Even if you are a casual airsoft shooter, you’ve probably come across the term MilSim before, and, if you aren’t familiar with it, you may have wondered what it was. In short, MilSim is a contraction of the two words ‘military simulation’ and is no trick - it’s exactly what it sounds like. Military Simulation style matches are concerned with replicating or simulating the conditions of a realistic battlefield, all the way down from the map or course through the weapons and gear that players are allowed to carry.

There are two broad categories of military simulation; those that are intended to recreate or reenact historical battles and those that are contemporary and created purely for the sport and challenge of the experience. All military simulation matches will have strict requirements for clothing, gear, and tactical equipment that players are permitted to use, but generally historical reenactments are the most prescriptive. Reenactment military simulations may require participants to wear period-accurate dress, carry specific period-accurate gear, and have a very limited selection of reproduction airsoft replicas. In some cases, the most specific reenactments will have maps that reflect the layout and conditions of the original battlefield involved.

Regardless of whether such a match aims to recreate the conditions that were concurrent with a historical event or is a newly concocted scheme to test the skills of the player, these types of matches are intended to closely simulate realistic battlefield situations. Many matches last several hours at least, and some last for several days. This requires participants to learn bushcraft and fieldcraft skills as they often must camp out for several days under the threat of engagement. This takes outdoor skills further; it requires teams to plan to hold strategic, defensible locations at the same time that it demands physical aptitude from them.

Military simulations will demand different players to occupy separate, specialized roles and positions. Teams may have requirements or needs for support gunners, machine gunner crews, snipers and infantrymen, all of which positions require different equipment and skillset. The largest military simulation events may even require members designated as medics and radio operators.

Many factors could vary between any given set of military simulations. Maps will change, environmental factors will change, as well as the requirements of players and the gear they are allowed to use. MilSim has been called one of the fastest-growing extreme sports in the world, with more and more players committing to the rush of the engagement every year, and since there are so many different types of simulations, there is a role for just about any player to fill.

Why Try A MilSim Match?

Since MilSim is so demanding, you may have wondered why you should give it a try. Most of the reasons for giving it a go are tied to the very reasoning of the challenge. There are many different types of challenges with which military simulation will present you as well as some opportunities. Together these make a list of compelling reasons why you should take part in a MilSim match at some point. If you are serious about airsoft, it will make you better as a player, but even if you don’t like it. At least you will have learned. All you have to lose is a few hours or a day or two, yet you stand to game a lifelong passion. Here are seven great reasons you should try out a MilSim event or match.

Challenge Yourself

The first reason to try out a military simulation event is to challenge yourself. This will not be like a small paintball capture the flag match in which the entire event unfolds in a matter of minutes or a few hours at most.

Military simulation requires very careful, precise planning. Mistakes can cost casualties that will slowly bleed a team’s resources and can cost that team a match. The environments can be extremely rigorous and demanding as well as unforgiving. You may be subject to extreme temperatures or weather during the course of a match, whether they are planned or not.

In truth, although everything on this list boils down to the different ways in which you will be challenged during a match, the variables are too numerous to crunch. There are many ways you will be challenged mentally and physically during a military simulation match, and they cannot all be summarized in one location. Suffice it to say that, taking these next few specific challenges into consideration,  MilSim is one of the best ways to give yourself a holistic challenge as an airsoft player. You will learn things about yourself from those challenges and will become a more adept strategic member of any team.

Improve Problem Solving and Critical Thinking

Though there might be a little bit of scripting with military simulation matches that are designed as reenactments of historic battles, for the most part, the combatants will be on their own. You will have an objective and potentially need to adhere to some lists of rules, but other than that, the victory or failure of a venture is up to the members of the team.

You, and your teammates, will need to figure out which positions to occupy. You will need to become familiar with the lay of the land around the course. You will need to be vigilant for enemy movements to prevent them from taking hold of strategic locations on the map that will give them a decisive advantage.

The movements and decisions about offensives will be up to the members of your team. No one can force you to defend a position, and no one will protect you from attack. Just like in real-life engagements, everything is in a sort of free fall. Every decision matters, every decision has a consequence. You will need to refine your abilities of perception and decision making to be able to crunch conditions on the fly in the field in real-time. Partaking in a military simulation will unlock your true potential and improve your ability to solve problems and think critically in the field, and those skills are transferable to other areas of your life. 

Learn the Values of Stealth, Reconnaissance, and Strategy

As stated, the success of your team depends on the decisions, and actions, of the members of that team. There are a number of things that will impact the success of a military venture (or in this case, a simulation). Raw manpower and superior technology are only two of these, and in the grand scheme of things, they can be overcome. Many times in history, forces that were inferior in terms of magnitude and weaponry have overcome opposing forces against great odds.

The same can occur in military simulation, but it comes at a price. The price is the critical thinking mentioned above. To be effective in a prescriptive situation like a MilSim match, you will need to understand the value of stealth, reconnaissance, and strategy.

Movements made in the open may be observed and counteracted by the opposing team with great efficiency and ease. This is the value of stealth.

By the same token, devoting time and resources to observing enemy movements and gathering will provide you with the intel that you will need to plan your next move. That is the value of reconnaissance.

You will take these two factors, and others, into account, to devise a strategy to accomplish an objective. The timely execution of the tactics that arise pursuant to the strategy can and will dictate the success of a mission or of the entire match. That, unsurprisingly, is the value of strategy. Parking in a military simulation will teach you, firsthand, the value of all of these influences.

Become Familiar with Tactical Gear

Because many simulations take place over the course of many hours or even days, your airsoft gun is far from the only piece of equipment you will need to be effective or even to be able to complete the objective. Pursuant to the regulations of the match, you will need to carry a slew of other equipment just to be able to fulfill your role.

Take, for example, a match that is expected to last several days. Weather conditions are always in a state of relative uncertainty, and at any time you could find your time bogged down under heavy rain or facing extreme temperatures. Either of these things or other factors could force you to have to pitch a camp at the drop of a hat. For this, you will probably have a requirement for several additional items beyond the usual - or at least your team will. You will need to carry knives, shovels, or entrenching tools, cooking equipment as well as materials to provide shelter; and, if you are forbidden to carry items to provide shelter, which may be the case, our next point is even more important.

Develop Fieldcraft and Bushcraft Skills

Considering the fact that your proficiency in the field will need to develop acutely once you spend a few hours or days in it, you may even find yourself developing fieldcraft and bushcraft skills.

Depending on the requirements or regulations of the match and on the weather, you may find yourself learning how to dig or construct natural shelters, how to build fire, or how to communicate over long distances with smoke or light.

Of course, this is subject to the variability of every match, but you never know how your gear will limit you and what you will be able to carry. You may need to develop skills involving primitive fire craft, cooking, and creating and repairing natural shelters. 

Learn the Value of Teamwork

In any match, not just a military simulation, the success of the venture will depend on the aptitude of the participants, and with so many people involved, you will uncover the value of communication and teamwork like never before. Where a misstep can mean the failure of an entire initiative, concise communication, and precise adherence to directions can result in a victory of a loss.

You will also learn that there is not only strength in numbers but in coordination. Smooth, effective communication can make the difference between a well-executed mission and a completely bungling failure. To that end, consider our final point.

Forge Friendships

Because military simulation will subject you to rough conditions similar to those involved in military and law enforcement training, you will rely on your comrades for support and success. You get to know a person’s true character under duress, and in the heat and vigor of moments of trial, you can forge strong friendships that will last a lifetime.

Even if these were not the case, you can just have a plain old good time in an airsoft match, and it’s also a great way to meet like-minded people at the very least. Even if you’re not exposed to the actual heat of battle, so to put it, you will still get to spend some time in the field trying to accomplish goals and solve problems facing the other people on your team, and that is a recipe for good old-fashioned fun.

At MiR Tactical, we offer all of the airsoft guns and tactical gear you could possibly need for a MilSim engagement and then some. Our online inventory is stacked with a variety of different airsoft guns ranging from airsoft shotguns to AEGs and spring sniper rifles. On top of that, we have plenty of equipment you’ll need for use in the field.

We’re not just equipment, though. Here you can check out some of the events that are taking place throughout the country in the upcoming months. On our events page, you can look through the many matches and learn more about them, where they will take place, and what the teams will look like. Pick one out if it appeals to you, and if you want to learn a little more about them - or about any of the equipment we offer - give us a call at 800-581-6620 today.