I have an SCP idea for a collaborating group of young entrepreneurs attempting to grapple in customers by using an amateur-ish anomalous infohazard, but they're having to weed through their customers as fast as possible and jump from fanbase to fanbase as their customers go from mild to moderate to severe stages, and go from enthusiastic shoppers to inhuman creatures.
At some point in time, the collaborating group either has to abandon ship, or they succumb to their own memetic scam. The anomaly isn't reliable, and they're dumb kids who just want money. They're not even a corporation.
Setting it in a fanbase like the furry fandom would allow for a reasonable explanation of the customers going from regular people to obsessed fans, and eventually, animals. It could also offer a small twist, I think.
Seems pretty interesting, but simultaneously a bit confusing. I like your motives on this one, but in general, it seems a bit misty, if it makes sense. Add some more story and some more depth to the SCP in general. It almost doesn't seem like an SCP, but rather a weird tale. Hope this helps! :)
I'll argue against this. I think the concept works very well in terms of being a possible SCP. The SCP itself would be the anomalous infohazards (maybe in the form of ads?), while specific ones can be mentioned as -1 or so instances.
I think your first concern should be figuring out what the infohazard actually is. Is it an ad, or some kind of word of mouth phenomenon? How does it work, and what does it do specifically?
You mention that the collaborators could fall victim to the infohazard. That might be an interesting way to include documentation that shows this occurring, as well as them panicking, because as you state, they are kids in over their heads.
I'm not a fan of the side effect that involves turning into some kind of rabid animal. I think the side effect should be something that is related to the infohazard itself, something that maybe some QA could have caught. It can be horrifying, but in a way that relates it back to greedy capitalism.
Thanks for the feedback!
I planned on it being an advertisement that could be spread via links, photographs, and the like, but specifically over the Internet. This would be because they're kids with low budgets, and putting a post on the Internet is cheap and easy.
The 'rabid animal' effect would relate directly back to the furry fanbase; maybe their previously undetected scams related to superhero fanbases, where the most severe stage was a lot less terrifying and just involved people pretending to be citizen vigilantes. Since it would be an obsession over animals, the effect would cause them to became far more animalistic themselves.
You mention it going from fanbase to fanbase, so I think the idea that the SCP affects each one differently is interesting. Just keep in mind not every fandom is like-minded.
Since it would be an obsession over animals, the effect would cause them to became far more animalistic themselves.
I think you might be misunderstanding what the furry fandom actually is. They're generally fans of fiction involving anthromorphic (meaning, humanform) animals, not obsessed with normal animals in general. If you'll want to use real-world fandoms/subcultures, you really need to research them instead of just use the popcultural representation.
I actually am a huge furry myself, lol! I have a huge database of knowledge on the fandom, and since it is an enthusiasm for anthro animals, one of the more moderate stages would likely be constant presentation as one's fursona, identification with or as an anthropomorphic animal, until the severe stages, where they dig down deep into the roots of that animal's true nature, not their fictional, humanoid personality!
And here I thought it was more about certsin traits or qualities of said aninals that one may find appealing, or how a multispecies society may develop.
Or maybe that's just your perspective and what you get from the fandom, while others may get something else entirely.
My dad once compared me with a friend involving our like of Dragon Ball Z. My friend was clearly in it for the fights- he could give a blow-by-blow analysis of the most recent battles. I was more focused on the story; I could tell you what was going on beyond the fights- why they were fighting and what the overall goal was. We were still fans- we just focused on different aspects of it.
That might throw an interesting wrinkle into this SCP's effects; it amplifies individual preferences to caraciture and inadvertently causes inter-fan warfare, rather than a collective preference.
Nah, you're pretty spot-on with your observation, concerning a huge chunk of the fandom.
The previous fanbase (likely a superhero comic) possibly evolved into haphazard vigilantes and villains, transitioning from mere LARP fights to genuine death and injuries attempted from replicating superhero action. Some of the more mild stages probably involved bankruptcy (due to fans spending more than they could afford on the group's offered goods and whatnot), rejection by friends and family, and an overall lower quality of self-care. The group probably ditched it a) in fear of being caught/swept up in the anomaly and b) because it was no longer profitable.
Furries were the next step, since the fandom would be deemed more "mild" by the group (definitely a mistake), and the mild-moderate stages follow the same pattern as previous groups, though the severe stages would concern utter involvement with the fans' characters to a point of inability to care for themselves, and in extreme cases, acting like the animals their fursonas were based off of; people who liked anthro wolves in the more severe stages would go from being utterly their character to a mere shell of what they were intended to be, and surpassing the group's expectations by just becoming predatory creatures. Similarly, prey fursonas -> prey behavior; fictional and made-up animals would be met with unnatural and even spastic behavior, as the anomaly doesn't know how to advance further.
