Senior Assassin is a recent craze sweeping the nation. Why? It’s a last hurrah for the senior class to bond over something completely silly, but incredibly serious—if you’re committed to it, at least. It is a way for everyone to get to know each other in a new light, under the lens of fierce competition and pure, youthful excitement. Kindergarteners stick to Hide and Seek and Tag, and now seniors play Senior Assassin, sometimes known as Senior Splashin. Everyone wants to win, but few survive until the end. Most games include a “buy in” too, so the winner receives a cash prize at the end (in case bragging rights are not enough on the line to motivate participants.

Here’s how the game goes:

Teams, either chosen or randomly assigned in pairs or groups, are assigned a number of student targets that they are tasked to “eliminate” by use of a water weapon of their choice. In order to protect oneself from elimination, water shields such as swimming goggles may be worn at the time of an attempted elimination, and the target will not be eliminated even if hit by water. It’s a cut-throat game of survival, defensive playing, sneaky strategizing, and at times, manipulation. Commonly, assassins receive their own close friends as targets and must find creative ways to eliminate them with the element of surprise. 

Here’s what you will need in order to play:

• A willing senior class to participate!
• An Admin or organizer who will assign teams and targets (Depending on the school, some teams choose a partner or a few, and others randomly assign pairs of assassins.
• Water weapons, including but not limited to: water guns, water balloons, and buckets of water
• Water protection, including but not limited to: goggles, arm floaties, lifejackets, flippers, innertubes, and anything your Admin allows as water protection

Here are some baseline rules: 

• Students are safe during school hours on campus, sports practice hours, and work shifts without the need for water protection—but the minute the clock strikes after the hour is up, everything is fair game
• An elimination must be recorded by video or photo to prove its legitimacy 
• If one of the people in a team is eliminated, the person is now on their own, trying to eliminate their targets
• Once you eliminate your targets, you inherit their targets, and the game continues
• Purges may be set throughout the game by the admin. In a Purge, everyone may kill anyone (except for  their partner) 
• To enter private property, you must gain consent from a family member or resident
• Do not disclose who your targets are, because cheating and trying to team up with others will give an unfair advantage
• Depending on the rules, the Admin may request all participants to turn ON their live locations or turn them OFF
• Most importantly, remain safe and do not attempt to eliminate someone in a way that would put yourself or others at risk
• And don’t forget to have fun!