Natural Born Killers Stalk Quincy House in Do-or-Die Game

To those who play, it is more than a game. It is an epic struggle, a bloody fight to the death in which only the strong (or stealthy) survive.

It is Quincy Assassin, an annual event in which ordinary Harvard students are inexplicably transformed into heavily armed, highly skilled stalkers. Their sole purpose: demolishing classmates by shooting them with plastic or foam darts.

"Inside all of us, we have this primal instinct to kill," says Eddie "Black Death" Hale '98, an organizer of the game. "Assassin let's us do this without getting arrested."

Rules of the Road

Players are organized into teams of up to six members. Teams, or "families," are then pitted against each other, attempting to kill-off assigned victims while finishing the game alive.

"You just grow to love your family," said Hale. "You want to kill off anyone who threatens your family."

Rules for the game are complicated--kills can only be accomplished on Quincy grounds, and player's bedrooms are off-limits, as is the dining hall. Weapons range from small, single shot guns to elaborate Nerf armory, highly accurate at long-range.

"As long as it fires a foam or plastic dart out of a neon gun, it's fine," says game organizer Victor "The Woppa" Chiappa '98. "It has to be neon, though."

Game organizers claim Assassin is one of the best ways to meet fellow House members. Bonds forged among "family" members last long after the last neon-shot is fired.

"Among my close friends in the House, I met a lot them through Assassin," Chiappa says.

Harvard singles take note: Chiappa says he even met his girlfriend through the constant contact of the game.

"I should have shot her," he now jokes.

In addition to the fame and glory, there are monetary rewards for the game's victors. Entrants pay a $3 fee to play and the winning team will be awarded 75 percent of the total money collected (about $165 to-date).

Be Prepared

The game is viewed as a serious endeavor for some who participate--even more so than in past years. There is a game Web site, on which team names can be viewed, among other vital assassin facts such as the "Kill v. Time" graph chronicling the demise of certain participants.

Family names range from "The Spite Girls" to "Boogie Knights" and are variously armed and dangerous. The "Scrote & Dagger" team (S&D), intent on victory, recently purchased Motorola Talk-About Plus walkie-talkies, at $150 a pop, in order to properly stake out the Quincy gate and courtyard area.

In addition, each S&D team member is equipped with two large Nerf guns. The team says the Super Maxx 1500, with a rotating bullet chamber, is a particularly popular model. One member of the team has evenbeen known to strap a Nerf rocket launcher,accurate up to 100 feet, to his belt.

Above all, the team strives for slickcoordination and strategic action.

"We move in pairs," S&D team member Daniel B.Kamins '98 says. "We have different exits andentrances that we use. We try to mix things up."

Team members use their extensive technology tocarefully track each of their assigned victims.

"If we see any movement, we can alert eachother," Kamins says.

According to Christopher R. Coyne '99, the teameven applied for a Undergraduate Council grant for$16,000 to purchase a nuclear Nerf bomb. Theirapplication was denied. Yet the team is confidentthat, despite the fiscal set-back, at the end ofthe day they will reign victorious.

"We will win," Coyne confides. "We'll throw aparty with the money. Ultimately, our win willserve Harvard."

Although past Assassin games on campus havebeen marked by massive student hide-outs and fewpublic stalkings, the Quincy version hasemphasized active pursuit. Participants say thegame has encouraged them to become more activethan the average Harvard student.

"We get up at 6 or 7 a.m., which is theearliest I've gotten up since I came to Harvard,"Coyne explains. "I actually go to breakfast. Irun. I hide behind trees. It really gets myadrenaline pumping."

Even so, much of this increased activity isdevoted to one pursuit--victory in the game.Serious players find their time becomes extremelylimited during season. Many skip classes in orderto par-take of extended play.

"It's hopefully teaching people that they don'tneed to go to class," team member Steve Sakins '98says.

"There's no time for anything else," saysCoyne.

The team reports they even dream of the game.

"We're surrounded at Harvard by people whospend their days working," says Kamins. "They needto feel the thrill of the hunt, the blood on theirhands."

But some competitors can't handle the 24-hour aday pressure of the game. One player committedsuicide after the rest of his team was killed.

"It just goes to show that counseling isn'tsufficient here," says Kamins.

A Killer Role Model

According to Quincy House Resident Tutor Justin"D-For Danger" Cammy, the only tutor taking partin the game, Assassin is educational as well asfun.

"I think it should be a mandatory core course,"Cammy says. "It involves all of the issues centralto humanity: loyalty, betrayal...and it'sDarwinian."

In the course of Assassin, players are oftenforced onto impromptu battle-fields. Cammy'spersonal moment of glory came as he lunged fromhis room, ambushing a fellow player as he entereda Quincy elevator.

"It was my first taste of real blood," Cammysays. "I saw the whites of his eyes."

As a tutor, Cammy is easily spotted in theHouse. But this has not fazed the skilled hunter.Cammy keeps his head up, and is careful to planahead. He recently moved a section for Lit andArts A-47 from Quincy out of fear that he might bekilled as he taught.

Cammy says he sees involvement in the game asan extension of his role as a House tutor. Byinteracting with students on a personal level,Cammy finds himself drawn closer to a wider rangeof personalities.

"We're here to make the House as warm andinteresting as possible on a variety oflevels--intellectual, social and academic," hesaid. "I consider it an honor to be involved."

Harvard Houdini

Perhaps the strongest competitors battling thetechnological might of Coyne and the rest of S&Dare Manti Thakuria '00 and her family, "Quincy'sAngels: Dames of Destruction."

According to Coyne, Thakuria is a master ofdeception.

"You could put her in a room with no door andshe'd still disappear. She hides behind trees anddigs foxholes," he said.

Thakuria acknowledges her own skill.A-6ASSASSINSCrimsonJonathan P. WilliamsCHRIS R. COYNE '99 (left) and fellowAssassin prepare to do battle.

Above all, the team strives for slickcoordination and strategic action.

"We move in pairs," S&D team member Daniel B.Kamins '98 says. "We have different exits andentrances that we use. We try to mix things up."

Team members use their extensive technology tocarefully track each of their assigned victims.

"If we see any movement, we can alert eachother," Kamins says.

According to Christopher R. Coyne '99, the teameven applied for a Undergraduate Council grant for$16,000 to purchase a nuclear Nerf bomb. Theirapplication was denied. Yet the team is confidentthat, despite the fiscal set-back, at the end ofthe day they will reign victorious.

"We will win," Coyne confides. "We'll throw aparty with the money. Ultimately, our win willserve Harvard."

Although past Assassin games on campus havebeen marked by massive student hide-outs and fewpublic stalkings, the Quincy version hasemphasized active pursuit. Participants say thegame has encouraged them to become more activethan the average Harvard student.

"We get up at 6 or 7 a.m., which is theearliest I've gotten up since I came to Harvard,"Coyne explains. "I actually go to breakfast. Irun. I hide behind trees. It really gets myadrenaline pumping."

Even so, much of this increased activity isdevoted to one pursuit--victory in the game.Serious players find their time becomes extremelylimited during season. Many skip classes in orderto par-take of extended play.

"It's hopefully teaching people that they don'tneed to go to class," team member Steve Sakins '98says.

"There's no time for anything else," saysCoyne.

The team reports they even dream of the game.

"We're surrounded at Harvard by people whospend their days working," says Kamins. "They needto feel the thrill of the hunt, the blood on theirhands."

But some competitors can't handle the 24-hour aday pressure of the game. One player committedsuicide after the rest of his team was killed.

"It just goes to show that counseling isn'tsufficient here," says Kamins.

A Killer Role Model

According to Quincy House Resident Tutor Justin"D-For Danger" Cammy, the only tutor taking partin the game, Assassin is educational as well asfun.

"I think it should be a mandatory core course,"Cammy says. "It involves all of the issues centralto humanity: loyalty, betrayal...and it'sDarwinian."

In the course of Assassin, players are oftenforced onto impromptu battle-fields. Cammy'spersonal moment of glory came as he lunged fromhis room, ambushing a fellow player as he entereda Quincy elevator.

"It was my first taste of real blood," Cammysays. "I saw the whites of his eyes."

As a tutor, Cammy is easily spotted in theHouse. But this has not fazed the skilled hunter.Cammy keeps his head up, and is careful to planahead. He recently moved a section for Lit andArts A-47 from Quincy out of fear that he might bekilled as he taught.

Cammy says he sees involvement in the game asan extension of his role as a House tutor. Byinteracting with students on a personal level,Cammy finds himself drawn closer to a wider rangeof personalities.

"We're here to make the House as warm andinteresting as possible on a variety oflevels--intellectual, social and academic," hesaid. "I consider it an honor to be involved."

Harvard Houdini

Perhaps the strongest competitors battling thetechnological might of Coyne and the rest of S&Dare Manti Thakuria '00 and her family, "Quincy'sAngels: Dames of Destruction."

According to Coyne, Thakuria is a master ofdeception.

"You could put her in a room with no door andshe'd still disappear. She hides behind trees anddigs foxholes," he said.

Thakuria acknowledges her own skill.A-6ASSASSINSCrimsonJonathan P. WilliamsCHRIS R. COYNE '99 (left) and fellowAssassin prepare to do battle.