Stinger

Stingers are spider-like creatures found in mostly caves and jungles. They move very swiftly and come in 4 variants.

Small Stingers are the most common. Large Stinger, which is a larger variation, occurs more frequently in caves and later-game biomes (such as Red Bamboo Fields and Swamp), often surrounded by multiple smaller Stingers. Occasionally, a tiny Stinger smaller than the "small" variety can be found. Elite Stingers can be found in the swamp area of the Red Jungle (elevated center part of the map) and also in Caves, they have even more health than the Large Stinger and can emit Poison Gas.

Activating the "Arachnophobia mode" option replaces the stinger models with three sprites of cats with an animated hologram filter, to make the stinger visuals more palatable for those with arachnophobia. Additionally, when Arachnophobia mode is enabled, their movement sound is silenced and their attack/idle sounds are replaced by cat sounds (loud meows).

Behavior
Stingers aggressively attack Engineers (or, sometimes other creatures such as Hogs) by clawing. Large and Elite stingers can also leap up to 10 meters up/forwards. These attacks can knock unsuspecting engineers out of their vehicles (verification needed). Large and Elite stingers deal 30 damage per attack and the smaller ones deal 10 damage.

Stingers make scuttling insect-like sounds when moving (unless in arachnophobia mode, as noted above). Stingers tend to zigzag and run in circles when moving, attempting to distract engineers. This can be potentially dangerous when they are attacking in groups.

Large stingers have super-charged tackle attack and leap attack on top of the stinger's usual melee claw attack, all deals 30 damage. In addition, Elite Stinger can produce Poison Gas in a radius of 10 meters which deals 5 damage per second, and the gas persists for 25 seconds.

Climbing
Large and Elite Stingers have the ability to climb vertically, and when appeared in groups, will climb on each other to reach the engineer. They also have the ability to climb trees and Lookout Tower. They cannot climb on vertical surfaces with negative gradient, such as a cliff overhang. When facing sharp edges, unlike Hogs and Spitters, they can climb downwards.

Spawning
Stingers usually spawn in groups, with Large and Elite Stingers sometimes spawning alone. Some Stinger spawn points only work during nightime.

Tips

 * If subtitles are enabled, 'Quick Footsteps' will be displayed if a Stinger is moving. Before they attack, it will display 'Slash'.
 * The cat sprites shown when Arachnophobia mode is enabled do not dim and can always be seen clearly, even in dark environments. This can be useful to get notified of their presence.

Combat

 * The is effective against stingers.
 * Back off to dodge the melee attack.
 * Construct a Lookout Tower or at least 5 stacked 4m Foundations to fully avoid their attacks (if Large or Elite).
 * Use the Rifle or Nobelisks to attack them from a distance. It might be difficult to land a Nobelisk precisely however, due to their fast movement.
 * Individual Small Stingers can be dealt with very easily, as they require just two hits from either or.
 * Take caution before fighting multiple Large or Elite Stingers due to their high damage (30) and leaping capability.

Trivia

 * There are 3 total cat sprites seen while Arachnophobia mode is enabled, two of which are from the same cat. It has been confirmed that both cats belong to Coffee Stain developers.
 * Stingers are most likely carnivorous creatures and attack for food.

History

 * Patch 0.3?? : Elite stingers now drools greeny liquid as to distinguish it from large Stingers.
 * Patch 0.3: Now make cat sounds when Arachnophobia mode is enabled.
 * Patch 0.1.16: Minor tweaks to the Elite Stinger.
 * Patch 0.1.15: Introduced the Elite Stinger to the Red Jungle.
 * Patch 0.1.14: Fixed an on load crash related to the Small Stinger.
 * Patch 0.1.5: Added LODs. Now drops.