Water Warfare Scoring Method Rules .:

By: iSoaker.com

Special Thanks to C-A_99, DX, martianshark, SEAL, and TacticalTyphoon for ideas and input

This page outlines a number of ways used for scoring/determine hits during a water war. The optimal system for a group to use depends on the group's size, level of trust, and available resources.

Scoring Methods

1. Honor-Based - Any Notable/Visible Hit (based on sight)
2. Honor-Based - Any Notable Hit (based on feel)
3. Honor-Based - Palm-sized / Fist-sized Mark
4. Honor-Based - Semi-Quantitative Hit / Substantialization Method System
5. Honor-Based - Complete Saturation / Drenched / Soaked System
6. Honor-Based - Vital Hit / Critical Point / Weak Spot System
7. Tag Device - Pinned Target(s) / Tag(s) (i.e. toilet paper/napkins / folded paper towel)
8. Tag Device - Gridded Shirt
9. Tag Device - Electronic Target(s)
10. Tag Device - Fill Device

Honor-Based - Any Notable/Visible Hit (based on sight)

Details: Players hit with any noticeable amount of water beyond mist are considered hit (even a mark from a single droplet of water would count).
Recommended for: Groups where all players are generally cooperative and mature.
Pros: Simple system; does not require any additional materials
Cons: May be subjective leading to disputes over validity of a hit; trailing streams/mist/stray droplets striking a Player technically count as hits, then lessening the value of true aiming versus wild shooting

Honor-Based - Any Notable Hit (based on feel)

Details: Players hit with any noticeable amount of water (based on feel) are considered hit; usually a single drop would not count, but any definite stream impact, particularly on exposed skin, would could as a hit
Recommended for: Groups where all players are generally cooperative and mature.
Pros: Simple system; does not require any additional materials
Cons: May be subjective leading to disputes over validity of a hit; trailing streams/mist/stray droplets striking a Player may technically count as hits, then lessening the value of true aiming versus wild shooting; more difficult to verify, particularly if a Player is already wet from a previous game

Honor-Based - Palm-sized / Fist-sized Mark

Details: Players hit with blast of water creating a splotch approximately the size of the average player's fist (usually around 3-4" in diameter) are considered hit.
Recommended for: Groups where all players are generally cooperative and mature.
Pros: Relatively simple system to use; thin trailing streams and stray drops no longer count as a hit, thus increasing the importance of good aim; does not require any additional materials
Cons: May be subjective if a Player is hit with an intermediate-sized splotch; Players' fist sizes may vary

Honor-Based - Semi-Quantitative Hit / Substantialization Method System

Details: Players hit with approximately 20 droplets or more (at a time) are considered hit. Players hit with noticeable amounts less than that are half hit, that is, 2 of such hits will result in a full hit.
Recommended for: Groups where all players are generally cooperative and mature.
Pros: No target checks nor referees needed; water blaster shots are almost always distinctive between actual/substantial hits and glancing hits; requires no additional materials
Cons: Demands honor and quick reaction. Poor players may fire back even after they detect they are hit, no matter how obvious it is (This is a very common problem with some players and is disruptive to smooth gameplay) which may often result in disputes. Disputes may also occur if two players shoot simultaneously and both are hit.

Honor-Based - Complete Saturation / Drenched / Soaked System

Details: Players must be completely drenched (no notable dry spot left or >90% wet) to be considered hit / eliminated
Recommended for: Small groups where all players are generally cooperative and mature.
Pros: No target checks nor referees needed; Players have plenty of "life" points; water blaster power taken into account (since larger streams do more "damage" and can more quickly eliminate a Player compared to smaller streams)
Cons: Demands honor and willingness for a Player to concede they have been completely soaked. Even a small patch of dryness would allow a Player to continue to play even if otherwise basically fully drenched (the limited tagging area problem)

Honor-Based - Vital Hit / Critical Point / Weak Spot System

Details: Uses a method similar to Semi-Quantitative Hit / Substantialization Method System (see above), but a hit only counts on particular Vital points on a Player (typically the torso and sometimes head if headshots are being permitted). Streams impacting on non-Vital points are not counted as hits.
Recommended for: Groups where all players are generally cooperative and mature.
Pros: No target checks nor referees needed; Players have plenty of "life" points; water blaster power taken into account (since larger streams more likely to impact Vital areas on a Player compared to smaller streams)
Cons: Demands honor and willingness for a Player to concede they have been hit on a critical area. Streams can be blocked by a Player's arms / legs

Tag Device - Pinned Target(s) / Tag(s) (i.e. toilet paper/napkins / folded paper towel)

Details: A target area (roughly 4” x 4” in size) is pinned via clothespin or other device to all players. Targets can be on both arms/shoulders with one in the back (or on backpack) and one on the front. Rules on blocking are up to debate. Players should avoid physical contact which may affect their own targets or as a means to attack others' targets.
Recommended for: Large groups where honor/experience is questionable at best, but a hit-based game is still desired.
Pros: Mostly objective and a fairly simple system that is easy to understand. Less dependent on honor system compared to other methods.
Cons: Requires additional equipment (i.e. targets and pins). Target system makes it more difficult to decide the players who are first eliminated; referee may be needed.  How much of the target needs to be hit should be decided before play.  This system also severely limits where players can tag another for the point (typically only a rather small area available for tagging that might be easily covered/blocked)

Option: Players who want a "healing" system may distribute muiltiple targets to everyone so they may switch out damaged targets (or "heal") while playing. Anyone who is hit at all while switching targets is out.

Tag Device - Gridded Shirt

Details: All players wear a special, consistent-design shirt or T-shirt with grids on them. A certain defined number of full squares must be soaked to eliminate a player.
Recommended for: Large hardcore groups.
Pros: Simple, mostly objective, and concise.
Cons: Requires specialized shirts. Limits where players can be hit. Will not work for those wearing backpacks (or back must be unused/ungridded) May require referees.

Tag Device - Electronic Target(s)

Details: All players wear a special device that lights up and/or makes sound when struck with water
Recommended for: Large groups where cheating may be a problem
Pros: Mostly objective with fairly obvious signal when a Player has been hit
Cons: Requires specialized electronic devices (not easily found / costs money); tag devices should be tested that they do not accidentally get activated by sweat and/or accidental touching; scoring system does not typically take into account the differences in water blaster power; however, if cheating is a big problem, this method does not absolutely solve it, particularly since a cheater may find a way to disable their tag (of course, this can be verified by a Game Official if there is a dispute)

Tag Device - Fill Device

Details: All players wear a special device that collects water that impacts on key areas
Recommended for: Large hardcore groups.
Pros:A "truer" means of scoring a water war since aim and blaster power are both taken into account by these devices
Cons: Requires specialized clothing / vests that capture water that impacts on Players; poorly design units may leak/spill, voiding the validity of the fill/soak gauge; limits areas that can be targetted (water must enter and be collected by the device to count towards the hit)

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| Posted: 2010