The Assassins' Guild: May Week 2017 Rules
1.0 Introduction:
Assassins is a game of mock assassination for a large number of
Players. In the May Week game, each Player has to try to kill as many of
the others as possible as often as possible while avoiding the attempts
of others to do the same. At the end of May Week, whoever has the
highest score is proclaimed the winner.
Note that the May Week game is substantially different from the Assassins games
which run in the Michaelmas and Lent terms. Players are encouraged to
familiarise themselves with these rules, especially the conduct and area
of play sections, as the Umpire will take a dim view of those who break
them.
If you have any questions about these rules once you have read them
thoroughly, the Umpire will be happy to provide clarification.
1.1 Signing up for the game:
The game is open to people who will be for most of the game within
a five-mile radius of Great St Mary's Church, although others may be considered at the umpire's discretion.
Everyone who wishes to play should provide the Umpire with:
- Full name, indicating the name you are usually known by
- College or department (if you are a member of the University)
- E-mail address (full if not @cam.ac.uk, although your @cam.ac.uk
address is preferred)
- Your official address (i.e. room number) and if different the
address at which you will be living (i.e. sleeping and spending a
reasonable number of hours at) during the course of the game. This
address will be made public on the assassins website to enable other
Players to find you. If you believe there is a real-life psychopath
attempting to kill you, explain to the Umpire and you will be
excused. However, it should be noted that if this is the case and you
still wish to play Assassins you may be in need of psychiatric or
police help.
- If you live relatively far from the city centre, brief details of a few
city centre visits that you will make during the game. The Umpire shall
use his discretion in deciding which details to make public. The aim is
to involve outliers more in the game, since trekking out to Girton to
kill another Player is usually only done by a few of the keenest
assassins.
- The extent to which water-based weaponry is allowed in your room (see section 3.2).
The options are no water (no water pistols or other water-based
weapon may be used in your room), water with care (small water-based
weapons may be used if the user is careful) and full water
(anything goes). You may also let the umpire know of anything specific
in your room which could be damaged by water; this information will
be given to your assassins.
- An initial pseudonym. This May Week, pseudonym rules have been changed (see
section 5), and your kills under a pseudonym remain secret until you die. If you forget to
provide one, the umpire reserves the right to make one up for you.
- Anything else which your assassins should be informed of, such as
any potentially relevant allergies, or that you
live in a shared set and assassins should be wary of killing your
roommate.
If your address is non-attackable, for instance a hotel or bed and breakfast, or
you only wish to play on certain days, then include this information and you will be termed
an "casual/social player". OoB regions will be included in a player's address fields. As such,
casual/social players are unable to win the May Week game.
Anyone found to have supplied false or misleading details to the Umpire
will be disqualified, but I'm sure it's not necessary to say that.
By signing up to play you are agreeing to report any
assassins-related events which you are involved in for the period in
which you remain alive. You are also giving permission for other
Players to try to 'kill' you by any licit method (licit meaning allowed by these
rules) and to enter your room without warning should you leave the door
unlocked or the window open. You also consent for your name to appear
on the Guild website now and in the future in connection with the
events of the game.
1.2 How to play:
The game, in brief:
- When the game starts, a page will appear on the Assassins' Guild website
with the list of people playing the game. If you see any of these people,
try to kill them.
- Whenever you make an attempt on another Player's life, whether or not
you succeed, submit a report by emailing the umpire at assassins@srcf.ucam.org. If someone
tries to or succeeds in killing you, report that as well. The system will
award you points when you are reported to have killed someone and take them
away when you die.
- If
you die, you are out of the game for the next four hours, and may not
kill anyone, or pass information to live Players. Once the four hours
are up, you are resurrected and can continue playing as before.
- At the end of the week, whoever has the most points wins the game.
1.3 Killing people:
The weapons rules describe the various weaponry
you may use to eliminate other assassins. Note that due to legislation introduced in the UK in 2004, you are not allowed to
use any toy gun that looks like a real gun, as this is illegal.
You may try to kill these licit targets:
- Anyone listed on the website as playing.
- Anyone who is clearly holding a weapon. (You cannot
licitly attack someone who was holding a weapon a few seconds ago but has
now hidden it again.)
Note that it is, of course, possible to attack people who do not
fall into
any of the categories above. Should you do so, you will be placed on the wanted
list and penalised an increasing number of points for each that you kill.
Killing enough innocent victims may cause
you to be removed from the game.
If you kill a Player, you should take steps to make sure that
they know this. If they are sleeping, you should leave a note attached
to their person. You should usually leave your victim's corpse in
unknowing slumber until they awake of their own accord, unless you
have a good reason to wake them up. You should not shoot them again
until five minutes after they are aware of your previous action. You
may of course sabotage their weapons while they sleep.
2.0 Conduct
It is important that players familiarise themselves thoroughly with
this section. Breaches of the code of conduct can lead to becoming
bountied (for minor or unintentional breaches) or disqualification from
the game.
The serious rules of safety, security and friendliness apply
not only to game actions but also to how the game and society are organized.
Most of all, remember that this is just a game. Do your best, but have
fun. Please be friendly to other Players you meet during the game,
even if they may be trying to kill you.
General Conduct
- 2.1. Above all, the assassins is meant to be a fun, inclusive and
friendly game. It is meant as an opportunity to meet like-minded
people. Anyone using the game as an excuse to bully, intimidate or
behave in an otherwise unacceptable manner will be disqualified and
potentially banned from society events.
- 2.2. Exercise common sense at all times. Players are entirely
responsible for their behaviour. The Guild does not condone any course
of action that leads to confrontation with people in authority. Avoid
inconveniencing other people, especially Porters, Bedders, (real) Police, and
the general public. If you are involved in an attempt in a public place
with non-players present, please respect their wishes and allow them
to pass in safety. Non-players are not to be used as cover.It is common practice
to pause fights by calling "ceasefire" if large groups of people are in the way.
- 2.3. The assassins is not a game of Real violence. Any player or
accomplice acting on behalf of a player found to be using violent
method, or threatening violence, even with no intent to carry through
the threat will be disqualified from the game immediately. There is no
excuse whatsoever for pushing people around or forcing them out of
your way. For this game, know you're welcome to approach the Umpire (Joe Tomkinson, jpt45) if this
unlikely occurrence happens to you.
Safety/security concerns
- 2.4. The No-Force Rule: This is not a game about physical strength
or violence and should never come down to tests of such. In any
situation in which force may be used a player may instead call out
(preferably clearly and audibly) "No Force Rule". In such situation no
force may be employed, and you should never do anything likely to
cause anyone (including yourself) injury. If anyone breaches this rule
any subsequent in-game actions may be disallowed and sanctions may be
taken against them. For example, if someone is holding a door open or
shut, you should not attempt to move that door. A similar ruling
applies to touching weapons other players are holding.
- 2.5. Be aware that the security forces, real police, and the public are
particularly easily alarmed at present. Avoid behaviour that may cause
them to mistake you for a stalker, burglar, murderer or terrorist: do
not wear a balaclava or other suspicious clothing; avoid bearing
weapons or fighting in public; remember that even toy guns can look
real in the dark or on CCTV; where possible, do not lurk suspiciously;
be particularly cautious anywhere outside central Cambridge, where
students are less common. The assassins guild cannot condone or be
used as justification for such activities.
- 2.6. To be involved in Assassins is to consent to be met. But not a
card to intrude beyond welcome. However, many Assassins kill people by
walking into their unlocked rooms - please note that by playing, you
are consenting to this. If you don't want people walking into your
room, lock your door - by the nature of the game, your killers are
unlikely to knock and say who they are before entering.
- 2.7. You may enter a target's room through an unlocked door or an
open window only. If the door is locked you may not make any kind of
attack including firing shots or pushing any other item through
keyholes, letterboxes or any other gap in, under or over the door. The
same principle governs toilet cubicles.
- 2.8. Players should respect the safety of other players, especially
some female Players, who may interpret some attacks as physically
cornering people or entering their personal space. Personal safety
concerns of anyone present ALWAYS take precedence over tactics or
rules. Players are reminded not to photograph or video players without
their consent. Players who endanger the safety of other players
accidentally or purposefully may face disqualification from the game.
- 2.8.1. Players can request from the Umpire that other players are
not allowed to lurk outside their residence between the hours of
midnight and 7am. This is to ensure the safety of players and their
neighbours such that they do not feel threatened or intimidated by
players lurking late at night.
Honesty and dishonesty
- 2.9. This game depends on players being honest for it to work. This
is especially true of reporting to the umpire: Anyone knowingly giving
false or misleading information to the Umpire will face severe
penalties. However, please inform the Umpire of anything assassin
related that occurs to you, especially if you have been killed.. You
must expect other players to have nefarious intentions at any time
during the game. Players are at liberty to present false information
to each other, providing the following rules are not violated :
- 2.9.1. You are not allowed to impersonate authority figures such as
Bedders, Porters, College authorities (not including student union
representatives) or the real police. This is so that players can take part
in the game without aggravating their Bedders by refusing to let them
into their room. By the same token you must not take
advantage of Bedders unlocking the door to your target's room to break
in and kill them.
- 2.9.2. You are not allowed to impersonate the Umpire, for the same
reason. You are also not allowed to impersonate the Umpire indirectly
by, for example, forging e-mail messages.
- (You may use ruses to gain entry as long as such ruses do not involve
impersonating an authority figure. Therefore if someone knocks on your door
claiming to be the Umpire (or, for that matter, a Bedder or Porter), you
may safely let them in.)
- 2.9.3. Assassins should not swap their room numbers or nameplates
for those of their neighbours. Also, players should not remove their
names from the resident lists found attached to accommodation
buildings which may contravene fire regulations.
- 2.9.4. You are perfectly at liberty to deny that you are an
Assassin. However, you are not allowed to claim that you are a Dead
Assassin and hence harmless. You may also not lie about the vital
status of other Assassins who are immediately present. You must say, when
asked, how long you have until you come back to life.
- 2.9.5. You may not lie about your out-of-bounds status.
- 2.9.6. You may neither use nor manufacture, nor lie about a fire
alarm, security alert or medical emergency to gain an advantage in an
attempt to kill a Player or gain information on them.
Out of Bounds
- 2.10. There are some places and circumstances which, for reasons of
sanity and safety, are considered out-of-bounds (OOB). A full list of
locations may be found in section 4.0. If a player has a location
which they think should be out of bounds, they must contact the
umpire.
- 2.10.1. A Player's room is usually only out-of-bounds for
supervisions, society meetings and sports activities, as described
below. If you believe your room should be made out-of-bounds for any
other purpose, or are unsure as to its status, you should ask the
Umpire.
- 2.10.2. Players should not abuse no-kill zones. You should not run
into an out-of-bounds area primarily to escape an attacking assassin
unless it was your intention to go there prior to encountering the
other assassin.
- 2.10.3. If a Player is in obvious distress for a reason unrelated
to the fact you are trying to kill them, or they are obviously dealing
with someone else in distress, do not take advantage of this
situation. This includes mandatory evacuation for fire alarms. In all
situations, players should be allowed to return directly to whichever
situation they were in before the emergency arose and will be
out-of-bounds until such time.
3.0 More on how to play
Accomplices and non-Players
Players may, if they wish, make use of non-Player accomplices on
their attempts. Any person with at least a basic knowledge of the
Assassins Game acting to the advantage of a Player on their
instruction, with their consent or by prior understanding is considered
an accomplice. A Player should not induce one of the Authority figures
described in the Conduct rules to be an Accomplice.
Non-Player accomplices cannot attack or kill anyone (but they can
still be attacked). You are responsible for the safety of your accomplices, and
should they be killed you will be held responsible, which means that you may
be penalised. You should not allow your accomplices to be seen bearing weapons
at any time; particularly, you should not use armed accomplices as decoys, and
should you do so the kill may be disallowed. If killed, accomplices resurrect
after four hours, as Players do. You should not encourage accomplices
to do things you yourself could not do; in particular they should not
use force. Accomplices should not directly attempt to stop Players,
and should specifically not hold doors shut or block their way.
Attacking people not involved in the assassins game is strongly discouraged,
and you will be punished for doing so. Players who do this persistently may be
removed from the game.
3.1 Battle Events
- Battle Events exist in a bubble separated from the regular game where some rules related to gameplay mechanics are different. The same rules of conduct and safety apply.
- Deaths and resurrections outside of the bubble do not affect your vital status in the battle and vice versa.
- Battles are fought in rounds, all players resurrect at the start of each round.
- Some rounds may involve restrictions on weaponry in addition to those listed in the main rules; spare weapons will be provided.
- Non-assassins are welcome to participate.
- Any ways in which the game mechanics differ from regular assassins gameplay will be explained by the organisers.
- You score more points from participating in battles than you can lose by being killed en route.
3.2. Discussion Phase
If players are unsure about what happened during an attack, they may call a "discussion phase" to clarify who has been hit and who, if anybody, is dead. Once a Player has made a bona fide call for a discussion phase to sort out the facts of the incident, so long as it is not a direct interruption of the event, no Players involved in the discussion phase may kill each other during and shortly after the discussion phase is over (giving time for each Player to run away). All players involved in a disputed event are considered to be subject to a discussion phase, this includes any accomplices to the players involved. You may not directly follow another Player involved in the discussion phase immediately after it has finished, but you may of course make another attempt a short time later if you find them again. Players taking part in a discussion phase should take care not to expose themselves to other independent passing Players (as they will not be included in the discussion phase and will thus be able to kill anyone freely). Calling a discussion phase in order to gain an advantage in the game (e.g. to expedite your retreat) may result in sanctions.
Assassins are strongly encouraged to reach a decision about the facts of an incident at the scene. However, do not be afraid to disagree over the outcome of the incident or the way in which the rules have been applied to events. If there is a strong element of uncertainty as to what the outcome should be, you should make a report to the Umpire as soon as possible and should avoid directly involving yourself in Assassins proceedings until you have received clarification. The Umpire will try to be understanding, however he will take a VERY dim view of people playing silly buggers with the rules, exploiting loopholes and edge cases. If you do this in the case of a dispute then you will be more likely to lose out. This is just a game and it is about having fun, not rules lawyering.
3.3. Time Out
In the event of an emergency, or suspected breaking of the rules (e.g. using a banned weapon) a player may call "Time-out" in order to bring an immediate halt to all game activities. The players and immediate surroundings are considered OOB until the issue is resolved. Unlike a discussion phase, this includes any independent players who come across the event. Like a discussion phase, once the issue has been resolved, players are given a short period to leave the surroundings or return to where they were before "Time-out" was called.
Note that abusing the Time-out rule is very likely to result in a player going Wanted, or being removed from the game.
If a fire fight is occurring across or on a road and traffic interrupts the fight, players should call timeout, move out of harm's way and cease fighting until the traffic has cleared.
3.4 Suicide and points farming
Suicide is not allowed in this game. If you wish to be removed from
the game, please inform the Umpire who will make the necessary
arrangements.
Allowing another Player to kill you for points is not allowed. The
Umpire may nullify any kills where he thinks this has occurred, and
serious offenders will be docked points. Backstabbing long-term allies
should preferably not be done in the final day or so, and the Umpire
may nullify such kills. Of course, if you have a good reason...
Arranging to meet up to fight is allowed (this is not an official
duel in the sense that other people may kill you while you are fighting)
however the Umpire reserves the right to disallow such if he believes
the engagement is not an equitable one, especially late in the game.
3.5 May Week wanted list
Any players who commit "minor" offences (such as shooting innocents) will
have a bounty placed on them for a set period of time, as well as losing points for their crimes.
3.6 Casual/social players
Some players may be listed as "Casual/social". Such players will have an out of bounds region around
their address or will only be playing on certain days. As it is possible to gain an advantage from
such a set-up, a 'casual/social' player is unable to win the May Week game. If such a player attacks you, or you come
across them on a day during which they are playing, then they are a licit target.
This is not the same as a generic player who is fully playing while not committing multiple hours to gameplay each day
with a mind set on victory.
3.7 Scoring overview
The specifics of the points algorithm for this game will remain secret, but here is a brief taster:
Successively fewer point will be awarded for repeat kills of the same player(s). Fewer points will be lost for repeated deaths to the same player(s)
Points may be awarded for particularly epic kills and/or event reports the Umpire finds entertaining
Points will be deducted for deaths, kills of innocents/non-players, rule-breaking or (unsuccessful) attempts to bribe the Umpire. Points bounties may also be placed on players who commit minor infractions of the rules.
The Umpire may place point bounties on high-ranking players.
Organised battles will provide more points than can be lost by being killed en route
4.0 The Area of Play:
There are some places and circumstances which, for reasons of safety
and sanity, are considered out of bounds. No-one may kill anyone or be
killed when they are out of bounds; any kills made in an out of bounds
area will be annulled, and in severe cases the offender may be
castigated by the Umpire.
4.1 Out of bounds areas
No-one may kill anyone or be killed when they are in an area or circumstance which is out-of-bounds, as given below:
Buildings, rooms & locations
- Lecture theatres are out of bounds, whether or not a lecture is in
progress. Players are not expected to spend a large proportion of May Week
in lecture theatres, and may be ridiculed for doing so.
- Seminars, supervisions, tutor or DoS meetings and the like.
- Practicals, laboratories and computer rooms. A computer room is any place where the public or any clearly-defined group, e.g. members of a college are permitted to use computers. This may include departmental common rooms.
- Hospitals, libraries, museums and sports halls.
- Churches, chapels, synagogues, mosques, temples, stupas or any other
official place of worship. The Umpire will not allow any Player's
room to be considered an official place of worship, no matter how inventive
their excuse.
- The premises of government buildings, banks and building societies are out-of-bounds. Shops are in bounds but you must not use any kind of projectile weapon. The immediate vicinity of a shop till, bar (including people seated at the barside) or an ATM machine is out-of-bounds. This includes a queue for one. While you may usually take shortcuts through such places, none of the areas listed in this clause should, under any circumstance, be used as an avenue to escape pursuit.
- London is OOB, due to the density of OOB areas and security issues in London. Other towns that a player may travel to during the game, however, are generally in bounds and subject to the same OOB rules as Cambridge.
- Anyone working in a real proper job is out of bounds while at work. This includes graduate students working in a department, research institute or any kind of official placement. If this is a job which entails dealing with possibly vulnerable people, such as in a hospital or a school, then the out of bounds area extends to anywhere within sight of their work place. Anyone working for the St. John's Ambulance is out of bounds while they are in uniform. Anyone working at a college bar, ent, May Ball, the Bumps or similar is also out of bounds while they are working, but you are free to kill them if they have time off, etc.
- Clearly Marked Locations where sociological experiments are being conducted. Such experiments may be held outside of scientific labs, and rely on isolation of the subjects from external events to be objective.
Balls, parties & catering
- May Balls and June Events are out of bounds from the point at which the attendee's ticket is collected. May Ball/June event queues are in bounds as standard, however Players may elect to be out of bounds while queueing for a May ball/June event if they say so in their notes. For the out-of-bounds status to count, you must have this had added to your notes at least 24hrs in advance of queueing. Players doing this should not attempt to abuse this.
- Garden parties organised and advertised by societies, colleges, CUSU or similar bodies are in bounds, but no projectile weapons may be used (this includes bang kills).
- Any dining arrangement in which you are obliged to wait for the attention of staff in order to be seated, or College Formal Halls. Anywhere you get food yourself from a Servery, including informal halls and pubs, is in bounds but no projectile. College Formal Halls and the like are out-of-bounds.
- As described below, but pointed out here as a reminder, such events are no water.
Society meetings
- Official university or college society meetings or regularly scheduled meetings of an unofficial society which take place in college grounds, including in Players' rooms. Players involved in these are out of bounds from the moment they step inside the rooms/halls where the event is being hosted and until 3 minutes after the meeting is understood to be concluded. Leaving this area means assassins may kill you, however assassins leaving the society may not kill each other until 5 minutes has elapsed (irrespective of where they are).
Please note that participants of societies meeting outdoors (such as CSSW and TT) are out of bounds to each other from the moment they meet at the pre-arranged meeting-point and throughout the meeting until at least five minutes have elapsed after the meeting has been called to a close. Pubmeets are not out of bounds.
- Assassins carrying bulky or expensive items to and from society meetings may be out of bounds while doing so, but must have the Umpire's specific consent beforehand. If you are planning to attack someone near their society meeting, you may check with the Umpire as to whether there is any reason your target may be out of bounds.
Any players hosting or taking part in unofficial society meetings during the game must warn the Umpire of these beforehand; players should not abuse this.
- Players cannot use Assassins as an excuse to crash, infiltrate or lurk societies they are banned from.
- Safer Space meetings and their vicinities are out of bounds and using Safer Space meetings to follow or otherwise find out more information about targets is banned.
- As a Safer Space activity, active CakeFaeries are out of bounds. In May Week, this means when they are chocolate-and-strawberrying the crowds around the cardboard boat race. CakeFaeries cannot use their position as a means to access someone for Assassins purposes. Similarly, no-one can pretend to be a CakeFaerie in order to access someone.
- The Cambridge University Wireless Society's Radio Shack is out of bounds.
Sports
- Organised sports activities are out-of-bounds. This will usually be taken to mean tournament matches at inter-College level or higher. This does not include impromptu 'kickabouts'. However, pre-arranged training sessions of officially-recognised teams may be considered society meetings. Non-spectating participants are out-of-bounds for the duration of the match and during any preparations immediately before or after.
- Boathouses (whether belonging to College, University or Town boat clubs) are out of bounds.
- Persons engaged in 'serious' activities on the water, such as rowing or canoeing, are OOB. Similarly, they are out-of-bounds while transporting substantial, related equipment to or from such an activity. Punts and cardboard boats are not out of bounds.
- Players working with or riding horses are considered out of bounds.
Entertainment
- Any persons performing/practising with fire poi/fire sticks/fiery juggling implements are considered to be have a rather large out of bounds area surrounding them which should encompass all those in the immediate vicinity who are primarily engaged in watching/teaching/heckling said persons.
- Auditoria of theatres/cinemas and concert halls are out of bounds during and immediately preceding/following a performance. Any area in which a scheduled public play is being performed (or any other similar scheduled event) counts as an auditorium. All concerts and recitals are out of bounds.
Areas in which backstage preparation work is taking place are also out of bounds.
- The venue of the Rocksoc 'Wake up Screaming' is out of bounds, as are similar events hosted by music societies.
- The CUR radio station in Churchill College is out of bounds.
Vehicles & transport
- Anyone in a car or other motorised vehicle is out of bounds and cannot attack or be attacked. Segways and electric skateboards however are in bounds, though as with bicycles shouldn't be attacked if there is a reasonable chance of accident/injury.
- Public transport vehicles are out-of-bounds. The same is true of airports, train stations and their vicinities. The Drummer Street Bus Station in Cambridge is also out of bounds.
- Players on bicycles are in bounds only if they are not in the vicinity of other traffic (including other bicycles); please be careful only to attack if there is no possibility that you could cause an accident or injury.
Players should avoid firefights across busy streams of traffic (motorised or not), both to avoid risk of injury and to prevent aggravating drivers. Throwables are NOT permitted in the vicinity of a bicycle. If you wish to, you may request in your signup email that you're OOB whilst on a bike.
Players should avoid firing from a bike unless there is minimal risk of injury to themselves and almost none to others.
Players should not abuse no-kill zones. You should not run into an
out of bounds area primarily to escape an attacking assassin unless it was your
intention to go there prior to encountering the other assassin.
If you are not sure whether a given time or place is out of bounds or not,
please contact the Umpire. Similarly, if there is something not mentioned on
this list you think should be out of bounds, ask the Umpire to consider
it. The above list is not comprehensive and, as always, common sense prevails.
Activities involving assassin weaponry
In the event that you wish to participate in any non-assassin-related activity that might lead to non-players/assassins getting killed by assassin weaponry (for example, a waterfight or snowball fight with friends), you may do so without the game getting in the way. Just tell any assassins also participating in the activity that you declare your weapon(s) to no longer count as assassin weapons. (You might also consider telling the non-players in case one of them is secretly an assassin). Then for the duration of the activity, your weapon will no longer count as a weapon.
Note that this means that everyone who heard you can't kill you for bearing while you are participating in the activity (although this does not extend to assassins you forgot to tell, since they have no way of knowing what you are wielding isn't a weapon). Also, if anyone makes an attempt on you while you are participating in such an activity, your weapon will regain its power so you can fight back.
Do not abuse this rule (for example, by attempting to use this so that you can have your weaponry out without it counting as bearing). This rule is made so that you don't miss out on fun activities like snow-ball fights, etc. , not as a way of survival.
4.2 Water status
In bounds areas may have restrictions placed on what sort of
weaponry may be used in them, and are divided into three categories:
- No Water - No water weapons of any type may be used in this area.
- Water with Care - Only small water pistols may be used and they must have a low water output.
As a rule of thumb, a weapon less than a foot long that fires only a thin directed stream may be classified as water with care, for instance any waterpistols smaller than the Storm 750.
Any CPS, the Blazer, Aquapak, powerpak and similar weapons are full water only. All water weapons should be used
with caution and restraint in this area. Any weapon larger than a Storm 750 not listed here should be checked with the Umpire in case its water output is too large. The Umpire will take a dim view of people who ignore this.
- Full Water - Any water weapons may be used in this area. Common sense should still be exercised.
Note that water weapons inappropriate for the water status of the
area may not be fired into or out of such an area. For instance, you
may not stand in a no water area and use a water gun to shoot a Player
standing outside.
The following areas are always No Water:
- Any Player's room listed as No Water. If a water status is not listed, assume it is No Water.
- Any non-Player's room.
- All shops, pubs and college bars.
- A Player dressed in formal wear such as a suit or black tie is not
an area, but is still No Water. The same applies for ladies' formal
attire.
- Events, garden parties, May Ball queues and college ents.
- Players carrying electronic equipment or musical instruments.
The following areas are Water With Care:
- Indoor accommodation areas such as corridors and shared kitchens,
unless specified otherwise. Players should be especially careful around
electrical equipment, as may be found in kitchens. Also exercise caution
as there is the likelihood that other residents, innocents and bystanders
in the building could be in formal wear.
- Players' rooms listed as Water with Care.
- Players on bicycles may be shot with wwc guns but no throwables may be used.
The following areas are Full Water:
- Players' rooms listed as Full Water and the area immediately outside them (on the doorstep)
- Outdoor areas, unless specified otherwise.
The Umpire will take a dim view of people who wear formal attire for
the entire game in order to escape assassination - the same goes for
musical instruments or electronic equipment, as with any other
situation which may make you temporarily out of bounds.
5.0 Reporting:
Whenever you are involved in any assassins-related incident, such as
successfully or unsuccessfully trying to kill another Player or innocent, being
attacked or killed or witnessing a killing, you should submit a report as
soon as possible. You can report anything by emailing the Umpire at assassins-umpire@srcf.ucam.org. If anything odd happens and you are
unsure of how to report it, email the Umpire.
Reports submitted by Players will be added to a list of events on the game
news page. Reports are encouraged to be dramatic and creative and may also be
intentionally misleading, although outright lying is frowned upon.
Players are advised to decide upon the time of the event precisely when it happens.
Players should try to avoid interactions immediately after either of them has respawned as this can cause arguments over precise times of death.
If you cannot be sure what happened in an attack, you may agree upon
a "discussion phase" with the other assassins involved in order to
clarify who was hit, who is dead, etc. Players involved in the original
incident (this includes, for example, nearby allies of one of the
combatants) cannot kill one another while in the "discussion phase",
although any entirely different assassins who might happen to be
passing may attack you with impunity. Players whose vital status is in
dispute are not allowed to fight back during a "discussion phase".
Players are advised to conduct discussion phases in a safe area.
Since the game news is updated automatically by computer, it is
important that you resolve exactly what happened in a particular incident
with all those involved before you leave. If a consensus cannot be reached,
you are advised to contact
the Umpire. If he is not immediately available, you may arrange
a duel or other equitable means of deciding. Players duelling to
resolve a dispute in this way cannot be killed by other Players for the duration
of the duel
(although arranging 'duels' which last for hours in order to become
invincible will not work). Duels should be held with weaponry that is
as fair as possible.
The automated reporting system adds reports to the website as soon as they
are submitted. However, if anything is wrong with the reports on the website,
let the Umpire know and he will fix it.
When submitting a report for ingame kills, the killer(s) concerned
should submit a report detailing all those killed (players & innocents)
and the numbers of accomplices (playing & non-playing) present within 100yds
of the event at the time.
5.1 Pseudonyms
At the beginning of the game, you get to choose a pseudonym. Any kills you make under
this are then secret; unless you go bragging (or your dead victims talk), your
real name is not linked to your pseudonym. Then, when you are inevitably murdered, your
mask is taken off and everyone knows that it was you the whole time. If you want, you may
pick another pseudonym at this point, and start anew. You do not have to change if
you don't want to - in this case, people will just know who you are in advance. If you haven't scored
any points yet, then your new pseudonym will not be revealed upon
death, so you don't have to pick a new one.
The scoring table will have one list with all unrevealed pseudonyms, and another
that has the real names of all the players on along with their revealed pseudonyms.
The points that a player scored in a past life are shown by their real name,
but points that are being scored on an unrevealed pseudonym are only shown in the first list.
Points scored from minigames are added to the real name's score.
For example,
suppose John Smith is currently going by "Mr X" and has scored 4 points since dying, but scored
a total of 30 points overall so far, his past pseudonyms being "Mr A" through "Mr W". The two entries will be
[Mr X: 4 points] in one list and [John Smith (Mr A, ..., Mr W): 26 points] in the other. No-one would be able
to tell that they were Mr X, at least from information 'officially given' in reports.
The theme for the May Week 2017 game is the Circus. Players are warmly encouraged
to select pseudonyms and weapons in accordance with this theme - although this is not compulsory.
6.0 Dead Players
After being killed, you are deemed to be "dead" for the next four
hours. While you are dead you should refrain from interfering with the
game,
meaning that you should not point out the presence of other assassins
or pass on information to live Players. You should not encourage your
accomplices to do things that you cannot.
7.0 The Umpire:
This game's Umpire is Joe Tomkinson, who may be contacted by
emailing assassins-umpire@srcf.ucam.org.
The primary method of contacting the Umpire is through email. If you would like to visit the Umpire in person, he lives in G4 New Court,
Trinity College. Players are discouraged from running to the Umpire in order to escape an attacker: the Umpire will take a dim view of this type of behaviour.
Moreover, while the area is not out-of-bounds, using or showing weaponry nearby is discouraged due to recent porter complaints.
Any queries about the game can be emailed to the Umpire, or you are welcome to
arrange a meeting in person. Try to resolve any queries before they become a matter of life
or death (yours or anyone else's).
Attempting to take items from the Umpire's pigeonhole or break into his
computer account is strictly forbidden. Impersonating the Umpire is also
forbidden; see Rules of engagement.
Player-Umpire communications may be made public at the end of the
game for everyone's enlightenment and amusement. If you do not
wish a certain communication to be made public, please tell the
Umpire. In particular, some of the best vuvuzela impersonations
may be revealed. If you'd rather not produce one, you can instead
include just the word itself.
A certain past umpire was particularly popular for target practice, so saw fit to introduce this rule. Players are,
within reason, allowed to kill the Umpire if they really really want to: however, Players should be reminded that this is not the point
of the game. As such, you will not gain any points from killing the Umpire; moreover, the Umpire is entitled to defend himself from
any such attempts using appropriate in-game methods. Players who are killed by the Umpire in self-defence will not incur any points
penalty, but will take the normal 4 hours to respawn.
The Umpire's decision is absolutely final. There is no right of appeal against decisions made by the Umpire.
8.0 Administrivia:
It is the responsibility of Players to check their e-mails and read the news to
see whether there is anything important of which they should be aware. Anything
published on the website or emailed to Players is assumed to be known from then
on, and claiming that you did not read it will not be a valid defence.
8.1 Web pages:
The game website is at http://www.srcf.ucam.org/assassins; you are probably reading these rules there now. During the game, the news will
be published on the website along with any updates to the rules, news of
upcoming special events or social events, etc.
8.2 IRC Channel:
There is an IRC channel #assassins
on the SRCF server
(irc.srcf.ucam.org, port 6667). All assassins, potential assassins or
ex-assassins are welcome to join and discuss the game or anything else. See
Adam Biltcliffe's updated Assassins
FAQ for more details on both the newsgroup and IRC.
9.0 Comments:
-
By signing up to the Game, you agree that you are responsible for your
own actions, and any consequences thereof. The Guild will not take
responsibility for the actions of its members. Individual players may
not speak for the Guild as a whole, and as such not use our rules as an
excuse for their behaviour.
-
You play the game of Assassins entirely at your own risk. Neither the
Umpire nor any other member of the Guild, past or present, can accept
any liability for personal injury, loss of, or damage to, property or
other loss incurred during the game. Nothing contained in these Rules
should be taken as encouragement or permission to break the Law.
-
Due to security concerns, colleges may request to know which of their own members are playing. By
signing up to the Game, you consent to this information being passed on to your college, in the event of
their requesting this information.
-
The Umpire wishes to ensure that every participating player has read the rules. As such,
please include your best vuvuzela impression in your signup email, to prove that you have done so.
-
We have neither the resources nor the inclination to make the rules
completely watertight. Hence, although the precision of the wording is
often of import, your attention is drawn more to the spirit of the rules
than their content. The Umpire will not be bound by the rules if he feels
that someone is attempting to exploit a loophole. If in doubt, e-mail the
Umpire with your question. Damn you, Montesquieu.
-
People who break serious rules of safety, security and friendliness, and
lie to the umpire or to a deputy appointed to investigate these breaches,
may be banned from the society.
-
Note that by signing up to play you are agreeing to report any
assassins-related events which you are involved in for the period during
which you remain alive, including your death. You are also giving
permission for other players to enter or attempt to enter your
accommodation should you leave doors unlocked or windows open and to make
attempts to 'kill' you, acting in good faith and utilising such methods as
described elsewhere in the Rules
History
The history of this set of rules is thought to be:
- Initial author unknown.
- Typed in by Paul Roberts (PER10).
- Later history unknown.
- Used by CUSFS for a while.
- Martin Hardcastle (MJH22) made some modifications.
- Julian Birch (JMB29), some modifications and clarifications.
- Richard Fairhurst (RJF1001), further modifications and clarifications.
- Ben Jameson (BFJ1000), yet more modifications.
- Jim Cameron (JC10007) and Elizabeth Pringle (EMPP1), more, mistyped, modifications.
- David Allsopp (DNA1000), surprisingly, made some modifications.
- Paul Menage (PBM1001) was Easter 1995 Umpire, and initiated 3 targets per Player.
- Nigel Harris (NJH27) made modifications.
- Ben Harris (BJH21) changed even more things, notably the bomb blast radius
formula to be based on a cube root.
- Chuan-Tze Teo (CTT20) modified still more rules.
- Martin Read (mpr22) corrected the text of the bomb rules, and set a
(semi-)codified timing rule (after a few shoutings, getting the wording right).
- Lynnette Dray (lmd21) modified a few more things, surprisingly.
- Tom Oinn (tmo21) htmlified the whole thing.
- J. Doe made some modifications to counter the more modern forms of organised crime endangering the game's status.
- Nadim Nehmé (nn211) incorporated J.'s changes into Tom's html form and declared a different form of Necromancy.
- Matthew Wakeling (mnw21) was the May Week 1999 Umpire, and completely rehashed the scoring method.
- Alex Churchill (gaec2) hasn't modified much yet.
- Claire Bordenave (cb302) modified the rules for May Week 2001.
- Ed Nokes (emn23) made a brand new May Week program.
- Päivi Pasi (pap26) made some changes for the May Week 2002, with contributions from Simon Ford.
- Jonathan Hogg (jdh41) made some changes for the May Week 2002.
- Adam Biltcliffe (amgb2) restructured all the rules to look a bit more like the
main game ones again, and changed the weapons rules a bit with some input from Ed
Allcutt (ema29).
- Adam Baird Fraser (asb47) made some small changes for May Week 2005.
- Tom Booth (tjgb2) fiddled with a few things and made some structural changes for May Week 2006.
- Michael Wallace (mpw36) and Christian Fletcher Warran made a few changes for May Week 2007 (particularly regards scoring).
- Simeon Bird (spb41) relaxed a few rules for May Week 2008, and instituted another new scoring system.
- Will Brooks (wb236) made computer rooms OOB, made ball queues optionally OOB, restricted what innocents should do and introduced another scoring algorithm
- Christopher Powell (cp398) tweaked some things, added bread-based weaponry and continued the change of scoring algorithm trend.
- Daniel O'Brien (dgwo2) closed a loophole or two and renamed 'eventers'.
- Thomas Ruddle (tjr45) added some stuff about safety and Safer Space, with input from Alison Madgwick and Cheryl Weedon.
- Cheryl Weedon (clw68) made the best edit yet.
- Alexander Hardwick (ah768) made several extremely minor edits, and clarified the rules for those with a worrying desire to kill the Umpire. He also updated various aspects of
these rules (mainly OoB rules) in line with recent edits made to the main rules for Michaelmas/Lent games.
- Joe Tomkinson (jpt45) introduced an alternative pseudonym system for May Week 2017.
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