Subterranean Spider

Most drow revere the spider goddess and so will not kill spiders casually. That protection, together with the steady scraps that large settlements produce, has drawn spiders to drow cities and drow-held regions throughout the deep underworld. These four species are especially common there.

These hand-sized, black, savagely biting spiders turn up in jungles, tombs, caves and the deep underworld. They swarm and hunt in groups, tearing bits of flesh as they crawl over a victim. Unable to spin, they still move freely through other webs, and no spider venom yet known affects them. As many as forty can cover an average human, biting at +5 once attached. Crushing barely hurts them: rolling around or slamming into walls rarely dislodges or kills them, so each must be hit or torn off individually.

Their weak venom is saved against at +2 to negate it entirely. On a failure, starting the round after the bite and lasting 2-5 rounds, the victim's AC worsens by 1, its attacks suffer -1, and Dexterity checks are made at -3. Wizards, drow especially, keep them as familiars, since they carry small items, climb walls and ceilings, do not fear fire and have 60-foot infravision. Forty percent can detect invisibility, succeeding on 4 in 6 per round.

Called chasm spiders because they lair in deep rifts, these are giant cousins of the flying spiders found in deep dungeon complexes beneath a great coastal city. Their translucent, gauzy wings steer huge leaps of up to 70 feet sideways and let them drop any distance safely, provided the wings are whole and have room to beat. They never sleep, are never surprised, and naturally see with true seeing.

Their Type A venom is saved against at +2. On a failure, the victim starts losing 1 hit point per minute some 10-30 minutes later, until 15 are gone; a success means no damage. A well-fed hunting spider need not use its venom to hunt and makes a patient, watchful guardian that knows its master and other approved people by scent, voice and gesture and stays loyal. Many serve wizards, drow in particular, as familiars.

Native to southern jungles but tolerant of many temperatures, this big hunter was brought underground by drow traders long ago. It spins no webs. Its sleek black body has dark brown fur stripes, and its legs carry segmented bone plates with sharp ridges like sword edges.

Against tough prey it uses a leaping impalement, springing up to 30 feet sideways to come down on the foe with all its blades together. It makes just one attack roll; a hit deals full damage from 3 legs to a creature of size S or smaller, 4 to M, 5 to L, 6 to H and all 8 to G. Descending more than 20 feet adds +1 damage per leg, and the target strikes back at the falling spider at -4 because of the thicket of blades.

Watch spiders guard the cellars and warehouses of guilds and rich merchants in coastal cities along a northern coastline, from the colder north down to a far southern island. They are a bred strain of huge spider, raised and trained for guard work by a merchant family of a great coastal city and others from a southern island realm. Drow have quietly bought them in large numbers and started their own training and enhancement experiments.

Centuries of breeding have given them Low Intelligence. They obey a single master, leave alone anyone that master designates, and are taught to disable spellcasters and avoid piercing weapons. Their venom has been magically changed so that, after 1-2 rounds, it paralyzes for 2d4 turns rather than killing, unless the victim saves vs. poison at +1. Otherwise they are huge spiders and spin no webs. Kept hungry too long, they tend to eat what they have paralyzed.