Subclass Rogue Arachnoid Stalker
A life-changing event — a drider's curse, the bite of a dangerously transmuted arachnid — left the Arachnoid Stalker with the abilities of a spider. Webbing at Level 3 gives you three Bonus Action web options: yanking a target toward you, swinging yourself across the battlefield, and casting Web without a spell slot. Venomous Strike, also at Level 3, lets you convert Sneak Attack's d6s into d8s of Poison damage. At Level 9, Paralytic Venom adds a Cunning Strike option that trades your Sneak Attack damage for a Constitution save against Paralysis.
| LEVEL | FEATURE |
|---|---|
| 3 | Webbing, Venomous Strike |
| 9 | Paralytic Venom |
Webbing You can magically produce sticky, silken spider webs from your hands. As a Bonus Action, you can use them to do one of the following. The saving throw DC for all three options equals 8 plus your Dexterity modifier and Proficiency Bonus.
Pulling Web — Strike a creature or object within 30 feet with a skin-adhering web and pull it up to 30 feet closer to you. Only a target of Large size or smaller can be moved, and a creature resists with a successful Dexterity saving throw; an ally is always pulled. You can also grab objects and corpses, not just creatures, and a target dragged off a ledge takes fall damage.
Web Swing — Project a line of web at a point you can see within 30 feet and pull yourself to that point without provoking Opportunity Attacks. This targets ground you could stand on, so it works as a Bonus Action reposition even when there's nothing to attack.
Web — You cast Web without a spell slot as part of the same Bonus Action. The webs dissolve after 10 turns, and a creature caught inside must succeed on a Dexterity saving throw or become Enwebbed. The area is much smaller than the full spell's — roughly a third of its radius.
Pulling Web and Web Swing cost only the Bonus Action. Casting Web also spends one of 2 web charges; you regain one expended charge when you finish a Short Rest and all of them on a Long Rest.
ArachnoidStalker_PullingWeb_Combo.mp4
Venomous Strike When you deal Sneak Attack damage to a creature, you can choose for the Sneak Attack to deal d8s of Poison damage instead of d6s of the same type dealt by the weapon. The die count matches your normal Sneak Attack progression (2d8 at Level 3, 3d8 at Level 5, 4d8 at Level 7, 5d8 at Level 9, 7d8 at Level 11), so the feature is a straight upgrade in die size at the cost of locking the damage to Poison.
Melee and ranged versions both exist, and the automatic Sneak Attack Reaction has Venomous Strike variants too, including one for critical hits. Whichever Cunning Strike rider you have toggled on still applies.
Paralytic Venom You gain the following Cunning Strike option.
Paralyze — When you deal Sneak Attack damage, you can forgo your Sneak Attack's extra damage. If you do, the target must succeed on a Constitution saving throw or be Paralyzed until the end of your next turn. The attack still deals normal weapon damage, and — unlike Venomous Strike — your other Cunning Strike riders do not apply on a Paralyze strike.
The Arachnoid Stalker is the Bonus Action-hungry control Rogue. Every Webbing option competes with Cunning Action for the same Bonus Action, so each turn is a choice between Dash/Disengage/Hide, repositioning with Web Swing, and setting up a kill with Pulling Web. Pulling Web is the standout: dragging a back-line caster out of its formation and into your threat range sets up your next turn's Sneak Attack, and because allies are pulled automatically it doubles as a rescue tool for a downed or surrounded party member.
Venomous Strike is close to free damage — d8s instead of d6s on every Sneak Attack — but it commits the damage to Poison, which is one of the most commonly resisted types in the game. Keep the normal Sneak Attack available for Undead, Constructs, and anything else with Poison Resistance or Immunity, and lean on Venomous Strike against the flesh-and-blood majority.
Paralytic Venom at Level 9 converts your biggest damage spike into hard control. Paralysis is severe — the target can't act, and melee attacks against it automatically crit — so trading one turn of Sneak Attack dice for it is usually worth it against a single dangerous enemy, especially since a Paralyzed target hands your whole party critical hits. Because both Venomous Strike and Paralyze branch off the same Sneak Attack, you're choosing one per turn: damage, poison damage, or control.