Everything You Need to Know About ‘The Decayed’

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Plus, whether you can expect any more videos in the series

Co-authored by Zac Churchill and Amy Bobinger, BA

Last Updated: November 24, 2025 Fact Checked

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What is The Decayed ARG?

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The Plot

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Will there be more videos?

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Video

If you’re into creepy Minecraft stories, you’ll love The Decayed. This video series follows users sandYcarp8 (sandY) as he discovers that he’s trapped in a loop within Minecraft. The story unfolds over the course of 20 videos, taking the viewer to fantastic worlds buried deep within the Minecraft universe. We’re explaining everything you need to know about The Decayed, including an in-depth plot breakdown—so let’s get started.

The Decayed: A Minecraft ARG (Quick Overview)

The Decayed is a 20-part series of Minecraft videos. It was posted to the YouTube channel @THEDECAYEDD between January and August of 2024. The series tells the story of Minecraft user sandY, who discovers he’s trapped in a loop that’s controlled by execs and an administrator called “architect.”

Section 1 of 3:

What is The Decayed ARG?

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The Decayed is a YouTube horror series told through Minecraft videos. Posted to the channel@THEDECAYEDD, these stories tell the story of a Minecraft player named sandYcarps8 (or Andrew) who discovers he’s trapped in a loop that’s controlled by a secret hierarchy. Over the course of 20 videos, sandY works to rescue his friend kargo and reveal the secret of their Minecraft prison.
- The first video in The Decayed series was posted on January 7, 2024. Part 1 of the ARG was released from January through March of that year. Part 2 debuted between June and early August of 2024, and part 3 was released shortly afterward, concluding on August 27, 2024.
- Some ARGs try to trick the viewer into believing they’re real, but The Decayed is more obviously a work of fiction.

Section 2 of 3:

Decayed ARG: The Plot

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Part 1 Part 1 of The Decayed ARG introduces us to the characters sandY and kargo, two friends who play Minecraft together. Gradually, sandY discovers that he’s trapped in a loop, and we meet mysterious characters who seem to be working behind the scenes.
- weird minecraft bugs (bug report #1): The Decayed opens with sandYcarps8 and kargosh1pZ chatting as they play Minecraft. After mining for a while, they head back to their house, but mysteriously end up in the forest where they started. sandY is confused, especially when kargo starts repeating his side of the conversation exactly like he did before.
- more weird stuff (bug(?) report #2): The second Decayed video opens with kargo repeating his side of the conversation from the first video. sandY tries to explore, but the map stops and turns into a void. He then goes into the mine, but it turns into a long tunnel. At some point, kargo stops talking and disappears.
- limbo: sandY walks into the void at the end of the map and enters a strange world called Limbo. Each door in Limbo goes to a different world. He observes himself and kargo in different timelines, and in one world, he sees the characters serenemist and Xiphoid, but he can’t talk to them.
- meeting: sandY enters the void again, and this time he’s able to talk to serene and Xiphoid, who give him diamonds. Then, a character named exec_03 warns sandY to stop exploring. After warping back to Limbo, 03 tells exec_07 to lock the world so sandY can’t explore anymore.
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Part 1.5 In the second half of Part 1, sandY continues exploring, and we learn more about the execs that are working to limit sandY’s movements within the universe. We also meet the architect, who seems to be in charge of the execs. This section ends when sandY learns the truth about who he really is—and how he might be able to escape.^{[1]
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- envoyeur: Exec_09 speaks to a box with strange symbols, informing it of sandY’s movements and asking for help.
- Réalité: sandY discovers diaries from someone called “MD.” MD (or Matthew) enjoys playing Minecraft with his friends Andrew and Thomas, but is suffering from a strange illness. Matthew also reports seeing a strange figure in his game. Over the course of the diaries, Matthew deteriorates, revealing that other teenagers are similarly affected by this disease. After reading the diaries, sandY is urged to leave by someone pretending to be kargo.
- récepteur: A red character named architect expresses disappointment that the person on the other end of the conversation hasn’t stopped sandY. It’s implied that this is the other side of the conversation 09 was having in envoyeur.
- Exec footage - defiant: Exec_22 and exec_09 find exec_05 acting strangely. 05 teleports to the “Real House,” even though it’s supposedly locked. 05 destroys MD’s diaries, then teleports to an “unrecognized map.”
- disposal_: This video shows someone—probably sandY—exploring a castle and destroying a music box.
- reunion: After pressing an Emergency Switch, sandY is taken to an all-white room with a table and chairs. He speaks with exec_05, who reveals that sandY is Andrew, kargo is Matthew, and 05 is Thomas. He says sandY and kargo are Vessels in a world called the Concept, and the execs are charged with managing the Vessels. 05 says he’ll help sandY and kargo escape. sandY goes back to his home world and finds Matthew, who has been turned into a camera named Voyeur by 05.
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Part 2 Part 2 of The Decayed opens with a sinister message from the architect, who speaks directly to the viewer. In subsequent videos, we rejoin the newly reunited sandY and kargo as they start digging for answers. We also learn more about the Keepers and their role in controlling the execs.
- a message to you: In this creepy video, architect tells the viewer not to believe what they see in the other videos.
- we need help: sandY and kargo (now Voyeur) find serenemist, but Xiphoid is now missing. sandY explains the execs and architect to serene, and all three characters travel to limbo.
- lifeless: Voyeur’s username changes back to kargo, although his appearance is half Voyeur and half kargo. The trio goes through limbo to the unstable world with the “real house,” but Matthew’s diaries are missing. Exec_05 appears and reveals that he burned the diaries, telling the group to return to Limbo and jump into the Void there.
- Abgrund: sandY, kargo, and serene arrive at Abgrund, a dark world that mimics the bottom of the ocean. They see a house and walk towards it.
- Loss of Control?: The Keepers meet in a conference room. There are 4 red Keepers (architect, originator, author, and inventor) and 4 blue Keepers (creator, shaper, instigator, and founder). They discuss sandY and his friends, revealing that sandY has gotten separated and gone to a place called Grenzen.
- Answers: kargo and serene look for sandY in Abgrund. Exec_111 appears and tells them that they are beneath The Concept, or the Minecraft universe where they’re being held. 111 tells them they can find sandY in the Grenzen, which is the next layer of the network.
- Grenzen: kargo and serene walk across a vast wasteland, eventually finding a tall tower in the darkness. They count down to enter together, and the screen goes dark.
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Part 3 The final act of The Decayed is all about endings. Exec_05 confronts architect, and Matthew and Andrew talk about separating after school (presumably in a flashback to the days before they became trapped in The Concept). The final video in the series turns into an ultimate fight for free will.
- Exec footage - confrontation: Exec_05 and architect are arguing. 05 says he wants his friends back and storms off, while architect threatens to end him.
- one of those days: Matthew and Andrew sit on a bench in the rain in what appears to be “the real world” (it’s still within Minecraft, though). They have a bittersweet conversation about what life will be like when they finish school, then they part ways.
- les fleurs: 05 helps reunite sandY and kargo, and they enter a world filled with flowers. The architect appears, but sandY’s defiance makes him disappear. A purple being named Jacinthe arrives (a combination of the red and blue Keepers). Jacinthe is the Caretaker, and she reveals that The Concept is a safe haven for the spirits of people affected by the illness that made Matthew sick. However, she resists the idea that the spirits could be set free, and she leaves. sandY, or Andrew, sacrifices himself to save the souls trapped in The Concept, and the video ends with The Concept dissolving while 05 (Thomas) and kargo (Matthew) run for safety.

Section 3 of 3:

Will there be any more Decayed videos?

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No, the creator stated that no more videos would be added. At one time, the creator posted a statement on their YouTube channel that the channel was on a hiatus and there would eventually be more videos. However, they followed this up with a second statement that said the series was ending.^{[2]
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- That said, many viewers found the ending satisfying, even though the outcomes for Thomas and Matthew were left ambiguous.