Seniors are in hot pursuit this month as they compete in the annual Senior Assassin games to win an ever growing prize money of roughly $3-4,000, and make unforgettable memories in their last year of high school.
Senior assassin is a student-run game, not affiliated with the school, in which participants pair up and are assigned weekly targets every Sunday at noon to “assassinate” using water guns.
Constant caution is required at all times, however, because it only takes eliminating one partner to get an entire pair out, and seniors often stake out their targets.
Eliminating one pair also means that assassins obtain their victim’s targets, meaning no one is ever without a target or assassin.
To spurn action and make the game more interesting, days with special conditions often occur. For example, purge days allow anyone in the game to eliminate each other regardless of target assignments. Other days, called “safety-days,” protect those wearing articles of clothing specified by those running the game.
Video proof of a hit must be submitted in order to properly get others out of the game, which seniors often share on social media for laughs and views.
Applications to join closed at the end of January, and it included an entry fee of $20 to fund the prize money for the game. Originally amounting to around $2,000, that prize money has only augmented to $3-4,000 as other transactions are made to get back into the game or find out one’s assassin – although such requests are usually more rare.
To ensure that students are playing safely and respectfully, there is a set of rules to follow. Many set boundaries of where students are able to eliminate targets. For example, students cannot go after someone while they are at school, work, or their home property. Other similar rules are in place to ensure students have fun while staying safe.
Seniors join for a multitude of reasons, but most join simply to enjoy their last year of high school.
Ira Adnaik (12) said, “I joined Senior Assassin because I thought that it would be a fun experience … I really wanted to enjoy my senior year so I’ve been trying to do every single activity I could get, and senior assassin is … something that is reserved for seniors so it’s special in a way.”
Adnaik and Ansh Sharma (12) are playing as one team this year and are strategizing to get all their targets out.
Adnaik explained, “For us our schedules have been super different, so we’ve honestly just been splitting up to get our targets out.” Differing schedules have proved to be helpful as one person is always available to stake out opponents.
Sharma has enjoyed the game so far. He said, “I get to learn more about seniors that I haven’t heard about beforehand… and it’s all fun and games, it’s really fun, like that feeling you get when you’re running away from someone or running at someone. It sort of makes high school less stressful.”
The game started off with roughly 128 pairs of seniors, but has since decreased as assassinations are executed. As the pool of potential victors shrinks and the prize money grows, pressure to dominate and conquer builds.
