Tucker's Kobolds

Quasqueton

First Post
I've seen/heard them mentioned many times over the years, but I don't know what they are. Did they come from a Dragon magazine article or something?

Quasqueton
 

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Bauglir

First Post
I've not seen it first hand but by all accounts it was a kobold lair designed to challenge high level adventurers.

Basically the whole adventure is a series of elaborate and contrived traps. I think it was meant to show how mere kobolds could be a threat to high level characters, but the impression I got from it was that it made a lot of assumptions vastly in favour of the kobolds, and that it was these assumptions, rather than the kobolds themselves that did the damage.
 



Henry

Autoexreginated
I'll write it up as best I can remember; I may be able to post some relevant excerpts from Dragon Magazine later on.

Roger Moore wrote an editorial in dragon back in the 1980's about the "they're only kobolds" phrase. He had a DM back in the military, whom he referred to as Tucker. Tucker's kobolds were nasty kobolds that lived in the first level of a multi-level dungeon.

The first time their 10th level 1st edition party encountered them, they were shot at from murder holes in the ceiling, as boiling oil, flaming debris, etc. were dropped on them. When the kobolds did appear in person, it was usually equipped in cut-down plate mail, hiding behind flaming piles of debris pushed with large poles, shooting steel-tipped crossbow bolts and javelins at the party. The party could not retaliate with cloudkills and fireballs, since the area of effect in the small passageways would fry them too, at the expense of 4 or 5 kobolds. The kobolds stole the equipment they left behind (to run faster), they would eat the party's pack mules, and generally survive no matter what. It was like getting hit with an Fire Ant Colony, only the ants were packing heat. :)

Future forays into the dungeon meant RUNNING past the kobolds as quickly as possible, hoping to take minimal damage as they headed for the 2nd level, or for the exits when returning.

In all, Tucker's Kobolds was such an entertaining tale that they were the origins of the Kobolds of Dragon Mountain, and live on in Gary Gygax's "Old Guard" Kobolds of Castle Greyhawk, tromping in military fashion, using tactics to take down foes much mroe powerful than they.

In 3E, Tucker's Kobolds would still work, but they would ALL be likely 3rd level rogues with potions of invisibility, with a 12th level sorcerer backing them up making potions and magical traps to lure fresh bait, er, adventurers, into. :)
 

Piratecat

Sesquipedalian
There was an old Dungeon Magazine adventure in this same vein, only with goblins. It was named "Tallow's Deep," and it was superb.
 

diaglo

Adventurer
Piratecat said:
There was an old Dungeon Magazine adventure in this same vein, only with goblins. It was named "Tallow's Deep," and it was superb.


Dungeon 18: Tallow's Deep by Steve Gilbert & Bill Slavicsek for AD&D lvls 4-7
 

BSF

Explorer
I always loved reading that little blurb about Tucker's Kobolds. They are my inspiration for nasty little humanoids that can't be driven from their home caverns.

Henry has it summarized pretty well. But really, you have to read the editorial to have the full flavor. :D
 

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