Everything You Need to Know About SCP-3000

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Horror expert Robert Cook shares the full scoop on this massive aquatic entity

Co-authored by Robert Cook and Amy Bobinger, BA

Last Updated: April 21, 2026 Fact Checked

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• What is SCP-3000?
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• What does it do?
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• Aztak Protocol & Y-909
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• Containment
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• Anantashesha
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• Is SCP-3000 real?
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• Video

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Is there anything scarier than the idea of a massive creature lurking in the depths of the ocean, just waiting to eat you? Actually, yes—one that can do all that and erase your memory, too. And SCP-3000 fits that bill. In this article, we partnered with a horror expert to help us break down everything there is to know about SCP-3000, including what it is, what it does, how the Foundation uses it, and how it’s linked to the Hindu deity Anantashesha.

SCP-3000, Explained

Horror expert Robert Cook says SCP-3000 is a massive aquatic entity that resembles a gigantic moray eel. Anyone who encounters it experiences headaches, memory loss, and other cognitive disturbances. When it eats, SCP-3000 secretes a substance known as Y-909, an essential ingredient in the SCP Foundation’s amnestic compounds.

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Section 1 of 6:

What is SCP-3000?

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1. 
   SCP-3000 is an aquatic creature that resembles a gigantic Moray eel. “SCP-3000 is a massive aquatic entity that currently inhabits the bottom of the ocean in a state of sleep,” Cook says. “It most closely resembles a moray eel in most depictions, but scaled up dramatically. It is believed to be as long as one megameter or 621 miles.” Its head is around 2.5 m (8.2 ft) around, and the widest part of its body is about 10 m (33 ft) in diameter. “[It] oozes a fluid from its skin into the surrounding water, which has been tested and determined to be an excellent sedative and amnestic,” Cook continues. This secretion substance is known as Y-909 (we’ll explain more about what Y-909 does later).

   • Classification: Thaumiel; Class VIII Cognitohazard
   • Diet: Carnivore; eats humans and possibly large sea animals
   • Location: The Bay of Bengal in the Indian Ocean
   • Behavior: Sedentary, moving only its head to eat or in response to stimuli

   Meet the wikiHow Expert

   Robert Cook is a horror expert based in Florida. He’s been interested in the SCP Foundation since 2015 and runs The O5 Council Instagram account, which is a news source for the SCP Foundation community.
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Section 2 of 6:

What does SCP-3000 do to you?

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1. 
   SCP-3000 can cause memory loss and psychological distress. Aside from being a terrifyingly gigantic, carnivorous creature that lurks in the depths of the ocean, SCP-3000 is one of the scariest SCPs because it essentially erases you. People who come into contact with SCP-3000 experience side effects like headaches, disorientation, extreme anxiety, and memory loss. They often start to lose their sense of identity and become overwhelmed with thoughts of nothingness. There’s no known cure, and eventually, the person may completely forget who they are. Many attempt to take their own lives.

   • Cook says, “Anyone who swims in the nearby waters will be haunted by visions of eyes in the darkness, even long after they go home.”
   • Dr. Mannava, an SCP researcher studying SCP-3000, explained, “It breaks down human consciousness and scatters the part of us that we believe is a soul until all that remains is what we really are: electrical signals that will some day become inert.”
   • Put more simply, a diver who encountered SCP-3000 said, “In the end, only the eel remains.”
   • SCP-3000 plays on people’s fears of being forgotten after they die.

Section 3 of 6:

Aztak Protocol: SCP-3000 and Y-909

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1. 
   The Aztak Protocol allows the Foundation to harvest Y-909. When SCP-3000 eats, it secretes a substance known as Y-909. This substance is uniquely valuable to the Foundation—it’s added to a number of amnestics (compounds that cause the recipient to experience memory loss) to help stabilize them and enhance their effects. Y-909 also helps reduce the unwanted side effects of these amnestic compounds.

   • Because SCP-3000 only secretes Y-909 after feeding, the Foundation must feed it to collect the compound. To do this, the submersible Eremita delivers SCP-3000 a D-Class human (a person deemed expendable, usually violent criminals). About two hours after the feeding, divers return to collect the secretions.
   • The Foundation uses amnestics to keep the public from finding out about the anomalies known as SCPs. This is done to prevent widespread panic.
   • So far, any attempts to develop a synthetic version of Y-909 have failed, often resulting in significant casualties. Further testing is discouraged.
   • Check out more stories about the Aztak protocol by visiting the Aztak Hub on the SCP Wiki.
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Section 4 of 6:

Is SCP-3000 contained?

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1. 
   SCP-3000 is sedentary, but it can’t really be contained. There’s not really a practical way to contain a creature that’s hundreds of miles long. However, SCP-3000 doesn’t show any signs of relocating, and rarely moves anything more than its head.

   • Foundation ships routinely patrol the area, keeping civilians away from the waters where SCP-3000 lives.
   • As part of the Aztak Protocol, the SCP Foundation uses the Eremita to regularly monitor SCP-3000’s location, verifying that it’s still resting in the Bay of Bengal (and that the Foundation can still access Y-909).

Section 5 of 6:

SCP-3000 as Anantashesha & Other Deities

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1. 
   SCP-3000 is linked to the Hindu deity Anantashesha. The title of the original SCP-3000 story is “Anantashesha”—a reference to the Hindu deity Ananta-shesha, or Endless Shesa, King of the Nagas (Serpents). His name means "the eternal one that remains after everything else ceases."

   • After the Foundation researcher Dr. Venkat Krisnamoorthy encountered SCP-3000 aboard the Erimeta, he hypothesized that SCP-3000 was Anantashesha. However, his last words were, “I was wrong. God save me, it’s not…” It’s unknown whether this negates the theory that 3000 and Anantashesha are the same being.
   • SCP-3000 co-creator djkaktus posits that SCP-3000 is a deity known as “IS NOT,” who created the world with his brother, the Serpent “IS.”
     • In SCP-4840-A, an immortal entity (“Seth el Adam”) who guards the ancient floating city of Audapaupadopolis. He says, “I was a boy when the Serpent and its Dark Brother set the foundations of what is and is not.” (In the original article, “Dark Brother” is hyperlinked to the SCP-3000 wikidot entry.)
   • Some people mistakenly believe that SCP-3000 is the Leviathan mentioned in the Bible; however, this is more commonly associated with SCP-169.
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Section 6 of 6:

Is SCP-3000 real?

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1. 
   No, SCP-3000 is not real. The SCP Project is a collaborative work of fiction. The site’s FAQ page clearly states, “We are a creative writing website. The Foundation, its anomalies, and everything else that’s been written about is fictional.”

   • “SCP-3000: Anantashesha” was the winner of the SCP-3000 project (the prize was the right to use the designation “SCP-3000”). It was written by Team Djardeth, made up of SCP writers djkaktus, A Random Day (ARD), and Joreth.
   • Would SCP-3000 beat your favorite SCP in a fight? Find out with our SCP Fight Simulator!

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