goes “bang” is treated in the same way for the purpose of kills. Do keep your valuables somewhere safe – bringing phones into a combat environment will end badly. Either in your car, or ask in the office. I’d like to say sites are safe places but although I’ve never had anything stolen down the years, I know people that have.

It’ll fly by and soon it’ll be time for the briefing. The briefing each day will start with vitally important health and safety, plus site rules, and then onto the details of the first game. It is important and there’s nothing worse than dickheads chattering away during it – they aren’t listening but they’re also stopping others from listening. And there’s nothing worse than getting into starting positions and someone asking “what are we meant to be doing”, because then you lose the valuable first few minutes to explain it all over again. Generally, the quickest team out of the blocks will get into the best position. As a new player, don’t worry too much – just follow everyone else and you’ll soon pick up what’s going on.

There’ll be a lunch break halfway through, do remember to check whether the site sells food though, otherwise you’ll need to bring your own food and drink. Staying hydrated is important because running around with gear on is hard work.

Honour

Airsoft is an honour game, despite some unsavoury characters. It only works if we’re all honest about getting hit, because there’s no paint or blood. When hit by a BB or grenade, shout “HIT” loudly and hold a hand up to indicate you’re dead and temporarily out of the game. If you don’t, expect to get shot some more until you do. Bear in mind that once you call a hit, there may be more BB’s in the air travelling towards you so you might get a few more. Once hit, you might then shout for a medic if game rules allow medics, or it’ll be a walk back to a respawn area just like Call of Duty, to start over. You’ll get that explained in the briefing. If you’re in a building and need to exit to respawn, or are hidden from view from other players, it’s best to shout something like “dead man” or “dead man coming out” to let opposing players outside know not to shoot you, and to expect a casualty coming towards them. Do be considerate of others playing still, try not to get in the way of the action if you can or just wait a few seconds for it to finish so you can get out of there. Don’t worry about getting shot a lot, it’s what you pay for and ultimately you’ll learn from your mistakes. It’s not worth getting stressed about. Similarly, if other players aren’t calling hit when you shoot them, don’t go shouting and swearing, just go and tell a marshal about it*. Cheaters are usually dealt with well and repeat offenders will be booted off the site – we don’t accept that sort of play. Unfortunately, some players come in thinking there’s a prize or scorecard and they need to win, but the reality is that nobody actually gives a shit and we’re all just enjoying ourselves. Play fairly, don’t try and cheat and don’t go out to deliberately hurt other players by overshooting them or deliberately aiming for places that hurt if you can.

*on the subject of non-hit taking, quite often our shots don’t go as far or as accurately as we think and so we haven’t actually scored a hit. Remember it’s a lightweight plastic ball blown by air and if it so much as clips a blade of grass, it’ll change course.

Kit

Before you even set foot on an Airsoft site for your very first game day, there are some basic kit necessities.

Now, if you’re looking online at some players they’ll be using £20,000+ of kit including night vision, top end boots, real world gadgets and super expensive underwear. Some sniper ghillies go for £26,000 and up. But that’s real world stuff that isn’t necessary. Before your wallet absolutely shits itself, I’m going to make two important statements. And this is from many years more experience than the self-styled “pro players”.

• Airsoft does not need to be expensive. You can actually get kitted out quite cheaply and effectively.
• There is absolutely no correlation between expensive kit and being a good player.

If you remember nothing else from this article, remember those two points. Believe them. Understand them.

It is usually possible to get a “rental package” for a day where the site will lend you a plastic mask usually like the one below, a gun, a magazine for the gun, and some ammo to play with. It’s an easy and cheap way to get started because you’re going to want to rent a gun anyway.

I’ve never used one, but the guys that do often tell me its hot and uncomfortable, but if you’re not sure about airsoft it does save you buying anything before you start. Although if it was me, I’d look at my own personal safety kit for about £30 which is more comfortable and will give me a better experience.

Safety is the biggest and most important thing in Airsoft. You’re going to get shot a lot with guns that will easy rip coke cans to shreds. There may be grenades going off that send bb’s or shards of crap everywhere at high speed. Does it hurt? It can, yes, although we can mitigate a lot of it. So, the first and most important thing you’ll need is EYE PROTECTION. Any time you are on that field you must have eye protection on. It should be safe to take it off in the safe zone, however I still tend to keep mine on regardless. One shot from a bb and you’ll lose an eye, it’s that simple. Do not go buying just any old set of goggles either, there needs to be a specific safety rating. We have to wear glasses or goggle that are rated for ballistic impacts. Specifically look for an EN166F rating which is suitable for even the most powerful airsoft guns, check product descriptions carefully. Surprisingly, some “Airsoft rated” glasses sold by Airsoft websites aren’t up to the task.

Eye protection is not optional. At 90% of sites, especially outdoor ones, boots are also required for insurance purposes due to uneven ground. Anything that secures the ankle will be fine, but obviously a pair of Converse All Star High aren’t going to grip muddy ground. You don’t need steel toe boots or anything super expensive for starters, but anyone with military experience will tell you how important a good pair of boots is. Any local army surplus shop will have a decent selection in.

Personally, I use Bolle brand glasses for the most part because they do safety goggles and do them well, without massive price tags. You might want glasses that seal around the eyes like swim goggles to prevent any shots sneaking through the sides (CQB arenas are tight and can have BB’s flying in from all angles). Be aware that “fogging” can be an issue, where the insides of the glasses steam up. Don’t be tempted to ever take them off to wipe them in game! There are anti-fog sprays available, or you can simply wash them in soapy water, shake the excess off, and let the soap residue dry on the lense to give it a very thin coating. Better to perhaps remove your mask and let some air flow through instead of your glasses. Take a minute out of game if you need to.

Usually that fogging is caused by breathing under face masks, which are a necessary evil. Face masks stop your teeth getting shot out, and I highly recommend getting one. The most common are lower face mesh masks rather than full head coverage, again it’s personal preference but there’s a balance between absolute coverage (not quite a suit of Medieval armour), and comfort and breathability. The mesh lowers protect the important bits. You can get this OneTigris one from Amazon, I have about 4-5 of them and they’re great. But my go-to face protection now is the Lonestar Tactical face mask, which is much lighter and more breathable and really not much more to pay. And you can make yourself look cool too. The Sierra model is my favourite for the extra protection. I’m an ambassador for Lonestar but I’m not making any commission here, they’re just damn good bits of kit.

Beyond your rental gear, it’s up to you what you wear for Airsoft and you’ll have to supply this yourself. I’d advise wearing a hat and gloves for starters. Beanies are comfortable and absorb impact well, if it’s the height of summer a cap or boonie does nicely. There aren’t any specific requirements for things beyond eye protection, but be sensible. Gloves are important because shots to the hand hurt more than anywhere else, you can get cheap tactical gloves like these for very little. A scarf, snood or Shemagh will keep things off your neck and is also handy for sweaty face wiping. More dry is more good!

That’s it for safety, but you’ll also need clothes. Because butt-naked Airsoft is a bad idea. In theory, anything will do as long as you don’t mind it getting dirty. However, neutral earthy colours like greens and browns, and obviously camo, are much better. Don’t make yourself a target. Also, consider the material of your clothing. I know skinny stuff is on trend at the moment, but anything tight to your skin is going to sting. Wear loose clothing, and stiffer fabrics will slow the bb before it impacts on your skin. Maybe not by much, but it’ll be less noticeable. Be mindful of the weather too, remember you might be outdoors all day without shelter. For your first game day, that’s really all you need, but you’ll find yourself with a tactical wardrobe pretty quickly.

Don’t be tempted to rush in and buy tons of gear straight away though; you really don’t need it. Take your time to check out other players’ kit at the site and ask questions. 99% of players are very happy to have questions about their kit and many will let you try it out. We take great pride in our loadouts and the internet gives you access to everything you could possible imagine.

As you get more into Airsoft, you may collect a loadout that is specific to your style, or playstyle, or as a reenactment kit. You’ll probably soon find yourself with lots of loadouts. My advice however is to avoid the replica Airsoft stuff. I’m not saying buy a £300 plate carrier setup (think body armour with pouches on it for your equipment), but the £50-£80 stuff is just replica gear – think toy or cosplay kit. Im not going to name names, but some websites are preying on your lack of knowledge to sell you lots of extra shit you don’t need. Far better to go looking on surplus sites, which will save you a lot of money, and get the real thing. Plate carriers look cool (to some) but you don’t need any protective padding as much as you need access to your gear and the ability to move – be light, be agile. A rig, which may be a chest rig, belt rig, vest or plate carrier, is only there to hold stuff for you until you need it.

Kit collection is a hobby in itself and the choices are vast. I have a few articles on kit anyway and a lot is personal preference, so for the sake of a getting started article, I’ll leave it there. Don’t worry about it at this stage. Just sort your protective gear about so you don’t turn up to work on Monday morning looking like you’ve been in a car crash. And your colleagues will ask what you’ve been doing, and you’ll have to say “it’s a bit like paintball” and we hate the P-word.

Guns

I’ve got to talk about the guns because it’s important and it’s the main attraction. For your first game day or two, I definitely recommend renting before you drop a few hundred on a gun. In the UK, if you’re new to Airsoft there’s legislation in place to stop us just handing ultra-realistic weapons out to just anyone who will probably go waving it around in the street. Remember this – Airsoft in the UK is always one step away from being banned. It took a huge effort to put legislation in place that allows to enjoy our hobby and own lots of cool stuff. Don’t be a dick and don’t put it at risk by being stupid with replica weapons – treat them as you would a real one and we’ll all be fine. The scheme in place is UKARA (UK Airsoft Retailers Association) which has a database of legit players. These are players who are members of an insured site and have played three games in not less than two months (to prove you’re a player and not a one-visit wonder who just wants replica guns). Then you can buy RIF’s (Realistic Imitation Firearms). If not, the retailer can sell you a “two-tone” version – the same thing but painted. at least 51% in a bright colour to show it’s not a real one. Like this;

Now, you’ll always get the idiot on Facebook who’ll tell you “jUsT sPrAy iT”, but if you get a two tone gun just put up with the colour until you’ve got your memberships sorted. Honestly, it’s not a big thing and you don’t need to desperately find a way around the laws. But it’s the stupidity of people like this that could potentially put the whole hobby at risk. Just work within the rules. If you can’t, go back to playing Fortnite.

Once you’ve done your three games though, you get a UKARA number which is a code you can put into websites that sell guns and then you can let loose like a kid in a candy store. There’s a vast selection of weapons available, far more than every Call of Duty put together, so you can find something you really like. But before we look at aesthetics, what are the different types available and what do all the numbers mean?

We can group guns into;

• Assault rifles – fully automatic guns, by far the most common choice
• SMG’s – Submachine guns, in the real world small caliber, close quarters guns.
• LMG’s – Light machine guns. The big support weapon things able to put down massive amounts of fire
• DMR’s – A semi-automatic assault rifle with slightly higher power
• Shotguns
• Pistols
• Bolt action sniper rifles
• Grenade Launchers
• Mortars
• Rocket Launchers
• Miniguns
• Bows (like a nerf bow)

And possibly variations of. It’s up to you what sort of role you want to play, but it’s important to point out (despite what players on site might argue) that apart from bolt action sniper rifles and the specialist stuff below, the reality is that all the guns above fire pretty much the same power, rate and distance; although with huge magazines the LMG can do it for longer. It’s not like the real world, so for the most part what you choose is mainly down to how you want to look and what you want to carry rather than a different playstyle or role. I know that’ll upset a lot of regulars who like to think they’ve got something special.

They can be powered by battery (Airsoft Electronic Gun or AEG), simple spring mechanics common on shotguns and sniper bolt actions, gas (unreliable in different temperatures and prone to leaking or venting of gas, but more realistic) and High Pressure Air (HPA ) which involves also having to carry an air tank which connects via a hose to the gun. Generally speaking, AEG guns are the easiest and most common option.

The numbers, Mason…

In the UK, we have legal power limits set out in law. Most sites will operate their own limits which are a fraction under that to allow a margin of error. Over the legal limits, and you’re in possession of a section 5 firearm and you can score some jail time. So, the legal limits for Airsoft guns in the UK are measured in either Feet Per Second (FPS) which is the most commonly used, or more correctly in Joules (measurement of energy). BB’s come in different weights, and heavier ones travel slower but further and have more energy, but for simplicity we usually measure FPS using lightweight 0.20 gram bb’s.

Legal limits (these aren’t negotiable, absolute maximum)

• Fully automatic weapons 374fps (1.14 joules)
• Semi automatic weapons 518fps (2.5 joules)

Although it varies slightly from site to site, the general limits on site are;

• Fully Automatic airsoft guns 350 fps (1.14 Joules)
• Semi-automatic airsoft guns (one bb per trigger pull) 400 fps (1.88 Joules)
• Bolt action airsoft guns (sniper rifles, manually loading each shot) 500 fps (2.32 Joules)

Sometimes while shopping you might notice imported guns are a little higher if that country has higher limits than the UK. That’s no excuse though, you will have to bring the power down yourself to within the limits. Sites will measure your guns on a chronograph to check, and “hot” or high power guns that breach limits cannot be used.

It’s possible to upgrade and downgrade guns to your hearts content, both internally and externally. Externals can add functionality but aren’t necessary, internals can be heavily tuned either by a gun tech or yourself to change characteristics of the gun. Most commonly, players will look to increase rate of fire to help compensate for low shooting skills, by emptying a whole magazine in a couple of seconds so they can do more reloads, or upgrades to range and accuracy. Every upgrade carries a risk of decreasing reliability or parts failure though, so when starting out if your gun works, it’s better to just leave it be. Ultimately though, our toy guns when subjected to rain, lots of movement, being dropped of roofs (yes I did that once), and general use will develop faults and they’ll need repaired to keep them running. Thankfully, everything is fixable although cost will vary.

When you’re shopping, price is usually an indicator of external quality rather than performance – some budget guns may be plastic but far outperform the more expensive platforms. Also plastic is lighter and more able to take abuse, as the metals used in Airsoft are cheap pot metal alloys that have a tendency to crack.

I’ve seen a few airsoft websites that rank guns into “beginner”, “intermediate” and “pro” guns. Ignore that crap, there’s no difference at all in pointing a gun and pulling a trigger. The magazine release is no different, they’re not more difficult to feed or look after, and pro guns don’t require a training course to use. It’s just marketing to make you want to spend more to get a “better” gun.

Just like cars though, there are brands that make good guns and brands that make really bad guns. It’s not indicated by price or anything. My top picks would be ASG, CYMA, G&G, G&P (not related) and Tokyo Marui, who are the creators of airsoft and every gun they build is damn near perfect. You tend to pay a little more for Marui but they’re by no means the most expensive. Worth noting they’re designed for Japanese power limits which are lower than the UK, and most Marui guns are polymer not metal, but they perform better than any others.

In addition to the gun, remember to budget also for;

• Magazines
• Power (battery, battery charger, gas)
• Speedloader – to put BB’s in mags. Doing it by hand isn’t fun or efficient.
• A case. The case protects your gun and carries the accessories, but also that gun should never be seen in public. Site is ok, inside your house is ok. Everywhere in between, keep it covered. People get upset quickly and the Police don’t mess about responding to gun incidents. Also, you get that “guys, check this out” moment as you unzip your latest creation or purchase in the safe zone…

Skills

Skills you obviously develop in time. Most real steel tactics videos you see online don’t really work for Airsoft because the dynamics are different. We are our own thing.

But if I were to give a few basic tips for getting started…

• A new player can be just as effective as an experienced one.
• It’s fought with guns but not with guns. All guns being equal, it’s about your movement and positioning rather than your shooting. Shooting is the easy bit. It’s about thinking your way around the site to the objective.
• Slow is smooth and smooth is fast.
• Reload when you can, not when the mag is completely empty. Keep topped up.
• Don’t fear getting hit. Push forward, don’t sit and wait for the game to come to you. Worst that can happen is you go back and start again. You’re not actually going to die.
• Try and have a look around for threats before you go running out in the open.
• Don’t poke your gun around corners. Take a step back so they don’t see you coming, and “pie” it: sidestep slowly around the corner.
• Don’t stand too close to doors and windows – they’ll see the gun barrel.
• Communicate with your team. They’ll appreciate it. Don’t give orders though, they won’t appreciate that.
• Try not to stick your head above things – look around the side.
• Look with your gun, that way the barrel will be pointing at enemy players as soon as you see them.
• Noise gives players away. It gives you away too.
• If you need to do something, use the hand that isn’t on the trigger of the gun. Keep it held by the trigger just in case.
• Shoot first, ask questions later. Not sure if they’re hit or dead (no hand up), friend or foe? Just shoot.
• Don’t suppress with full auto fire – it burns through ammo and achieves next to nothing.
• Don’t be afraid to ask questions.
• Don’t be a dick – we call it the first rule of Airsoft.

I hope that’s enough to get you through your first few game days. Of course, if you need any more info just reply to this post or, get hold of me on social media, or drop an email. More than happy to help or at least point you in the right direction.

For Olivia. You asked, here’s the answer. Good luck!