Two teams start at opposite ends of the field. Once the whistle blows the game is on. The objective is to bring your personal flag to a neutral location without being tagged out. The game consists of 2 ten minute periods and the teams change ends at the end of the first period. The team with the most points at the end of regulation time shall be declared the winner. If one team manages to hang all of their flags before the end of the time period they automatically win. If both teams are tied at the end of regulation time then the teams select one player to represent them and play one vs one to determine the winning team.

·         Team captains may meet with the referees prior to game start to discuss any concerns prior to the start of the game.

·         Players must have one hand on their starting point prior to the start of the game.

·         The taggers must be pointing at the ground and below the waist.

·         Any player not following the two points above will be eliminated and the team will play short-handed for the duration of the game.

·         The start procedure is applicable for anytime the game is halted and needs to be restarted.

The optimal number of players per team shall be five. Additional players are allowed for substitution. To reduce home team advantage a standard size field and five players should be used.

Substitutions are allowed at any time.

·         Players should arrive at game site 15 minutes prior to the start of the scheduled game.

·         Players may enter the field 15 to 30 minutes prior to the start of the game.

·         Players may not move any of the barriers, inflatables, obstacles, etc.

·         Players are to behave in a sportsmanlike manner at all times.

·         No physical contact is allowed.

·         The players shall have the flags in plain view and hanging from their rear right-hand pocket area.

·         All players will have signed a waiver; players under 18 will have their parent/guardian sign on their behalf.

·         All players will have appropriate clothing as determined by the Head Referee and the weather conditions.

·         Clothing cannot be the same color as the flags.

·         Flags should be chosen to reduce the possibility of matching the player’s clothing (e.g. checkered).

·         Once the player is tagged they are to return to their starting area before being respawned.

·         Players are not allowed to cover the sensors at any time.

·         Anytime the referee blows the whistle three times the players will stop play immediately.

The playing field should be flat and grassy. The barriers should be equally distributed on both halves of the play area. You should place the barriers to allow rapid advancement of the players as well as being friendly for the spectators. You should also ensure that neither team can tag the opposition from starting point to starting point.

·         All game fields should be free from anything that would pose an unnecessary risk to the players and should be inspected prior to game time.

·         The play area should be easy to navigate and have a minimum amount of natural hazards such as wet or sloppy areas, low branches, sharp objects (rocks), etc.

·         The field area should not contain any dog-legs and instead be rectangular in nature.

·         The field should be balanced.

·         Fields will contain a starting point such as an inflatable centered at each end.

·         Each team shall have an area to hang their flags.

·         The center flag hang station will be placed such that either team can reach it with the same amount of time.

·         The size of the field for a 5 man game shall be 30m x 45 m (100ft x 150ft).

·         The out of bound area of the field can either be chalk line, fencing or hazard tape.

The scoreboard area is visible to the players and spectators and is located in the central flag hanging area. The scoreboard would display at minimum the score. More detailed scoreboards would also include the period and the time left status. The scoring is one point for each successful flag hanging.

·         A successful flag hang is determined when a player breaks the plane of the team station without being tagged. This can be accomplished by having a safe area, such as a small inflatable. The player would have a successful flag hang by touching the inflatable without before being tagged.

·         Once a player has successfully entered the flag area the referee will take the flag and hang it on the scoreboard. The referee will then announce the score.

·         Once the player has handed the flag to the referee they must leave the scoring area within 10 seconds.

·         The player does not receive a new flag, but is allowed to use one of his teammates.

·         Flags may be passed from live player to live player.

·         Flags may not be hidden and must remain in the players rear right hip pocket area until the player fulfills the requirements for a flag hang.

·         Players tagged out who still possess a flag will forfeit the flag and their team will not be able to achieve a maximum score.

Flags would hang below the number to indicate the score.

·         Be the first team to hang all of your flags.

·         Have the most number of flags hung by regulation time.

Tie breaker is determined by the two captains designating a player to compete in a one on one sudden death playoff.

Players that commit infractions will be penalized. Any penalized player will be sent to the penalty area until they are respawned.

If the team has a substitute they may replace the player who has been ejected, otherwise they play short-handed. The replacement player will have an equivalent respawns less 2 of the replaced player at the time of their ejection. Players will be ejected from the game for any of the following:

·         Failure to obey referee directions.

·         Verbal or physical abuse.

·         Re-entering the field after misconduct – the player plus an additional player will be ejected. No substitution will be allowed for the player that had re-entered the field.

·         Fighting or hostile actions.

·         Not starting the game as dictated in “Start Procedure”.

·         Deliberate avoidance of referee in an attempt to not be tagged.

Players will be tagged by the referee and lose one respawn for any of the following:

·         Hiding their flags.

·         Covering their sensors.

·         Not returning to their respawn location before having their tagger re-enabled.

·         Pointing out active opposition players while returning to the respawn area.

·         Going out of bounds.

·         Being within 2 meters of another player. If the referee can determine which player was the instigator then only this player shall be tagged, otherwise both players will be tagged.

·         Delay of game.

The team will lose two respawns.

·         Too many players on the field – the referee will tag two players.

·         Altering field – the referee will tag the player twice.

Each field shall consist of one head referee and two secondary referees. The duties of the referees are to ensure fair play and penalize players for inappropriate infractions. Each referee shall have a referee tagger.

·         All referees should be familiar with the rules.

·         All referees should be unbiased.

·         All referees should wear clothing to distinguish themselves from the players.

·         The head referee can over-rule the secondary referee’s decisions.

·         The head referee’s decision is final.

·         The head referee will decide which team begins at which end of the field via a coin flip.

·         Referees will not provide any information in regards to the terrain during the game with the exception in respect to safety issues.

·         Referees will not reveal the location of any players accidentally or deliberately during the course of the game; unless they are penalizing the player.

·         Referees will not impede the progress of the game.

·         Any referee may stop the game if an injury has occurred.

·         The head referee will countdown the start of the game and signal the start of the game via a whistle, horn, siren, or verbally so each team can hear.

·         The head referee will have a timer to verify the length of the game.

·         The game will stop when the head referee signals the end of the game/period via a whistle, horn, siren, or verbally so each team can hear.

·         The game time will begin at the sound of the head referee’s start game signal.

·         Game time will stop for the duration of an injury.

·         The Game Timer will announce the last 2 minutes of play for each period.

·         The Game will only stop for injuries and the end of each period.

Both teams will have approved Outdoor Laser Tag equipment and the settings will be confirmed by the referees prior to game start.

·         Flags will be large enough to be easily seen while in the player’s pocket or hanging on the scoreboard.

·         Flags should be unusual to reduce possibility of matching player’s outfits.

TBD

This schedule is based on a single field and the sample schedule for eight teams.

Match Start Time Finish Time 1 0:00 0:25 2 0:30 0:55 3 1:00 1:25 4 1:30 1:55 5 2:00 2:25 6 2:30 2:55 7 3:00 3:25 8 3:30 3:55 9 4:00 4:25 10 4:30 4:55 11 5:00 5:25 12 5:30 5:55 13 6:00 6:25 14 6:30 6:55

Match	Start Time	Finish Time
1	0:00	0:25
2	0:30	0:55
3	1:00	1:25
4	1:30	1:55
5	2:00	2:25
6	2:30	2:55
7	3:00	3:25

Reduce the game to a single period of 10 minutes.

Match	Start Time	Finish Time
1	0:00	0:15
2	0:20	0:35
3	0:40	0:55
4	1:00	1:15
5	1:20	1:35
6	1:40	1:55
7	2:00	2:15
8	2:20	2:35
9	2:40	2:55
10	3:00	3:15
11	3:20	3:35
12	3:40	3:55
13	4:00	4:15
14	4:20	4:35

Match	Start Time	Finish Time
1	0:00	0:15
2	0:20	0:35
3	0:40	0:55
4	1:00	1:15
5	1:20	1:35
6	1:40	1:55
7	2:00	2:15

 Download from http://www.quintelasertag.com/QuinteLaserTagIncWaiver.pdf