Rangercore game idea: Hide And Sneak
The aim of this game is to develop your sneaking abilities, as well as your tracking and observation skills. It is supposed to be played during the day, but you can adapt it to night if you wish, possibly combining it with Watchman.
You will need: bows for all the hiders (under 30 pounds) and one LARP arrow per person. In a pinch you can substitute these for nerf guns, or other small, soft hand missiles (but do not use pebbles or something that could actually injure someone!!!). You will need forested terrain, preferably with climbable trees and rocks and bushes you can hide behind. The “bounds” of the playing field should be quite large, about twice or three times the size of a usual hide and seek area. It also helps if everyone is wearing dark or woodland colours so they can blend in.
One person is the sneaker, everyone else is a hider. The sneaker gives the hiders 5-10 minutes while all the hiders… hide (a surprise ik). They should try and position themselves strategically, in trees hidden by foliage or low to the ground in bushes. Once the sneaker starts to try and look for the hiders (attempts at tracking are highly recommended), the latter need to try and snipe the former. The sneaker is, obviously, trying not to be shot, and to find all the hiders.
Now, if the sneakers manage to get a “kill shot” in (chest - head shots dont count as anything, don’t aim for the head), they get immunity from the sneaker and can go and have a tea with cookies or something (mead and stew??). If they manage to only “wound” the sneaker (legs or arms), they then have to make a run for whatever the “base” has been set. If they make it first they also get tea and cookies, but if they get tagged then they lose. Decide whether other hiders can shoot the sneaker if the latter is pursuing someone.
If the sneaker manages to name a hider and correctly point at their location, the hider loses. The name must be called before the sneaker is hit by the missile, and the hider cannot shoot after their name has been called.
STICK MODE: Give the game that extra spice ™
**play at own risk. Do not play with children under 13 for everyone’s safety. Participants must not be adverse to any potential injuries that may arise.**
You need: Everything in BASE MODE except everyone has - you guessed it - a stick. Foam swords would probably be wise if you can get ‘em, otherwise any sturdy stick you find will do.
Now the difference in game is that, should the sneaker be only “injured” by the missile, they and the hider must engage in pitched battle using the sticks as swords. Should the sneaker “kill” the hider, the hider loses, if the hider “kills” the sneaker than they win and get their preferred beverage, while the sneaker walks off their death as they continue to look for people. No one else is allowed to intervene for the sake of simplicity. Of course you can always just go hog wild if you want, but that leads to bruises and hurt feelings in my experience.
ALTERNATE GAMEPLAY: Any way you can think of to make the rules more fun for your group. Play it at night and combine it with Flashlight or Watchman, play it with water pistols for summer, make a buildup mode where failed hiders become sneakers, increase the amount of both sneakers and missiles to begin with, the options are really only limited to your imagination!
KIDS MODE: No sticks or missiles are involved. The aim is for the sneaker to tag the hider before they get to base. Basically just glorified 44 home.
KIDS MODE, BLOCK EDITION: Kids mode except at base there is a “block” (an upside down bucket works, or a 5L plastic water bottle with a litre of water in it. Anything that is puntable a fair distance basically). Draw a circle around the “block” with a 1.5-ish metre radius. The sneaker strays away from the block and tries to spot people and call their name. If a hiders name is called they have been “captured” and must stand inside the block circle. Other hiders can “kick the block” ie run out of hiding and kick the block as far as humanely possible, thereby freeing the prisoners who then scatter and hide (note: you cannot touch the block with your hands). Sneaker must run to grab the block and put it back in the circle, before they can try to re-capture everyone still in sight. The sneaker’s aim is to have everyone caught, the hiders’ aim is to make the sneaker give up. Fun fact this game is actually just called “kick the block”, my mum introduced it to me and my brother and it is one of the best camp games we’ve ever played 😄.
EDUCATION MERIT: The game teaches you how to be silent, how to sneak around, how to shoot people, how to hide, and most importantly how to whack people (STICK MODE only)
Disclaimer: I am not responsible for any injuries caused by playing this game, particularly STICK MODE.
This game (with the exception of KIDS MODE, BLOCK EDITION) is completely my invention and if you try and pass it off as your own gods help me but I WILL punt you into the sun with more force that that one time I kicked the block 30 metres away.
