Msernst

[*Note: This subworld is pretty darn old and there's not a lot of verifiable information about it. Take everything here with a grain of salt.)

yourworldoftext.com/msernst is a well-known subworld that was claimed in 2010 by a user of the same name. At the peak of its popularity Msernst was comparable to a second Mainpage, containing a variety of lines and trails in every direction.

As a userpage, /msernst enables visitors to autotravel via the "go to coordinates" function. Visitors can also create links to coordinates and URLs.

In 2013, the site was updated so that user worlds can no longer be claimed and are instead generated from the "/~user/worldname" format. As a result of this change, the contents of /msernst were transferred to https://www.yourworldoftext.com/~msernst/msernst.

The earliest mentions of /msernst were from May 31st, 2010^[1]^[2]. The subworld was initially advertised on Hacker News and StumbleUpon, followed by a mention on r/AskReddit in 2012. The context behind the page's creation is still unknown, though the most likely explanation is that ~msersnt(the creator) was simply an ordinary user advertising their world. Not much else is known about them and they have not visited their page since 2011.

Messages on /~msernst/msernst range from June 2010 to March 2014.

"The" Line[edit | edit source]

What /msernst is mainly known for nowadays

The Line is a diagonal line comparable to The True Diagonal in today's mainpage. It originally ended at [?????], where the line's creator left a lengthy philosophical message that touched the hearts of many.

In its later days The Line was extended by multiple users.

Bus Stop at X:68 Y:-135
Reddit Checkpoint at X:325 Y:-650
X:500 Y:-1000

Reddit Explosion and Textworldexplorers[edit | edit source]

On June 9th, 2012, The Line was advertised on r/AskReddit by user u/ProtrudedDemand, who wrote an extensive post detailing their experience traveling The Line. This led to an explosion of activity on The Line as well as the rest of /msernst.

That same day, the subreddit r/Textworldexplorers was created by u/bluereindeer in order to serve as a hub for users brought to The Line by u/ProtrudedDemand's message. The subreddit still exists today, though its original purpose has been largely forgotten.

Members of r/Textworldexplorers created their own subworld in the form of yourworldoftext.com/textworldexplorers. It included a diagonal line similar to the one found in /msernst. Not much is known about this line as the entire subworld has since been griefed, and no traces of it remain aside from a few screenshots on the subreddit.

Posted June 9th, 2012
Messages along the line in /textworldexplorers(Posted June 10th, 2012)
Hillcrest Village(Posted June 10th, 2012)
"Bored Geometry"(Posted June 12th, 2012)

Cult or Just Weird[edit | edit source]

On June 23rd, 2020, the podcast Cult or Just Weird released an episode about their journey down The Line.

The culture surrounding the path was compared to a cult in which countless travelers embarked on a pilgrimage for enlightenment. This was in essence an act of faith, as travelers pushed on despite not knowing when their journey would end; or if there's anything awaiting them at all.

Much emphasis was placed on the beauty of the journey and the tranquil act of traveling.

One of the hosts described how she devoted hours upon hours to the act of scrolling, broken only by brief periods of eating and sleeping. As The Line went on travelers would become more and more scarce, and at some points The Line would cut off altogether. But in spite of this perseverance was always rewarded as voices from the past encouraged future travelers to push on.

Like many, the hosts of Cult or Just Weird were moved by The Line Creator's final message. The jist of these words are as follows:

"...we are all travelers on a path. We are all the same. There is no point on dwelling on petty differences. Everything we do has an effect. We may never know what that effect may be but it is there and it is important. Always think about this. Never let it leave your brain. Always do the best you can to help your fellow man. Life is the most valuable worthless thing in the universe. Treasure it. You have one life to live, never let anything hold you back. Do everything you can to make the world a better place to live. I know it may be hard to grasp that so much meaning was packed into only four paragraphs. I can never explain it. I'm not the master wordsmith that the creator of the line is." - u/ProtrudedDemand

*The Line Creator's message can now be found at multiple points along The True Diagonal. The rest of the episode explained the novelty of YWOT as a whole and even included an interview with Andrew Badr, the site's creator.

Northern Trail[edit | edit source]

Composed of loose trails of letters, such as "V," "O," "1," and "ha."

Ends at Y:6000.

Y:1000 in /~msernst/msernst
Y:3000 in /~msernst/msernst

Southern Trail[edit | edit source]

Features a trail of "v"s that was extended manually by user after user.

The early sections of the trail are heavily damaged by the "BRASIL WINNER FIFA 2010" spam.

Brazil Spam
V Trail
Flowers
Flowers 2
As one user's stretch of the V Trail comes to an end, another continues to extend it in their absence.
Maze
A house built along a bent portion of the V Trail
End of the V Trail at Y:-5008. A few travelers have continued past this point, however.