You can’t bring alcohol, you can’t bring your bike, but hot damn, you better bring your saliva.

The spit-swapping, Band-rallying, cold-sharing orgy that is Full Moon on the Quad is upon us once again, and every corner of campus has been scurrying to prepare before the clock strikes twelve. Most notably, police and dorm staff will step up their efforts to discourage public drunkenness at the event.

Deputy Ken Bates, who does event planning for Stanford Police, said that there will be officers roaming the Quad and patrolling its outer areas to keep Full Moon dry.

“We want to ensure that people don’t partake in alcohol [immediately] prior to coming in,” Bates said. “If we see anyone in there under the age of 21 in possession of alcohol they could be cited.”

Bates added that students deemed to be intoxicated — defined as being unable to care for yourself or the safety of others — may be subject to arrest.

Dina Contreras, a 2006 graduate and Vaden’s peer health coordinator, said that the staff is taking extra precautions because the event is on a Saturday.

“We actually are slightly nervous about this Full Moon because it’s a weekend night,” Contreras said. “About half of the freshman will be returning from their scavenger hunt that day so we’re hoping that that may minimize the front loading. But there is also a football game before, so we’re anxious that people might have already been drinking.”

Vaden has also specifically asked a number of residential staff to hold programming events in the hours before Full Moon to provide an alternative to pre-gaming.

“We want them to dispel the myth that some freshmen might have heard from upper classmen that this is a gigantic orgy and kissing fest,” Contreras said.

Some upperclassmen, however, were disinclined to put those “myths” to rest.

“Spreading the love, welcoming the freshman to campus,” said a junior who would only give the name ‘J.’ “I love Full Moon!”

Staff from the Vaden and dorm Peer Health Educators will be out in full force tomorrow night, handing out mouth wash, chocolate kisses and health pamphlets to those who pass by.

The Band, still on indefinite provisional status, will carry on its tradition of performing at midnight. Absolute Fun, the undergraduate programming division of the ASSU, has lined up an eclectic mix of artists, ranging from Alliance Streetdance and the Hindi Film Dance team to senior Kristine Flaherty, the rapper better known as KFlay.

Sophomore Jordan Goldberg joined his fellow class presidents to partner with Absolute Fun to plan entertainment to make Full Moon more inviting for students whose lips are sealed he said.

“In the past it’s kind of not been an event for everybody and some people don’t feel comfortable going,” he said. “We wanted to make it more of a concert, and make it more fun.”

Still, rumors about Full Moon abound among freshmen, whose limited knowledge of the event they scrounge from upperclassmen and past issues of The Daily.

“I hear it’s a crazy orgy fest,” said freshman Chris Scales, an opinion echoed by others.

Freshman Sam Stone was barely able to contain his excitement as he quoted the description of Full Moon by his Resident Assistants in Adelfa as “a crazy night of debauchery and lewdness.”

But other freshmen did not share Stone’s enthusiasm; Freshman Lia Bonamasso said she was not sure she would attend.

“Well, there’s the typical mono/sickness, that’s not such a big deal,” she said. “But the whole thing just seems kind of weird — but it is a tradition.”

And freshman Anne French said she would attend, but strictly as a spectator.

“I heard it used to be some really Neanderthal ritual,” she said. “Didn’t they line frosh girls up and make them kiss the senior guys?”

Goldberg said he was confident the extra entertainment would make the event palatable to more refined tastes.

“The freshmen,” he said, “will be able to get a taste of what Stanford’s all about.”

Here’s to hoping that taste is minty fresh.

— David Gauvey Herbert, Rahul Kanakia, Emma Vaughn and Kelley Fong contributed to this story.