- "It's one of the prerogatives of being a Primal Divine Force. I can be as petty and absurd as I want."
- ―Grandfather Spider[src]
Grandfather Spider, also known as Old Cob, is a Primal Divine Force who represents Shadow and Chaos, and as such is the opposite to Grandmother Raven, who embodies Light and Order. Spider fell in love with Raven, and the two played and fought across Land and Sky in the era of the First World. However, this ended following the devastation to the First World by the Titans during the Titan War. Raven thought that it was Shadow and Chaos that corrupted the Titans, and she battled him and ripped his heart out and sealed him in the Black Hole. The Song of Creation was sung to weave the fragments of the First World together to create the Spiral, and Spider's Chaos Heart would charge its essence, sealed by six Paradox Chains at the Husk.
Millennia later, Spider was freed from the Black Hole by the Wizard. He quickly formed a plan to retrieve the Chronoshards and the Eye of History in order to turn back time to restore the First World. His plan failed, and so Spider decided it would be easier to reclaim his heart, which would cause the destruction of the Spiral with it no longer able to hold existence together. However, he began to feel love for Raven again when he was brought near his heart, and Raven reciprocated, so the two decided to seal themselves in the Primordial Forest and watch over the Spiral from there.
History[]
The First World[]
Years before the destruction of the First World, Grandfather Spider lived in peace with the other Primal Divine Forces. He and Grandmother Raven spawned elemental children known as the Titans. The Titans were intended by Raven to be a unified force of good, but Spider used Shadow Magic to grant them self-serving autonomy.
During this time shadowy beings such as Atlach-Leng existed in the First World, and were locked away after Spider's imprisonment and the Titan War's end. Spider presumably created these evil spirits who desired to devour light. After their imprisonment, they were able to make deals with mortal beings for their souls. An example is the Darkmoor spirit who turned English Bill into the Duck of Death
The Arachna existed during this time, and were created by Spider.
The Titan War[]
Due to Spider's meddling, the Titan War broke out, and Bartleby's children destroyed the First World. Raven and Spider battled across the Land, leading to Spider fell into the First World's deepest hole, locked away by Raven's hand. Cast down into the shadowy abyss, Spider's Heart was broken. And his evil spirits were sealed away throughout the First World, such as inside the Abyssal Cave.
Birth of the Spiral[]
Once the Titan War was over, Bartleby and Raven were still determined to keep the remnants of their homeworld together. They decided to use Bartleby's Song of Creation, Raven's magic, and the Sky Anchor to create The Spiral out of the First World's broken fragments. The Spiral was imperfect without Spider's Darkness and Chaos, so Raven stole Spider's broken Chaos Heart to charge the Spiral's essence. She then created the world of Empyrea to contain the Heart, surrounded by the Aethyr, bound by the three Paradox Chains.
Spider's suffering[]
After the Spiral was formed, Spider was suffering in his abyssal prison. Hurt by the theft of his Heart and imprisonment he roared and thrashed inside the Black Hole, and then fell into a sleep. In his sleep he shaped his dreams and negative emotions into 3 twisted beings of Darkness: the Rat, the Scorpion, and the Bat. The Spider would call these beings of Darkness his children, hoping to one day be released along with them and unleash Chaos into the Spiral.
Grandfather Spider and his form of magic was viewed as the embodiment of evil throughout the Spiral. Shadow Magic and its users, such as Morganthe, was negatively connotated as "the Shadow." In Darkmoor, bedtime stories about Grandfather Spider were the worst among them all. He's also had a significant influence on the cultures of Khrysalis. The Arachna either worshipped him or feared him, and their buildings surrounded his prison, the Black Hole. He also implanted "dark whispers" into their mind, and crafted the Grand Prophecy which influenced the Umbra Legion's mission.
Relationships[]
Family[]
- Grandmother Raven - Partner
- The Bat - Son
- The Rat - Son
- The Scorpion - Son
Appearances[]
Sources[]
Wizard101 Official Trailer (2022) on the KingsIsle Entertainment YouTube channel (August 22, 2022)
