The Spider Queen is the boss of Tsuta Ruins and the first boss in Ōkami. She takes the form of a giant spider with a woman's head and torso. She has no eyes on her face; instead, her eyes are located in her flower-like abdomen. She can create webs and appears to be able to harness some of Orochi's power in battle.

Story

Background

The Spider Queen lived (or was possibly imprisoned) in a giant chamber that was linked to the head of the Dogu statue in Tsuta Ruins. It is never revealed what she was doing there, but she seems to have had several victims during this time, as there are many skulls outside her chamber.

Ōkami

During her lifetime within the Tsuta Ruins, the Spider Queen remained mostly dormant until Orochi's release, when Orochi called upon her and granted her some of his power to smite his enemies. However, the Queen remained undiscovered until Kokari and his dog Ume were exploring the ruins. They heard the Spider Queen's roars, and Kokari fled, but Ume remained and was captured by the devious Queen.

The key to the Ruins was lost, and the water was poisoned by an unknown entity.

During their adventures, it became necessary for Amaterasu and Issun to enter the ruins to find Ume. They cleansed the water there and eventually found the Queen's nest, containing a large flower which was actually the Queen's abdomen. Under orders from her master, the Queen quickly attacked them after briefly speaking of Orochi's return.

Strategy

The Queen's hide is very tough, so she will be close to invulnerable until her weak points are exposed. She will attack by shooting a web, conjuring an apparition of Orochi to shoot a powerful orb of energy (this attack is not used very often), or slamming into the ground. She will also occasionally summon an egg-like object, which, if not destroyed, will allow her to perform a devastating poisonous attack. The object must be Power Slashed, which will stun the Queen and expose her abdomen.

It is then revealed that the Queen's abdomen has several hooks which can be grabbed using Vine. Her abdomen

will open after vines have been attached on at least two of the hooks (three if she is battled in the rematch on the Ark of Yamato). However, Amaterasu must note that it is not necessary to wait until after destroying the poison egg to use Vine. As long as the hooks are in sight, she can use Vine on them with the same degree of effectiveness. Her eyes will then be exposed and must be attacked to defeat her. They can be attacked with a Divine Instrument, an Exorcism Slip, Power Slash, or Cherry Bomb. Generally, Power Slash does more damage, but attacking with a Divine Instrument may also be required to finish off the eyes. Note that her abdomen will only open for a brief period,

as after a significant amount of time, the abdomen will start to shake, giving Amaterasu a warning to jump off before it closes. If Amaterasu does not get off in the time, the abdomen will shut, trapping her inside. It will then pulse three times before throwing her out again and can cause immense damage, depending on the state of Amaterasu's Solar Energy. After being damaged enough, an eye will shrivel and disappear. Once all of the eyes are gone, the Spider Queen will die and turn into a lotus flower, releasing Ume and the Divine Instrument Snarling Beast. This battle is later repeated on the Ark of Yamato. However, Amaterasu will be equipped with Inferno at this time and will thus be able to inflict more damage (Fireburst is much more recommended).

Quotes

• "Sticking your nose where it does not belong will get you killed."
• "Speak your last words, fool!"
• "How dare you!"
• "Dog is not usually on my menu, but I shall make you an exception!"
• "Well now! The beast can speak!"
• "Very well, then! I shall send you back to where you came from!"
• "This shall not hurt. Just stand still for a moment..."

Trivia

• The Spider Queen is said to have a human form according to the artbook, but this is never seen.
• When drawing with the Celestial Brush over her hide, the ink dissolves.
• She appears to be able to understand Amaterasu's barks, as she becomes enraged by them.
• The Spider Queen is based on the Jorōgumo from Japanese myths, while the Bandit spiders appear to be based on the Tsuchigumo variety of spider demon.
  • Her design is also based on Sadako from the Japanese movie Ringu, the 1998 psychological horror movie adapted in 2002 for the American horror movie The Ring.^[1]
  • Her outfit is evocative of higher class burial garments from Ancient Japan, and the room before her chamber bears many haniwa or clay burial figures, which suggests she was a powerful ruler or even a sorceress, or was chosen to be the sacrifice for hitobashira, an archaic but documented practice in where human sacrifices were sometimes chosen to become buried alive within risky or grandiose architectural projects to become kami or to appease kami of disaster and evil.
• Oddly, although her essence is not actually seen flying away after her defeat, she is somehow at the Ark of Yamato and seems to have been on it when it first landed, as she has her own room there.
• Unlike the other bosses, she is not mentioned at all before her battle.
• The Spider Queen appears as a ghost on the Sunken Ship. Unlike the other ghosts, she cannot be destroyed by Rao's prayer slips. The other ghost that cannot be destroyed is the Crimson Helm. However, these ghosts only serve as a decoration of the Sunken Ship, in order to put emphasis on the location's haunting nature.

Gallery

References