KOBOLDS
CHAPTER 3
Kobolds who are desperate for food, especially when traveling through cold regions, can eat almost anything. They can metabolize many forms of organic matter, including bark, bones, dirt, leather, and shells. A tribe of kobolds that is short on provisions feeds its youngest members whatever they can eat. As reptiles, kobolds are hatched from hard-shelled eggs. Once a female kobold has been fertilized, she lays one egg within two weeks, with a 10% chance of laying two eggs. The egg must be incubated for 60 days, after which time it hatches into a kobold wyrmling that is able to walk and feed after only a few hours. An average tribe has one egg and one child per ten kobold adults, while a particularly prosperous one might have double this number. Tribes with a scarcity of food have fewer young. On rare occasions, a kobold female lays what kobolds call a dragonwrought egg (see the Dragonwrought feat, page 100). These eggs are spotted with the color of whichever true dragon influences the dragonwrought kobold within, with such mottles increasing in number and size as the wyrmling inside grows. Kobold embryos are resilient and not easily disturbed when moved or transported. A kobold embryo rarely expires unless its egg is broken before the final 15 days of incubation. A kobold embryo inside an egg that is broken after that time suffers no ill effects, though the wyrmling may take a while longer to reach physical maturity.
CLOTHING
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Kobolds are pragmatic about fashion. They dress appropriately for the occasion, which includes finery for special celebrations and ceremonies. While an individual kobold enjoys looking distinguished and fine, tailored or inlaid clothing is an extravagance seen only in the wardrobes of tribal dignitaries and leaders. Most kobolds spend all their time mining, however, and working kobolds wear work clothing. Kobolds do not usually have access to resources such as cotton, but they readily harvest silk from underground spiders, worms, and other insect larvae. Along with silk, leather sees widespread use. Such hide, once cured, creates the most durable clothing for mining and requires the least amount of maintenance. As a miner, the typical kobold dresses for freedom of movement, which usually takes the form of a sleeveless leather tunic and breeches that stop above the knee. The consistent temperatures found in underground environments mean kobolds usually don’t have to consider dressing for warmth. Footwear does not exist in kobold society. The idea of wearing footwear has never occurred to kobolds, not even for comfort. Kobolds rely heavily on their double-jointed legs and articulated feet to maintain their speed and balance. Moving across rugged terrain poses no difficulty for a barefooted kobold, whose feet are so naturally tough and callused that gravel and rough stone cause no pain. Well-dressed kobolds enjoy making bold statements, so popular colors include dark reds and fiery oranges to accent one’s eyes. Such pigments are easy for kobolds to acquire in their subterranean lairs. Kobolds value all sorts of dyes,
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often accenting their clothing based on their affinity with a certain kind of dragon. Due to the prolific mining of the typical kobold tribe, those kobolds able to afford it favor metal and gem-encrusted adornment. While they are usually sensible with the cut of their garments, kobolds love jewelry and ornamentation. Both sexes wear all sorts of jewelry, including tail rings. Warriors often don symbolic metal armor pieces such as bracers, decorative gorgets, and greaves. When it comes to real armor, kobold warriors prefer leather, avoiding anything that might slow them down. Kobolds perceive speed as their greatest tactical advantage. As a substitute for metal armor, some kobolds have been known to wear armor made from the shells of giant beetles (see page 121 for more information on chitin armor).
GROOMING
Mining is a dirty profession. It requires endurance and determination. Few humans can mine for an extended period, but every kobold can. Being grimy is a part of the mining life, but kobolds are far from uncivilized when it comes to hygiene. For a kobold, a lack of hair doesn’t mean less grooming. As reptilian humanoids, kobolds shed their skins like other reptiles do. This is not a simple procedure in the manner of some snakes that can shed an old skin in one piece. Adult kobolds shed their skin in patches. This process takes up to a week if allowed to transpire naturally, but kobolds accelerate the shedding by scrubbing the old skin from their bodies. A growing kobold sheds her skin at intervals ranging from once a week to once a month. Adult kobolds shed their skin about once a season. Many adults use a bottle of replenishing oil made from a plant called bitterleaf to strengthen their scales and keep them shiny. Regular application of bitterleaf oil (see page 122) can delay shedding indefinitely. Between shedding cycles, kobolds are quick to take advantage of the natural springs discovered in their excavations. Swimming is one of their favorite pastimes. Although kobold tribes don’t actually construct public baths, all kobolds gather at pools to bathe and socialize. Kobolds are meticulous about their teeth and claws. A flat stone in every kobold dwelling serves as a tool for polishing claws. Kobolds chew roots and bones to strengthen their gums and clean the surface of their teeth.
PSYCHOLOGY
“We suffer and yet prevail.” —Thurirl, High Priest of the Sacred Mine, Keeper of Dragonwrought Eggs
Kobolds exist in a world much larger than they are, dwarfed by creatures usually at least three or four times their physical mass. Living among such competition could be a constant struggle to assert dominance, with kobolds making sure they are never overlooked or taken for granted. But kobolds spend their energy elsewhere. While gnomes and halflings often integrate into other races’ societies, kobolds turn inward. The kobold deity Kurtulmak (see page 48) doesn’t allow such fraternization.
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