Cave fisher A cave fisher was a lobster - like monster which inhabited subterranean locations and ambushed its prey using a sticky filament similar to a strand of giant spider silk . Description . Cave fishers grew to about seven feet ( 2 . 1 meters ) long and had a hard , chitinous shell arranged in overlapping plates for an exoskeleton . It had eight legs and two forelimbs that ended in large pincers . Living underground , cave fishers were sightless creatures that used multiple auditory sensor organs to detect prey . These organs were located on the head and could be mistaken for multiple eyes . The creature had a large proboscis from which it shot a long ( up to 60 feet or 18 meters ) sticky filament . Behavior . The cave fisher hid on ledges above passageways and hunted by emitting a long strand of sticky filament , either dangling it to catch passing creatures such as bats , or shooting it at a creature as it wanders by . They could also secrete their adhesive onto their feet and anchor themselves to a ledge , wall , or ceiling once they found a good hunting spot . To release themselves , they secreted a substance from their proboscis that contained their blood that dissolved the adhesive . Cave fishers would attack any creature up to man - sized , but was intelligent enough to avoid large groups , preferring to pick off scouts , loners , and stragglers . Normally cave fishers worked alone in a area within 300 feet ( 91 meters ) of its lair , but sometimes they could be found in small groups of less than five , and these pods were known to coordinate ambushes of small parties . This cooperation usually ended when there was food to be fought over . Extra food , alive or dead , was wrapped in filament and stuck to a surface in their lair for later consumption . Cave fishers had no use for clothing , armor , or weapons , so their lair was usually strewn with the possessions of former victims . Combat . On a successful attack , the victim was stuck to the cave fisher ' s filament and was slowly drawn up to the cave fisher ' s level where it attacked with the two front pincers . Cave fishers could reel in victims weighing up to 200 or possibly 400 lbs ( 91 to 182 kg ) . Their filament was very difficult to cut , perhaps even requiring a magically enhanced blade , and any failure to do so resulted in the blade being stuck fast . Cave fishers had flammable blood and therefore were very adverse to fire . Casting " silence " on a cave fisher made it freeze in place as it listened intently , attacking only ( and much less effectively ) if it was attacked first . The filament was almost invisible in a dark cave , even at close range . A " detect snares and pits " spell would reveal them , however . Ecology . Cave fisher diet was primarily bats , and they never attacked anything that they detected was bigger than themselves , but they were always cautiously looking for larger prey they could surprise , like a lone goblin , orc , or foolish adventurer . Cave fishers could live over one hundred years and females mated about every twenty years . They sent out a ultrasonic keening above the hearing range of human s and demihuman s that attracted all males within miles of her lair . The first male to approach the female was allowed to mate with her and then became her victim . Any latecomers were forcefully rejected . After a three - day gestation period , the female laid a clutch of five to nine fertilized eggs in the body of the male and then departed to establish a new lair away from her previous nest . Within a month , the eggs hatched , the young lived off the carcass until it was depleted , and then they scattered to establish their own lairs . It took a little over two tenday s for the young to reach half their adult size , and then their growth slowed , reaching full size in a year . Almost every part of a cave fisher was usable after the creature has been killed . The meat was edible and tasted similar to crab sauteed in stout wine . Its blood was used for concocting several dwarven spirits , although some hearty dwarves drank the alcoholic blood straight . Extruded cave fisher filaments could be harvested and treated to dilute the adhesive and then woven into ropes that were incredibly strong for being so thin they were nearly invisible . The diluted adhesive could even be applied to gloves and boots to improve their grip when climbing . The chitinous shell was very tough and could be used to make armor , tools , and even jewelry . Cave fisher eggs that were a tenday old or less were highly valued for their alcoholic content plus psychedelic properties . A sip from one of these eggs could cause an average human to become quickly intoxicated for hours while experiencing hallucinations . Consuming the full contents of one of these potent eggs was usually fatal . Fresh cave fisher eggs sold for 50 to 100 gp in most large cities .