I think the Matriarch is somewhat nerfed because of situational considerations, namely the fact that you can destroy the web beneath her feet, causing her to fall and take substantial damage.
This effectively makes her hit point total *seem* higher than it is for practical purposes.
Now, in fairness, some people might not like the idea of "gimmicky" fights, but I think it's basically baked into the challenge rating of the encounter by design.
Yeah, speaking of that gimmick, I also don't approve. Even IF a spider took fall damage, it shouldn't be substantial. It's what? 30-50 feet? She's a giant spider. Real spiders can fall huge distances relative to their size and still scramble away as if unharmed. I just have a hard time with that gimmick which wouldn't be necessary with more appropriate stats and combat tactics.
well. I understand what you mean. But that actually doesn't go for all spiders. The larger species, like the tarantula, are actually quite fragile, and can have its exoskeleton shatter when dropped only a few feet. And you know the old phrase, the bigger they are, the harder they fall...
