giant spider

Adventurer (sythian accent): “Yee gods! What ees zis but a gigantically spider!”
Drax (a lizardman but no accent): That is an itzi- bitzi- spider.”
Adventurer: “But it eez as bigger as me forearm!”
Drax: “Yup.”
(For a sheldirian jungle, that is sufficiently itzi- bitzi).

This is a really big spider:

Spinne1R4

Project-planing, management, building, coordination of helpers and finish: Martin. Electrics for the illuminated eyes: Trapper
Steering: per walkie-talkie, from the outside by a referee.

Spinne2B2

Above: first appearance: Blutwald, 2002. For transport and storing the legs as well as the head are removable.

Spinne5B2 Spinne4B2
Spinne7B2

In the rear “brainy” area are holes. From this “web- glands” party- spray- streamers can be shot over a distance of a few meters. Who gets hit is paralized instantly. And if the spider reaches the victim...

M&SpinneR4

Some key data: Chassis made of screwed aluminium ledges covered with mesh wire. Then a layer of cloth was manually sewed onto the wire so the outer hull (made of foam treated with soldering irons) can be glued onto it with pattex (incredible amounts of). Painted with latex- colours (take a mug of latex, put in a small amount of acrylic paint and stir it).
Construction period: Lots. Of. Hours. Finished just in time so that the colours are dry when the game starts. Budget: No comment. Sleep during building- phase: None (overrated, anyway. This is larp).

Until here the pictures are digitalised analog photos from 2002. Meanwhile (2012) digital photograhy has been invented:

YMPPS10Spinne-Korpus

Above: 2012, Castle Hanstein, “Der Splitter im Herzen”, 10 years later:
The creature has defied time´s assaults quite well- which proves that latex surfaces don´t age when stored properly: the colours blaze like new and also according to today´s standards the details are opulent.

YMPPS11Spinne-Unterseite

Above: The body from the underside: Aluminium- elements, mesh, cloth and outer hull made of foam. 2 webbing harnesses for the puppeteers. The construction weighs under 20 kg and could theoretically be carried single-handedly although you need two persons to hold it in balance.

YMPPS12Spinne-Beine

Left: The legs

The white poles sticking out at the bases are fibreglass- rods same as used for foam- weapons. They´re inserted into plastic tubes on the body.

Right: The sockets for the legs, made of plastic tubes reinforced with tape and affixed to the wire- mesh of the body.

The spider can “loose” legs when injured so the players are able to see if their efforts bear fruit.

YMPPS13Spinne-Beinaufnahme
YMPPS14Spinne-drüsen

Left: The “spiders glands” or whatever the things spiders make their silk with are called.

Through them the puppeteers shoot green party- streamers from spray- cans at the players. When no streamers are available squirt guns will do too...

Right: Observation slits

What you don´t see here are the slits hidden in the back armour´s recesses.
The operators need them for their orientation.

Because the body has no “floor”, they can also see their feet- a luxury that most monster outfits don´t provide.

YMPPS15Spinne-Sehschlitz
YMPPS16Spinne-Kopfelektrik

Left: cables and leds

The head seen from below. 10 green, illuminated eyes need a lot of leds (“light emitting diodes”), cables and batteries.
Nobody said anything about “easy”- but it can be done..

last edit jul17

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