Herobrine

		This article contains spoilers! Please be advised that the following article contains spoilers for the screamer mentioned in the title or description. If you have not yet experienced the material and wish to avoid spoilers, we recommend that you proceed with caution or refrain from reading until you have done so.

Herobrine is a creepypasta character who was believed to have existed in the early versions of the game Minecraft.

History and origins

Original 4chan post

Herobrine originated from a post on 4chan's /v/ board, detailing a player's encounter with an entity with glowing white eyes in Minecraft. The concept of a white-eyed paranormal being in the game emerged from this narrative, marking the start of Minecraft creepypasta. The story spread on the Minecraft Forum, involving a myth about "White Eyes," a female creature with blank white eyes stalking players. It evolved into the Herobrine myth, with different versions describing him as the deceased brother of Notch and taking the form of a human entity with white eyes. The story narrates an encounter in Minecraft with Herobrine, involving strange behaviors and mysterious messages.

While many are familiar with the Herobrine story, the identity of the entity remains a question. There is a rare suggestion that Herobrine is an otherworldly entity from a different dimension that has somehow manifested itself in Minecraft. Others propose that Herobrine is a virus or glitch that found its way into Minecraft, causing chaos. It's also possible that Herobrine was once a mob or boss in the game that was removed for unknown reasons. Herobrine himself could be a figment of the player's imagination. Those who claim to have 'seen' him may be imagining Herobrine haunting their game. Many assume that before Herobrine passed away, he was a miner who died and was mysteriously brought back to life, now haunting not only Minecraft but also the abandoned mineshafts where he presumably worked when alive.

Herobrine had also been an example of a screamer material in many videos. For example, a YouTube user SharpTH uploaded a video titled "Him" (based on Herobrine's nickname), which shows a low-quality recording of a player approaching a block of dirt resembling the Herobrine totem. The player proceeds to walk into a river. Abruptly, an animated Herobrine leaps out, accompanied by a piercing scream, concluding the video with a black screen. A website Herobrine.com was registered and later turned into a screamer site, which would later became Shafou.com.

Streamer Copeland decided to craft a hoax for his Brocraft stream after stumbled upon the Herobrine story on 4chan's /v/ board. He edited Herobrine into screenshots and, during a livestream, made a staged encounter within a work-in-progress house. Copeland pretended to be frightened, shared the video on forums, sparking debates about its authenticity, with others contributing edited Herobrine screenshots. Later, user Patimuss conducted a stream with a re-textured door resembling Herobrine, exposing the ruse. Copeland was displeased with Patimuss for revealing the deception. Additionally, Copeland shared a website link, potentially inspiring the "Him" nickname, featuring an eerie image and a slightly altered version of another creepypasta titled "Wake Up?" that hinted at an escape to a fantasy world.

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  A screenshotfeaturing Herobrine on a door.]]

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  Another known screenshot from Copeland of his house. Herobrine can be seen at the bottom right corner of the screen.

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  An image of Herobrine from the "Him" page.

Synopsis

An image taken from the snippet of the original 4chan post.

In a single-player world, the player begins a new world and encounters a mysterious character with the default skin but hollow eyes. This character, later identified as the mystery man or Herobrine swiftly vanishes into the fog. The player finds strange incidents in the world, including unusual tunnels, sand pyramids, and trees devoid of leaves.

While searching for information on forums, the player's posts regarding the entity get promptly deleted, accompanied by a private message from a user named "Herobrine" with a message 'Stop.' Clicking on Herobrine's profile lead to a 404 error. Subsequently, the player receives an email from another user who claims having seen the mystery man, starting an exchange of information with others who shared similar experiences. After a month, the player discovers that Herobrine purportedly is the brother of Notch, the game's developer. Upon reaching out to Notch, the player learns that Notch had a brother who is no longer alive. He questioned Notch about his brother, in which he says "I did, but he is no longer with us."

Personality and abilities

He portrays default character Steve but with completely white eyes—no visible irises or pupils. There are differences in how he appears in various sources. In Copeland's livestream, he had the beard from Steve's original design, while the original 4chan image and Copeland's edited screenshot suggest he doesn't have the beard. In the game, Herobrine can both build and destroy. According to the initial story, players found long 2×2 tunnels, small pyramids in the ocean, and trees with no leaves—all linked to Herobrine's mysterious presence. The full extent of his building abilities is uncertain, but the examples suggest he has an understanding of shapes and can tell different materials apart. Notably, Herobrine shows traits like a kind of computer virus, changing game worlds, deleting Minecraft Forum topics, and sending messages to forum users. While he doesn't directly talk to players in the game, he can communicate through the internet. Notch describes him as a "morally dubious ghost with a god complex."

Despite Herobrine's widespread fame, it has been regarded as a hoax because:

• Although the identity of Herobrine's creator remains a mystery, it's important to note that Herobrine is not a valid Minecraft character and does not exist within the game.
• Herobrine is commonly believed to be Notch's deceased brother, intricately embedded into Minecraft. However, this notion, considered "canon," is entirely false, as Notch does not have a brother in reality.
• No references to Herobrine exist in the game's source code, and there is no coding allowing any entity to replicate Herobrine's actions. Claims of Herobrine's presence in Minecraft are entirely unfounded and often arise from mods or other players using the Herobrine skin.

Due to the fan fascination surrounding Herobrine, Minecraft developers added the phrase "Removed Herobrine" in specific game updates until 2017.

Gallery

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  An image of Herobrine's skin.

Further reading

• Original story: https://creepypasta.fandom.com/wiki/Herobrine
• Minecraft Wiki: https://minecraft.fandom.com/wiki/Herobrine

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