Comments from the writer: Do you feel that great power comes with great responsibility? Do you want to do whatever a spider can? Don’t tell Disney and you can play a spider rogue from whichever multiverse your table is in. We’ve taken a couple passes at this subclass; this is the most up-to-date version, polished to perfection for Valda’s Spire of Secrets.
A life-changing event, such as being cursed by a drider warlock or being bitten by a dangerously transmuted arachnid, has imbued you with the properties of a spider. This transformation might have left you physically unchanged, or you could have a half-dozen eyes, lanky and hairy limbs, or a set of inhuman mandibles. Whatever the transformation’s side effects, you can now produce deadly poison and ropes of silken web from your palms, and eventually can scale the wall with your fingertips.
Webbing
Starting when you choose this archetype at 3rd level, you can magically produce sticky, silken spider webs from your palms. You can project a line of web as a bonus action, allowing you to create a temporary rope, pull an unattended object, close doors, or snatch a small object weighing less than 10 pounds within 60 feet. This line of web dissolves after 1 minute.
If you project the line of web at a point you can see within 60 feet, you can pull yourself to that point in a straight line. This expends movement and provokes opportunity attacks normally. You can use this ability as a reaction when you fall to pull yourself up to 10 feet in any direction, or create a rope of web of up to 60 feet in length and anchor it to a point you choose.
Venomous Strike
Also at 3rd level, you can produce an endless supply of deadly spider venom. When you deal Sneak Attack damage to a creature, you can choose to change the Sneak Attack damage dice to d8s and cause it to deal poison damage.
Wall Crawling
Starting at 9th level, you have the ability to move up, down, and across vertical surfaces and upside down along ceilings, while leaving your hands free. You also gain a climbing speed equal to your walking speed.
Additionally, if you are on a ceiling, you can hide from any creature that is at least 10 feet or more below you even if you otherwise lack appropriate cover.
Web Walker
Beginning at 13th level, you can cast the spell web at will, without using a spell slot or spell components. Your save DC for this spell equals 8 + your Dexterity modifier + your proficiency bonus. Additionally, you ignore movement restrictions caused by webbing.
Paralytic Venom
Beginning at 17th level, when you use your Venomous Strike to deal poison Sneak Attack damage to a creature, you can force that target to make a Constitution saving throw (DC equals 8 + your Dexterity modifier + your proficiency bonus). If the target fails its saving throw, it is paralyzed for 1 minute. The paralyzed creature can repeat its saving throw at the end of each of its turns, ending the effect on itself on a success.
Once you use this ability, you can’t use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Okay, yes, it’s Spider-Man. But it’s also great. Webbing has an amazing array of options for the creative player, Wall Crawling is very solid for a Rogue, Venomous Strike is a circumstantial damage boost that will be useful some of the time, and then there’s Web Walker. Web Walker’s key feature is jaw-droppingly good, able to knock dragons out of the sky or lock enemies down with ease, and it’s completely unlimited in uses! This is very solid, but at low levels, the really good stuff requires a player who’s willing to find creative uses for their abilities. But there’s so much potential there!