SCP-173-DE

Item #: SCP-173-DE

Object Class: Euclid

An at the moment inert instance of SCP-173-DE.

Special Containment Procedures: All instances are to be surrounded with a completely shielding Farraday cag. Additionally, they may not be brought together close enough to create a composite, except during testing approved by at least two members of the O4 council. This also applies to an eventually necessary transport. The required distance an instance must keep to another instance can be calculated as follows:

$s = {\sqrt {n\ *\ 0,13\ Nm^2 \over 1,5\ N}}$1

s: Distance in m
n: Amount of the instance's mass in kg

The Faraday cage of all instances must be inspected for damages on a monthly basis and exchanged under use of signal jammers, should it not fulfill its shielding function anymore. Should it become necessary to handle instances of SCP-173-DE for this or other reasons, assigned personnel must wear protective suits that reliably shield the wearer against electrical shocks of up to 3 Million Volt. Used work machines must be protected against such electrical charges in the same manner. At the moment, drones are being developed, intended to carry out such tasks in the future.

In the event of enough instances of SCP-173-DE-Instanzen coming together to move freely and to attack their surroundings, their composite must be destroyed by using kinetic-energy projectiles or explosive projectiles with delayed fuses. The single instances are then to be driven apart so they cannot reform their composite. It is to be taken into account for safety reasons to not approach SCP-173-DE closer than 5 m without the protective gear described further up. This also applies to instances used as projectiles by the composite.

The instances of SCP-173-DE are to be distributed over at least three sites. In case of logistical emergencies regarding this matter, aid is to be requested from other branches of the Foundation or the Mother Foundation.

Description: SCP-173-DE is the designation for 58 1678 black stones. SCP-173-DE instances don't have a standardized form or size but the same density and, as far as it can be assessed, the same chemical composition. The smallest specimen has a mass of 0,3 kg, while the biggest instance found so far weighs 3,8 t. The chemical composition of SCP-173-DE is unknown at the moment, because the Foundation has no knowledge of a method to damage SCP-173-DE.

SCP-173 instances are capable of attracting each other with forces working similar to magnetism, increasing exponentially with decreasing distance. The extent and intensity of the force-fields created by them are different from instance to instance and apparently directly proportional to their respective mass. It has to be noted, however, that, should several instances be in one place, the intensities of exerted forces can be added to one another but their reach can't. The instances also seem to have a "north" and a "south pole" according to the results of several experiments.

All SCP-173-DE specimens possess an intelligence comparable to that of humans and are apparently capable of perceiving their surroundings optically, auditory and tactilely. This has been concluded from tests with several instances, during which they also demonstrated the ability to locally change their attraction forces, presumably by changing their magnetic poles, to move instances in contact with themselves or to separate again. That enables them to facilitate locomotion and, if enough instances are available, to manipulate objects. It has been observed, that instances can develop extremely strong attraction forces so they can move units of themselves weighing several tons.

Additionally, the objects seem to have the ability to generate electrical charges inside themselves and to release aimed electrical shocks. These shocks can amount to almost 3 Million Volt when released from specimens with exceptionally high mass, hitting targets as far as 5 m away. However, it appears to take at least half an hour to prepare such a discharge. The smallest specimens can only emit electrical pulses with a maximum of 500 Volt but only need five minutes to generate the required voltage. Several tests lead to the conclusion that all specimens can hold this voltage for a long time if needed and can discharge it precisely.

It has also been established that SCP-173-DE instances are capable of emitting special radio waves not impeded by rock or minerals, so they can communicate with other instances of radio receivers. Replies are also possible via radio communication SCP-173-DE is seemingly capable of receiving. (For received communication refer to Interview 173-DE). Despite this fact it was never observed SCP-173-DE radioed a man-made receiver on its own accord. Since the encryption used by SCP-173-DE deviates heavily from those used in modern telecommunication, it has been assumed that it can't understand normal radio transmissions and therefore does not undertake an attempt at communication.

A theory states, that all of SCP-173-DE's abilities can be explained by a single operating principle. Research regarding this has not been concluded. It is currently unknown from where SCP-173-DE draws the energy for its abilities.

If enough instances of SCP-173-DE are in the same place, they will form a composite, if possible. This composite takes a humanoid form but lacks a "head" in most cases. The assumption is that the singular instances created a hive-mind and communicate via radio and electrical discharges with each other. The composite is capable of movement akin to a humanoid being via complicated changes of the local attraction forces of all instances. It can also throw parts of itself. Such a composite can be separated by the application of sudden strong forces, for example impacting kinetic-energy projectiles but the attraction forces the of SCP-173-DE composite causes instances not flung away far enough to be reintegrated immediately. Should several separated instances be in sufficient distance of each other, they form smaller unions and attempt to return to the main composite. Every composite observed to this day seems not to tire and was extremely hostile towards all forms of live and machines.

During the original recovery it was determined that such a composite could become as large as 8 m but Document 173-DE-1 leads to the conclusion that composites can be way larger, provided enough SCP-173-DE units are available. The composite found during the recovery displayed extreme physical strength, sufficient to lift an all-terrain vehicle and throw it 7 meters far. The composite was very slow, presumably because of its weight. This allowed humans to outrun it, although fast maneuvers were possible, in most cases when the composite punched or threw something. Doing this, parts of itself could be hurled as far as 15 meters and discharged in mid-flight to hit aimed at targets. It is presumed that such accelerated movements have to be prepared beforehand by SCP-173-DE like the electrical discharges.

It has been theorized, that extensive communication is required for the movement coordination of the composite. This theory was later proven through radio transmissions intercepted during the recovery. Attempts to get a composite to dissolve with jammers failed because in such cases the instances started to communicate with weak electrical impulses neighboring instances relayed to the intended recipient.

Discovery: The Foundation became aware of SCP-173-DE when instances where unearthed during an geological cunducted by the geological institute of the Technischen Universität Bergakademie Freiberg on the Lausche in the Zittau Mountains. This was also the occasion on which they formed their first documented composite, consisting of instances between 0,5 kg und 14 kg in mass. This composite killed or drove away everyone present and then proceeded to dig out more instances. The Foundation intercepted a police call stating that an angry "Golem" had appeared on the Lausche. MTF-DE6-𝔇 "Das Aufgebot" (i.e. The Draft) was dispatched to combat and capture the anomaly but was for a while confronted with the issue that it could not inflict lasting damage on SCP-173-DE. In the end, the composite could be detonated when three rocket-powered grenades with delayed fuses got lodged inside it and exploded. The resulting smaller unions were then separated further with kinetic energy-weapons and later contained when they did not pose an immediate danger anymore. All witnesses got amnesticized and the noise of battle was explained as a failed detonation that happened during the geological excavation, resulting in several causalities.

Document 173-DE-1 is a scroll that was discovered during archeological excavations on the island Gyaros in a water-tight cylinder. Because of its obvious relation to the Church of the Broken God, it was later confiscated by the Foundation. Its contents were written down with a type system derived from Mycenic Greek. The beings described in it possess such a high resemblance to a SCP-173-DE compound, that a mistake is deemed impossible.

Search operations conducted by the Foundation around the Greek island of Milos recovered further instances of SCP-173-DE. Some appeared as if they had melted and then solidified again. Instances could be located through a very faint radio connection between them and were buried under sea sand in the most cases. The recovery was carried out with specialized equipment resistant against electrical discharges and resulted in 1620 Instances.

"It can't be that we have already found all rocks. It would be a statistical miracle if a research team and two armies found all or rather were found by all of them. It is far more probable that there are far more of things out there, buried in the earth. And wie should be ready if such an amount as described Document 173-DE comes to the surface."

Dr. Reinhardt, member of the SCP-173-DE project team

page revision: 4, last edited: 05 Aug 2020 13:19