# Non-player character

- Term: Tabletop term
- Canonical: https://www.lanternhall.org/lexicon/non-player-character/

> Any character not controlled by a player: the innkeeper, the villain, the hireling and the king, all voiced by the [Game Master](https://www.lanternhall.org/lexicon/game-master/). The term passed into video games for computer-controlled characters and, much later, into internet slang as an insult (see [NPC (meme)](https://www.lanternhall.org/lexicon/npc-meme/)).

Any character not controlled by a player: the innkeeper, the villain, the hireling and the king, all voiced by the [Game Master](https://www.lanternhall.org/lexicon/game-master/). The term passed into video games for computer-controlled characters and, much later, into internet slang as an insult (see [NPC (meme)](https://www.lanternhall.org/lexicon/npc-meme/)).

## Quick answers

**What does "Non-player character" mean?**
Any character not controlled by a player: the innkeeper, the villain, the hireling and the king, all voiced by the Game Master. The term passed into video games for computer-controlled characters and, much later, into internet slang as an insult (see NPC (meme)).

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From The Lantern Hall (https://www.lanternhall.org/), a museum of fantasy literature and roleplaying games.