1. Name Magball
2. Rules
Laser lines projected on the walls count the score (which depends on where you hit the wall). In fact, the laser-line scoring, color-coded, changes from moment to moment. Low-score areas (1 point per hit) are outlined in yellow, and don't shift much. Middle-score areas (1 points) are outlined in blue, and shift slightly more often. High-score areas (3 points) are outlined in red, and shift very often--they're hard to hit. A game is six points, a set six games, a match best out of three sets.
Shoving is not allowed, hitting with your racket is not allowed. If you can't control your bodily fluids (typically blood) you're automatically out of the game.
How do you play?
Magball is, in its essence, a technologically advanced version of Squash. Its name is the simplest possible truncation: magnetic + ball = magball. What's magnetic is, unsurprisingly, the ball (called the magball), which is actually an energy field generated by one of two pieces of equipment every player owns: generator and racket. The generator projects the ball, which can be calibrated, at the beginning of the game or training session, to move either faster or slower. Throughout the game, players use pulses from their rackets to speed it up or slow it down, though physical force also has a definite effect. Each racket comes equipped with a sensitive touchpad on the handle, for this purpose.
One of the key magball moves is the force fakeout, a hard hit with a weak electromagnetic force, which throws the other player off balance. It's typically a two-player game, played with two in a room, again, much like Squash. Any surface is in-bounds, the score counted by laser lines as detailed in the rules.
A magball can do serious damage, so competitive players always wear goggles, and often other protective gear (magnetized or electrical garments strictly disallowed). Typical magball uniform is very simple and minimal: shorts, pants, and a long- or short-sleeved t-shirt. Teams usually wear solid-colored uniforms with a stripe along the side and the team logo on the back; many amateurs ape this style. Amateur teams can wear anything they want, and some are rather flamboyant. Almost none, however, forego regulation-issue goggles or visor and shock- and heat- absorbing shin and forearm guards, which protect the player against the magball itself. The ball, which is composed of electromagnetic energy, can cause serious burns or blunt trauma (depending on speed and energy distribution) if not properly blocked.
Because of the expense of the equipment, magball is generally played by the middle and upper castes of Aedolis. Once played only in upscale clubs, it's become a cult sport amongst many uppercaste youths thanks to the famous, and famously young (14-year-old at his ascendence to pro) magball star, Limerick Porfiry, now 19. The LP racket (it has a slightly different grip), which has become standard, is named after him. Street magball, a rougher game with less reliable equipment, is, however, enjoying a resurgence. There are quite a few magball teams in the Professional Aedolian Magball League, and several amateur leagues. As its popularity and prestige increase, however, there's more and more pressure on players to step outside the traditional rules of safety and decorum...
