Playing as NPC

[3d_glasses]

I started playing EQ when I was much too young to take the time to learn the game. Basically I gimped my character, was just so mesmerized by the fact that there were real people in game, never read anything, just wandered around. Even having completed basically no content in the game, I still thought the Luclin expansion ruined the fun for me.
ANYWHO

Does anyone remember a short period of time when you could log in and choose to play as random NPC's? Like a giant spider in Nek Forest? Or is my memory just making this up?