Trying to make your house in Terraria? But can’t seem to get your NPCs to move up Platforms? This is a very commonly occurring situation. This issue occurs so regularly that people worry if NPCs can use platforms. Let’s resolve this commonly held misconception in this helpful little article.
Yes, NPCs can use platforms in Terraria, regardless of whether the platform is a staircase made of wood or other materials. Most NPCs within the game will be able to use Platforms.
Honestly, there is a lot of specific information that you will need to know. Especially if you wish to get your NPCs to go up or down on Platforms, in this article, I’ll discuss a few things you should look out for so your platforms also work perfectly. Keep reading on to find out more!
Can Your NPCs Use Platforms in Terraria?
The simple answer to the question is yes. Your NPCs in Terraria can use Platforms. Even the developers of Terraria have confirmed that NPCs should be able to climb Platforms.
The issue of whether your NPCs can move through Platforms is a well-known one. The bug originates from Terraria’s Patch 1.1.2 update. Before the patch, the PC version of Terraria had a very well-known bug.
Due to the bug, all known NPCs, both friendly and enemy units, could not use wooden platforms. This was because they didn’t register the platforms for their pathfinding. As you can tell, this caused an enormous amount of frustration.
What to do If NPCs Won’t Go Up the Wooden Platforms?
If you still have issues getting your NPCs to the rooms you’ve assigned them, then there is a simple fix. NPCs are prone to warping to the room that you’ve assigned to them. This way you can put the NPCs that you want in their assigned rooms without having to face the hassles of pathing.
You can abuse the NPCs in this way by first assigning rooms to your NPCs. Ensure that wooden planks are the only way from one floor of your constructed structure to the other. In this way, you’ll keep your NPCs safe from any creatures that might wander close to your territory.
Once you’ve constructed that structure, you need to spend a full, in-game night away from your house. Make sure that you are a sufficient distance away. We do this so the game considers reloading the area of your house with your NPCs once again.
After you spend the night away from your house, simply return to your house and check the rooms you assigned to your NPCs. They should have teleported into their rooms once again. If the bug which causes NPCs not to use Platforms troubles you, rest assured this method will keep all your valued NPCs safe.
Now no slime will harm your precious NPCs again!
Exploits Caused by Issues in Previous Patches
If you wanted to escape certain enemies or wanted certain NPCs to stay in specific rooms you made for them. Nothing truly worked, and it wasn’t until the 1.1.2 patch of Terraria that the game was fixed. This patch allowed your NPCs to move through and use the wooden platforms you set up in your house.
Later, other bugs and exploits were found due to this bug. It was found that NPCs will never be able to even jump over the wooden platforms. This caused many issues, with several exploits being constructed around this pathing error.
Why Might Your Platform Stairs Not Be Working?
We know it’s frustrating when Zombies can get all over your house. But your NPCs seem not to be able to manage to get into their rooms. The solution, however, once again is a simple one. An issue that might cause your NPCs not to use the stairs is that they’re short enough.
Due to this issue, many NPCs experience trouble with their pathing. This causes them to either not go down or not go up a flight of assorted stairs that you’ve set up. Sometimes, the issue might cause them not to go both ways and remain stuck in position.
How To Solve The Issue?
This issue is commonly a result of your platforms not being long enough. We recommend that you construct your platforms no less than 2 Blocks wide. If you do so, NPCs will have no issue going up or down the platforms.
Many NPCs don’t go through tiles less than 2 Blocks wide. This might seem odd, but Terraria is filled with such little nuggets of code that we simply cannot understand, especially because we know that Zombie enemies do not experience the same issue.
So, yes, even zombies are smarter than Terraria NPCs. Go figure!
The answer to whether your NPCs can use Platforms is yes. However, we cannot deny several issues with the pathing of NPCs in Terraria. Patch 1.1.2 fixed the code. But certain issues with the pathing of the NPCs remained.
To many of you, these might act as gameplay quirks. That makes Terraria such a unique and appealing game. After all, there’s a reason why so many of you continue to play Terraria so religiously even today. And we agree, it’s truly a special game. And we hope our guide regarding it helped you out in some way!