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SCP-3973 Safe ~ medium confidence
SCP-3973
Expected annual
$35K
One-time setup
$19K
Annual recurring
$34K
Personnel
4
One-time setup costs are modest (~$18.7k) driven by research rig, cameras/DAQ, IT/legal setup and a reserved contingency; annual costs are ~ $34.2k driven mainly by incident drills, researcher time, legal/cover costs and contingency.
🏗️ One-Time Capital Costs Total: $19K
Public Field Contingency Reserve One Time $10K
[#21] Reserved rapid-response contingency fund for public/field risk mitigation (seeded reserve).
Initial Research And Lab Setup $5K
[#5, #6, #7] Automated dice-rolling rig and test apparatus; camera(s) / DAQ / software hardware one-time purchases (covers initial camera and DAQ).
Legal Cover One Time $2K
[#15] One-time drafting of cover policies and compliance documents / retainer setup.
It Integration Setup $1K
[#20] One-time IT integration / permissions workflow setup for secure logs and access control.
Equipment $500
[#2, #4, #12] Initial acrylic 30×30×30 containment box, initial spare-parts kit, padded carrying box for transport.
Facilities $400
[#1] Electronic lock upgrade / rekeying for Site-16 locker (incremental).
🔄 Annual Recurring Costs Total: $34K/yr
Staff Wages $10K/yr
[#9, #10, #7, #8] Researcher oversight (0.05 FTE), tester labor (Level-2 staff time), analyst monitoring time, and incidental security escort overtime.
Incident Response And Drills $8K/yr
[#13] Annual budget for incident drills, tabletop exercises, and small emergency equipment.
Contingency Misc $4K/yr
[#23] Contingency & miscellaneous (15% of recurring subtotal) to cover unforeseen costs.
Cover Story And Legal $4K/yr
[#15] Ongoing legal/cover-up retainer, compliance review, communications filtering.
Public Field Contingency Recurring $2K/yr
[#21] Annual replenishment allocation for rapid public/field mitigations (supplement to one-time reserve).
Research And Monitoring $2K/yr
[#6, #22] Data storage/DAQ ongoing costs and statistical consultation / peer review.
Insurance Liability $1K/yr
[#17] Internal accounting chargeback / insurance reserve for administrative overhead.
Supplies And Consumables $860/yr
[#3, #4, #11] Monthly interior scenery supplies, spare-parts replenishment, and testing consumables (dice, gloves, cleaners).
It And Cyber Opsec $500/yr
[#20] Ongoing IT support for secure logs, permissions and OPSEC workflows.
Logistics And Transport $400/yr
[#12] Chain-of-custody administration time and transport paperwork overhead.
Medical Monitoring $400/yr
[#14] Occasional psychological / medical screening and post-test monitoring for staff.
Documentation And Archiving $400/yr
[#16] Regulatory documentation, log-books, and archival storage (paper + digital).
Facilities Maintenance $150/yr
[#1, #2, #19] Locker maintenance (locks) and periodic display/acrylic replacement amortized.
Environmental Incremental $50/yr
[#18] Incremental power / environmental control costs for lighting/camera and minimal HVAC adjustments.
⚡ Cost Scenarios
📊 Baseline (baseline) $34K/yr
94.0% probability / year
Normal year with routine testing, monitoring, and scheduled drills but no incidents or public exposure.
routine_testing scheduled_drills no_incident
🚨 Minor Incident $39K/yr
5.0% probability / year +$5K vs baseline
Small containment/test incident (equipment damage, accidental higher-intensity testing) requiring repairs and overtime.
equipment_damage localized_containment_repair investigation_overtime
🚨 Gambling Exposure $64K/yr
1.0% probability / year +$30K vs baseline
Discovery or misuse of SCP-3973 in gambling contexts triggers intensive legal action, field mitigation and PR/cover operations.
public_leak misuse_in_gambling legal_action
👥 Personnel 4 total
Role Count Notes
Research Scientist 1 [#9] PI oversight (Dr. Harpy), allocated ~0.05 FTE of senior researcher time (budgeted in staff wages).
Research Technician / Tester 1 [#10, #3, #11] Level-2 staff performing experiments/interviews and scenery/consumables handling (aggregated tester labor budget).
Security Officer / MTF Agent 1 [#8] Security escorts for tests (overtime/coverage rather than a dedicated guard).
Administrative Staff 1 [#12, #16] Chain-of-custody, logs, and documentation/archiving administration (budgeted as part-time admin effort).
📋 Confidence Notes
Line items and ranges are detailed in analyst notes, allowing a reasonable consolidated estimate; uncertainties remain in chosen midpoints, contingency sizing, and low-probability high-cost exposure events, so confidence is medium.
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