Spider climb vs Monstrous spider

geosapient said:
I've seen a spider fall from the corner of two walls before when it tried to move quickly. Though I've never seen a spider fall off a ceiling either, I've never seen a spider try to run accross a ceiling.

Woah, that'd be interesting to see. Granted, we're trying to mix RL and D&D, which, while highly interesting, fails to mesh on some notes. So...um...*shrug*
 

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Kularian said:
Woah, that'd be interesting to see. Granted, we're trying to mix RL and D&D, which, while highly interesting, fails to mesh on some notes. So...um...*shrug*

When the rubberband hit right beside it the spider started to 'run'. When it tried to move to the other wall from the corner it fell (the DC was 5 higher) since taking 10 was no longer an option it failed its climb check when it rolled.

On a darker note, my notice check was lower than its hide check when it landed on my carpeted floor. So the damnable creature got to live another day.
 

Spiders can fall of ceilings and walls. They use a hook and barbed bristles (scopulae) under their feet to cling to surfaces (including web) - Kularian is right, tiny spiders use tiny 'handholds' to climb they do NOT stick to walls

Spiders can also get caught in their own webs (although this is rare) - if you watch a spider will keep its body away from its web so only its claws make contact. - There are also non-sticky strands in webs which allow the spider a 'path'

(PS I'm a Teacher irl and in 2007 am doing a Unit of Native Insects and Arachnids)
 


Not a smooth ceiling anyway. This little guy (pic taken by my parents while on vacation in Central South America last year) was on his way down from the ceiling. If anyone is interested, that is 3 inch moulding around the door, and door frame so I use the term 'little guy' loosely.
 

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Actually, the only reason spiders don't get stuck in their own webs is because they built the web, and the sticky parts are just globs spaced along the strands, and they step around them, because they know where they are and what they're for.
Just about every campaign I've been in had at least one instance of big spiders and PCs getting caught in the webs, but no one has, as of yet, tried to cast a Web spell on a bunch of spiders, which would work just as well as against any other similarly-sized creatures.

Oh, and spiders keep their tow cables ready, so they can bungie jump if they do fall. But then, everyone knows that. If you're a DM, put in some of the bola spiders and watch the fun begin.
 

Kmart Kommando said:
Actually, the only reason spiders don't get stuck in their own webs is because they built the web, and the sticky parts are just globs spaced along the strands, and they step around them, because they know where they are and what they're for.


Not nessecarily true.

It's anecdotal, but posts I work get boring. I end up experimenting with the spiders. Fun Fact: young black widows 'fish' for ants!!.

Sometimes I catch a spider in one web and put it in another. Sometimes there's a fight, sometimes they run away, but they're not stuck.

Also, don't forget mating spiders (males moving onto a females web) and certian breeds of spider that actively hunt other spiders. I've seen a web for one japanese banana spider also holding three smaller spiders (couldn't tell if they were babies or males).

I think it has more to do with the structure of the feet. Hairs with secretions and miroscopic hooks.
 
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Well, did you build the road you drive your car on? Do you crash because you don't know what it's for, or where the white lines are placed?

A spider web is a carefully crafted net with sticky globs on it to catch prey, a Web spell is a jumbled mass of sticky webs that sticks to everything in a 20ft radius spread.
 

The radial lines are 'sticky' due to globs of glue-like secretions. The straight lines, however, are typically not covered in such droplets, so the spider can walk on them without difficulty. Also, hooks and secretions on their feet make it easier to pull free if they do get stuck.

As for walking across the ceiling, have you ever used a magnifying glass on a painted wall? It is by no stretch of the imagination 'smooth' - at least not at the level of spiders. More akin to a DC 10 or 15 climb check - for them. For humans and other creatures of greater than perhaps Diminuative or Tiny size the wall may as well be smooth (and thus closer to DC 20 or 25). There are more than enough 'hand holds' for typical sized spiders on walls and ceilings. For monstrous sized spiders, however, I would judge that unless they are making 'hand holds' as they climb (by thrusting their barbed / hooked feet into the material of the wall / ceiling) then a ceiling would not readily support them. Actually, I would likely judge that if they are not magical, then they almost certainly are creating hand holds as they climb ceilings. I can even see a Ranger tracking one by the scratched / lightly punctured marks on the wall / ceiling.
 

Kmart Kommando said:
Well, did you build the road you drive your car on? Do you crash because you don't know what it's for, or where the white lines are placed?

A spider web is a carefully crafted net with sticky globs on it to catch prey, a Web spell is a jumbled mass of sticky webs that sticks to everything in a 20ft radius spread.

Same with a black widows spider web (the jumbled mass). They don't follow radial patterns.
 

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