SOCIETY AND CULTURE
The only experts who receive special attention for their efforts are kobold trapmakers. These inventors are highly valued because their creations protect kobold lairs and tribal lands without the need for open warfare. Essentially, the more ingenious a trapmaker, the more kobold lives are spared from combat. The most common experts found in kobold societies include agronomists, alchemists, animal trainers, armorsmiths, blacksmiths, bowyers, demolitionists, explorers, fletchers, hunters, jewelers, leatherworkers, miners, stonemasons, and weaponsmiths.
KOBOLDS
CHAPTER 3
Kobold society is strongest when work is abundant. The bustle of a kobold lair when a new vein of metal or deposit of precious stones has been unearthed is energized and high-spirited. This is the beating heart of kobold culture—the acquisition and processing of wealth deep beneath the ground. When it comes right down to it, kobolds and dragons both suffer from an inexplicable and almost pathological materialism. The challenge for a leader is to make every kobold feel that she is benefiting from and contributing to the wealth of her tribe, rather than simply working for the sake of working. Kobolds earn positions based on merit, with no arbitrary system of social classes to prevent advancement. Aristocrat and commoner nonplayer character classes do not exist in kobold society. A tribe is largely made up of experts and warriors, with adepts supervising the mining operations. Roleplaying Application: Kobolds are intimately familiar with every aspect of their society. Figuring out how your kobold fits into this culture can further define your character. Are you descended from the working majority or the expert specialists? Were you chosen during a Searching for the Dragon ritual and trained as a sorcerer, or were you born into a position of status and importance within the tribe?
SORCERERS
In contrast to most humanoid cultures, kobold sorcerers are not left to discover their abilities through trial and error. Kobolds with a talent for sorcery are guided through the awakening of their abilities and directed toward specific types of magic. Entering into this calling is a deeply reverential act, surrounded with more ceremony than any other part of kobold culture. A kobold sorcerer is required to make lifetime vows to the craft of sorcery, not unlike swearing into the priesthood.
ALL-WATCHER
Illus. by B. Hagan
A kobold all-watcher is the leader of her tribe and the accountant of the tribe’s accumulated wealth. In addition to approving “chosen one” bonds and arbitrating matters of betrayal and exile, an all-watcher is concerned with the dispersal of wealth generated by the mines. This duty not only involves allocating wealth among the tribe’s major groups, but also deciding how resources should be spent to strengthen the tribe’s position in the world. Experts offer a steady stream of proposals for augmenting the tribe’s lair and expanding influence. Kobold scholars, priests, and arcane spellcasters similarly propose areas where kobold knowledge and power can be increased to lucrative effect. Military commanders recommend feasible and beneficial engagements. A kobold all-watcher must weigh all these options and choose where to devote assets. Beyond these responsibilities, an all-watcher must be an unyielding taskmaster. She must set deadlines for projects and allocate workers to them to ensure their timely completion. Most all-watchers are also capable sorcerers.
SPECIALISTS
Kobold experts are the specialists of kobold labor forces. Such individuals are responsible for development and research in a kobold tribe. Despite having specialized skills, kobold experts are treated the same as any other worker. They enjoy different challenges than a miner might but are expected to serve the tribe like any other member.
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A new kobold sorcerer is initiated into the profession
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