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American Milsim is a company that organizes and hosts military simulation (mil-sim) events in the United States. These events are designed to provide participants with a realistic military experience, including tactics, equipment, and scenarios that are based on real-life military situations.
Participants in American Milsim events are typically airsoft players, but the events also attract military and law enforcement personnel who are interested in honing their tactical skills. The events can range from small-scale skirmishes to large-scale operations that involve hundreds of participants.
American Milsim is known for its attention to detail and realism, with events featuring authentic military equipment and vehicles, realistic uniforms and gear, and strict rules of engagement. The company also places a strong emphasis on safety, with participants required to wear appropriate protective gear and adhere to strict safety protocols.
Overall, American Milsim provides a unique and challenging experience for those who are interested in mil-sim and military-style training.
This post is about American Milsim (AMS) events, they are one of the most well known event producers in the country. They have an excellent reputation for organization and structure. In addition, their staff are passionate and polite, which makes all the difference in the world. Plus, the owner, Bo is a veteran and loves the community, we always snap a picture with him when we get the chance.
However, some things at these events need to change in order for us to dedicate more time to them. Unlimited ammo and Forward Operating Bases (FOB) are the two main topics I am talking about.
First, let me start off by saying these events have an excellent reputation for a reason; they are well organized. In a world where everyone is an event producer, the producer that can coordinate and organize people wins. AMS does this extremely well, they give timelines and they stick to them, resulting in the events actually starting on time. In addition, they have several chrono lines and sign in booths that keep the lines moving.
For Organization, American Milsim gets a 5.
At all their lines and booths they have dedicated staff that are very friendly and polite. They are knowledgeable when it comes to High Pressured Air (HPA) setups and how to tournament lock them. Just like in any industry, if you have friendly knowledgeable staff, it makes people want to come back to the event. Even when me and my colleague arrived late to Iron Horse 5, Bo still made sure we were taken care of.
For Crowd, American Milsim gets a 5.
His staff got us chrono graphed and gave us a safety brief within 20 minutes of the event starting. "Austin, why were you late?", funny you should ask! Our flight got cancelled and we were forced to either bail out or get a rental and drive down. It took us 14 hours to drive halfway across the country, but we made it in at 0600. The Event started at 1100. Needless to say, we got a few hours of sleep and decided to be a little late. That's dedication if you ask me!
For Gameplay American Milsim gets a 3.
Upon getting onto the field our team was backed up against the wall. We had nowhere to go and every time we stepped foot out of our FOB we got gunned down instantly. It was painful. In addition, every time our squad got annihilated, we had to make the long hard walk back to the FOB. This nearly drained everyone of their energy and resources (food & water). We became hopelessly stuck in a cycle of monotony; walk, die, walk back to FOB, walk, die, walk back to FOB. We saw hoards of people leaving our team with their wagons and 6 backpacks; they clearly did not expect a fight. Luckily for everyone in our squad, I like being the underdog. Being on the winning team is boring. No challenge, no sacrifice. We fought on from dusk till dawn.
We pushed and pushed and pushed! Building after building, one room at a time and still, no progress. I would look behind me in the streets after I coordinated a large movement with our squad and another squad, only to see bodies everywhere. We would then make our long walk back to our FOB, sometimes miles. This is my first issue with these events. They have to update the FOB situation. Mobile respawn points are in and FOB's are out! Nobody wants to walk a mile or two back to their FOB after doing all the work they just did to get to a position. Not to mention, most people (especially those out of shape) will quit after making a hike like that. You loose at least 50-75 players just from exhaustion. Most players don't even go back out into combat after 2-3 runs to the front line. This system is outdated. Lets look at some alternatives: Milsim West and Gun Gamers.
Milsim West has the perfect setup. No respawn point. No FOB. They utilize a Causality Collection Point (CCP). This is extremely realistic to real combat. CCP's are held slightly to the rear to organize dead and wounded soldiers for evacuation by helicopter. It is constantly changing, can be moved, and is never in the same spot. This is the way. When I do a big movement to flank an enemy position, I might have to walk a bit back to the CCP, but its nothing like walking back to a FOB.
This picture is from my first YouTube video: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=2eP-w3_jU7g&t=1014s
I was the platoon medic and used an M5 medic back to act as the CCP. I also used a giant orange signal panel to alert fellow soldiers that a CCP was near by. I could pack up and move the CCP whenever I wanted to, especially when the enemy got close.
Gun Gamers does something very similar, they setup a mobile respawn point. The respawn point consists of a pole and a clay pigeon on top. That way the enemy can shoot out the clay pigeon and the respawn point is considered destroyed.
A mobile respawn point setup at Gun Gamers Attrition. If you want to see that video here is the link: https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=a03r7nBkv1Q
Both the CCP and mobile respawn point work flawlessly. One of these concepts needs to be implemented at AMS, It would create a new dynamic and save people the headache of walking 2 miles back to their FOB's. People would need to pack lighter, but that's not necessarily a bad thing! Wagons and 4ft coolers are not very realistic.
For Ruleset, American Milsim gets a 5.
Lets talk about the other point I had mentioned above: Unlimited Ammo. Its no surprise that all AMS events do not restrict you to any amount of magazines or ammo. You can carry as much as you want. Some people like this, they can use the weight they want and never worry about walking back to the FOB to reload. They will just store 3-4 bottles of BlueMag ammo in their backpack. This is especially important for Light Machine Gunners (LMG). LMG gunners with no restrictions on ammo are essentially juggernauts. One machine gunner with 2,000 rounds of ammunition can hold down one side of a building for hours. Just imagine what he can do with 10,000 rounds! We tried to clear one building six times and were gunned down by the same LMG gunner. He must have fired close to 3,000rds. We could not take him out, it was nearly impossible. At an event where ammo is restricted to class, that LMG gunner would have only had 500-600rds. One assault by our squad of 15 would have drained his ammo to almost nothing. This would had given us the opportunity to push.
For Immersion, American Milsim gets a 4.
In the end it always comes back to Milsim West. At Milsim West events, I can actually justify pushing a building. I can justify rushing a position because I know they are hurting for ammo just like we are. A lot of production companies have adopted this model. Even Other World Milsim just started restricting players to only reloading at their FOB. They can not reload on the field. Pretty realistic if you ask me. We love American Milsim events and will be attending more in the future, but I would like to see some changes; no more unlimited ammo and adjustment to the FOB system.
Total points: 22
Attend or Skip: Attend
In the "Shit" Factor (1-10): 3
BMA Rating (1-10): 7
Thanks for reading everyone, be sure to stop by the shop while you are here. We sell the best Bio BB's in the world and we would hate for you to miss out! We also added several new products to our inventory.
All information in these posts is strictly my opinion. These are not intended to make anyone upset or be outraged. Take it with a grain of salt and formulate your own opinions. I am the CEO of BlueMag Airsoft - not BlueMag Airsoft. BlueMag Airsoft has no personal opinions and is simply an entity that supports all facets of the sport.