The Whip is the default starting weapon of the Spelunker. It is one of five melee weapons in the game, the others being the Machete, Mattock, Shield, and Crysknife.
Functionality[]
A player using the whip.
The whip is used by pressing the Action button when the hands are empty, and is the only weapon besides the Crysknife that cannot be dropped and does not take up the held item slot.
When attacking with the whip, the Spelunker coils the whip behind him before swinging it forward, meaning there is a short animation delay before enemies in front of the Spelunker take damage. Players should learn to compensate for this by timing their attacks carefully, beginning the swing slightly before enemies come into its range, which is about one tile.
In addition to dealing damage to enemies, the whip can push and deflect physics objects, such as corpses, rocks, items, treasure (useful for no gold runs and Ghosting), and certain projectiles (arrows, boomerangs, flies). The whip can also open containers like pots, crates, and chests, with the Locked Chest being a notable exception. Unlike other weapons, the whip is unable to do damage to stunned enemies, and can only push them around. It also cannot deal damage to particular enemies, such as Yetis and Shopkeepers.
The whip can be also be used to hit targets behind, above and below the Spelunker, as every frame of the whip animation deals damage. Each frame has the whip in a different position, meaning that the timing of the swing must be changed depending on what angle the player's target is at. If the user whips behind them, damage is done immediately, rather than on a delay. Deliberately turning around in order to hit an enemy with the first few frames of the whip attack is a technique commonly referred to as "backwhipping", and can be useful in defeating Bats and other enemies in awkward positions due to its diagonal hitbox.
While the whip animation plays, the Spelunker is unable to grab onto ledges, which can prevent the accidental halting of the player's descent. For casual players, this is often a dangerous tactic, as it can result in fall damage. Players also cannot turn around while the whip animation plays, which can be manipulated to their advantage.
Bugs[]
- The whip is technically an item to the game, and it's possible for Hired Hands to grab an extended whip, which may deal damage to anything that is put in front of them.