DOOM (1993) | Spider Mastermind

⠀⠀⠀⠀╭––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––╮
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ᴄᴏᴅᴇx ᴇɴᴛʀʏ // ᴀʀᴛ ʙʏ @ʙᴏᴊᴜsᴛʙᴏ𝟷⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⎯⠀⠀❐⠀⠀⤬
⠀⠀⠀⠀┞––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––┦
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ᴛʜᴇ sᴘɪᴅᴇʀᴅᴇᴍᴏɴ [doom.fandom.com] ᴀᴘᴘᴇᴀʀs ᴀs ᴀ ʜᴜɢᴇ ʙʀᴀɪɴ ᴡɪᴛʜ ғᴀᴄɪᴀʟ ғᴇᴀᴛᴜʀᴇs ᴏғ
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ᴍᴇɴᴀᴄɪɴɢ ᴛᴇᴇᴛʜ ᴀɴᴅ ᴇʏᴇs ᴛʜᴀᴛ ʙʟɪɴᴋ ʏᴇʟʟᴏᴡ ᴡʜᴇɴ ᴀᴛᴛᴀᴄᴋɪɴɢ. ɪᴛ ɪs ᴍᴏᴜɴᴛᴇᴅ
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ᴀᴛᴏᴘ ᴀ ᴄʏʙᴇʀɴᴇᴛɪᴄ ᴄʜᴀssɪs ᴡɪᴛʜ ғᴏᴜʀ ᴍᴇᴄʜᴀɴɪᴄᴀʟ ʟᴇɢs ᴀɴᴅ ᴀ ᴄʜᴀɪɴɢᴜɴ,
⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀⠀ᴍᴀᴋɪɴɢ ɪᴛ sɪᴍɪʟᴀʀ ᴛᴏ ᴀ sᴘɪᴅᴇʀ ᴀᴛ ғɪʀsᴛ ɢʟᴀɴᴄᴇ.
⠀⠀⠀⠀╰––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––––╯

UAC Details

Class: Cybernetic Demon
Enemy Rank: Boss

The Spiderdemon (also known as the Spider Mastermind, as named in The Ultimate Doom, Doom II, Final Doom and the Depths of Doom Trilogy's manual) is the final boss of the first Doom, and in the final episode of The Ultimate Doom, Thy Flesh Consumed. The Spiderdemon makes its return as a normal enemy in the second game, where it first awaits in MAP06 (if the difficulty setting is chosen in Ultra-Violence or Nightmare) to seek vengeance against the player.

CODEX ENTRY

"You guess the Arachnotrons had to come from somewhere. Hi, Mom. She doesn't have a plasma gun, so thank heaven for small favors. Instead, she has a super-chaingun. Crap!"

Combat Analysis

A Spiderdemon emits a loud demonic roar mixed with whirring machinery, starting low-pitched but progressively growing into a crescendo, high-pitched tone once activated. This roar is loud enough to be heard from a distance, no matter how far the player is. The Spiderdemon has audible footsteps, sounding similar to a running machinery.

The Spiderdemon relies on firing it's huge chaingun from its chassis. It fires three bullets with every shot, much like the Shotgun Guy's shotgun, but at a rapid rate of 467 shots per minute. When a Spiderdemon begins firing, it will not stop until its target is destroyed, moves out of view, or if the monster itself is stunned (where it will walk a bit immediately after the pain state) or killed. Similar behavior can be observed in the Wolfenstein SS, Heavy Weapon Dude and the Arachnotron.

Spiderdemons, like Cyberdemons, are immune to all blast damage, taking only direct hit damage from hits. This means a greater number of rockets are required to kill them than might be expected.

When killed, the Spiderdemon's mechanical body shuts down (in a forcible way) and collapses. A soft, whirring-down sound (similar to a mechanical rotor cooling down and stopping spinning) is heard as the body falls sideways to the ground, engulfed in flames. Its brain is splattered on impact (similarly to the Cyberdemon), the monster then emits an animalistic grunt that is readily cut out by an explosion, and all that remains are its shattered robotic legs and dismembered facial features in a huge pool of blood.

When fighting a Spiderdemon, it is essential to keep one's distance as much as possible and to keep whatever cover exists between you and it; even at medium and long range, the monster's super chaingun attack is devastating, and since the attack is hitscan, it cannot be evaded like the projectile attacks of other demons. Using the more powerful weapons is recommended against it, although since the Spiderdemon has a low pain chance, rapid-fire weapons will not completely prevent it from attacking. Using melee attacks against it is almost always an exercise in suicide, as the bullets will push the player backwards, rendering them unable to make contact with the Spider Mastermind. The exception is the rare cases where the Spiderdemon is pinned by another attacker. In E3M8: Dis, it is possible to stand up on the ledge above ground level and stay at great distance from the monster. At this range, the Spiderdemon's attack will not aim toward the player, and therefore never hit its target. Also, the Spiderdemon is large and tall enough that, even while standing on the ledge, projectile attacks will reach it.

However, due to its large size, it will soak in most if not all BFG rays from a point blank shot, dying in only 1 or 2 hits. A skilled player can therefore kill it easily by running up to it and shooting it twice with the BFG before it can kill the player. Utilizing monster infighting can be effective when battling a Spiderdemon. If one does not have the BFG, the rocket launcher or the plasma gun are recommended.

Though it has inferior hitpoints and lacks the sheer explosive power from its weapon like the Cyberdemon, the Spiderdemon still has easy dominance in monster-to-monster fights due to the high damage and wide hitscan from it's chaingun attacks. It is able to calmly mow down even powerful non-boss monsters such as a Mancubus or Baron of Hell, provided the Spiderdemon sustains fire until victory. This monster can sometimes even handle it's own against an individual Cyberdemon (seen in MAP20), with a random and fairly balanced chance of victory due to the Spiderdemon's reduce pain chance (except under the player's interference). Like all hitscan-based enemies, the Spiderdemon will gladly turn against their own species if caught in the crossfire.