Help me play a prank on my friend

[XanBcoo]

Suggestions Needed

So a friend of mine from high school, Jeff, recently hooked up with a girl he met online. After speaking with her for a few months, they decided to start "going out" on some chat site, and just last week he drove for 6 hours and picked her up in the middle of the night, without her family knowing, and took her back to live with him and his mom. There are more ridiculous and pathetic details surrounding this story, but I'll cut it short. Basically, when I first heard about the whole thing, I thought he was bullshitting me. I assumed it was a prank. I have now come to understand (slightly disappointingly) that it's all legitimate, but someone really needs to get pranked now.

After reading much about, and through the archives of a few ARGs, I started having the urge to orchestrate a small game or con of my own for my friends to be involved in. I figure out of anyone, Jeff should be the victim here. He's gullible, practically begging me silently for this opportunity with all the shit he puts me through, and honestly just an easy target. Right now I'm still in the planning stages and probably will be for at least another month or two. But I want to do this right.

What I want is for it to involve him running around doing insane tasks and generally making a fool of himself all under the pretense that he's helping a fictional girl. I'm 100% I can hook him like this, knowing that he has huge amounts of trust for people he meets online. I also really want to creep the shit out of him, so I'm thinking I can possibly involve a "jealous boyfriend" in this thing. I really don't know. I'd like to involve things like anonymous meet-ups, sending of creepy/threatening pictures/messages, phone calls, and weird or embarrassing tasks for him to go through. I'm not capable of much, but I know this could be really fun.

What I need from you, Gotwoot, are suggestions and input.
I need:
- ideas for tasks, humiliating or otherwise
- other stories from you/general suggestions about pranks
(they need to be realistic. Nothing too out there. I don't want him to catch on or get too creeped out that he won't continue until the end)

- and a PAYOFF. An ending.

The last part is what's really got me and the other guy planning this stumped. We don't know how to end it. What should Jeff have ended up doing by the end? Should we humiliate him? Should we con him out of money? I'm not so cruel that I want to do something too drastic to him, but I want this to be worth it. Please help Gotwoot!

[Phoenix20578]

- and a PAYOFF. An ending.

The last part is what's really got me and the other guy planning this stumped. We don't know how to end it. What should Jeff have ended up doing by the end? Should we humiliate him? Should we con him out of money? I'm not so cruel that I want to do something too drastic to him, but I want this to be worth it. Please help Gotwoot!

I'd say money bro. If this guy is stupid enough to live with this girl he met online, he has it coming. Hell, with his mom at that. Thats just sad.

[Spiegel]

I can get you phone numbers in most area codes to cover your own or mine if you so choose, I can do an over the phone/online jealous boyfriend ordeal and such and such. Just let me know how I can help.

[Abdula]

Ah, Xan <3. Neway I think we need some more details. I know I certainly want more details and no matter what the eventual prank is just don't forget to record it. Anyway Spiegel already volunteered his services and although there is no way I think I could help you, I think you should ask Luci and Assassin for help because they definitely have the minds to engineer this and its not like they have anything else doing.


@Spiegel. Why am I not surprised that the first time you show up here in what has felt like months although it was probably just a week is in this thread.

[Spiegel]

@Spiegel. Why am I not surprised that the first time you show up here in what has felt like months although it was probably just a week is in this thread.

Because I am good like that, lol. I just kinda took a break from the internets for the holidays. Though it had a lot to do with my internet at home crapping out every day... oh and having friends.

[Assertn]

If you use grandcentral.com you can probably snag a number from whatever area code you want.

[Animeniax]

I think you should hit him in the head with a baseball bat. That would be the funniest prank ever.

[David75]

Just be careful the prank doesn't go bitter... to the point things get really screwed.

I'm a pessmistic kind of guy, hence the advice ;)

[Animeniax]

Yeah, a baseball bat to the head would definitely makes things bitter, but you'd laugh your ass off until then.

[Abdula]

Just be careful the prank doesn't go bitter... to the point things get really screwed.

I'm a pessmistic kind of guy, hence the advice ;)

Yeah one time I tied someone to a tree in the woods to let them cool off for a little while. It didn't turn out too good.




Did I mention said person was naked because that is important..

[XanBcoo]

Well the working plot involves me establishing contact with Jeff posing as this girl. I will create a myspace, facebook, and msn messenger account for her to use. Once I've more or less gained his trust, I will introduce her jealous boyfriend to the situation. Some light harassment will ensue, and the girl will decide to leave him and move to another city. She will keep in contact with Jeff via phone, youtube videos, email, his job, and possibly a face-to-face meeting. That's the setup so far, and I've got friends who can help me out by playing various roles in the story. Things are liable to change though.

I feel that through this, it will be possible to create trust and fear in him, which will make him a bit easier to manipulate. I still need ideas of things to have him do though. I'm already thinking about him driving to another city to pick up the girl/a message, or standing around in the mall with a "secret message" for her, but it's all tentative. I need something solid.

And yes, of course I will record anything and everything that I can. It's all for the lulz.


I think you should hit him in the head with a baseball bat. That would be the funniest prank ever.
Agreed. Physical humor is always great, but I want something more substantial and calculating. If this whole thing falls through, which it might, I will definitely consider your idea.


and although there is no way I think I could help you
All I need is ideas right now. They can be as outrageous as possible, because everything can be refined as needed.


If you use grandcentral.com you can probably snag a number from whatever area code you want.
This will probably come in handy. Thanks.

[RyougaZell]

Is the other girl still living with him?
One of the parts, or even the finale, could be making her learn about 'Jeff' helping this 'new girl' or something.

[SamuraiOdin]

I will probably be rated down for this, but I gotta ask the question anyway...

What is wrong with you? Seriously. You want to fuck with your friend's psyche "for the lulz" to that extent? Maybe it's just me, but I gotta say, I view the suggested prank as more of a dick move than a "haha" prank.

[XanBcoo]

One of the parts, or even the finale, could be making her learn about 'Jeff' helping this 'new girl' or something.
Good advice. I was actually planning on one of the meetings being with a girl at a movie theater. Best case scenario: He'd fall for it and make the girl he's living with jealous. We'll see.


What is wrong with you? Seriously. You want to fuck with your friend's psyche "for the lulz" to that extent?
It's not about what's wrong with me, but what's wrong with him. Everyone I've told about this agrees he deserves it. He's a self-important dumbass who needs to be knocked down a few. I've got the time to put into this. Even if I don't go through with it, it will be fun to plan. He's also had it coming since he stuck some for sale signs in my mom's yard last year as a prank. So this is partly for revenge. But mostly because he deserves it.


Maybe it's just me, but I gotta say, I view the suggested prank as more of a dick move than a "haha" prank.
It's completely a dick move. As you said, I want to fuck with him. Teach him a lesson. The lulz are a by-product.


Small update: Another friend of mine is helping me develop a Heroin/Crack addiction angle to this story. If I could get Jeff thinking he's a drug-runner, hauling around a bag of sugar, that could be a strong contender for "the best thing ever".

[Ryllharu]

I won't say quite the same things SamuraiOdin did, but having done something similar (but far more spur of the moment and a lot less planned and "worked out" correspondingly) that this is a bad idea. For more than one reason. David75 pointed this out a few posts up.

Once you do this, it can never be taken back. Ever. Pranks of this nature are far more serious than they sound, and a lot of damage can be done. There is the possibility that the target of your "non-malicious" prank will never speak with you again. You may want to make sure you are okay with that possibility. Planning a prank around anything with potentially this much emotion invested into it is not something you want to be messing around with casually. If you were doing this to someone you hate and not a friend, by all means, go right ahead.

There's also the cardinal rule to consider. "Keep it simple, stupid." The more complicated you try to make things, the worse they will go. Starting with a complicated premise, it makes it a lot harder to hook the target. Can't hook the target, prank goes nowhere. You need to keep the choice out of their hands.

Making the idea complicated is great for say...a heist movie where everything has been guaranteed from the writing, but in real life, it really just means there are that many more things that can go wrong.

[XanBcoo]

Thanks for the advice, Rhyllharu. I do need to keep myself grounded. But I've got no qualms about going through with this. Even if what I end up doing is significantly more simple than what I'm planning, it will be worth it in my opinion.

And yes, you're completely right about the variability factor. I have been operating under the idea that the choices need to be kept out of my friend's hands. I have to control as much of this as I can and keep variables to a minimum.

Edit: I hope that wasn't you who neg repped me :(.

[Turkish-S]

You should let someone of his close family in your prank. he can lose you as a friend.. But family is forever. so he would remember the prank forever.

(This isn't like the bat from ani.. i'm quite serious. A prank wil hit harder if family is involved.)

[Ryllharu]

Edit: I hope that wasn't you who neg repped me :(.
Nope. I figured my light admonishment was enough. I neg rep those who break rules, write incomprehensible posts, don't even attempt to use grammar, etc. That said, I haven't neg rep'd anyone in a while. Gotwoot userbase has gone up in quality.

[SamuraiOdin]

I think Ryll put what I wanted to say in a much more thought out fashion, thanks Ryll. And for the record, it wasn't me that neg repped you either (though as predicted, I got neg repped :p )

[Spiegel]

I really can't wait to see what comes of this. I hope he is able to take it light enough where no serious damage is done, and again, just let me know how i can help when comes time.

[Animeniax]

That second set of finger prints will definitely come in handy.