The rules of the game are the core, inviolable principles by which the game is run, and they are not complex. A lot of them depend on common sense. They also rely on the honour system. If you have been eliminated, be honest. If you leave the Area of Operations, admit it. Thus, the implicit first rule is, “no cheating.” Cheating ruins the fun for everyone, and that means you have failed your primary objective. Also, the rules are put in place for the safety of everyone participating in the exercise. With that said, here are the explicit rules:

1. No player may breach the AO – If you or any member of your team sets foot outside the defined AO, your team is penalized and incurs a –5 Point penalty.
   

2. No player may physically injure another – Tackling, punching, kicking, scratching, eye-gouging and any other forms of physical abuse are prohibited. Physically striking an opponent results in a –10 Point penalty for your team. Also, if you shoot an opponent and hit them in a sensitive area (I.E. The eyes and face) that counts as an injury. Watch your fire.
   

3. The flag, when at your base, must be displayed at the flag station. Secondly, your flag station must be in a reasonably accessible place – Putting your flag station atop a tree or underwater or in a huge patch of poison ivy is unsportng and not allowed. When you set up camp, your flag and flag station must be placed at the center of your camp (I.E. Near the camp fire) with a 5-foot radius clearly marked in the dirt. When you are traveling, the flag may be carried in a comfortable position but must be visible.
   

4. Booby traps and Early-Warning Systems are allowed, as long as they do not violate Rule #2 – Tripwires attached to empty cans or dry twigs scattered across a path are examples of valid booby traps. Pit traps with sharpened stakes lining the bottom, however, are not. Regardless, if one of your traps injures another player, even unintentionally, your team incurs the –10 Point penalty.
   

5. Eliminations are eliminations – When eliminated by an opponent, you are 'dead'. You cannot move, fight, talk or warn your teammates. If you were carrying the flag (either yours or your opponents), you must set it down at the spot you were hit, then sit down cross-legged on the ground and wait for the battle to pass you by. Once it does, you may re-join your squad from the rear after 5 minutes pass. Ricochets count as injuries. If you are playing with medics, and are injured, you may call for a medic. The medic must stay at your side and be in physical contact (I.E. Keep a hand on your shoulder) for a full half-minute (30 seconds) before you are healed.