Kobold

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This page is about the player species. For the monster, see Kobold (monster).

Kobolds are small, ugly creatures with few redeeming features. They are not the sort of people you would want to spend much time with, unless you happened to be a Kobold yourself. They tend to be stronger and less agile than Halflings, and are slightly more talented at using most types of magic, particularly necromancy. They are competent in combat, especially with short blades, maces or crossbows, and are also very adept at using magical devices. They often live as scavengers, surviving on carrion (which they can eat even when not hungry), but are carnivorous and can only eat meat. Kobolds advance in levels as quickly as Humans. Like Halflings, Kobolds cannot wield large weapons.

Innate Abilities

• Kobolds recover from sickness quickly.
• Carnivorous 3: Kobolds gain more sustenance from meat and can eat chunks at any time, but cannot eat anything but meat.
• Saprovore 2: Kobolds can eat rotten meat, and have a reduced nutrition penalty from eating contaminated meat.
• Kobolds are small creatures, unable to wield large shields, bardiches, battleaxes, dire flails, executioner's axes, glaives, great maces, great swords, halberds, longbows, scythes, triple swords, giant clubs, giant spiked clubs, javelins, and throwing nets. One-handed weapons like magical staves, broad axes, tridents, demon tridents and double swords are two-handed weapons to them.

Preferred Backgrounds

• Warriors: Hunter, Assassin
• Zealots: Berserker
• Warrior-mages: Arcane Marksman, Enchanter
• Mages: Necromancer, Fire Elementalist

Level Bonuses

• +1 strength or dexterity (equal chance) every 5th level.
• 20% less HP than average.
• Average MP.
• +3 magic resistance per level.

Starting Skills and Equipment

Kobolds receive the skills and equipment listed for their background, with the following exceptions:

• Meat rations replace bread rations.
• Stones replace throwing nets.

Difficulty of Play

Kobolds are a straightforward race to play because of their excellent aptitudes in many skills and their size bonus to EV. They have good magic aptitudes overall and advance quickly in experience, and they can eat meat (including chunks) at any time, not just when hungry. This makes eating less of a hassle, which is usually just a convenience, although it can be leveraged to strong effect with certain abilities, such as Sif Muna's channeling or repeatable berserking, as offered by Trog or via an evocable source of berserk (e.g., amulet of rage).

Skill aptitudes

The higher the value, the better the aptitude.

Skill	Aptitude	Skill	Aptitude	Skill	Aptitude
Attack		Miscellaneous		Magic
Fighting	1	Armour	-2	Spellcasting	0
		Dodging	2
Maces & Flails	-1	Shields	-2	Conjurations	0
Axes	-2	Stealth	4	Hexes	0
Polearms	-2			Summonings	0
Staves	-1	Invocations	1	Necromancy	0
Unarmed Combat	0	Evocations	2	Translocations	0
Throwing	1	Shapeshifting	-1	Alchemy	0
				Fire Magic	0
Short Blades	3			Ice Magic	0
Long Blades	-2			Air Magic	0
Ranged Weapons	3	Experience	1	Earth Magic	0

Trivia

Kobolds were originally creatures from Germanic mythology, but they are well known to gamers as low-level monsters in Dungeons & Dragons and as creatures in Nethack.