Game Development Reference
In-Depth Information
less there is an overhang or a layer of a block type they can't climb, such as glass. They're
fast, aggressive at night or in dark places, and a little bit tougher to defeat than your aver-
age zombie.
FIGURE 5.2
Spiders are fast and able to climb walls, but easy to defeat even with a
wooden sword.
Note:
Building Spider-Proof Walls
Spiders can crawl up almost any wall unless it contains transparent
blocks. This isn't always practical. An overhang provides an alternative
defense. Position a single block on the outside of the third level of any
wall such that the block forms an upside-down ledge. Spiders can't get
throughsingle-blockgaps,sotheseoverhangsonlyhavetobepositioned
every second space, somewhat like the battlements on a castle keep's
walls. See
Chapter 8
, “
Creative Construction
,” for examples of this and
other defensive construction techniques.
Spiders are, however, also very useful. Spiders drop string, a vital ingredient for crafting a
bow, and sometimes one of their eyes. Every four pieces of string can also make one block
(or bale) of wool. Gather three of those, and it's enough for a bed, which can then be used
to reset your spawn point. That's
very
handy if there are no sheep nearby!
Treat spider eyes as a sort of extreme food if you can handle the concept. They're pois-
onous along the same lines as rotten meat, but also make for a useful ingredient in some
potions.
Spiders are just one block high and two blocks wide, so a 1×1 opening in a wall will keep
you safe.
