History Main / SchmuckBait

* ''WebVideo/CriticalRole'': the glowing golden armour left untarnished on a corpse when all the bodies around it have been systematically looted? [[spoiler:Is absolutely going to curse Vax the minute he touches it. Luckily there's a paladin nearby to remove the curse.]]

* [[http://www.yesbutnobutyes.com/archives/2009/09/the_rape_tunnel.html The Rape Tunnel]], an art installation by Richard Whitehouse. ExactlyWhatItSaysOnTheTin: If you enter this tunnel then the artist will attempt to rape you. It's a followup to his other piece, The Punch-You-in-the-Face Tunnel. [[spoiler:They were both [[http://www.miaminewtimes.com/arts/artlurker-explains-rape-tunnel-our-intention-was-to-spark-conversation-6515944 fabricated stories]], and the actual Schmuck Bait was to see who would take the story seriously and how; in this regard, it was successful.]]
* Also from the art world, there was a controversy some years ago about a Danish exhibition that featured ten blenders, each containing water and live goldfish, with an invitation to the viewer that they could press the button if they wanted to. At least seven fish were pureed.

* In ''VisualNovel/PhoenixWrightAceAttorneyJusticeForAll'', you're given the option to say that ''the Judge'' is hiding the case's murder weapon. This will get you hit with a ''massively'' punishing penalty; if you haven't played utterly perfectly up to that point, it's game over.

* The old jingle for Chiquita bananas warned consumers that they should never refrigerate bananas because they're a tropical fruit that hails from warm climates. What happens if you do it anyway? Think about it: What happens when you put ''most'' tropical fruits in the fridge? The skin darkens a bit, but the bananas inside stay fresh for a substantially longer time. The people selling them obviously don't want that, because then you're not always running out to buy more because the bunch spoiled in 2 days.[[note]] Refrigeration ''does'' retard the ripening process, so do refrain from putting green bananas in the fridge. Once they've reached the desired level of ripeness, go for it.[[/note]]

* "This ''VisualNovel/DokiDokiLiteratureClub'' VN just looks like some cutesy, saccharine DatingSim. But why is there a blatant ContentWarning on the Steam page about [[SurpriseCreepy disturbing content]]? And why are the Steam tags full of stuff like [[spoiler: "Psychological Horror", "Dark", "Violent" and "Gore"?]]"

->At last the third also came with the like intent, and the others screamed out, "Keep away; for goodness' sake keep away!" But she did not understand why she was to keep away. "The others are there," she thought, "I may as well be there too," and ran to them; but as soon as she had touched her sister, she remained sticking fast to her. So they had to spend the night with the goose.

* The old jingle for Chiquita bananas warned consumers that they should never refrigerate bananas because they're a tropical fruit that hails from warm climates. What happens if you do it anyway? Think about it: What happens when you put ''most'' tropical fruits in the fridge? The skin darkens a bit, but the bananas inside stay fresh for a substantially longer time. The people selling them obviously don't want that, because then you're not always running out to buy more because the bunch spoiled in 2 days.

* A [[DoesThisRemindYouOfAnything rather chilling]] example from the ''WebAnimation/{{RWBY}}'' fic [[https://www.fanfiction.net/s/11297352/25/Redemption "Redemption."]] During the Mountain Glen mission, Coco comes across [[spoiler:a bag personalized with Blake Belladonna's name, and returns it to her. Blake insists it isn't hers, but opens it to try and figure out where it came from.]]

* In ''FanFic/RobbReturns'', [[spoiler:Jon Arryn suckers Littlefinger into wearing as much heavy armor as possible and then hands him a heavy axe, before dropping him into the sea as part of his trial by combat.]]

[[caption-width-right:350:Ah sweet. [[TooDumbToLive Free jewel]].]]

** In one book, for example, you need to choose between whether you should run back into a burning building after a friend or escape. If you return then you live and get a relatively happy ending ([[spoiler:complete with rescuing the friend's ancestor from slavery; it's a long story]]). If you escape from the building then you wind up being mistaken for a thief while trying to put out the fire, are publicly humiliated by being forced to wear a sign that says you're a thief, and then get shot and killed for inadvertently sitting and resting on the steps of a bank (which the police think you're looting).

-->-- '''Terry Pratchett''', ''Literature/ThiefOfTime''

* In the ''Roleplay/MSFHighForum'', the nurse is infamous for turning people into, well, whatever strikes her fancy. She then leaves out a cake, with a sign saying "Free cake". She has had three victims of TF-cake thus far.

* In ''VisualNovel/ZeroTimeDilemma'', the Healing Room segment ends at a big blue button circled by a flashing red message which reads "Warning: Do not push this button!" Phi is convinced that this trope is in full effect, whereas Sigma thinks it's a standout case of ReversePsychology. [[spoiler:Sure enough, Phi's absolutely correct - pressing it blows up ''the entire facility''.]]

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[[quoteright:350:https://static.tvtropes.org/pmwiki/pub/images/beer_mousetrap.png]]
[[caption-width-right:350:You know what they say: Build a better mousetrap...]]

* The old jingle for Chiquita bananas warned consumers that they should never refrigerate bananas because they're a tropical fruit that hails from warm climates. What happens if you do it anyway? [[spoiler:Think about it: What happens when you put ''most'' tropical fruits in the fridge? The skin darkens a bit, but the bananas inside stay fresh for a substantially longer time. The people selling them obviously don't want that, because then you're not always running out to buy more because the bunch spoiled in 2 days.]]

* SchmuckBait/MythsAndReligion

[[folder:Pro Wrestling]]

->''If you put a large switch in some cave somewhere, with a sign on it saying 'End-of-the-World Switch. PLEASE DO NOT TOUCH', the paint wouldn't even have time to dry.”''

[[DescribeTopicHere This is the description for Schmuck Bait. Do not read this, or else...]]

* [[https://www.youtube.com/watch?v=Y8_v_3YUVWs This YouTube video]] could qualify as schmuck bait.