The 2024 Chicago incident and the 2017 Hopkinton, Massachusetts police response both began the same way: a person carrying a water gun in public, another person not knowing it was a game, and then police. Neither required harm. Both required an explanation. You can avoid both situations by understanding exactly when and how you can carry your blaster, and what your town and school actually permit.

Check your town and school's written rules first

Before you carry a blaster anywhere, ask your game organiser for the official rules. If they don't have written rules yet, this is the moment to start them. Most schools and towns have specific language about where the game can and cannot happen, and what equipment looks like.

Why this matters: the 2024 Chicago incident and the 2017 Hopkinton incident both happened because someone carrying a water gun looked enough like a real threat that a concerned citizen called the police. The fastest way to prevent that call is to make sure your game follows your school's or town's explicit guidelines. If your school has banned the game, carrying a blaster on campus is trespassing, even if the gun itself is legal. If your town has approved a specific version with specific rules, stick to those exactly. If you're starting from scratch, see how to pitch senior assassin school approval to get explicit buy-in.

Carry your gun only when you are actively playing

A water gun on your commute is not a game. A water gun at lunch is not a game. A water gun walking through a neighbourhood where people who don't know the game live is not a game, and it will get a call.

Bring your blaster only when you're heading directly to a location where the game is happening, and leave it behind when you go to class or leave to go home. Transport it in a bag if you're not immediately in a game zone. If you're at school, keep it out of sight until you're off campus and moving to a play location. This is the difference between an accident and a game that nobody needs to worry about.

Make sure your blaster looks unmistakably like a toy

Realistic-looking toy guns are one of the three common objections parents and school administrators raise about the game. If someone can't tell your blaster is a toy from a distance, you're one concerned neighbour away from a police call.

The test: if a stranger passing you on the street would need to be close enough to touch it to see it's not real, it looks too real. Bright colours, visible seams, water capacity markings, and "toy" labels all help. Some towns and states have specific laws about gun replicas and orange tips. Check your local laws, and go brighter than you think you need to. Many blaster enthusiasts paint theirs with neon stripes or glow effects. That's not a bad idea here.

• Bright, non-realistic colours (neon, pastels, or solid bright colours, not black or dark grey)
• Visible toy markings and manufacturer labels
• Orange tips or other explicit safety markings
• Smooth, synthetic materials that obviously aren't metal

Never carry a blaster into school or onto school property

This is not about whether water guns are legal. This is about school liability and trespassing law. Bringing a weapon of any kind onto school grounds without permission is trespassing, regardless of what the weapon is or whether it fires water.

Schools are universally off-limits, even if the game itself is technically legal in your town. If your target is inside the school building or on school grounds, you cannot play during school hours, and you certainly cannot enter armed. The off-limits rule protects both you and the school from a confrontation that a school administrator would have no choice but to escalate. If your game uses senior assassin out of bounds places, you already know the full list. If you're writing your own rules, start there and add your own specific locations your school has requested.

Carry ID and know how to explain the game to a police officer

If you are stopped or questioned, the first thing that will help you is your ability to explain what you're doing in clear, fast language. Say: "I'm playing senior assassin, a water tag game for graduating seniors. This is a toy gun filled with water." Show your school ID if you have one. Have the game rules on your phone if possible.

A police officer's job is to assess risk. Reducing that assessment from unknown to game takes about ten seconds of conversation. Carry enough phone battery to make a call. If the organiser has written rules, take a photo of them on your phone. If someone calls in a concerned report, these things turn a fifteen-minute misunderstanding into a two-minute explanation.

Know the difference between carrying a gun and being mistaken for an intruder

The documented incidents from this game are not about water guns being a legal problem. They're about the gap between what a player is doing and what a bystander sees. Read the full is senior assassin safe assessment for the documented incidents and the specific rules that remove almost all of the risk.

The real risk is that someone who doesn't know the game exists sees a person carrying something that looks like a gun and calls the police because they think something dangerous is happening. That's not paranoia. It is exactly what responsible citizens should do if they see something that looks like a threat. The way you prevent that call is simple: carry only when actively playing, keep it obviously a toy, don't carry it into spaces where people don't expect the game, and follow your town's or school's rules.

Check state and local laws about toy guns in your area

Most US states permit toy guns to be carried in public as long as they don't look too realistic and you don't use them to threaten anyone. Some states and cities have specific rules. The National Conference of State Legislatures and your local police department's community relations office can tell you what applies where you live. You can also check our app comparison to see how different platforms handle rules and region-specific requirements.

In some areas, orange tips are required. In others, anything obviously a toy is fine. Before game day, call your local non-emergency police line and ask: "I'm playing a spring game where we carry toy water guns. Do I need anything specific, like an orange tip, to do that legally in this town?" One short call removes all the guesswork and gives you clear language if you are ever stopped. If your organiser hasn't created formal rules yet, this is a good time to do it.