LittleNPCs for Stardew Valley
Turns your kids into NPCs who leave the house, follow a schedule and talk to you, using content packs such as The Farmer's Children.
Download LittleNPCs
More screenshots on Nexus Mods ↗
What this mod does
LittleNPCs, by Candidus42, turns the farmer’s children into full NPCs. In the base game the kids always stay at home; with this mod they can have schedules, go out around town and behave like the rest of the villagers.
How it works
- It doesn’t come with its own art or characters: the look, dialogue and schedules are provided by content packs, such as The Farmer’s Children, the example the author cites.
- It adds Content Patcher tokens (FirstLittleNPC, SecondLittleNPC) with each child’s name, gender, birthday and age so authors can create those packs.
- The conversion happens at 6:10 in the morning, so it’s normal to see the original kids before that time.
- The MaximumNumberOfChildren option controls how many children get converted.
Requirements and compatibility
It requires SMAPI and Content Patcher. Version 2.2.1 (July 22, 2026, 48 KB) is for 1.6; for 1.5, 1.1.4 is still available as an optional file. It has had multiplayer support since 2.0, and 2.2.0 fixed gifts to the kids when you’re married to another player.
Unique Children Talk has specific fixes for LittleNPCs. On the other hand, Immersive Family doesn’t work if the kids have already been converted, so it’s best to finish its events first. ChildToNPC packs can almost always be adapted.
User rating
Highlights and things to keep in mind
- The kids no longer stay home all the time
- The base for many children content packs
- Updated in 2026, with multiplayer support
- Version for 1.5 available separately
- Does nothing without a content pack
- Incompatible with Immersive Family if the kids have already been converted
- The betas for authors removed old tokens: some older packs may need updating
Requirements
- Stardew Valley 1.6.x (PC)
- SMAPI 4.x
- Content Patcher
- A content pack that gives the kids their look and dialogue (for example, The Farmer's Children)
How to install it
- Install SMAPI and Content Patcher first (see their mod pages) and launch the game once with SMAPI to check that everything loads.
- Open the LittleNPCs page on Nexus Mods, go to the Files tab and click Manual download on the main file (LittleNPCs 2.2.1). You need a free Nexus account to download.
- Unzip the .zip outside the game folder and move the resulting folder into the Mods folder, inside the game folder.
- Also install a content pack for LittleNPCs, such as The Farmer's Children, following its instructions.
- Launch the game with SMAPI, load a save with children and wait until 6:10 to see the conversion.
Version history
-
2.2.122 Jul 2026Current
Fixes a crash when MaximumNumberOfChildren is lower than 4
-
2.2.017 Jul 2026
Fixes gifts to the kids in multiplayer and adds a Chinese translation
-
2.0.020 Mar 2024
1.6 version with basic multiplayer support
Common problems
Does it do anything on its own?
No. It needs a content pack that defines the kids' look, dialogue and schedules.
Why do I see the original kids at the start of the day?
The conversion happens at 6:10; before that it's normal.
Does it work in multiplayer?
Yes, since 2.0, with improvements in later versions.
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