As seniors enter their final month at Lake Forest Academy, things are getting more soaked. Water guns, water bottles and surprise ambushes have taken over campus as the Class of 2025 dives into Senior Assassin, an LFA tradition that marks the start of senior spring and the countdown to graduation. This year, 115 members of the Class of 2025 participated in the intense game of survival that involves endurance, strategy and, at times, betrayal.
In Senior Assassin, every player is randomly given another senior as a target. To assassinate them, a player must sneak up on their opponent without being detected. Targets are redistributed and reshuffled every week. The game continues until all but one assassin has been eliminated.
Krish Bahadur ‘26, the new All School President, was the coordinator this year. He created an Instagram account to report progress, compiled a whole roster of participants and employed a random number generator to create goals. In accordance with the rulebooks for last year’s organizers, he developed a system tailored to the current year’s game. Members submit video evidence of kills, which Bahadur reviews before recording them on the master spreadsheet. He also handles rule-breaking and disputes, making instant judgments in order to keep things fair and on track.
To simplify logistics and keep things fair, the game is restricted to campus. “We made that decision because of the number of players,” Bahadur said. “It keeps things manageable and more exciting.” Interest and participation are still high, nevertheless
One of the highlights was enacted by Brett Leslie. Knowing that his target, Howard Chen, had something to do, Leslie positioned himself next to a bush along the road to faculty housing. He didn’t move for over an hour, braving the sun and the wait. When Chen walked by, unsuspecting and unarmed, Leslie unleashed a perfect ambush shot, eliciting applause and snickers along the game’s Instagram timeline.
It wasn’t until May 14 that the game included a high-risk component: The Purge. For a single day, between the hours of 6 a.m. and 8 p.m., students were allowed to murder any other active student — no assignments required. Chaos broke out as students stalked behind bushes, ran around buildings, and formed alliances to endure the 14-hour free-for-all.
The Instagram handle, lfa_seniorsplash25, has been a campus favorite, with consistent posting of elimination clips, slow-mo drama and bracket lists. It’s maintained a buzz and has had players walking around feeling like celebrities on display.
Even under the pressure of competition, the attitude about Senior Assasin has remained rough and mouthwatering. Most disagreements get settled quickly, and everyone appears to pick up on the game’s spirit.
While the Class of 2025 looks ahead to graduation, Senior Assassin keeps the seniors involved. Senior Assassin is something the seniors won’t soon forget about LFA.
