Phase Spider Matriarch

Predator of the Ethereal Plane
Phase Spider Matriarch
Stats
Level 4
STR 16 (+3) DEX 19 (+4) CON 14 (+2) INT 6 (-2) WIS 12 (+1) CHA 6 (-2)
Race	[[Phase spider|Phase spider]]
Type	Monstrosity
HP	125; 162TTactician
AC	16; 17HHonour
Movement Speed	9m / 30ft
Size	Large
Weight	250kg / 500lbs
Proficiency Bonus	+2
Initiative	+4
Passive features
Opportunity Attack  Web Walker  Darkvision  Legendary Action: Gossamer TombHHonour
Resistances
Character information
Location	Whispering Depths
Allies	Phase Spider, Phase Spiderling
In-game

The Phase Spider Matriarch is a type of Monstrosity creature in Baldur's Gate 3. It is a boss encounter in the Whispering Depths and possesses several powerful abilities.

Attacks and abilities

 Venomous Bite ()

2d6 (2~12) Poison

+

1d8 (1~8) + Dexterity modifier Piercing

+

2d6 (2~12) Poison

Bite a target and possibly Poison it.

Deals 2d6Poison damage and 1d8+4Piercing damage, and possibly injects a venom that deals 2d6Poison damage.

CON Save

 Melee: 1.5 m / 5  ft

 Venomous Discharge ()

4d6 (4~24) + Dexterity modifier Poison

Spit out a venomous substance and possibly  Poison those it hits.

CON Save

 Range: 20 m /  ft

 Ethereal Jaunt ()

Surrounded by silver mist, you teleport to an unoccupied space you can see.

 Range: 22 m / 72 ft

 Matriarch's Call ()

The spider matriarch calls on her brood, causing her nearby eggs to hatch.

 Range: 3 m /  ft

 Spider Queen's Wrath

Increase Strength by 2, while  Armour Class is reduced by 1. On Tactician Difficulty: Gain one additional attack per turn. Increase Strength by 2 and grant Resistance to physical damage.

 Range: Self

Honour mode

In tactician and honour mode, the matriarch's stats are:

STR 17 (+3)

DEX 20 (+5)

CON 14 (+2)

INT 6 (-2)

WIS 14 (+2)

CHA 6 (-2)

In honour mode only, the matriarch's initiative is +5, and she and her Phase Spiders will all have  See Invisibility.

[[* A passive feature that allows; once per round if her offspring is attacked, this creature will try to encase the attacker in a Gossamer Tomb.

• Legendary Actions restore at the start of each round.

]]

 Gossamer Tomb ()

8d10 (8~80) Poison

Entomb a creature that attacks your offspring with an  Infested glob of web.

Unless removed with Fire or Acid damage, this glob of web will eventually explode, dealing 8d10Poison to the entombed creature.

DEX Save

 Range: 30 m / 100 ft

Tactics

• When combat begins, the Matriarch will attempt to hatch her nearby Phase Spiderling eggs. These eggs can be destroyed before the battle begins if the party can stay hidden (and allowing for an easy Pest Control achievement). Failing that, area damage spells work well on their low Hit Points. It is preferable to destroy all the eggs in Tactician/Honour mode due to her legendary action, but in lower difficulties it can be beneficial to leave a single egg behind in a batch as the Matriarch will essentially waste an action to summon a single Phase Spiderling.
• The Phase Spider Matriarch will use its phase abilities to teleport around the arena.
• At 50% or less Hit Points, the Matriarch will cast Spider Queen's Wrath on itself, entering into an enraged state.
• Knocking the Phase Spider Matriarch into one the side holes labelled 'Chasm' will grant the party 250xp. However, knocking her into the centre hole (not labelled 'Chasm') will not grant experience, but its corpse can be found in the Underdark (X:140 Y:151) to loot and possibly animate. This does not work in Tactician/Honour mode.
• When the Matriarch is on a web bridge, destroying the bridge using fire damage will inflict a significant amount of fall damage on her (~45, varying with height). The stone platforms they connect to have no loot on them and are mostly accessible even without the bridges, thus it is recommended to use this tactic whenever the opportunity presents itself.
• Cast Protection from Poison or use Elixir of Poison Resistance on all party members before entering combat.
• 

  The matriarch never initiated combat. Combat log showed 90 exp reward for knocking her down the chasm.
  Lump the Enlightened and his ogres can prove valuable allies in the battle. They can be recruited just up above in the Blighted Village through a Charisma check or paying them 500g. This can result in a win-win situation where Lump is killed in the battle or is significantly weakened allowing the opportunity to easily obtain the Warped Headband of Intellect.
• She has +1 bonuses to Strength and Dexterity on Tactician difficulty, with resultant bonuses to Initiative, Armour Class, Attack rolls, and Saving throws, making an already fairly fierce early game enemy even deadlier.
• It's a good idea to spread party members out. Her venomous discharge ability has a large AoE radius.
• Exploits: The middle spiderweb bridge has a stone outcrop that, when the matriarch stands on and the bridge destroyed, would effectively neutralize her: she will be stuck in her falling down animation but never move and, therefore, never enter combat. The combat log gives experience as if she has fallen into the Underdark, but the player can still kill her normally with ranged attacks afterward — yielding the kill experience reward and loot. This was found on a tactician playthrough and should work for honour mode. Honestly, using Lump the Enlightened is a faster way of doing things, but I will show a step-by-step as follows:
  

  A good portion of the matriarch collision size(?) indicator is outside of the ledge.
  • Kill any minions. The possibility is low that having other starting combat for the queen might change things.
    • Kill the eggs then the phase spider, use Minor illusion to draw them away and into kill-box. Use a rogue and equip her with Haste helm for hit-and-run. This should be easy, given all of them have -2 intellect saving throw.
      • Best kill-box is the ledge gated by web. Draw a spider into the low-ground directly below, activate combat mode first before attacking.
  • Lure the queen with Minor illusion to the outcrop.

History

The phase spider matriarch was once an arachnomancer named Eliette and worshipper of Lolth. They wished to transform so as to "refashion myself in the Queen's image".

Loot

• Poisoner's Robe

Related literature

• Tattered Journal
• Bloody Journal
• Burnt Journal
• Web-Covered Journal

External links

• Eliette on the Forgotten Realms Wiki