Spiders, Arachnids, and other webspinners advice

[doc the grey]

So I'm in the middle of building a arachnid inspired dungeon for my regular group and I was wondering if anyone knew of any good spidery creatures between the ranges of 3-8 that they could suggest for me.

My current list is as follows

Solfugid, albino
Ogre spider
ettercap
Wolf spider (tome of horrors)
Giant black widow
Deathweb
giant tarantula

any additions would be greatly appreciated.

[doc the grey]

Any advice?

[OmNomNid]

Drider if you want to push the arachnid theme.

[Forderz]

Here's some homebrew I've whipped up.

Not PFS legal due to being medium with the quadruped racial trait. Gogo humanoid spiders with class levels!

Arachkin are the creations of Jalikhan, the Spider King. They resemble humanoid spiders, walking on six legs while the final pair acts as clawed hands. At ease in the cavernous webbed caves they call home, they are a cold, calculating race that is ruthless in their decisions.

Standard Racial Traits

Ability Score Racial Traits: Arachkin are quick and quick-witted, but frail underneath their carapace. They gain +2 Dexterity, +2 Intelligence, and –2 Constitution.
Type: Arachkin are outsiders with the native and vermin subtypes.
Size: Arachkin are Medium creatures and thus have no bonuses or penalties due to their size.
Base Speed: Arachkin have a base speed of 40 feet. They have a climb speed of 30ft, which grants them a +8 racial bonus to climb checks.
Languages: Arachkin begin play speaking Arachnid. Arachkin with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following: Slyvan, Terran, Celestial, Ancient. See the Linguistics skill page for more information about these languages.

Defense Racial Traits

Carapace: Arachkin gain a +3 natural armor bonus to their Armor Class due to their hard exoskeletons.
Collective Will: Arachkin gain a +2 racial bonus on Will saving throws due to their interlinked consciousness.

Offense Racial Traits

Vicious Mandibles: Arachkin have a natural bite attack that deals 1d4 damage. The bite is a secondary attack.
Razor Claws: Arachkin’s limbs are razor sharp, giving them two natural claw attacks that deal 1d4 damage each.

Feat and Skill Racial Traits

Webwalker: Arachkin gain a +8 racial bonus to stealth checks while in webbing. In addition, they gain Tremorsense (60ft) to detect anything touching the web.
Swarming: Arachkin are used to living and fighting communally with other members of their race. Up to two members of this race can share the same square at the same time. If two members of this race that are occupying the same square attack the same foe, they are considered to be flanking that foe as if they were in two opposite squares.

Senses Racial Traits

Darkvision: have darkvision 120 feet.
Light Sensitivity: Members of this race are dazzled as long as they remain in an area of bright light.
Other Racial Traits

Hexruped: Arachkin possess six legs and two arms, granting them a +8 racial bonus to CMD against trip attempts and a +10 foot bonus to their base speed. They can not wear any items that fit in the boot slot.

Alternate Racial Traits

The following alternate racial traits may be selected in place of one or more of the standard racial traits above. Consult your GM before selecting any of these new options.

Docile
Many members of the hive are not required to fight, and as such are bred for different purposes.The arachkin gains a +2 bonus to a Craft skill, Profession skill, and Knowledge skill of their choice. In addition, the arachkin gains an additional skill rank at 1st level and one additional skill rank whenever they gain a level. This racial trait replaces vicious mandibles, razor claws, swarming, and carapace.

Webspinner
Arachkin architects are bred to rapidly spin webs, at the cost of combat ability. The arachkin gains the web(ex) ability and the ability to cast web as a spell like ability once per day. The web is permanent. This replaces vicious mandibles and carapace.

Surface Envoy
Arachkin queens routinely breed servants that can exist comfortable on the surface, interacting with the other races of the world. The arachkin gains darkvision (60ft) and the ability to cast the following spell-like abilities once per day: comprehend languages, detect magic, detect poison, read magic. In addition, surface envoys gain a +2 bonus on Diplomacy and Bluff checks, and when they use Diplomacy to shift a creature's attitude, they can do so up to three steps up rather than just two. This trait replaces darkvision (120ft), light sensitivity, webwalking and swarming.

Severed from the Hive
Arachkin can be exiled from the hive for crimes against the queen. The arachkin is cut off from the hivemind, giving him a great advantage in combat against his or her former brethren, but at great cost. The arachkin gains a +1 racial bonus to attack rolls and a +4 dodge bonus to AC against other arachkin. This replaces collective will and swarming.

Necrospider
Some arachkin find themselves drawn to the necromantic arts,eventually becoming so obsessed with unlife that they undergo special rituals to drain the fluids from their bodies, becoming more dead than alive. The arachkin gains negative energy affinity, reacting to positive and negative energy as if it were undead, and also takes no penalty from energy-draining effects. It can still be killed if it accrues more negative levels than it has Hit Dice. After 24 hours, any negative levels it has accrued are removed without the need for any additional saving throws.

Steward of Horror
Many arachkin are experienced combatants against the horrors that lurk beneath the earth, and have been bred to defend the hive against the inevitable attacks from such creatures. Members of this race take a –4 penalty on all Charisma-based skill checks to affect creatures of the aberration type, and receive a +4 dodge bonus to AC against aberrations. Aberrations’ starting attitude toward a steward of horror is one step worse than normal. No self-respecting arachkin would dare take a bite from such creatures, and thus, this ability replaces vicious mandibles.

Arachkin Commander
Some arachkin are bred to be strong, independant, natural fighters. This racial trait replaces the standard ability modifiers of arachkin with a +2 bonus to strength, a +2 bonus to constitution, and a -2 penalty to charisma. In addition, the spiderlord’s claws increase in damage by one size category, but they lose the ability to manipulate objects with them. This ability replaces webwalking and swarming.

Racial Archetype

The following racial archetypes are available to arachkin:
spiderlord (Fighter; Arachkin)

Spiderlord (Fighter; Arachkin)

The spiderlord is an archetype of the fighter class, available to arachkin fighters.
Powerful warriors and the general of the queen, there exists only a single spiderlord in every hive. To cross him to to taunt death.
Class Features
A spiderlord has the following class features:

Weapon and Armor Proficiency
A spiderlord is proficent with all simple and martial weapons

Spiked Carapace (Ex)
Starting at 2nd level a spiderlord deals 1 point of piercing damage to opponents every time it is hit in melee while not wearing armor. This bonus increases by +1 for every four levels beyond 2nd. This ability replaces Bravery. The reflex save DC of this ability is equal to 10 + 1/2 the spiderlord’s HD + Con modifier.

Reinforced Carapace (Ex)
Starting at 3rd level, a spiderlord physiology changes to add more bulk to his protective carapace . He adds +3 to his natural armour bonus. Every four levels thereafter (7th, 11th, and 15th), these bonuses increase by +3 each time, to a maximum +12 to his AC (+15 natural armour bonus in total). This replaces armor training.

Natural Killer (Ex)
At 5th level, a spiderlord’s natural attacks gain a +1 bonus to attack and damage rolls. This bonus improves by +1 every four levels after 5th. This replaces weapon training 1.

Relentless Strikes (Ex)
At 9th level, each time that a spiderlord hits a target, he gains a +1 bonus on attack rolls against that target. This bonus stacks with each hit against that target, but lasts only until the end of the spiderlord's turn.
This ability replaces weapon training 2.

Massive Claws (Ex)
At 13th level, the spiderlord’s natural weapons increase in damage by one size category.
This ability replaces weapon training 3.

Ground Breaker (Ex)
At 17th level, as a full-round action, a spiderlord may strike the ground with his claws. If the attack deals more damage than the floor's hardness, the space he occupies and all adjacent squares become difficult terrain. Creatures in those squares, except for the spiderlord, are knocked prone (DC 10 + 1/2 HD + strength modifier; Reflex negates).
This ability replaces weapon training 4.

Chitinous Plating (Ex)
At 19th level, a spiderlord gains Damage Reduction 5/—

Weapon Mastery (Ex)
A spiderlord must choose his natural claw attacks. In addition, his claw’s damage die increase in size by one.

[Xenh]

doc the grey wrote:

So I'm in the middle of building a arachnid inspired dungeon for my regular group and I was wondering if anyone knew of any good spidery creatures between the ranges of 3-8 that they could suggest for me.

For serious, no one would see this spider coming: LINKY

p.s. Not sure what the CR is of the Deatheye Dancer or Nightmare Spider (LINK), they're described near the end of the write-up under "variants", but they're a hoot!

[Odraude]

Try the aranea. for their leader. Would make a cool boss.

[doc the grey]

Ohh hearing cool things right now the plan was a skinshifter ranger ettercap that leads the other etters and makes the advanced traps. I liked it as it played into one of my PC's fear of ettercaps that killed his unit in his past and wanted to play that angle up. That being said the aranea is an interesting idea. Also love to use driders but right now they are unknown/single in existence as the drow don't really exist in mine and the only one they've seen so far was sort of a fluke of existence though hmmm....

Anyways I'm really looking for vermin or low int magical beast spiders as the thing is sort of like a private preserve of spiders that the main boss (a jurigumo) keeps and is tended to by the aforementioned ettercap.

[doc the grey]

Xenh wrote:

doc the grey wrote:

So I'm in the middle of building a arachnid inspired dungeon for my regular group and I was wondering if anyone knew of any good spidery creatures between the ranges of 3-8 that they could suggest for me.

For serious, no one would see this spider coming: LINKY

p.s. Not sure what the CR is of the Deatheye Dancer or Nightmare Spider (LINK), they're described near the end of the write-up under "variants", but they're a hoot!

Ohh I totally want to futz with those webs might have some ettercap traps made out of that stuff make it so my party can't just burn all the webs in this place out.

[Teiidae]

Phase spider can be really fun, they can really mess with players...i once threw a phase spider with a few rogue levels..party wasn't happy. Oh Jorogumo looks really cool.

[Teiidae]

opps, I should read more before posting ;S

[Odraude]

One thing I plan on doing with my players is having an aranea as one NPC that they grow to depend on and get to know, earning their trust. At some point, I plan on having her invite them into her home, only for it to be a terrifying trap where she reveals her horrific, bloated arachnid form and attack with her ettercap and spider minions.

[doc the grey]

Odraude wrote:

One thing I plan on doing with my players is having an aranea as one NPC that they grow to depend on and get to know, earning their trust. At some point, I plan on having her invite them into her home, only for it to be a terrifying trap where she reveals her horrific, bloated arachnid form and attack with her ettercap and spider minions.

I have pulled that before, fun times. Will say though I'm looking for more scary animal ones then smart ones as the way it's framed this is the first real piece of the dungeon temple they are entering and I liked the idea of them coming to realize that the front door goes straight into the proverbial lions den, (in this case this giant spider colony that the jurigumo is keeping) and the only way out is through. This is compounded by the few intelligent denizens therein, acting as zookeepers who maintain the exhibits and the other creatures who survived the invasion of their home by being tougher and nastier then the new inhabitants.

I think the other worry I have is that if I pull too many strong intelligent creatures that come off spidery that I will devalue the final fight on I'm planning on this level with the Head zookeeper, a trapper skinshifter ettercap.

[doc the grey]

Ohh I could throw some undead templates on them, keeps them mindless, changes the PC's countering tactics, and helps play up the fears of this temple to come. Now can anyone picture a skeletal giant tarantula besides me and see that as terrifying?

[Thomas LeBlanc]

doc the grey wrote:

Ohh I totally want to futz with those webs might have some ettercap traps made out of that stuff make it so my party can't just burn all the webs in this place out.

Spider webs don't really burn. They look like they melt away from the fire. Fresh ones melt slower and leave more soot.

Realism aside, just do what I did. I am running a mite based campaign and they feed their spiders a special diet. Depending on what is fed to the spider the silk comes out differently.

Types I use:
flash (burns quick and creates a flash of light that can cause blindness)
slow burn (fuse-like)
greased (doens't melt and its slippery)
hard (crystal or metal-like)
chime (makes a sound when disturbed in any way)
viscous (high heat transference, melts onto the source of fire, putting it out)
weeping (draws up liquid from any source touching it and drips the liquid)

incorporeal (created by a ghost spider)

[doc the grey]

Thomas LeBlanc wrote:

doc the grey wrote:

Ohh I totally want to futz with those webs might have some ettercap traps made out of that stuff make it so my party can't just burn all the webs in this place out.

Spider webs don't really burn. They look like they melt away from the fire. Fresh ones melt slower and leave more soot.

Realism aside, just do what I did. I am running a mite based campaign and they feed their spiders a special diet. Depending on what is fed to the spider the silk comes out differently.

Types I use:
flash (burns quick and creates a flash of light that can cause blindness)
slow burn (fuse-like)
greased (doens't melt and its slippery)
hard (crystal or metal-like)
chime (makes a sound when disturbed in any way)
viscous (high heat transference, melts onto the source of fire, putting it out)
weeping (draws up liquid from any source touching it and drips the liquid)

incorporeal (created by a ghost spider)

Nice cool to also hear someone else likes messing around with mites. In that particular post though I was looking at the dreamwebs that the dream spiders produce which create euphoric effects as they burn that players cannot save against really.

[doc the grey]

New thing, I think I'm going to make some undead spiders that have starved to death in this place as well and have risen infused with the daemonic energy of this temple and need some advice.

Right now I'm torn as I want to make three of my spider choices (the giant tarantula,black widow, and ogre spider) with undead templates as well. The problem I'm having is that I don't want to be too redundant with my template choices so I want to decide which template to use on each type and make them stick out in my players minds. Right now I'm torn on the black widow, I want to make it this corpulent rotting thing and make it some mix of zombie but I think this giant zombie hulk tarantula that shucks rotting, necrotic hairs at them just sounds awful in all the right ways. Second I'm having a hard time thinking of which one I want to make a skeleton out of, I mean in all reality the thing will look like a giant suit of spidery armor but I don't know which one will look the best like that. Finally does anyone know what happens to poisons once a creature becomes undead, do they retain them or lose them in the process? I have some ideas either way but would like some perspective from others.