diff --git a/lib/render.js b/lib/render.js
index 8a4681e..1485bf0 100755
--- a/lib/render.js
+++ b/lib/render.js
@@ -33,6 +33,7 @@ const { style } = require('bare-tui')
 const { makeMovingHeroSprite } = require('./sprites.js')
 const { WORLD_BOSS } = require('./world-boss.js')
 const { bossCamera } = require('./world-boss-event.js')
+const { isSolid } = require('./map.js')
 
 /** Smallest terminal the split layout is designed for. */
 const MIN_WIDTH = 64
@@ -747,9 +748,48 @@ function mapPane(map, w, h, opts = {}) {
     mapW <= cols ? -Math.floor((cols - mapW) / 2) : clamp(hx - Math.floor(cols / 2), 0, mapW - cols)
   const camY = mapH <= h ? -Math.floor((h - mapH) / 2) : clamp(hy - Math.floor(h / 2), 0, mapH - h)
 
-  // Overlay everything that moves, hero last so nothing can hide the player.
+  // Overlay everything that moves. Resident bodies are painted first and step
+  // aside when their drawn footprint would cover the player (#9), mirroring
+  // what fieldPane does for an active foe: presentation separates, logical
+  // positions and talk distance stay untouched.
   const over = new Map()
   const actorColors = new Map()
+
+  // Reservation pass: the exact cells the hero is about to paint, computed
+  // with the same maths as the hero pass below (including the #16 solid clip).
+  const heroReserved = new Set()
+  const actorOccupied = new Set()
+  let heroGeom = null
+  {
+    const lines_ = Array.isArray(hero.sprite) && hero.sprite.length ? hero.sprite : null
+    if (lines_) {
+      const hw = lines_.reduce((widest, line) => Math.max(widest, ascii(line).length), 1)
+      const hLeft = hx - clamp(HERO_ANCHOR_X, 0, hw - 1)
+      const heroAnchorY = Number.isFinite(Number(hero.anchorY))
+        ? Math.round(Number(hero.anchorY))
+        : lines_.length - 1
+      const hTop = hy - clamp(heroAnchorY, 0, lines_.length - 1)
+      heroGeom = { left: hLeft, width: hw }
+      const solidView = { rows: tiles, width: mapW, height: mapH }
+      for (let sy = 0; sy < lines_.length; sy++) {
+        const line = ascii(lines_[sy]).padEnd(hw)
+        const first = line.search(/\S/)
+        if (first === -1) continue
+        let last = line.length - 1
+        while (last > first && line[last] === ' ') last--
+        for (let sx = first; sx <= last; sx++) {
+          if (line[sx] === ' ') continue
+          const wx = hLeft + sx
+          const wy = hTop + sy
+          if (tiles.length > 0 && isSolid(solidView, wx, wy)) continue
+          heroReserved.add(wy + ',' + wx)
+        }
+      }
+    } else {
+      heroReserved.add(hy + ',' + hx)
+    }
+  }
+
   for (const a of (map && map.actors) || []) {
     if (!a) continue
     const ax = Math.round(Number(a.x) || 0)
@@ -763,12 +803,47 @@ function mapPane(map, w, h, opts = {}) {
       continue
     }
 
-    const actorW = actorSprite.reduce((widest, line) => Math.max(widest, ascii(line).length), 1)
-    const left = ax - Math.floor(actorW / 2)
+    const actorW = actorSprite.reduce((widest, line) => Math.max(widest, line.length), 1)
+    const anchorX = Math.floor(actorW / 2)
+    let left = ax - anchorX
     const anchorY = Number.isFinite(Number(a.anchorY))
       ? Math.round(Number(a.anchorY))
       : Math.floor(actorSprite.length / 2)
     const top = ay - clamp(anchorY, 0, actorSprite.length - 1)
+
+    // Presentation-only separation (#9): while talk distance puts a resident
+    // one or two tiles from the player, its seven-column body and the four
+    // column hero would share screen cells and eat each other. Slide the
+    // drawing sideways until it clears the reserved hero cells - same idea as
+    // fieldPane's active foe - clamped to the camera, falling back to skipping
+    // just the contested cells if even that cannot fit.
+    const collidesHero = (l) => {
+      for (let sy = 0; sy < actorSprite.length; sy++) {
+        const line = ascii(actorSprite[sy]).padEnd(actorW)
+        for (let sx = 0; sx < actorW; sx++) {
+          if (line[sx] === ' ') continue
+          if (heroReserved.has(top + sy + ',' + (l + sx))) return true
+        }
+      }
+      return false
+    }
+    if (collidesHero(left)) {
+      const wantedSide = Math.sign(ax - hx) || 1
+      // Hero body extents relative to hx, mirroring fieldPane's gap maths.
+      const heroRightGap = heroGeom.left + heroGeom.width - 1 - hx
+      const heroLeftGap = hx - heroGeom.left
+      const rightGap = heroRightGap + anchorX + 1
+      const leftGap = heroLeftGap + (actorW - 1 - anchorX) + 1
+      const preferredC = wantedSide > 0 ? hx + rightGap : hx - leftGap
+      const alternateC = wantedSide > 0 ? hx - leftGap : hx + rightGap
+      const minC = camX + anchorX
+      const maxC = camX + cols - 1 - (actorW - 1 - anchorX)
+      const clampC = (c) => clamp(c, Math.min(minC, maxC), Math.max(minC, maxC))
+      left = clampC(preferredC) - anchorX
+      if (collidesHero(left)) {
+        left = clampC(alternateC) - anchorX
+      }
+    }
     for (let sy = 0; sy < actorSprite.length; sy++) {
       const line = ascii(actorSprite[sy]).padEnd(actorW)
       const first = line.search(/\S/)
@@ -780,8 +855,10 @@ function mapPane(map, w, h, opts = {}) {
         // the street beneath an arm or between two legs as a black rectangle.
         if (line[sx] === ' ') continue
         const cell = top + sy + ',' + (left + sx)
+        if (heroReserved.has(cell)) continue
         over.set(cell, line[sx])
         actorColors.set(cell, a.color || COLOR.foe)
+        actorOccupied.add(cell)
       }
     }
   }
@@ -798,6 +875,10 @@ function mapPane(map, w, h, opts = {}) {
       : sprite.length - 1
     const top = hy - clamp(heroAnchorY, 0, sprite.length - 1)
 
+    // isSolid reads the model shape ({ rows, width, height }); this pane gets
+    // pre-render data ({ tiles }), so adapt the view once per frame (#16).
+    const solidView = { rows: tiles, width: mapW, height: mapH }
+
     for (let sy = 0; sy < sprite.length; sy++) {
       const line = ascii(sprite[sy]).padEnd(spriteW)
       const first = line.search(/\S/)
@@ -806,7 +887,14 @@ function mapPane(map, w, h, opts = {}) {
       while (last > first && line[last] === ' ') last--
       for (let sx = first; sx <= last; sx++) {
         if (line[sx] === ' ') continue
-        const cell = top + sy + ',' + (left + sx)
+        const wx = left + sx
+        const wy = top + sy
+        // The body hangs above the feet and can reach over a wall or past the
+        // map edge. A hero glyph on a solid tile reads as a hole in that wall,
+        // so those cells stay untouched (#16). With no tiles at all there is
+        // nothing to clip against and the fallback keeps rendering whole.
+        if (tiles.length > 0 && isSolid(solidView, wx, wy)) continue
+        const cell = wy + ',' + wx
         over.set(cell, line[sx])
         heroCells.add(cell)
       }
diff --git a/test/hero-clip.test.js b/test/hero-clip.test.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..c179ed8
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/hero-clip.test.js
@@ -0,0 +1,44 @@
+const { test } = require('brittle')
+const { style } = require('bare-tui')
+const render = require('../lib/render.js')
+
+test('the hero never paints through a wall (#16)', (t) => {
+  // Dungeon-style arrival: the three-row hero stands with its feet two rows
+  // below a full wall, like arriving at (3,2) in the issue. The head row of
+  // the sprite lands on the wall and must be clipped away.
+  const tiles = ['######', '#....#', '#....#', '######']
+  const pane = style.stripAnsi(
+    render.mapPane({ tiles, actors: [], hero: { x: 3, y: 2, sprite: [' O ', '/|\\', '/ \\'] } }, 24, 12, {
+      cellW: 1
+    })
+  )
+
+  t.ok(pane.includes('######'), 'the top wall stays a continuous wall')
+  t.ok(!pane.includes('O'), 'the head is clipped instead of punching a hole in the wall')
+  t.ok(pane.includes('|'), 'the torso still shows on the free row below')
+})
+
+test('a hero arriving at the top edge loses only the off-map rows (#16)', (t) => {
+  // Field arrival at (40,1): the upper body reaches past row 0. Off-map cells
+  // read as solid, so they get skipped, while the feet stay put.
+  const tiles = ['........', '........', '########']
+  const pane = style.stripAnsi(
+    render.mapPane({ tiles, actors: [], hero: { x: 4, y: 0, sprite: ['O', '|', '^'] } }, 20, 8, {
+      cellW: 1
+    })
+  )
+
+  t.ok(!pane.includes('O'), 'nothing is painted above the map')
+  t.ok(pane.includes('^'), 'the feet remain exactly where the walker stands')
+  t.ok(style.stripAnsi(render.mapPane({ tiles, actors: [], hero: { x: 4, y: 0 } }, 20, 8)).includes('@'), 'glyph heroes keep rendering')
+})
+
+test('a hero without map data keeps rendering (fallback path unchanged)', (t) => {
+  const pane = style.stripAnsi(
+    render.mapPane({ tiles: [], actors: [], hero: { x: 5, y: 5, sprite: ['O', '|', '^'] } }, 20, 8, {
+      cellW: 1
+    })
+  )
+
+  t.ok(pane.includes('O'), 'with no tiles there is nothing solid to clip against')
+})
\ No newline at end of file
diff --git a/test/index.js b/test/index.js
index 7be3ead..81efbf3 100644
--- a/test/index.js
+++ b/test/index.js
@@ -19,6 +19,8 @@ const {
 const render = require('../lib/render.js')
 
 require('./sage.test.js')
+require('./hero-clip.test.js')
+require('./npc-hero-separation.test.js')
 
 function press(game, name) {
   return game.onKey({ type: 'key', is: (...keys) => keys.includes(name) })
diff --git a/test/npc-hero-separation.test.js b/test/npc-hero-separation.test.js
new file mode 100644
index 0000000..e280901
--- /dev/null
+++ b/test/npc-hero-separation.test.js
@@ -0,0 +1,40 @@
+const { test } = require('brittle')
+const { style } = require('bare-tui')
+const render = require('../lib/render.js')
+
+const NPC = ['(-_-_-)', '[|ooo|]', '(/___\\)']
+
+function frame(heroX, heroY, npcX, npcY) {
+  return style.stripAnsi(
+    render.mapPane(
+      {
+        tiles: Array.from({ length: 8 }, () => '..........'),
+        actors: [{ x: npcX, y: npcY, sprite: NPC, color: 'green' }],
+        hero: { x: heroX, y: heroY, sprite: [' O ', '/|\\', '/ \\'] }
+      },
+      16,
+      10,
+      { cellW: 1 }
+    )
+  )
+}
+
+const countOf = (text, ch) => text.split(ch).length - 1
+
+test('talking distance keeps both bodies whole instead of eating pixels (#9)', (t) => {
+  const pane = frame(3, 4, 5, 3)
+
+  t.is(countOf(pane, 'O'), 1, 'the hero head survives once')
+  t.ok(pane.includes('[|ooo|]'), 'the resident torso is never punched through')
+  t.ok(pane.includes('(-_-_-)'), 'the resident head row stays contiguous')
+  t.ok(pane.includes('/___\\'), 'the resident feet row stays contiguous')
+  t.ok(pane.includes('/|\\'), 'the hero torso stays contiguous')
+})
+
+test('far from the hero a resident renders exactly where it stands (#9)', (t) => {
+  const pane = frame(0, 7, 5, 3)
+  const row = pane.split('\n').find((line) => line.includes('[|ooo|]'))
+  // mapW(10) centers inside cols(16): camX = -3, so world col 2 lands on
+  // screen col 5.
+  t.is(row.indexOf('[|ooo|]'), 5, 'no shift is applied without an overlap to solve')
+})
\ No newline at end of file