The Zubenhakrabian Spider Nymph is a newborn Zubenhakrabian Spider. They appear in very large swarms whenever they are encountered. They are introduced as a common enemy in Serious Sam 4 and Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem.
Overview[]
The Spider Nymph is a small arachnid-like creature that originates from an unnamed planet in the Gamma Librae binary star system, in the constellation of Libra. These creatures were discovered by the Sirians during their interstellar travels, who valued them as exotic pets.[1]
Originally very docile creatures, the Spiders grew no more than a couple of inches. After the Sirians became extinct at the hands of Mental, he discovered these creatures and enlarged them through unknown means, which resulted in them becoming very aggressive.[1]
Appearance-wise, the Spider Nymph is a small creature about the size of a domestic cat. They were originally much smaller in size, before Mental tampered with its genes, which caused them to rapidly accelerate their growth. The Nymphs have a brownish-orange exoskeleton with a reddish tinge, and several limbs that end with long claws. On their head they have several tiny eyes and spikes protruding from the back of it. Their mouth contains several rows of sharp, pointed teeth.
Appearances[]
Spiders are very common enemies whenever they appear. They often show up in medium groups or large swarms, and often appear with Adult Spiders.
Like Hatchling Antaresian Spiders, they occasionally appear on the ceiling or walls of rooms, making them somewhat harder to notice them in dimly-lit places.
Serious Sam 4[]
Nymphs are first encountered in "The Die is Cast", where they are seen in small to medium groups in the earlier levels. In the later portions of the game, they can be encountered in large swarms consisting of up to a several dozen individuals or more.
Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem[]
Spiders are not as common in this game, but they can be numerous when they appear. They are first encountered in a secret in "Siberiade", the underground bunker in "Roadside Picnic", and so on.
Behavior and skills[]
The Nymphs are far much smaller and weaker than the adults, and also have thinner exoskeletons. The Spider's main form of attack is spitting an acid projectile at the target. At closer range, the Spider can deliver a bite with its jaws, though this attack is weaker in comparision to that of the Adults, since their jaws are undeveloped. However, since Nymphs have a tendency to appear in swarms, they can easily overwhelm and/or corner the player and can rapidly damage the player with their melee attack, draining their health and/or armor in seconds. Like arachnids found on Earth, Nymphs have adhesive pads in their feet, allowing them to cling to walls and ceilings.[1]
Like Hatchling Antaresian Spiders, they can be squished by getting close to the Nymph and then pressing the USE key. This will instantly kill the Nymph.
Tactics[]
- Nymphs are the weakest enemies in the game, and can killed with one shot from any bullet-firing weapon, which makes it extremely easy to kill one. However, they never come alone, so the player should prepare accordingly when they encounter them.
- The Nymph's acid spit can be avoided by sidestepping. It can also be shot down mid-air.
- Groups of Nymphs can be taken out with the 12 Gauge Pump-Action Shotgun, Double Barrel Coach Gun, M29 Infantry Assault Rifle and SOP38 Pistol, especially when dual-wielding them.
- For larger swarms, the XM214-A Minigun and XL2 Lasergun can easily decimate the horde.
- Don't allow Nymphs to get too close; groups of them can be dangerous and their bite attack can quickly drain the player's health and armor, even if this attack may seem weak.
- If the player is being overwhelmed by Nymphs, they should use any available gadgets (the Hacked Drone or Time Warp are recommended) to quickly eliminate them.
- The FRPCL's secondary fire mode is extremely effective at shredding through large swarms of Nymphs. Since they have very low health, they will pretty much die instantly to this weapon. An additional perk is that the chainsaw can also destroy any projectiles that Nymphs fire at the player.
- For large groups of swarms of these enemies, explosive weapons are very effective against them and can easily decimate the whole group if they are caught in the center of the blast radius. Weapons that work well against them are C-4 Demolition Charges, the GP-25 Kostyor, MK III Grenade Launcher (especially with its secondary fire mode), and XPML21 Rocket Launcher.
Behind the scenes[]
- The Spider originally had a brighter color scheme and different body shape compared to the final version.
Trivia[]
- The Nymphs, along with the Adults, reuse the Antaresian Spider's projectile model.
- A huge swarm of Nymphs appear as a secret in the level "Vive la Résistance". They drop a health pill bottle when they are killed.
- Despite bleeding green blood, they spew out red blood when gibbed.
Gallery[]
List of appearances[]
- Serious Sam 4 (First appearance)
- Serious Sam: Siberian Mayhem
References[]