Neat.
The trailing addendum seems to detract from the rest, though. Snow Crash much?
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Actually, I think the addendum makes this all the more effective. The SCP itself is a simple "Thing that kills you if you look at it", but what makes it work is the [Fridge Horror] when you realize that they didn't always know it was deadly.
Obsessive doodling and showing results to people, eh? I think I'm infected…
Also, the "Any persons attempting to leave the containment room should be terminated immediately." rule has made me chuckle a bit:
'Good day Agent, mind if I go in to run some tests on 571?'
'Not at all!'
[some time passes]
'Okay, I'm done here! Good day, Agent.'
*BLAM*
I dunno about this one. The containment procedures don't seem… enough. Just two guards for this Keter object? (Who, apparently, can let people in but not out?) Eh. On the other hand, I do like the straightforward simplicity and it's decently written… so… unsure about how to vote.
Like SCP-008 this is an object that would be safe if not for the risk of a world-ending scenario. Given that, all you need is a couple people stationed to make sure no one spreads it (why they don't just put it in a box is beyond me.)
It actually is in a box - but that's exactly what I mean. It's in a box in a room with two guards. Two guards aren't nearly enough if it's just sitting in the room. You know what can kill two guards? One person with a gun. One researcher off his/her meds could end the world.
Yes, because one researcher off his meds can obviously kill two armed guards.
And then escape, with SCP-571, and begin spreading it.
Guards aren't useless, you know.
Even knowing there is no canon, I find it hard to believe that there aren't any Foundation researchers who couldn't do that. Probably not most of them, but certainly some. (For the record, the 'off meds' was facetious.)
EDIT: And of course, I don't need to point out what kinds of researchers we have at the Foundation if you DO pay attention to some versions of the "canon". (Chowderclef notwithstanding.)
Aaaand I've talked myself into a downvote.
If you're just going to kill everyone who walks out of there, why on earth would you design a containment room that you could leave from?
A side note, I sort of want to do a Foundation tale about the thoughts of someone infected with this thing, but I'm not quite sure how.
EDIT: I forgot to mention that I upvoted this because it's completely pointless. The picture itself is pointless, and mindlessly spreading it around for no reason is pointless. Just like real-life internet memes. What I'm trying to say is the similarities spook me a little.
if your reading this your gay
This is starting to get low. On reread, I really want to upvote this, since I like the concept and since it's a pretty much perfect example of a memetic SCP (hopefully Sorts doesn't come tell me that it isn't memetic at all after that D:) But the containment procedures are just so dumb.
The author has been AWOL for two years. Requesting permission to change the containment procedures (or permission for someone else like Scantron to do it) since the article is steadily sinking anyway.
That, and given the incident log was purged, the reclass to Keter makes no sense and appears dumb.
(account deleted)Do it.
"WELL FOUNDATION. YOU MADE IT SO EASY. SO VERY VERY EASY." - dimensionpotato
Okay, I kind of went a little overboard and ended up with a complete rewrite. Thoughts? Is this acceptable? (It was at 0 when I did the rewrite, incidentally.)
I'm sticking with my downvote because of the nonexistant reason to upgrade to Keter.
Me too. I was enjoying it until that point.
Whether you like it or not, history is on our side. We will bury you!
This would probably spread far more quickly than any disease if it can be scanned and uploaded to a computer. Someone infected by this along with a cellphone could end the world.
It's an item with the potential to cause an automatic XK-Scenario if it breaks containment for any reason. It makes the SCP 008 look like a flippin' daycare. How is that not Keter?
It's an item with the potential to cause an automatic XK-Scenario if it breaks containment for any reason. It makes the SCP 008 look like a flippin' daycare. How is that not Keter?
Technically according to my rewrite it's an AK-scenario ;D
Their reasoning, though, is that the classes are based on difficulty of containment. I mean a billion nuclear missiles could destroy the world, but if you put them in a giant locked box nothing is likely to happen, making them Safe.
The SCP-008 prion was artificially produced and may be independently reproduced, so the reason it's Keter is because if you put it in a locked box and forget about it, someone else recreates it somewhere else and all hell breaks loose. (This was eventually reclassified as Euclid.)
I expanded the addendum to give a reason for it being Keter, though, while trying to keep what previous people liked about the Fridge Logic "we don't know exactly why" factor. Thoughts, people?
EDIT: And another update, tweaking the effect per feedback from Xiao and other people in chat.
I wonder if I ought to change what the object is? Like, it doesn't have to be a random pattern (though that keeps with the 'you could accidentally produce this while scribbling' thing that… admittedly isn't really THAT likely according to the current draft of the article, though it's certainly possible). It could be anything that a person can theoretically copy really so long as it's a complex and fictional 'anything'… like a painting, or a set of instructions, or a story, or…
I was more thinking that a gazillion nuclear warheads (or potentially just a hundred large ones) would be very difficult to fire or use to end the world, and could hardly do so without the proper passwords and clear intent of doing just that.
This will actively try to breach containment whenever someone is infected - and if a researcher with knowledge of the full containment procedures is exposed he might be able to hide that he is infected until he has a way of communicating with a lot of people at the same time (like all on-site personnel in charge of keeping said containment procedures) or a be able to smuggle a cellphone to the site itself.
It's like being a doctor or train repairman; One incredibly tiny little mistake along with some bad luck and all hell breaks loose.
Except that in the case of this one, one incredibly tiny mistake ALWAYS leads to hell breaking loose.
"The SCP-008 prion was artificially produced and may be independently reproduced"
SCP-571 was almost certainly artificially produced- I don't see why you need an addendum to make it Keter, although it's a good use of DATA REDACTED. What assurances does the Foundation have that SCP-571 can't be independently reproduced?
Addendum: Incident X571-A: [DATA EXPUNGED] Following these events, SCP-571 has been reclassified as Keter. Description and containment procedures updated accordingly.
Granted, this section is from before the full rewrite. Then again, so was the comment.
Rewrite is good, vote reversed.
When any human looks at SCP-571 for any amount of time, they will immediately search for a piece of paper or other suitable stationery. The exposed human will then begin to copy SCP-571 onto the new paper, with any available drawing implement. Despite the particularly high complexity of the pattern, copying of SCP-571 by an exposed human will be successful approximately 96% of the time.
This has and will always be terrible. :(
This has and will always be terrible. :(
Why, though? >.>
How do you know it's 96% accurate? 95% is one in twenty - and you'd need more then 20 test to call that ballpark. 96% means WAY more testing (like, in the thousands) to obtain that degree..
Also "human" instead of "person" is kind of "eh" to me. Unless you're testing using Dr. Bright in monkey form, and Dr. Kain to cross test, calling people "human" strikes worse then the "humanoid" we normally see.
Finally, please remove at least two instances of "at all times" from that containment paragraph. It reads poorly enough that I almost started to make fun of it. "The following measures are to be adhered to at all times:…" should work.
And yes - It is a damn site better then it was. Upvoting despite of my carping.
edit: And I think it's Keter because we don't know that we caught them all.
96% means WAY more testing (like, in the thousands) to obtain that degree..
What about the potentially very large, stable population(s) referenced in the addendum? Would that work? I did choose a number like that on purpose, but I didn't actually figure out the math and while I like statistics, number things don't come naturally to me.
Also "human" instead of "person" is kind of "eh" to me. Unless you're testing using Dr. Bright in monkey form, and Dr. Kain to cross test, calling people "human" strikes worse then the "humanoid" we normally see.
Or if they tested the effect on primates, and nothing happened.
Finally, please remove at least two instances of "at all times" from that containment paragraph. It reads poorly enough that I almost started to make fun of it. "The following measures are to be adhered to at all times:…" should work.
Goddammit I always miss that shit. Editing now.
What I meant was that with that high a degree of accuracy, you've got have a LOT of test subjects - 24 out of a 25 does give you 96% - but there is still a +/- error rate. Yea, there are "in the wild statistics" added in, but it's like the articles that say "Subject was 182.88 cm tall" when he was 6 feet. It's an accuracy that exceeds… something. Anyway, I think you know what I meant.
I'll buy your "human: comment without trying to get you to incorporate it. I think I'm just irked at all the "humanoid" SCPs that are humans and reactive.
It's an accuracy that exceeds… something. Anyway, I think you know what I meant.
…Maybe? Maybe I should edit it down. The purpose was to imply that the Foundation had the opportunity to observe and study a very large population of infectees without getting too crazy with decimal points, but I can still see your point.
I think I'm just irked at all the "humanoid" SCPs that are humans and reactive.
What do you mean by reactive?
I would actually like to see more articles involving weird shit happening to other species, though. (I should probably find time to write some.)
I either need more or less caffine when I post:
I think I'm just irked at all the "humanoid" SCPs that are humans and reactive.
Rephrase as:
I think I'm just irked that so many article say "humanoid" in SCP writeups when they mean "human" that I just reflexively reacted in a negative way to "human." I think thought "person" or "people" are better in this case, as the victims of memetics/cognition hazards have not been animals.
Thinking about it, I don't think "human" or "person" would be right. Most of the current writing on the wiki trys to dehumanize when people are involved. "Victims" or "targets" might be better.
But that's me.
The quoted section is everything that is bad and wrong with this SCP. It's something out of the old bad school of SCPs. It's straight up crazy to death.
The quoted section is everything that is bad and wrong with this SCP. It's something out of the old bad school of SCPs. It's straight up crazy to death.
I… guess? I tried to minimize the crazy to death thing (by removing the 'automatic death' part), but I can see why it's still a problem for you. On the other hand, I'm not sure how to remove the 'thing what makes you go crazy' element without just writing another SCP entirely, so oh well.
(though if anyone has any suggestions feel free to make them :) )
+1
Of course, the containment procedures still don't make any mention of limiting communication devices that can send pictures; (A cellphone with a camera, a scanner + computer with network access or internet access, a fax with internet or network access) or does photographs/scans taken of it not reproduce the effect?
oh man, Henrik, you're totally right. Fixed that.
In the case of an SCP-571 containment breach, affected personnel are to be summarily killed and incinerated.
The Foundation does not kill. We terminate.
"Terminate" has multiple meanings. One is "kill". Another is "discharge from employment". The author is making sure that we are
1) Shooting the poor bastard in the head and then
2) burning the body,
VS.
1) Handing the researcher a pink slip and then
2) Burning the (still alive) researcher to ash.
I don't understand why a physical printed out copy must always exist and be kept locked up?
Why doesn't the foundation just keep only the encrypted digital backup. Avoids need for 8 guards and incinerators and is hugely safer.
I like it. Simple, but with terrifying capability for harming civilization. Horrifying potential; knowing that the vast majority of people could be essentially stripped of free will forever just because some poor fool had the misfortune of seeing a drawing.
It makes me wonder how many blind people there are in the world.
Regaining what is lost would be daunting but certainly not impossible. The fact that buildings and infrastructure would remain would be a great help.
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page revision: 1, last edited: 02 Apr 2021 15:16
