2023 Spring
2020 Spring
> Work on v4.0 (which began in summer-2019) is finalized.
> New PaNNC.org website is completed.
> PaNNC assimilates the OFS. The "Olympia Foam Society" name is officially retired, and its website URL now redirects to PANNC :D
Read a full description of v4.0 here: About Version 4
> New PaNNC.org website is completed.
> PaNNC assimilates the OFS. The "Olympia Foam Society" name is officially retired, and its website URL now redirects to PANNC :D
Read a full description of v4.0 here: About Version 4
2019
Zombies@Evergreen, which ran HvZ games in Olympia for 8+ years, and whose rules were co-developed alongside our own, ceases to be.
2018-2019 Developments
Credits: Brett Screechfield and Lance Alderson
Due to player request: Brett and Lance pioneer the development of a "shield-piercing" game mechanic.
Also: they try different iterations of a weapon-hits-count system. The wisdom they acquire influences the writing of version 4.0. Thank you to the many players who provided valuable feedback!
In early 2018: we implement a size limitation for melee weapons, due to complaints that players are making excessively large melee weapons as a way to block darts.
v4.0 bypasses the need for such size limitations :)
Due to player request: Brett and Lance pioneer the development of a "shield-piercing" game mechanic.
Also: they try different iterations of a weapon-hits-count system. The wisdom they acquire influences the writing of version 4.0. Thank you to the many players who provided valuable feedback!
In early 2018: we implement a size limitation for melee weapons, due to complaints that players are making excessively large melee weapons as a way to block darts.
v4.0 bypasses the need for such size limitations :)
2016: PaNWar
Date: Summer 2016
PaNNC is born!
On one fateful nerf war in --at PaNWar '16-- all founding members of PaNNC meet for the first time. PaNNC -the brainchild of John Seung- is formed to serve as a much-needed bridge between the many various smaller local-level nerf groups. PaNNC begins networking with (and assimilating) Nerf and HvZ groups in our region.
Origionally named "PWNN" or Pacific West-Northern Nerf group (lol), we later changed our name to PaNNC.
PaNNC (PWNN at the time) begins running nerf wars in late 2016. Those nerf wars used the OFS's Rules of Play v3.0.
Around this time, we stop using NerfHaven to plan games. Everything is done on Facebook.
PaNNC is born!
On one fateful nerf war in --at PaNWar '16-- all founding members of PaNNC meet for the first time. PaNNC -the brainchild of John Seung- is formed to serve as a much-needed bridge between the many various smaller local-level nerf groups. PaNNC begins networking with (and assimilating) Nerf and HvZ groups in our region.
Origionally named "PWNN" or Pacific West-Northern Nerf group (lol), we later changed our name to PaNNC.
PaNNC (PWNN at the time) begins running nerf wars in late 2016. Those nerf wars used the OFS's Rules of Play v3.0.
Around this time, we stop using NerfHaven to plan games. Everything is done on Facebook.
2016, Version 3.0
Credits: Written by Kieran Melroe, with major contributions from Matt Anderson and Keegan Phillips
Release Date: Spring 2016 Link: OFS RoP v3.0 Major Changes: > Removed boffer-limb-wound game mechanic. Now, a single hit kills. "limb wounds" had been confusing for nerfers with no boffer experience. + Served as a buff for the power of melee weapons when striking nerfers. > All core combat and safety rules would fit on a single 11x17 sheet. (but our 3x bazooka supplemental-rules still needed separate 8.5x11 pages). |
website layout, circa 2016
|
Game Design Mistake: Boffer Standards
> At the time, it seemed like a good idea to eliminate having boffer construction rules at all, and instead to "outsource" it to larger boffer organizations. v3.0 simply listed different larps whose weapons would be allowed.
While this worked great for all our cross-gaming boffer-experienced players, it was ultimately a bad game-design choice...
> This backfired because: (1) players who lacked boffer-larp experience found it hard to parse the varying rulesets and figure out how to construct safe melee equipment, and (2) enforcement was difficult. Any moderator who themselves lacked cross-gaming boffer-larp experience was unable to properly check weapons & enforce the safety standards.
> This has been fixed in v4.0. Explicit boffer standards are once again a part of the rules.
> At the time, it seemed like a good idea to eliminate having boffer construction rules at all, and instead to "outsource" it to larger boffer organizations. v3.0 simply listed different larps whose weapons would be allowed.
While this worked great for all our cross-gaming boffer-experienced players, it was ultimately a bad game-design choice...
> This backfired because: (1) players who lacked boffer-larp experience found it hard to parse the varying rulesets and figure out how to construct safe melee equipment, and (2) enforcement was difficult. Any moderator who themselves lacked cross-gaming boffer-larp experience was unable to properly check weapons & enforce the safety standards.
> This has been fixed in v4.0. Explicit boffer standards are once again a part of the rules.
2015-2016: Zombies@Evergreen Updated Rules
Credits: Written by Brian Verduin
Release Date: Fall 2015
Link: 2015-2016 Evergreen HvZ Game Rules
Changes too numerous to list.
At this time: our "OFS" nerf-war rules were updated to refer to the new 2016 Evergreen College's safety rules and weapon construction standards. Elements of these rules and game-design can still be found in PaNNC version 4.0.
Release Date: Fall 2015
Link: 2015-2016 Evergreen HvZ Game Rules
Changes too numerous to list.
At this time: our "OFS" nerf-war rules were updated to refer to the new 2016 Evergreen College's safety rules and weapon construction standards. Elements of these rules and game-design can still be found in PaNNC version 4.0.
2014, v2.1: "The Big Bazooka Update"
Credits: Written by Kieran Melroe, with major contributions from Brian Verdiun and Tyler Woodsworth
Release Date: Summer 2014
Links: Bazooka Whitelist/Blacklist, the Bazooka visual guide, and the New Bazooka Eval Guide.
In keeping with the core philosophy of cross-gaming inclusiveness, we needed a way to continue to allow boffer shields, without them overpowering the game.
Big Changes:
> Anyone using a boffer-shield was now limited to pistol+melee only.
> Bazooka projectiles would permanently destroy a shield for the rest of the game round.
This vastly improved game balance, and created a fun little metagame.
Release Date: Summer 2014
Links: Bazooka Whitelist/Blacklist, the Bazooka visual guide, and the New Bazooka Eval Guide.
In keeping with the core philosophy of cross-gaming inclusiveness, we needed a way to continue to allow boffer shields, without them overpowering the game.
Big Changes:
> Anyone using a boffer-shield was now limited to pistol+melee only.
> Bazooka projectiles would permanently destroy a shield for the rest of the game round.
This vastly improved game balance, and created a fun little metagame.
2012-2013: Zombies@Evergreen Ruleset
Credits: Written by Brian Verduin, with major contributions from Kieran Melroe, Kent Reister, and others.
Release Date: Fall 2012
Link: 2012-2013 Z@E Rules
Major changes:
> The old OFS:Z@E rules were brilliantly rewritten by Brian. Brian's mission was to use the shortest possible sentences, with smallest word count, all while still covering all the bases.
> The bloated and enormous "OFS:Z@E extended rules" (rules of etiquette) were boiled down.
> Safety rules and weapon-construction rules were completely rewritten.
All weapon-construction and safety standards from Z@E, were in turn implemented verbatim at OFS's public nerf wars.
Release Date: Fall 2012
Link: 2012-2013 Z@E Rules
Major changes:
> The old OFS:Z@E rules were brilliantly rewritten by Brian. Brian's mission was to use the shortest possible sentences, with smallest word count, all while still covering all the bases.
> The bloated and enormous "OFS:Z@E extended rules" (rules of etiquette) were boiled down.
> Safety rules and weapon-construction rules were completely rewritten.
All weapon-construction and safety standards from Z@E, were in turn implemented verbatim at OFS's public nerf wars.
2011, v2.0: "OFS Rules of Play"The Internet Archive: The OFS website, as of 2011
Credits: Written by Kieran Melroe, with major contributions from Shelby Gross, Kent Reister, Brian Verduin, and others. In those days: we still had a LARP-style limb-wound system, where you died from 2 limb hits, or one torso hit. Proto- Bazooka-projectile rules were first implemented sometime in 2011. Gun hits didn't count, and shields were allowed. First formal codification of gunblade and bayonet safety construction rules was done here. A gunblade tutorial was made for the site (link via the Wayback Machine). |
OFS website, circa 2011
|
hella old promotional material
|
2010, v1.0: Olympia Foam Society Presents: Zombies@EvergreenLink: The original rules, preserved for posterity. <3
OFS begins as a Co-op PvE-style HvZ nerf club in Summer 2010. Note: the original OFS:Z@E rules description contained this sentence: "The weapon rules are compatible with pretty much all weapons from all other games which have foam-weapons". Today, over a decade later: this core philosophy of cross-gaming inclusivity still guides PaNNC game design! |