Blackstone CQB

[Loki7491]

Yesterday (16th August 2025) I visited the open day hosted at Blackstone CQB in Huntingdon. It is one of the RIFT sites, which I rate, so I had high hopes.

 

To clarify, it is a relatively new site and the open day was all about the meet and greet, along with checking out the site and the on-site shop, White Spere Tactical. There was no game play, but the range was open for you test your kit  etc.

 

After a 2hr drive to get there, I was blown away by the level of detail (and financial investment) that had gone into the place.

 

There was a photo board showing the progression of an empty warehouse, into a complete indoor "village" set across 2 floors.

 

Themed areas included (but not limited to)

 

A pub, complete with beer garden.

A general store

A bakery

A mechanics workshop, with a car

A church, with lectern and pews

A prison, with cells

Plus many other rooms decorated as houses. When I mentioned attention to detail, they had wall papered rooms and added decorations, wall art and fire places along with furniture.

 

The atmospherics of the game zone were enhanced with a sound and light system that was synchronised. When the storm audio was playing, the lightening flashed and thunder crashed. The noise of the weather added to an already errie game zone.

 

The safe zone was spacious, with plenty of seating, table real-estate and general space for even the most committed airsoft hoarder and gear junkie. It was well lit, air-conditioned and very tastefully set up.

 

During our walk round, by buddies who I linked up with, tested movement, debated weapon choices, and how to deal with "what if" scenarios. 4 of the 5 of us have military backgrounds and 3 of the 5 have also been involved in the airsoft industry for over 30 years each.

 

There was no obvious choke point where a player could camp and dominate except for the stairs, but the site rules (with lots of signs for the forgetful) make it quite clear the stairs are for transit and not part of the game. There is options on how to move away from the stairs too, which again limits the capacity to dominate the access / egress areas.

 

Grenades..... lots and lots of grenades. That's the answer, right? Wrong. Site rules dictate 1 grenade, per person, per life. Depending how option you get shot, your Quake8 could last you all day. This is a deliberate rule to prevent the deepest pockets from buying the victory. 

 

The only way we saw that would give a genuine advantage to players is to be an established, slick team who work together often. But even then, that advantage is relatively small as there are multiple areas you can be engaged from at any turn. There are the corners, the windows, the rat runs and murder holes, and an almost infinite number of hiding places due to the vast array of props within the game area.

 

Another nice touch (personal opinion) is the semi-auto only rule. Working through the site with this in the back of my head, I think I have worked out my RIF of choice:

 

ASG / KWA MP9 GBB SMG with tracer and torch, using 0.2g ammo.

 

I love the ergonomics of the MP9. It has a 50 round mag capacity. The noise of it up close!! It can be dark or light depending on what mood or scenario the organisers play with the lighting systems, so I'd recommend a weapon light. And tracers, well, they look cool, don't they? The 0.2g ammo may seem an odd choice, but:

 

- No wind.

- Relatively short engagement distances.

- Higher muzzle velocity for the same energy out-put. Less reaction time to move out the way - and if they're tracers, they're easier to see coming.

- Cheap! There is no advantage to spending extra on the heavier ammo.

 

SMGs, short barrelled rifles and even pistols / pistol carbines will dominate in this environment.  Although it's not my "thing", those speedy bois with a high-cap rifle mag hanging off the bottom of their HPA'd hi-cappa will be an absolute menace to the opposing team.

 

The place is simply amazing and a real testament to what an airsofting family business can offer airsofters. I suspect it will take years to claw back the investment, so this is a real "by the players, for the players" labour of love and not just a cash grab.

 

If any of the below apply to you:

 

- Live near Leicester / Huntingdon

- Don't live near, but don't mind travelling

- Fancy some CQB action

- Are a speedy boi

- Love using GBB, but hate being outgunned by high-cap heroes

- Only own 1 magazine for your RIF

- Want to appreciate what a site should look like

 

Then I thoroughly and un-reservedly recommend checking out Blackstone CQB.

 

 

 

 

 

 

Edited 14 hours ago by Loki7491
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[Cannonfodder]

Glad to hear you enjoyed it. Blackstone is my first choice when I get to play these days.

12 hours ago, Loki7491 said:

Grenades..... lots and lots of grenades. That's the answer, right? Wrong. Site rules dictate 1 grenade, per person, per life. Depending how option you get shot, your Quake8 could last you all day. This is a deliberate rule to prevent the deepest pockets from buying the victory. 

They've never mentioned this when I've visited but they have run some games where grenades can't be used at all. However I get the impression grenade rules can change depending on how many are carrying them, for example on the 10th numbers were low and only a couple of us had them so there were no restrictions.

 

12 hours ago, Loki7491 said:

Although it's not my "thing", those speedy bois with a high-cap rifle mag hanging off the bottom of their HPA'd hi-cappa will be an absolute menace to the opposing team.

They don't allow speed softers. Tactics such as pre firing corners, sliding along the floor and spamming the trigger will get you booted (rightly imo).

 

I agree that it's definitely a site worth checking out if you like CQB