Spring is in the air. The birds are chirping. And New College’s tranquil campus is a war zone for the fifty-five Novocollegiate mercenaries hired to take each other out.  The time-honored game of Assassins began at 3 a.m. on Sunday and the killings will continue until 9:00 p.m. this Friday.

Per the game’s rules, students are given an assigned person in which they must covertly ‘kill’ without the target’s notice. Methods of killing include poisoning by stickers, shooting with squirt guns and rapping the victim’s upper back with a spoon — simulating a dagger to the back. Second-year Samantha Hannah is prepared to meet the challenge of hosting this year’s game for the first time, taking over the post from previous coordinator Wyatt Kostygan (’10).

“As far as preparation I pretty much kept it the same way Wyatt had it, just made a couple of adjustments. We have a new waiver for safety reasons … It should be a good game.”

When asked for advice for active assassins, Hannah replied, “Definitely hide yourself on Facebook as much as possible, privatize it [and] change your picture. Use a disguise.”

Hannah continued, explaining ways to track one’s target: “You can use Newdle or facebook if someone didn’t take it down. Go to people’s classes, that’s definitely a good place to go. And if you can — don’t break and enter — but find a sneaky way to get into their room at night.”