Miscellaneous Monster: Island Tarantula

Artist Credit: [@GoryGhostieGuts on twitter](https://twitter.com/GoryGhostieGuts/status/1244455456333918208) (used with permission)

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### Island Tarantula

While it may appear identical to more common varieties of tarantula, the *island tarantula* is a species of spider endemic to only a specific group of tiny, remote islands.

These spiders are highly prized by collectors and researchers alike. As such, the creatures can readily fetch an astoundingly generous price if captured alive and offered to the right buyer. Because of this, many adventurers tour the spiders' native islands in search of the creatures. However, most who seek them fail, and those who succeed often wish they hadn't.

The elusiveness of these spiders is only surpassed by their aggressiveness when confronted. What's more, their unbelievable agility makes them nearly impossible to defend against, let alone capture safely. An island tarantula that spots a potential threat will assume a warning display with its body reared, its forward-most legs raised, and its fangs twitching wildly. Any creature that doesn't slowly back away from this display is charged with lightning quickness. Such a conflict tends not to last long, as a single bite from the spider delivers enough venom to knock out even the hardiest creatures.

The extreme danger that these spiders pose to larger creatures is usually enough to cause their home islands to be deserted, allowing smaller critters to take over and thrive. It's for this reason that any seemingly-uninhabited islands in their home region should be approached with extreme caution.

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> ## Island Tarantula
>*Tiny monstrosity, chaotic evil*
>___
>**Armor Class** 20  
>**Hit Points** 3 (1d4 + 1)  
>**Speed** 30 ft., climb 30 ft.
>___
>|STR|DEX|CON|INT|WIS|CHA|
>|:-:|:-:|:-:|:-:|:-:|:-:|
>|2 (-4)|30 (+10)|11 (+0)|5 (-3)|14 (+2)|13 (+1)|
>___
>**Saving Throws** Dex +12  
>**Skills** Acrobatics +14, Perception +4, Stealth +12  
>**Senses** tremorsense 30 ft., darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 14  
>**Languages** —  
>**Challenge** 4 (1,100 XP)
>___
>
>***Aggressive Leap.*** With at least a 10-foot running start, the tarantula can leap up to 10 feet into or through another creature's space, and the tarantula can make an attack during this leap if it wishes. Any attack rolls or ability checks made by the target as part of a prepared action triggered during this leap are made with disadvantage.
>
>***Avoidance.*** If the tarantula is subjected to an effect that allows it to make a saving throw to take only half damage, it instead takes no damage if it succeeds on the saving throw, and only half damage if it fails.
>
>***Magic Resistance.*** The tarantula has advantage on saving throws against spells and other magical effects.
>
>***Opportunist.*** The tarantula has advantage on an attack roll against a target if at least one other creature hostile to the target is within 5 feet of the target and the hostile creature isn't incapacitated.
>
>***Reactive.*** The tarantula can take one reaction on every turn in a combat.
>
>***Spider Climb.*** The tarantula can climb difficult surfaces, including upside down on ceilings, without needing to make an ability check.
>
>***Web Walker.*** The tarantula ignores movement restrictions caused by webbing.
>
>### Actions
>
>***Bite.*** *Melee Weapon Attack:* +12 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target. *Hit:* 1 piercing damage, and the target must succeed on a DC 18 Constitution saving throw or be poisoned for 1 hour. The target is also unconscious while poisoned in this way. The target wakes up if it takes damage.
>
>### Reactions
>
>***Evasive Leap.*** If a creature the tarantula can see targets it with an attack, the tarantula leaps 5 up to feet in a direction of its choice, imposing disadvantage on the triggering attack roll.