How to Build Webber’s Spider Army in DST: Cave Spiders, Squad Mix Math, and Spider Queen Strategy

Most players treat Webber’s spider army like a blob to aim at enemies. The Webber players who consistently clear Deerclops without losing a follower do something different — they mix species. Sending three Spider Warriors into a boss fight costs you ranged coverage during knockback windows. Running Cave Spiders for exploration means tanky followers that can’t threaten enemies at range in tight corridors. The difference between a functional spider army and an optimal one is species composition, and that’s what this guide is built around.

We cover the spider mix math for each activity type, the full Switcherdoodle system for getting cave spiders without visiting the caves, and Webber’s most underused mechanic — the pre-combat Spider Queen harvest that gives you a stronger squad before the fight even begins.

Webber Quick Start: Your First 5 Days

Before getting into spider theory, here’s the fastest path to a functional army:

1. Day 1: Use your starting 2 Monster Meat to befriend 2 surface Spiders immediately. They follow you permanently — no timer.
2. Day 2–3: Craft a Science Machine. Build a Top Hat (6 Silk) first — your 100 Sanity cap means shadow creatures arrive before other characters notice.
3. Day 4: Locate 2–3 Spider Dens in the world. Feed them 5 Silk each to upgrade from Tier 1 to Tier 2, then another 5 Silk to reach Tier 3.
4. Day 5: Craft a Webby Whistle (3 Silk + 2 Twigs) and Den Decorating Set (1 Papyrus + 1 Silk + 2 Boards). Decorate one den — this pauses growth and makes its spiders neutral to all teammates.
5. Day 5+: Befriend 3 spiders (your follower cap). Gather Nitre and Cut Stone to unlock Spitter and Cave Switcherdoodles. Convert 1 spider to each type for a mixed squad.

Once you have a Tier 3 den network and 3 followers, you’re ready for the first giants. The rest of this guide explains the why behind each step. New to DST entirely? Our DST Beginner’s Guide covers the survival fundamentals before you dive into character-specific mechanics.

Webber Stats, Perks, and the Monster Tax

Webber is one of DST’s most distinctive characters — see our DST Characters Guide for a full roster comparison if you’re still choosing a main. For those already committed to the spider boy: here’s what the numbers actually mean.

Webber starts with 175 Health, 175 Hunger, and only 100 Sanity — that low sanity ceiling is his defining constraint [1]. Most characters sit at 150 or 200 Sanity, meaning Webber enters the danger zone (Charlie attacks, shadow creatures spawn) roughly 40% earlier each night. This forces a Top Hat as your first non-survival craft, not an optional upgrade.

The payoff: spiders are permanently neutral to Webber, and Monster Foods carry no health or sanity penalties for him. Eating raw Monster Meat straight from a kill gives full nutrition without the -15 sanity hit other characters take [1]. In practice, this eliminates the crockpot dependency for food management — Webber can sustain entirely on Monster Meat from spider farming until mid-game.

The other major perk is the Silk Beard. Over 9 days Webber’s beard grows through three stages, dropping 1, 2, and 3 Silk on shave respectively, plus providing thermal insulation (11.25, 33.75, and 67.5 at each stage) [1]. Shaving also gives +10 Sanity per stage — a repeating sanity buffer that costs nothing to maintain once your beard grows. In winter, leaving it at Stage 3 means you need less fuel for fires.

The trade-off: Pigs and Bunnymen are permanently hostile to Webber, treating him as a monster. Never build near a Pig Village, and bring a Shoo Box when passing through. Even befriended spiders won’t protect you from a Pig mob — they’ll start a brawl that draws the whole village.

Verified against the 2021 Character Refresh and current game state (May 2026). Spider follower loyalty timer was removed in the 2021 update — older guides describing a 2.5-day limit are outdated [9].

Spider Species: Stats and Roles

The biggest mistake Webber players make is treating every spider as interchangeable. They’re not — each species fills a different tactical slot, and running the wrong mix for an activity is why “Webber struggles against bosses” as a reputation exists. Here are the five types you can have as followers, plus why the Regular Spider barely earns a slot:

A few things stand out from these numbers. First, every spider deals the same 20 damage per hit — the distinction is entirely about survivability and positioning. Regular Spiders die in 5 hits from a basic mob, making them throwaway. Spider Warriors with 400 HP can absorb 20 hits before dying and can’t be stunlocked, meaning enemies can’t chain-interrupt their attacks [4].

Cave Spiders are the sleeper pick. Their 225 HP looks unimpressive until you factor in the shell mechanic: after taking 2 hits, they close their carapace and absorb 75% of incoming damage [5]. A Cave Spider under sustained fire effectively has the survivability of a 900 HP unit during the shell phase. The weakness is they can’t attack while shelled, but in a mixed army this doesn’t matter — your Spitters are dealing ranged damage while the Cave Spiders soak hits.

Spitters add something no other follower provides: consistent damage at range 8, nearly triple a regular spider’s 3-unit reach [6]. Against bosses that have knockback or wide AOE (Deerclops, Ancient Fuelweaver), Spitters outside the damage radius keep dealing damage while melee spiders get pushed away. They also don’t chase enemies the same way, which prevents the “all spiders scatter” problem during chaotic fights.

Dangling Depth Dwellers are a weaker version of Spider Warriors on the surface — 200 HP vs 400, same leap attack [7]. They shine in caves where their natural habitat gives them behavioral advantages, but on the surface a Warrior Switcherdoodle is almost always the better slot.

Regular Spiders are for one purpose: silk farming via den management. Avoid including them as combat followers once you have access to Switcherdoodles.

Den Cultivation: Growing Your Spider Farm

Your spider army scales with your den network. A single Tier 1 den spawns 3 regular spiders — useful on day 1, irrelevant by winter. Tier 3 dens spawn 9 spiders (3 of which are Warriors) and are the source of Spider Queens, which drop the Spiderhat and leave behind fresh dens for further cultivation [2].

Tier progression timing:

• Tier 1 → Tier 2: 5–10 days naturally, or instantly with 5 Silk (Webber-exclusive)
• Tier 2 → Tier 3: 5–10 days naturally, or instantly with 5 Silk
• Tier 3 → Spider Queen: Natural progression — the den spawns a Queen after 12.5–25 days, but only if you’ve been within proximity for 60–120 seconds [2]

The silk upgrade is one of Webber’s best economic tools and one of the least-used. If you’re farming a spider civil war (befriend spiders, attack a neutral one, cancel — your army fights the wild spiders for free monster meat and silk), you can generate 10–15 Silk in an afternoon. That’s enough to push two dens from Tier 1 to Tier 3 in a single session rather than waiting 10–20 in-game days.

The Den Decorating Set deserves a standalone note. It does three things at once: pacifies all spiders around the den (they become neutral to all players, not just Webber), halts den growth so it won’t accidentally spawn a Spider Queen, and stops sticky webbing from spreading into your base. For multiplayer, this is how you run a spider base without griefing your teammates [2][9].

Sleeping inside a Tier 3 den is a free camping mechanic exclusive to Webber — it restores HP and Sanity at the cost of Hunger, identical to using a Straw Roll or Tent without consuming a resource [1].

Switcherdoodles: Getting Cave Spiders Without the Caves

This is where most Webber guides either skip over entirely or mention as an afterthought. Switcherdoodles are Webber-exclusive crafted treats that transform any spider into a target type while simultaneously befriending it [8]. This means you can have a full squad of Cave Spiders, Spitters, and Dangling Depth Dwellers on the surface, without visiting the caves, by converting regular surface spiders.

The 7 Switcherdoodle types:

The practical unlock path matters more than the full list. To unlock the Cave Switcherdoodle recipe, you need to befriend a Cave Spider — which means visiting the caves at least once. Same for Spitter and Dangling. The one-time investment is worth it: after that initial unlock, you can produce cave-type followers on the surface indefinitely, as long as you have the materials.

Webber eating a Switcherdoodle himself has no penalties (monster food) and provides 12.5 Hunger — useful in emergencies [8]. For other characters, eating one deals -3 HP and -10 Sanity on top of the hunger.

Priority unlock order: Warrior (easy — befriend a Warrior from any Tier 2+ den) → Spitter (requires caves, high value) → Cave Spider (requires caves, high tank value) → Nurse Spider (requires caves, useful for army healing). Dangler is lower priority on the surface; Shatter and Strider require late-game materials.

Squad Composition by Activity: The Spider Mix Math

You can only have 3 followers at once [1]. That constraint forces real decisions about species. Here’s the optimal mix per activity type, with the reasoning:

The decision tree for picking your squad:

• Going into a boss fight? → Warriors + Spitter
• Staying near base? → Cave Spiders for tanking
• Going underground? → Spitters + Dangling
• Exploring surface, need catch-ability? → Warriors
• Ancient Ruins? → Spitters + Cave Spider

Note that carrying spiders in your inventory to swap is legitimate. Pick up a follower (works on sleeping or trapped spiders), swap to a Switcherdoodle-converted alternative, then drop and re-befriend. The no-timer loyalty system means this is entirely safe — dropped followers wait until dismissed or killed, they don’t wander off [1].

Spider Queen Strategy: Webber’s Exclusive Pre-Combat Window

The Spider Queen has 2500 HP, deals 80 damage per hit, and projects a -400 Sanity aura — one of the most hostile sanity environments in the game [3]. For other characters, she’s a priority-kill or active avoidance target. For Webber, she’s the best spider recruiter in the game.

Webber is not attacked by the Spider Queen or her entourage, unless he attacks them first [1][3]. This is the single most underused mechanic in his kit. In practical terms, you can walk up to a freshly-spawned Spider Queen, stand inside her 16-spider entourage, and feed each spider meat to recruit them as followers. She produces a new spider every 20 seconds, and when she has a combat target, 1 in 3 are Spider Warriors [3].

The pre-combat harvest strategy:

1. When a Tier 3 den is ready to spawn a Queen, wait nearby for the 60–120 second trigger window.
2. After she spawns, do not attack. Wait 40–60 seconds — she’ll generate 2–3 new spiders.
3. Feed meat to as many of her entourage spiders as your 3-follower cap allows, converting your existing followers with Switcherdoodles to make room if needed.
4. Aggressively recruit: your 3 followers can be supplemented by additional spiders recruited via Webby Whistle (Nest Call) from decorated dens nearby.
5. Once you’ve maximised your follower squad quality, engage the Queen at full fighting strength.

The Queen drops 4× Monster Meat, 4× Silk, Spider Eggs, and critically, a Spiderhat [3] — the item that lets non-Webber teammates control up to 10 spiders themselves. Farming Spider Queens consistently is how Webber supplies his team.

After she’s defeated, the Queen’s old Tier 3 den becomes a new Tier 1 den. Upgrade it with Silk immediately and repeat the cycle. A cultivated 3-den spider farm produces a Queen roughly every 15–25 days, generating a steady stream of Spiderhats and spider army reinforcements.

Webber’s 2021 Character Refresh Toolkit

Webber received a comprehensive character overhaul in June 2021 [9] that transformed him from a basic spider-befriender into an army commander. These tools define how you manage the army — learning them separately is the mark of an experienced Webber player vs. someone who just feeds spiders meat and hopes.

Webby Whistle (3 Silk + 2 Twigs) — three distinct functions that most players only use one of:

• Wake Up: Wakes sleeping follower spiders. Essential when a wave starts at night and your army is asleep.
• Nest Call: Instantly summons all spiders from a nearby den. Use this at the start of a boss fight staged near decorated dens — gives you a temporary expanded force beyond your 3 followers.
• Pacify Rally: Orders followers to stand down and stop attacking. Critical when you’ve accidentally drawn your army toward a teammate or a Pig Village.

Shoo Box — dismisses all follower spiders and calms aggressive spiders targeting Webber. The only reliable way to enter a Pig Town, Bunny Hutch farm, or teammate-dense area without triggering a massacre. Craft one before any major settlement interaction.

Healing Glop (2 Spider Glands + 1 Honey) — heals all spiders in the area for 8 HP per second for 6 seconds (total 48 HP per spider). Use this mid-boss-fight when your Warriors are at half health. Cheaper than letting them die and re-recruiting.

Den Decorating Set (1 Papyrus + 1 Silk + 2 Boards) — applies a decoration to one den. Decorated dens produce spiders neutral to all players, halt growth to prevent surprise Spider Queen spawns, and stop web from spreading. Apply to your main base dens immediately.

One note on timing: Webber does not have an official skill tree as of May 2026. The Skill Spotlight Update series (which gives DST characters formal skill trees) has covered Wormwood, Wolfgang, Woodie, Wigfrid, Willow, Wurt, Winona, Walter, Wendy, Wortox, and WX-78 [12]. Webber’s skill tree is anticipated but unconfirmed — when released, it’s expected to expand the spider economy and Spider Queen interactions described above.

Monster Diet and Sanity Management

Webber’s food economy is simpler than most characters because he has no Monster Food penalty. Monster Meat straight from a kill provides 18.75 Hunger, 1 HP, and 0 Sanity change for him [1]. Other characters take -3 HP and -15 Sanity for the same meal. This means your spider farming generates your food supply directly — kill spiders for monster meat, eat it safely.

The sanity challenge is real, though. With a 100-point cap, Webber hits the shadow creature threshold faster than anyone except Wes. Priority sanity items:

• Top Hat (6 Silk): +3.3 Sanity/min while worn. Craft on Day 2–3 without exception.
• Tam o’ Shanter (late game): +6.7 Sanity/min — the best passive sanity item in the game. Worth the MacTusk farming effort.
• Webber’s Beard Shave: +10 Sanity per stage, three times per beard cycle. Free sanity reset every 9 in-game days.
• Sleeping in dens: Tier 3 den sleep restores Sanity at the same rate as a Tent. Use instead of burning camping supplies.

Do not spend time cooking Butterfly Wings or Honey into sanity food when your beard and a Top Hat handle the baseline. Reserve cooking resources for HP restoration (Pierogi, Meaty Stew) rather than sanity management.

Multiplayer Role and Team Coordination

In a multiplayer team, Webber’s most valuable role is base defense coordinator and Spider Queen farmer. While other players explore, Webber’s spider network at base handles night hounds, Deerclops scouts, and random mob incursions without player attention.

Two characters pair particularly well with Webber. Wickerbottom brings books that can boost combat effectiveness and her bookshelves complement base defense setups — she can be positioned near your decorated dens to maximize both. Wortox is a natural duo partner: his soul harvest feeds on the monster meat kills from your spider civil wars, and his area-heal keeps your followers alive during boss fights without burning Healing Glop.

Critical multiplayer conflict scenarios:

• Abigail (Wendy’s ghost): Abigail attacks all spiders regardless of befriended status. Keep your army away from Wendy during her night phases, or warn her before deploying followers near her position.
• Pig and Bunnymen farms: Other players may build these for bacon eggs or bunny puffs. Webber triggers immediate hostility from both mobs — give these structures a wide berth and always Shoo Box before approaching.
• Spiderhat briefing: When you drop a Spiderhat for a teammate, warn them that Pigs and Bunnymen will attack the wearer and that removing the hat makes nearby spiders hostile. Uninformed teammates die to this regularly [10].
• Cave transitions: Follower spiders don’t cross the surface-to-caves boundary with you. Swap your squad before descending or accept a fresh recruitment cycle underground.

Common Webber Mistakes

1. Never upgrading dens past Tier 1. Tier 1 dens spawn 3 regular spiders. Tier 3 dens spawn 9 spiders including Warriors and eventually produce Queens. The 5-silk upgrade cost is minimal if you’re running a spider civil war for silk income.

2. Running an all-Warrior squad for everything. Warriors are excellent for boss fights and surface combat, poor for cave exploration (die fast to high-damage cave mobs) and inefficient as base defenders (no staying power under sustained fire). Match your squad to the activity.

3. Thinking the loyalty timer still exists. Pre-2021 Webber guides describe followers leaving after 2.5 days unless you refeed them. The 2021 Character Refresh removed this completely [9]. Your followers stay until death, disconnection, or crossing the cave/surface boundary. You don’t need to carry spare meat to maintain loyalty.

4. Attacking a Spider Queen immediately. She drops a Spiderhat, yes — but the pre-combat harvest approach (stand neutral, recruit her entourage spiders, then fight) gives you both a stronger army for the fight and all the drops. Killing her on sight wastes her 20-second spider spawn cycle.

5. Building dens next to Pig Villages or Bunny Hutch farms. Other characters’ mob farms become unusable if they’re within aggro range of your spider network. Place dens on the opposite side of base from social mob structures.

6. Ignoring Healing Glop. Spider Glands drop from every spider you kill. Two glands plus one honey craft a Healing Glop that can keep your 3 followers alive through a boss fight without losing and re-recruiting. Most players stockpile glands for Spider Salve and forget Healing Glop exists.

Frequently Asked Questions

How many spiders can Webber have as followers?
Three at a time as permanent followers with no loyalty timer [1]. You can temporarily expand this by blowing the Webby Whistle (Nest Call) near a den — those spiders fight for you temporarily but return to the den afterward.

Can Webber befriend a Spider Queen?
No — the Spider Queen cannot be permanently befriended. However, Webber won’t be attacked by her unless he attacks first. You can stand inside her entourage and recruit her spawned spiders, but she herself doesn’t become a permanent follower [1][3].

Do spiders follow Webber into the caves?
No. Followers cannot cross the surface-to-cave boundary in either direction. You’ll need to re-recruit underground [1]. This is the biggest logistics challenge of running Webber in cave-heavy sessions.

What’s the best use for Monster Meat as Webber?
Eat it directly for nutrition (no penalty), use it for spider befriending and Switcherdoodle crafting, or produce Pierogi/Meaty Stew in a Crockpot for healing. Do not cook it into basic dishes just to avoid the “monster food” tag — that tag doesn’t apply to Webber [1].

Does Webber have a skill tree?
Not yet as of May 2026. Webber received a substantial Character Refresh in June 2021 that added all the Switcherdoodles, Webby Whistle, Healing Glop, and related mechanics. The DST Skill Spotlight Update series is ongoing — Webber’s skill tree is anticipated but hasn’t been announced with a release date [12].

Is Webber good in multiplayer?
Yes, as a specialist role — base defender, silk supplier, and Spider Queen farmer. He’s not ideal as the primary explorer (Pigs and Bunnymen in the world are permanently hostile), but a managed spider base near camp is one of the most reliable passive defense systems in the game.

Sources

• Webber (Don’t Starve Together) — Don’t Starve Wiki [1]
• Spider Den/DST — Don’t Starve Wiki [2]
• Spider Queen/DST — Don’t Starve Wiki [3]
• Spider Warrior/DST — Don’t Starve Wiki [4]
• Cave Spider/DST — Don’t Starve Wiki [5]
• Spitter/DST — Don’t Starve Wiki [6]
• Dangling Depth Dweller — Don’t Starve Wiki [7]
• Switcherdoodle — Don’t Starve Wiki [8]
• Webber’s Character Refresh — Klei Entertainment Forums [9]
• Spiderhat/DST — Don’t Starve Wiki [10]
• Spider/DST — Don’t Starve Wiki [11]
• Skill Spotlight Update — Don’t Starve Wiki [12]

Michael R.

I've been playing video games for over 20 years, spanning everything from early PC titles to modern open-world games. I started Switchblade Gaming to publish the kind of accurate, well-researched guides I always wanted to find — built on primary sources, tested in-game, and kept up to date after patches. I currently focus on Minecraft and Pokémon GO.