The OG-9 homing spider droid, sometimes referred to as the spider walker or the Separatist spider droid, was a droidwalker manufactured for anti-vehicular combat by the Commerce Guild before and during the Clone Wars.
Like the Republic'sSelf-Propelled Heavy Artillery walkers, it was effective against both ground-based and airborne targets and was designed to transport a large and devastating weapon throughout the battlefield. The homing spider droid's round, armored body contained a volatile reactor. If the core was breached, the reactor violently exploded.
The homing spider could cover wide areas of the battlefield with its four all-terrain legs. Because of its great height and extendable hydraulics, the walker could position its homing laser above its fellow droids at enemy targets or move to higher ground to blast at air vehicles. However, the legs were vulnerable to damage, and if just one hydraulic leg was disabled, the entire vehicle would crash to the ground. This was fairly easy to do because it was a slow vehicle. Despite its weaknesses, the homing spider could walk along the bottom of seabeds, fully submerged in water, as well as scale steep cliffs.[4]
The spider walker's chief weapon was a laser emplacement mounted atop the droid's round body. This circular dish fired a precision homing laser that could be maintained until the drone's internal power supply was finished. This sustained firepower allowed the homing spider to weaken shields, destroy armored vehicles and scythe down troop formations.[5]
An antipersonnel cannon below the walker's round body could be used for close-quarters combat, while a retractable ion cannon could be added to disable starships or other powerful vehicles. There were also weapon mounts that allowed other armaments to be fixed to the droid. Sensor equipment fitted into the homing spider, enabled it to target and keep track of moving enemy targets.[5]
Homing spider droids were distinguished by a number code alone and did not have developed personalities or long-term memory modules. Instead, they possessed an internal logic processor and military protocols for long-ranged missions, but the droids were often programmed to receive orders directly from a Central Control Computer.
The homing spider droid was developed by Baktoid Armor Workshop prior to its dissolution by the Trade Federation not long after the Invasion of Naboo. During Baktoid's final days the company tried to sell many of its designs, and the Commerce Guild purchased several droid models, including the spider walker.
Like the other combat automata deployed by the Commerce Guild, the homing spider droids were originally developed to enforce the Guild's laws and to ensure that its customers paid their debts, as well as to protect Guild assets.[6]
After Geonosis, homing spider droids became common staples of Confederate armies. They were used fairly extensively in the Dark Reaper Crisis early in the war, although they were often destroyed by Jedi-piloted TX-130 Saber-class fighter tanks.[8] A number of droids were used in the defense of the Commerce Guild world of Felucia[9], and many destroyed units remained there as late as 2 BBY.[10]