Spelunky HD:Rope

Rope (Spelunky 2)

Rope (Spelunky HD)

Rope (Spelunky Classic)

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Type:	Equipment
Function:	Can be climbed to reach higher areas or lowered off ledges to descend safely.
Source:	The Spelunker starts each game with 4 ropes Shops Crates (34.30% chance) Dropped by the Yeti King
Cost:	$2250 + 250
Damage:	1 (Thrown)
Notes:	Burns if it unfurls into lava.

Ropes are single-use equipment items that can be climbed like ladders. They may be used to reach areas that are too high to jump up to, or to descend safely down a deep pit that would otherwise cause fall damage.

The Spelunker starts each game with four ropes, and additional ropes can be bought from supply shops in packs of three. They can also commonly be found in Crates, or dropped by the Yeti King.

A rope cannot be retrieved once placed, so may only be used once.

Functionality

Ropes are context-sensitive and where they are thrown depends on the Spelunker's position.
When used while standing, a rope will be thrown vertically, directly above the Spelunker. The rope will hook onto the background wall a maximum of eight tiles above the Spelunker and then unfurl down to the point where it was thrown from.

If used when crouched, the rope will hook onto the background wall one tile in front of the Spelunker and drop downwards for a maximum of eight tiles. This is useful when crouched in front of a ledge, and can be used to descend safely.

A rope that extends past an Arrow Trap will trigger the trap, and if a rope unfurls into a pool of lava, it will slowly burn from the bottom up, leaving only the metal anchor at the top to be climbable.

A good trick to make a rope extend slightly higher is to throw one while jumping, which will allow you to jump onto the bottom of the rope and climb a little higher than if you had thrown it from the ground.

Ropes become less useful when the Spelunker finds Climbing Gloves, Spring Shoes, or the Jetpack, but it is always a good idea to carry at least a few around for those particularly difficult to reach niches or dangerous situations.

Attacking with Rope

When a rope is thrown upward, it will damage anything it hits before it hooks onto the cave wall, so can be used to attack enemies like Bats and Spiders that are directly above the Spelunker.

Although this is an unwise waste of resources in most situations, it is the easiest way for a spelunker to attack directly above them. As ropes are generally less valuable than hit points, using a rope in this way may therefore be a preferable option if the player is trapped in a narrow pit with an enemy above them and does not have faith in their whip.

When grappled by a Succubus or Monkey, throwing a Rope may cause it to release you without causing damage, killing it in the process. It's important to note that ropes won't cause damage if they can't go up at least one block, therefore it's not possible to defend yourself from a Monkey or Succubus in a 1 block tall corridor. This can be particularly useful when over spikes or other deadly hazards, in order to remove the risk of potentially being stunned or thrown into danger.