AD&D Kobold picture

[Rel]

It was established in the first session of my new 4e campaign that Kobolds are mutated Dire Sheep who vigorously defend their grazing grounds. They won't kill you to eat you. But they'll kill you if your cows eat their grass!

 

[Delta]

edit: kobold is from germanic lore. iirc they are considered "house spirits"

Two types (see Wikipedia). (a) Semi-good house spirits. (b) Evil mine spirits. Linguistically, Kobold -> Cobalt, poisonous chemical in the ore you're trying to mine (thought to be a trap by evil spirits).

 

[Sir Brennen]

Two types (see Wikipedia). (a) Semi-good house spirits. (b) Evil mine spirits. Linguistically, Kobold -> Cobalt, poisonous chemical in the ore you're trying to mine (thought to be a trap by evil spirits).

Ah... I thought it was evil mainframe spirits. (Kobold -> COBOL, Cumbersome, Overdone, Badly Organized Language )

 

[pawsplay]

As a BECMIte, I tend to think of them as dog-like creatures, when I don't think the mythological version, which is basically an angry gnome.

 

[el-remmen]

I like a mix of the 1e and 2e versions, and in Aquerra people sometimes call them Rat Dogs, and their god is also the god of rats.

 

[Hussar]

I always loved in Baldur's Gate when kobolds sounded like angry terriers.

 

[frankthedm]

I like the Moldvay kobold spearing the snake. I definitely prefer the 1E kobold over the chibi-dragonmen WotC polymorphed them into. Dog faces damnit.

D&D Arcade Game and Eye of the beholder kobolds follow...

 

[justanobody]

I don't know if it would be fair use to put the images from Monstrous MAnual and Monster Manual II on here would it?

I think more along the lines of Monstrous Manual for AD&D (Tony DiTerlizzy[sp]), but never forgot the MMII before it.

They were very dog like with the muzzle in MMII from 1st edition.

 

[Set]

I kind of miss the dog-people (in EverQuest they are portrayed as dog-ape-humanoids), but I've grown to love the dragon-blooded kobolds.

So I use both.

'Kobolds' are small hirsute primitive looking humanoids with some canine characteristics who can run on all fours for short distances, and they are skilled tunnelers and miners, and even, in rare cases, skilled craftsmen, being thought by some to be a degenerate dwarven offshoot race that make Derro look like Gray Elves by comparison. They combine traits of old myth, traits of EverQuest kobolds, traits of 1st edition kobolds and traits from Palladium RPG kobolds!

'Wyrmkin' are born from unfertilized dragon eggs, often a half-dozen to an egg (which, in the absence of male company, a she-dragon can lay several times a year), and end up fanatically serving their 'mother-goddess.' Many are abandoned, either deliberately (dragon wants a new home, but isn't going to ferry the little creeps to her new lair) or by mischance (dragon bit off something she couldn't chew and never came home...). They have weak characteristics reminiscent of their 'mother' (energy resistance equal to their HD, Green and Blacks can swim really well (not quite well enough to have a racial swim speed though!) and hold their breath like crocodiles, Whites can move unpenalized over snow and ice, etc.), and can breed true, with 'average' Wyrmkin being brownish scaled hybrids of other types, with no draconic traits at all (blended into normal Kobold stats, with no energy resistance or whatever).

 

[The Green Adam]

Went in doubt...Anime!

In my D&D games, Kobolds are tough, small-ish wolf/dog creatures. "Kobolds are to Gnolls as Goblins are to Hobgoblins" you could say.
My theory is backed up by that all too awesome D&D based anime classic Record of the Lodoss War...

http://accel21.mettre-put-idata.over-blog.com/0/50/15/29/kobold.jpg

In pretty much every other medieval fantasy game I run (principal amoung them Ars Magica), I do indeed default to the classic faerie depiction of the Kobolds are Mine Spirit/Goblins.

BTW, the picture of the small faerie shown before is a Leprechaun from the Brian Froud/Alan Lee Faeries book. So what do I win? : )

AD