Ettercap

Art by M Bielaczyc

Ettercaps are vile things… maybe even the vilest. They seem to be a mix of the worst aspects of spiders and demons. They are cowardly creatures who delight in attacking the weak and feeding on anything they can catch, preferably without a fight. 

I was once a victim of an ettercap. I had come unprepared to its lair, believing that a strong arm and a blade were all that I needed to clear through the webs of my prey. At first, it seemed it was, until I was deep in its hollowed-out forest lair. Soon, the webs became thick, and my blade became stuck. I found myself bound and trapped. And then it came to feed on me. The ettercap tortured me for days, drinking my blood and taunting me with its horrible, guttural voice, prodding me awake with its bite or sting if I fell asleep. What little sleep I did get was filled with most awful dreams. I truly believed that I would die there.

And if not for Delgon, I would have been another dessicated husk in the ettercap’s webs.

—Etahn

When I saw Etahn enter the ettercap’s lair, I was too far away for him to hear me call to him. I tried to warn him. I knew his blade would not clear the web, and I had no means to help. If I followed him in, we would both die.

But I knew that the ettercap always takes time with its prey, knowing that its victim is going nowhere. So I ran to the nearest town where I had rented a room. I had been studying the ettercap for some time, and believed I was on the verge of discovering a solvent that would dissolve the ettercap’s web. While I worked, I prayed that I would not be too late.

The solvent worked. The web dissolved easily upon contact, melting into a sickening slime that I was forced to trudge through until I reached Etahn. As I freed him, I felt a bite on my back. Now, it was Etahn who saved me, pouncing upon the creature, ramming his sword through its skull, and despite his weakened state, somehow carrying me back to town, whereupon he collapsed as more help arrived. 

—Delgon

Ettercap

CharacteristicsCV3
StatScore%Speed25’
STR1470HP31
CON1365Dmg Mod+1d4
SIZ1890AV0
INT945ClassMonster
ACU1260TypeNavirite
DEX1680Horror1/1d8
SOC945Treasure40 gp (harvestables)
  • Attack: Bite 65% 1d6+dm+poison and (2) Claws 55% 1d6+dm
  • Skills: Climb 80%, Dodge 65%, Grapple 60%, Hide 60%, Listen 60%, Spot 60%, Stealth 60%
  • Special: Poison, Web, Dark Vision, Multiattack
  • Weaknesses: Cold Iron
  • Habitat: Forests, Underground
  • Encounter: Single, Pair, or Cluster (3-5)

Poison

PoisonTypePOTOnsetEffectSecondary EffectCurePrice
Ettercap venomInjury18InstantPOT damage 1/2 speed2 saves200 gp

Web
As a move or standard action, ettercap can shoot a web up to 8 times per day, with a range of 50’. On a success, the target becomes Entangled. Webs can restrain creatures with up to double the ettercap’s SIZ.

An entangled creature may escape with a DEX check or burst free with a STR check, both Difficult.

Ettercaps can also create sheet webs 5–60 ft across to trap prey. Creatures must succeed at a Spot check to notice the web before entering it. Failure results in becoming Entangled.

Web sections can be destroyed, and fire burns away one 5 ft section per round.

Ettercaps move freely on their own webs and can instantly detect the location of any creature touching them.

Remnants and Reagents

Ettercap Venom

A strong poison. One dose can be milked from their glands.

Value: 200 gp
Harvesting Difficulty: Difficult