Delete and Regenerate Minecraft Chunks With MCA Selector

Minecraft worlds can hold years of builds, farms, and small disasters you decided to keep for sentimental reasons. Resetting everything for new terrain generation is rarely appealing. With MCA Selector, you can delete selected chunks instead, letting Minecraft regenerate only the areas you choose.

This guide focuses on removing chunks around your builds so new generation can appear nearby while the important parts of the world remain intact.

Step 1: Make a Backup

Before editing any world files, make a backup. Not “maybe later,” not “it should be fine.” Make the backup first.

World corruption, mistaken selections, or one bad click can remove progress permanently. A backup is the safety net that turns a disaster into a minor inconvenience.

Step 2: Install MCA Selector

MCA Selector is available here. On Windows, download the installer version, run the provided `.exe`, and follow the installation prompts. After installation, open MCA Selector from the desktop shortcut.

Mac and Linux setup requires a few extra steps, but the same installation page provides platform-specific instructions. Once MCA Selector opens, the rest of the process is the same.

Step 3: Open the Minecraft World

When MCA Selector launches, it shows a gray grid. Click “File” in the top-left corner, then choose “Open World.” A folder window will appear with your Minecraft worlds.

For the Overworld, select the world folder and click “Select Folder” in the bottom-right corner. MCA Selector will load the world onto the grid. Large worlds may take longer to appear.

For other dimensions, open the world folder and choose `DIM-1` for the Nether or `DIM1` for The End.

Step 4: Find the Area You Want to Keep

World maps can be enormous, so locating your builds may take a little time. Use these controls to move around:

Scroll Wheel: Zooms in and out.

Arrow Keys: Moves the camera.

Once you find your base, farms, towns, or other saved areas, you can start selecting chunks.

Step 5: Select Chunks

MCA Selector uses simple controls for chunk selection:

Left Click: Selects one chunk.

Left Click and Hold: Drags a box to select multiple chunks.

Ctrl+L: Clears the current selection.

Selected chunks appear orange on the grid. It is worth making a few practice selections first, then clearing them with Ctrl+L before doing the real edit.

There are two common deletion methods. Read both Step 6A and Step 6B before choosing, because one deletes what you select and the other uses inversion to delete everything except what you select.

Step 6A: Delete Specific Chunks

This method removes only the chunks you directly select. In the example image, the orange chunks form a small shape. Choosing “Delete Selected Chunks” removes those orange chunks and leaves them black, like the already deleted area in the corner.

Use this approach for small resets, broken terrain, or isolated problem areas.

Step 6B: Delete Everything Around Builds With Invert

To reset terrain surrounding your builds, use the “Invert” option. This starts by selecting the chunks you want to keep, not the ones you want to delete.

In the example, the village is highlighted because it should remain. Every unhighlighted chunk will become the deletion target after inversion.

Next, open “Selection” and click “Invert.”

MCA Selector will swap the selection. Your protected builds become unselected, and the surrounding chunks become orange instead. Click “Delete Selected Chunks,” confirm the warning prompt, and all orange chunks will be removed.

Step 7: Close MCA Selector

After deletion, the world should show your saved builds surrounded by ungenerated chunks. Open “File” and choose “Quit.” You can then launch Minecraft and enter the world.

Step 8: Load the World

When the world opens, Minecraft will regenerate the deleted chunks as you approach them. This is useful for bringing newer terrain generation near existing bases without losing the builds you selected to keep.

MCA Selector can do much more than chunk deletion, so the project wiki here is worth reading if you plan to do deeper world edits.

If you are hosting a Minecraft server with HolyHosting, make a server backup before uploading or replacing world files. Chunk editing is powerful, but backups are still the difference between confidence and panic.