15 replies to this topic

[Guitarzan]

So I'll just say this to start, I haven't been to a single NIC war yet. I'm hoping the canadian massacre 7 will be my first. From lurking in the war forums it is apparent to me that there are "hot spots" accross North America for Nerfing. The ones I've noticed so far are in Minnesota, Pennsylvania, Southern California and Ontario. I live in New York, so I'll always be dealing with a long drive to central PA or to Ontario for wars.

My question is: what are the region specific rules regarding darts that can be used? Are slugs banned in Canada? (even if their safe ryanmcnumbers style?) Are FA24 ball bearings and 3/0 fishing weights banned in the US?

I'm asking because I plan to go to both PA wars and Ontario wars, and I want to know what I'm dealing with as far as dartsmithing goes.

Edited by Guitarzan, 21 February 2012 - 04:51 PM.

[Jilliop]

New Jersey is also a major hotspot for Nerfing, in fact it might be the biggest in the U.S. (go ahead, someone can correct me). That's why they hold APOC there every year. I know NJ is closer to NY as well, so that might interest you. Look for NJNO wars. At my local wars (WI), slugs are not banned, but glue domes and fishing weights and the likes are. When I went to APOC everyone had slugs, and seeing as how that is the "national war", so to speak, I would say slugs are acceptable almost everywhere in the U.S. Check with Canadians about Canada.

TL;DR, I'm fairly certain slugs are good almost everywhere in the U.S.

[Curly]

Hey, I'm Canadian!

The most commonly encountered stefan here is hotglue dome weighted by 3/0 fishing, 1/4" slingshot, and FA24's ball bearings. Weights heavier than a 1/4" slingshot weight aren't often allowed (specifics depend on war host). Ironically, Slug darts which have a lower chance of injury(so I've heard) than domes are banned by most. The reason being is that Mcmaster doesn't ship to Canada so people seldom use them, and the early slugs that were made in Canada had problems with exposed metal and the felt falling off, leaving the washer open.

FA24's wars have exceptions however, some well-known slug users have been allowed to use them because their techniques and skills make them safer. Talk to Angel via PM about it. Dome darts aren't often allowed in the US, which makes for a strange dynamic altogether. In general if you have questions about the legality of a blaster or dart you should contact the specific war host, they make the rules.

Basically, slugs are the standard in the US and with special permissions you can also use them in Canada. Making both types for different wars isn't unheard of, but I think slugs are notably cheaper. The best option in my opinion is to take 3/0 or whatever and use hot glue and a felt tip to make felt padded darts like slugs, but the tips and weights are very secure. You also have a much better chance of not being bothered my Canadian war hosts.


If you want to come to Massacre 7 (I went to the previous 2, and they were amazing) I suggest you act fast. We need at least 30 preorders to pay for the venue, and the deadline is the 25th of February I think. For Canadian wars, use Canadiannerfers.ca There we post more up-to-date stuff on wars and you only deal with wars in Canada. I can't seem to access the site right now, but it should clear up soon.

Edited by Curly, 21 February 2012 - 05:30 PM.

[Langley]

Largely depends on the host, even in the same region.

From what I gather, there was a quality control issue with slugs in Canada, and they were banned there. To my knowledge, wars hosted by FA, K10, Pearson, Tank/Dumpster et al in the soutwestern ontario area are the only wars that ban slugs outright, and even then they've allowed our high-quality imported American darts on a case-by-case basis.

Here in Jersey, it entirely depends on who hosts. Mag7/Horsemen wars universally require slugs, as do the vast majority of LGLF events. Andtheherois doesn't have any hard restrictions on glue domes for NJNO, but I believe you are expected to use the lighter end of the weight spectrum and your darts have to be decent quality (not falling apart, fracturing on the tip, or being shaped in a grotesque or inhumane way) He also accepts slugs pretty much across the board. I think Redshot's PA wars and Chaos/Keo's DCNFs follow a pretty similar standard.

The only other areas I'm familiar with are Chicago (U3, not those other guys) and Southern Cali. U3 wars are currently slugs only, but may switch to their own special silicone darts in the future. Southern california wars, like Armageddon permit pretty much anything as long as Ice9 isn't using it.

Basically, what I would recommend is that you make a nice batch of slugs using Ryan's method and just pay the extra $10 for the dart supply at Massacre. You can bring your slugs with you, and ask permission to use them, but be prepared to get denied. In my experience, even when I've brought my own darts to Canada they magically cease to feed properly though my hopper as I cross the border. If anyone is interested in studying this mysterious subtemperate dart shrink phenomenon, I might be persuaded to provide a nerfy research grant.

Edited by Langley, 21 February 2012 - 06:03 PM.

[Guitarzan]

If you want to come to Massacre 7 (I went to the previous 2, and they were amazing) I suggest you act fast. We need at least 30 preorders to pay for the venue, and the deadline is the 25th of February I think. For Canadian wars, use Canadiannerfers.ca There we post more up-to-date stuff on wars and you only deal with wars in Canada. I can't seem to access the site right now, but it should clear up soon.

Just got things squared away and paid Pearson Look forward to seeing you there.

Basically, what I would recommend is that you make a nice batch of slugs using Ryan's method and just pay the extra $10 for the dart supply at Massacre. You can bring your slugs with you, and ask permission to use them, but be prepared to get denied. In my experience, even when I've brought my own darts to Canada they magically cease to feed properly though my hopper as I cross the border. If anyone is interested in studying this mysterious subtemperate dart shrink phenomenon, I might be persuaded to provide a nerfy research grant.

Thanks for helping clear things up and for the advice. First of all I don't know how the heck I forgot to mention NJ... But I'll definitely be making a batch of slugs pretty soon. Now in theory, glue domes are more aerodynamic and would therefore get better ranges than slugs. Is that actually the case? Or is the difference negligible?

[cheyner]

Aerodynamics do come into play, but weight also plays a big part in the range increase. A 1/4 inch slingshot weight is considerably heavier then the washer used for slugs.

[Curly]

Aerodynamics do come into play, but weight also plays a big part in the range increase. A 1/4 inch slingshot weight is considerably heavier then the washer used for slugs.

Also, when people up the washer size to a #8 it is very close to the diameter of foam, so exposed metal(and therefore banning) is a greater risk. I've been meaning to try adding a copper BB in the #6 washer's hole to up the weight, but cannot due to Canada. The combined weight of the washer and a BB should be similar to a 3/0 weight, but it would be very well centered due to the washer.

[Daniel Beaver]

On the question of "major regions", I decided to tally up all the wars from the last two years.

[Jilliop]

Daniel Beaver, that is awesome. Pure awesome. I'm surprised that NJ is in third place, but whatever. Sad that Wisconsin is so far down. But then we only have MANO and other small assorted events here. Truly disappointing. But yes, go with slugs, generally in the U.S.

[Langley]

On the question of "major regions", I decided to tally up all the wars from the last two years.

I think it would be safe to sub-divide some of those states. I doubt there's much going on in NJ outside of Monmouth and Middlesex counties, but there are wars in PA and Cali that are hundreds of miles apart. I would argue for Pittsburgh, Philadelphia, NorCal, SoCal, and Chicagoland as regions. You already have DC on there when all of those wars are mostly MD and sometimes VA. I don't know much about the other states on the list, but I would guess there are probably more. As far as NJ goes, you could almost combine it with eastern PA and southwest CT, considering there are more people from those areas coming to NJNO than there are actual NJ residents.

[Daniel Beaver]

A better way would probably be to put little pins into a google map, since it more accurately represents the density of nerfers

On the subject of the graph:
- It doesn't include any invitationals, so it's skewed against Jersey
- The number of California wars dropped off severely after 2010. Plus, it's a big damn state, so it should have a lot of wars.

Edited by Daniel Beaver, 22 February 2012 - 07:28 PM.

[Guitarzan]

A better way would probably be to put little pins into a google map, since it more accurately represents the density of nerfers

I really like that idea! Your graph was awesome by the way. I wish we could just take all of the members locations and put them into a population density map just to show where nerfers are (and not necessarily where wars are) so that people would realize they have enough nerf haven members near them to host an nic war.

[Griever 2112]

I gotta say I'm surprised the Garden State had so many... this is going to sound stupid, but outside of Hero's NJNO and APOC, what other wars are in NJ?

[Keo]

I really like that idea! Your graph was awesome by the way. I wish we could just take all of the members locations and put them into a population density map just to show where nerfers are (and not necessarily where wars are) so that people would realize they have enough nerf haven members near them to host an nic war.

I second the liking of the graph and the map showing how heavily concentrated by members are. Even though I already have my wars, it could get new people to them or something.

[DX-Robert]

There is usually a March Madness at Mill Creek, but if that gets any bigger it would probably be elsewhere. There are a lot of historical wars - a set of about 3 older NJNOs in Glen Rock, and at least a dozen BCNOs at the same venue. Echnalaid also hosted at least one war that succeeded near New Brunswick and there's been Deal and Tindall wars.

[sublimedom777]

In Pittsburgh, slugs are banned except for the Wasko bros (since they predate the current nerf scene in Pittsburgh) or in special cases where advance permission is granted.

Also, damn, if we had been more on top of posting the wars we've had on the forum, PA would be a little further in the lead.