Messageboard Golem
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The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds allows Game Masters to dismiss player's often over-confident approach to this frequently misrepresented and underrated monster.
The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds
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Messageboard Golem
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The Slayer’s Guide to Kobolds
Format: Full-color soft cover, BW interior, 32 pages
Genre: Fantasy
Setting: Generic
Publisher: Mongoose Publishing
Authors: Alejandro Melchor and Matthew Sprange
Rating: 3
Clearly descending from the Monstrous Arcana series of books published by TSR in the late 90s, the various Van Richten Guides, and more importantly the Ecology articles from Dragon Magazine, the Slayer’s Guide Series (hereafter SLG) continues the tradition of exploring the intricate workings of a particular race found in the SRD. SLG to Kobolds functions like the majority of the other offerings in the series, excepting Dragons and Undead; it is short, brief and direct. As the title suggests, it promises to detail kobolds definitively, being of use to both “Games Masters and Players.” What follows is a detailed look into the workings of this 32-page sourcebook in an effort to assess the products value to the average gaming group and rated in accordance with the standard 5 star system.
On the surface, the book seems all right. The cover features the standard SLG frame with a kobold band spilling out of some type of dungeon corridor. The interior art features illustrations similar to the one on the cover, throughout. In all, it is not bad, average stuff. Paper quality is standard, maybe a touch better than WOTC’s splat books. The book is 32 pages, buy ignoring the content page and the OGL license you have 30 pages of material. At 9.95, you are getting .33 cents a page.
The SLG opens with an introduction to the product detailing the scope of the sourcebook in the particular, the nature of Slayer’s Guides and a general introduction to kobolds. This threesome is common to most Mongoose Books and should be familiar to their audience. The authors face a difficult struggle with this book as is clear from the beginning. The condemnation of the kobold as the fodder for adventurers to slay has persisted for as long as any can remember, it is difficult for any reader to accept the kobold as a viable race. Their argument rests on the same set of assumptions as those described in TSRs Dragon Mountain and to a lesser extent Axe of the Dwarvish Lords by Skip Williams (recall this adventure focused on goblins). Essentially, kobolds survive by cunning and numbers, but more importantly, “hate and spite.”
The first substantial section in the text is the chapter on Kobold Physiology. Here the author covers such topics as a general overview of what a kobold is, its senses, and a standard survey of a kobold life including—a standard day, their dietary habits and how they handle magic. As a chapter devoted to the functions of an organism and its parts, it seems to cover a lot of the same ground as already in the canon. Sure, one could argue that revising 1st and 2nd edition conceptions of a race, through the 3rd edition lens is important, but where I was expecting a certain level of depth, I, instead, received a survey of material basically accepted in the Dungeons and Dragon canon.
Physiology relies mostly on descriptive text to convey the details of the race. For example, in the “Diminutive Warriors” section, the author describes kobolds as having a “perpetual stench of a kind…of wet dog or stagnant water” (4). It goes on to suggest that the odor alerts experienced adventurers to the onset of the attack. While this is an interesting device, there is no mention of how severe the smell is, how far away it can be detected, DCs for alerting the PCs to the nearness of the stench, or penalties to kobolds Hide checks (which according to the SRD there are not any penalties). Instead, it seems that the smell of these creatures is merely window dressing. If this is the case, why is there so much reference to this attribute that has no actual effect in the game? Perhaps a simple comment of this feature would have alleviated any such difficulties arising from this assertion. A quibbling point is in the fact that the author asserts that kobolds have well-developed senses, yet the racial bonuses a kobold receives applies to Search checks, which is an attention to details, where Spot applies to noticing something. Granted, this may be an expression of artistic flair, but kobolds do not have any intrinsic ability better than any other race to notice or hear any better than any other creature with the Alertness feat.
On the other hand, what saves this chapter is the author’s discussion on such things involving the life cycles of kobolds, tracing the standard paths of a common kobold’s life. This continues through the remaining sections of the chapter, showing quite well how their natural Lawful tendencies inform the basic structure of kobold societies, even entering a discussion on the possible connection between this race and the dragons. The only real complaint on this mark is that I would have preferred a more concrete “generic” history for the species. Instead of postulating the origins of the race, why not just provide a background? Doing so would have added an authoritative slant to the work.
Habitat is the next section of this SLG, and again it covers a lot of the same ground as seen in the first chapter by expanding the Climate section on the Monster Stat Block and offering justifications for the races versatility as outlined in the preceding chapter. A nice aspect of this chapter is a small sidebar about kobold hordes, which are described in some greater detail in the next chapter.
Kobold society takes a deeper look into the lawfulness of kobold society investigating such things as gauntlets (challenges between kobolds to advance in position) and castes. A sidebar introduces a new caste, perhaps subrace here is interchangeable, the winged kobold. Though the idea is interesting, by applying the half-dragon template and giving the creature wings yielding almost the same result without the introduction of an entirely new species. This chapter continues with a look at kobold families and the extrapolated groupings from clutches to nations, all of which the author does fairly well in deepening the nature of this race.
“Captives, Slaves and Pets” feels like a survey of the subject without the detail I would have expected. Questions on why kobolds would risk capturing slaves is quickly touched upon, but more attention was focused on what a preventative steps a kobold would employ before taking these slaves. Furthermore, the duties slaves fulfill in kobold society are conspicuously absent, and in the case of Medium or Large captives, who do kobolds sell them too? Finally, in the last paragraph, there is a mention of kobold pets, but strangely no mention of dire weasels (note the Kobold entry in the MM under Organization, where dire weasels are the only non-kobold mentioned accompanying this race).
Chromatic kobolds are a weird template in this chapter, insofar as the author intends them to be “throwbacks” (16). Essentially the template confers the ability to cast spells as a 1st level sorcerer that stacks with levels attained by the class. In addition, the class gains many, if not all, of the benefits of being a half-dragon without the breath weapon and locks the character into advancing only as a Sorcerer. Perhaps a more interesting option would be to apply the half-dragon template and call it a recessive trait rearing its ugly head.
Of all parts of this book, Methods of Warfare should be the centerpiece. Larger humanoids and injudicious DMs consistently use these creatures as fodder. The chapter does fairly well at living up to the standards of the vicious kobold clan in Dragon Mountain analyzing weaponry, discussing tactics and making use of their terrain. The book adds 1 sorcerer for every gang of 10 regular kobolds, which is interesting but not standard as depicted in the Organization entry in the MM. Following the battle tactics is a very brief look at some kobold traps grouped into categories: Decoys, Alarms, Delaying, Incapacitating and Battle. I would rather have had some more examples of the traps given that kobolds rely on indirect fighting over other more direct combat methods.
The biggest complaint in this chapter is in the following line “When they are forced to fight, kobolds are ferocious and relentless” (20). Yet, the MM uses two key terms to describe these creatures: cowardly and sadistic. The expansion of the grapple rules work well for the species, but again, I think the difficulty is in the flavor. It is in the fact that kobolds are so cowardly, they attack en masse, refusing to fight fairly or with even odds.
Role-playing with Kobolds is a one-page tip sheet for running kobolds as a character or as an NPC. While there is a great amount of information on how cowardly and spiteful they are, there is relatively little mention of their penchant for evil and sadism. “Scenario Hooks and Ideas” follows with good suggestions for adventures combating these creatures.
Aside from the non-mechanical quibbles found in the whole of the book, it is in “Kobolds as Player Characters” that I have the greatest difficulty. The author establishes that role-playing these characters is challenging given the personality characteristics common amongst their species (25). Mechanically speaking, kobolds by themselves are a difficult batch to play. The difficulty here is not in the class opportunities described but in the racial traits listed. SLG Kobold’s racial traits differ from the MM’s Kobold, where these creatures gain an additional +2 Con, extra class skills and a bonus feat. I assume that the race is “tweaked” to provide functionality. However, the race as listed in the MM is substantially weak when compared to similar threats. As it stands (pre 3.5) kobolds, in their weakest most common state, do not have a class as listed in the MM. Part of the inherent drawback to playing such a race is the fact that they are fodder. Players desiring to play such a character ought to realize the nature of their race without revising the race to accommodate characters, at least without good reason. Essentially, the core of this argument is in the comparison between the stats presented here and those presented in the index of WOTC’s Savage Species. While SS is not in the SRD, the mechanics derived to get the kobold race source directly out of the MM. Hence, those same stats should have been used in the SLG Kobolds. To compensate for the weaknesses, perhaps the SLG could have provided tips for kobolds to overcome their species flaws, maybe in the form of some racial feats, prestige classes, and equipment and so on.
The SLG Kobolds concludes with a look at a kobold’s lair and a Reference List for kobold characters. Both of these sections are good, the latter being of more use than the former. In a book of generalities, it seems strange to have a specific lair, but on the other hand, the kobold stat blocks are indeed useful as a quick reference guide or as pillage for use in your own lairs.
Conclusion: The back cover claims “…offers insight to all adventurers in the culture and society of this vicious race, enabling them to track down, engage and wipe out dozens of these murderous beasts” and latter adds “… redresses this imbalance [that is, they exist to provide cannon fodder for PCs] by giving Games Masters the information they need to make kobolds a solid and coherent part of their campaign” The question is, does this book meet these goals. Insofar as the first claim goes, the book does indeed give insight into combating these creatures. Aside from some descriptive concerns, the SLG provides a compelling look into an oft-overlooked race and elevates it onto a culture of its own. However, I find that the book falls somewhat short on providing DMs the tools to elevate the race into a credible threat. To supplement their weaknesses, the kobold race is revamped for PC use, giving the kobold PC a greater advantage over its brethren, two subraces are introduced, both of which are variations on the half-dragon template, and the only real aspect is the variant rule covering ‘latching’ whereby kobolds attack in overwhelming numbers. At the end of the day, kobolds remain kobolds.
This book can be useful if coupled with WOTC’s Savage Species, FFG’s Monster’s Handbook or even AEG Monster. Furthermore, the book would have been better served if it contained more crunchy tools for kobolds to use, such as specific equipment, feats and PrCs. Nevertheless, for 10 bucks, it is not too bad of a read.
Grade: 3 stars (average)
Format: Full-color soft cover, BW interior, 32 pages
Genre: Fantasy
Setting: Generic
Publisher: Mongoose Publishing
Authors: Alejandro Melchor and Matthew Sprange
Rating: 3
Clearly descending from the Monstrous Arcana series of books published by TSR in the late 90s, the various Van Richten Guides, and more importantly the Ecology articles from Dragon Magazine, the Slayer’s Guide Series (hereafter SLG) continues the tradition of exploring the intricate workings of a particular race found in the SRD. SLG to Kobolds functions like the majority of the other offerings in the series, excepting Dragons and Undead; it is short, brief and direct. As the title suggests, it promises to detail kobolds definitively, being of use to both “Games Masters and Players.” What follows is a detailed look into the workings of this 32-page sourcebook in an effort to assess the products value to the average gaming group and rated in accordance with the standard 5 star system.
On the surface, the book seems all right. The cover features the standard SLG frame with a kobold band spilling out of some type of dungeon corridor. The interior art features illustrations similar to the one on the cover, throughout. In all, it is not bad, average stuff. Paper quality is standard, maybe a touch better than WOTC’s splat books. The book is 32 pages, buy ignoring the content page and the OGL license you have 30 pages of material. At 9.95, you are getting .33 cents a page.
The SLG opens with an introduction to the product detailing the scope of the sourcebook in the particular, the nature of Slayer’s Guides and a general introduction to kobolds. This threesome is common to most Mongoose Books and should be familiar to their audience. The authors face a difficult struggle with this book as is clear from the beginning. The condemnation of the kobold as the fodder for adventurers to slay has persisted for as long as any can remember, it is difficult for any reader to accept the kobold as a viable race. Their argument rests on the same set of assumptions as those described in TSRs Dragon Mountain and to a lesser extent Axe of the Dwarvish Lords by Skip Williams (recall this adventure focused on goblins). Essentially, kobolds survive by cunning and numbers, but more importantly, “hate and spite.”
The first substantial section in the text is the chapter on Kobold Physiology. Here the author covers such topics as a general overview of what a kobold is, its senses, and a standard survey of a kobold life including—a standard day, their dietary habits and how they handle magic. As a chapter devoted to the functions of an organism and its parts, it seems to cover a lot of the same ground as already in the canon. Sure, one could argue that revising 1st and 2nd edition conceptions of a race, through the 3rd edition lens is important, but where I was expecting a certain level of depth, I, instead, received a survey of material basically accepted in the Dungeons and Dragon canon.
Physiology relies mostly on descriptive text to convey the details of the race. For example, in the “Diminutive Warriors” section, the author describes kobolds as having a “perpetual stench of a kind…of wet dog or stagnant water” (4). It goes on to suggest that the odor alerts experienced adventurers to the onset of the attack. While this is an interesting device, there is no mention of how severe the smell is, how far away it can be detected, DCs for alerting the PCs to the nearness of the stench, or penalties to kobolds Hide checks (which according to the SRD there are not any penalties). Instead, it seems that the smell of these creatures is merely window dressing. If this is the case, why is there so much reference to this attribute that has no actual effect in the game? Perhaps a simple comment of this feature would have alleviated any such difficulties arising from this assertion. A quibbling point is in the fact that the author asserts that kobolds have well-developed senses, yet the racial bonuses a kobold receives applies to Search checks, which is an attention to details, where Spot applies to noticing something. Granted, this may be an expression of artistic flair, but kobolds do not have any intrinsic ability better than any other race to notice or hear any better than any other creature with the Alertness feat.
On the other hand, what saves this chapter is the author’s discussion on such things involving the life cycles of kobolds, tracing the standard paths of a common kobold’s life. This continues through the remaining sections of the chapter, showing quite well how their natural Lawful tendencies inform the basic structure of kobold societies, even entering a discussion on the possible connection between this race and the dragons. The only real complaint on this mark is that I would have preferred a more concrete “generic” history for the species. Instead of postulating the origins of the race, why not just provide a background? Doing so would have added an authoritative slant to the work.
Habitat is the next section of this SLG, and again it covers a lot of the same ground as seen in the first chapter by expanding the Climate section on the Monster Stat Block and offering justifications for the races versatility as outlined in the preceding chapter. A nice aspect of this chapter is a small sidebar about kobold hordes, which are described in some greater detail in the next chapter.
Kobold society takes a deeper look into the lawfulness of kobold society investigating such things as gauntlets (challenges between kobolds to advance in position) and castes. A sidebar introduces a new caste, perhaps subrace here is interchangeable, the winged kobold. Though the idea is interesting, by applying the half-dragon template and giving the creature wings yielding almost the same result without the introduction of an entirely new species. This chapter continues with a look at kobold families and the extrapolated groupings from clutches to nations, all of which the author does fairly well in deepening the nature of this race.
“Captives, Slaves and Pets” feels like a survey of the subject without the detail I would have expected. Questions on why kobolds would risk capturing slaves is quickly touched upon, but more attention was focused on what a preventative steps a kobold would employ before taking these slaves. Furthermore, the duties slaves fulfill in kobold society are conspicuously absent, and in the case of Medium or Large captives, who do kobolds sell them too? Finally, in the last paragraph, there is a mention of kobold pets, but strangely no mention of dire weasels (note the Kobold entry in the MM under Organization, where dire weasels are the only non-kobold mentioned accompanying this race).
Chromatic kobolds are a weird template in this chapter, insofar as the author intends them to be “throwbacks” (16). Essentially the template confers the ability to cast spells as a 1st level sorcerer that stacks with levels attained by the class. In addition, the class gains many, if not all, of the benefits of being a half-dragon without the breath weapon and locks the character into advancing only as a Sorcerer. Perhaps a more interesting option would be to apply the half-dragon template and call it a recessive trait rearing its ugly head.
Of all parts of this book, Methods of Warfare should be the centerpiece. Larger humanoids and injudicious DMs consistently use these creatures as fodder. The chapter does fairly well at living up to the standards of the vicious kobold clan in Dragon Mountain analyzing weaponry, discussing tactics and making use of their terrain. The book adds 1 sorcerer for every gang of 10 regular kobolds, which is interesting but not standard as depicted in the Organization entry in the MM. Following the battle tactics is a very brief look at some kobold traps grouped into categories: Decoys, Alarms, Delaying, Incapacitating and Battle. I would rather have had some more examples of the traps given that kobolds rely on indirect fighting over other more direct combat methods.
The biggest complaint in this chapter is in the following line “When they are forced to fight, kobolds are ferocious and relentless” (20). Yet, the MM uses two key terms to describe these creatures: cowardly and sadistic. The expansion of the grapple rules work well for the species, but again, I think the difficulty is in the flavor. It is in the fact that kobolds are so cowardly, they attack en masse, refusing to fight fairly or with even odds.
Role-playing with Kobolds is a one-page tip sheet for running kobolds as a character or as an NPC. While there is a great amount of information on how cowardly and spiteful they are, there is relatively little mention of their penchant for evil and sadism. “Scenario Hooks and Ideas” follows with good suggestions for adventures combating these creatures.
Aside from the non-mechanical quibbles found in the whole of the book, it is in “Kobolds as Player Characters” that I have the greatest difficulty. The author establishes that role-playing these characters is challenging given the personality characteristics common amongst their species (25). Mechanically speaking, kobolds by themselves are a difficult batch to play. The difficulty here is not in the class opportunities described but in the racial traits listed. SLG Kobold’s racial traits differ from the MM’s Kobold, where these creatures gain an additional +2 Con, extra class skills and a bonus feat. I assume that the race is “tweaked” to provide functionality. However, the race as listed in the MM is substantially weak when compared to similar threats. As it stands (pre 3.5) kobolds, in their weakest most common state, do not have a class as listed in the MM. Part of the inherent drawback to playing such a race is the fact that they are fodder. Players desiring to play such a character ought to realize the nature of their race without revising the race to accommodate characters, at least without good reason. Essentially, the core of this argument is in the comparison between the stats presented here and those presented in the index of WOTC’s Savage Species. While SS is not in the SRD, the mechanics derived to get the kobold race source directly out of the MM. Hence, those same stats should have been used in the SLG Kobolds. To compensate for the weaknesses, perhaps the SLG could have provided tips for kobolds to overcome their species flaws, maybe in the form of some racial feats, prestige classes, and equipment and so on.
The SLG Kobolds concludes with a look at a kobold’s lair and a Reference List for kobold characters. Both of these sections are good, the latter being of more use than the former. In a book of generalities, it seems strange to have a specific lair, but on the other hand, the kobold stat blocks are indeed useful as a quick reference guide or as pillage for use in your own lairs.
Conclusion: The back cover claims “…offers insight to all adventurers in the culture and society of this vicious race, enabling them to track down, engage and wipe out dozens of these murderous beasts” and latter adds “… redresses this imbalance [that is, they exist to provide cannon fodder for PCs] by giving Games Masters the information they need to make kobolds a solid and coherent part of their campaign” The question is, does this book meet these goals. Insofar as the first claim goes, the book does indeed give insight into combating these creatures. Aside from some descriptive concerns, the SLG provides a compelling look into an oft-overlooked race and elevates it onto a culture of its own. However, I find that the book falls somewhat short on providing DMs the tools to elevate the race into a credible threat. To supplement their weaknesses, the kobold race is revamped for PC use, giving the kobold PC a greater advantage over its brethren, two subraces are introduced, both of which are variations on the half-dragon template, and the only real aspect is the variant rule covering ‘latching’ whereby kobolds attack in overwhelming numbers. At the end of the day, kobolds remain kobolds.
This book can be useful if coupled with WOTC’s Savage Species, FFG’s Monster’s Handbook or even AEG Monster. Furthermore, the book would have been better served if it contained more crunchy tools for kobolds to use, such as specific equipment, feats and PrCs. Nevertheless, for 10 bucks, it is not too bad of a read.
Grade: 3 stars (average)
Messageboard Golem
First Post
I'm suprised (well, not actually) that they added stuff to the Kobolds normal stats. They are fine as is with natural armor, full speed and +2 dex. That's good enough for me. Besides, what's the point of playing the suckiest monster in the MM if you get stat-boosts to make you non-sucky?
Aaron
Aaron
Nail
First Post
I, too, am surprised they "tweaked" the kobold.....it's unnecessary, and it violates the spirit of the guide. If I wanted a monster as tough as an orc,......I'd use an orc!
I'm currently using kobolds as one of the main groups of protagonists IMC. It's working quite well, without tweaking. Kobolds, if attacked, use *missile* weapons, specifically mechanical ones like crossbows, that don't require Str. And they're sure to set up guard-rooms and traps that allow them to deal with opponents at a *distance*.
There are lots of ways to make kobolds "viable". It sounds like this book went wide of that mark.
I'm currently using kobolds as one of the main groups of protagonists IMC. It's working quite well, without tweaking. Kobolds, if attacked, use *missile* weapons, specifically mechanical ones like crossbows, that don't require Str. And they're sure to set up guard-rooms and traps that allow them to deal with opponents at a *distance*.
There are lots of ways to make kobolds "viable". It sounds like this book went wide of that mark.
Merova
First Post
Slayer's Guide to Kobolds
This book is a supplement for D&D, focusing on those small reptilian humanoids that everyone loves to disdain, the kobolds. Cowardly, sadistic, and full of trickery, kobolds are the bottom of the monster food chain in many a fantasy setting. Their voices sound like the yapping of dogs. They have a non-prehensile tail like a rat. They have a racial hatred towards gnomes and sprites. In short, they are rather pathetic little beasts, rightfully mocked at gaming tables for over two decades.
So, why do the folks at Mongoose want you to buy this book? How will it enhance your gaming experience?
"No race in any campaign world exists solely to provide cannon fodder for allegedly heroic adventurers. The purpose of this supplement is to redress this imbalance somewhat by giving Games Masters the information they need to make kobolds a solid and coherent part of their campaign. No longer will players merely scoff and draw their swords when they meet a group of kobolds within some ancient ruin. Finally, kobolds will have the respect they always deserved." (p.2)
That's an uphill challenge. This goal is to be met be detailing the kobold's physiology, habitat, society, and methods of warfare. By offering mechanics and techniques of implementation the premise is to be met; kobolds will be enemies worthy of fear and respect for your D&D characters.
Mechanics
So, if the premise is an exploration into the challenges presented by kobolds, how do the mechanics enable it? There are three areas where mechanical implementation could facilitate this premise: individual ability, habitat/society, and warfare.
Individual ability regards elements of physiology and talent. Although the text provides interesting tidbits on the biological factors of the kobold, it gives no mechanics. Their scales are helpful in resisting disease, so what does this mean in game terms? They have a strong, repugnant body odor, but does this have an in-game effect? Kobold eyes are important components in enchanting items due to their reflective qualities; so what does this mean in terms of fulfilling the crafting expenses? No answers are given just empty fluff of no help in implementation.
Unfortunately, the book does give a decent amount of mechanics on the "draconic" heritage of the kobolds. We are offered two new takes on the "draconic" kobold, the "winged caste" kobold, a medium sized dragon, and the chromatic kobolds, a template to beef up the kobold sorcerers. The mechanics for both types are overpowered, with a host of goodies like superior range to their darkvision, innate sorcery, improved natural armor, and resistances towards specific energy attacks. Both offerings are prime examples of power creep in rpg supplements; "Don't play that drow sorcerer, when you can be a chromatic kobold at the same cost!" I wonder when we'll get to see the "shadow ninja vampiric kobold archmage" template.
While the draconic concepts may be interesting to some, regardless of their mechanical imbalance, I found them to be off the main premise. We are supposed to be exploring kobolds, not wannabe dragons. I want mechanics to make my normal kobolds more interesting; if I wanted wimpy dragons, I'd go buy a dragon supplement!
Speaking of power creep, the rules for generating a PC kobold are also a treat to creative powergaming. Some would consider that the kobold's racial traits, such as the dexterity bonus, natural armor, improved speed, skill bonuses, and darkvision, to be sufficient mechanical perks. Not here. Instead, kobolds also get a constitution bonus, the Alertness feat, and a bevy of the most important adventuring skills as class skills, in addition to those offered by the PC's actual class. Kobold fighters with ranged combat feats just got a bit tougher.
Habitat and society are the next areas of interest in our exploration of kobold-kind. In a straight up encounter, kobolds are pathetic opponents, but, in their narrow and twisting warrens, they suddenly get a bit scary. A good exploration to kobold habitat would offer rules for designing a "typical" warren. There would be mechanics for squeezing through narrow passes using Escape Artist, traveling on ledges designed for small creatures using Balance, guidelines for "encounter distances" within various types of tunnel structures, and rules for altering "threatened" area according to weapon type and available space. Unfortunately, this book does none of this.
How about the social elements of the kobold? How is the tendency towards cowardice, cruelty, and trickery modeled in game terms? Given that kobolds are usually lawful, what are the mechanical ramifications of alignment in terms of encounter design? What of their animosity towards gnomes and sprites; how do the rules facilitate this trait? Heck, where are the dire weasels?!!
Again, a solid exploration of the kobold would have addressed these questions with mechanical options. There should be racial feats or skill applications to simulate "playing dead," groveling, or sadism, such as deriving a morale bonus from the glee of inflicting pain upon the opposition. There should be rules on implementing a rigid and paranoid "alert" or "watch" system in a typical kobold controlled area, including recommended encounter tables according to APL. Racial feats or skill applications could have rounded out their hatred of gnomes and sprites. Perhaps even a "gnome killer" prestige class could have been offered as a specific foil to challenge gnomish PCs. A "weasel master" prestige class would have been fun too. The opportunities missed in this book are numerous.
Warfare is the heart of this exploration. Most kobold encounters in actual play will revolve around combat, so it makes sense to give this area a heavy treatment. There are three significant areas of warfare under consideration: guerrilla tactic, traps, and overwhelming odds.
Guerrilla tactics involve issues like setting ambushes, using tactical elements of familiar terrain, setting "fields of fire" for disorienting volleys, fighting on the run, and "baiting" the opposition into reckless aggression. This section could have been included in discussing the habitat. Unfortunately, like the mechanical exploration of habitat, this section contains no useful rules or guidelines to implement guerrilla tactics. Kobolds are lawful and treacherous; methods of gaining a tactical advantage should have been addressed or else the whole project becomes meaningless.
Given that kobolds are weak combatants, how do I make them into a viable threat? This book suggests the utilization of guerrilla tactics. What are the mechanical applications of sample tactics? This book gives no answer. This is a big disappointment.
Traps are the primary trait many players think of when facing a kobold challenge. This book details seven types of traps and gives a sample of their implementation. Decoy traps are a splendid example of psychological warfare, meant to deceive the PCs into thinking that it's an actual trap. Alarms make a lot of noise and give kobold sentries a bonus to their checks in discovering the intrusion of the PCs. Delays are used to slow down pursuers by imposing obstacles between the PCs and the fleeing kobolds. Capture traps are meant to, well, capture the victim. Incapacitating traps, while causing some damage, are actually meant to create a tactical advantage for the kobolds engaging the victim in combat. Battle traps are used to injure the intruders without requiring the kobolds to directly engage them. Finally, there are lethal traps that are detailed in the DMG; they work with no kobold required. All in all, this is a helpful and engaging section.
Furthermore, mechanics are given for manually activated traps, the kind which have a kobold hidden in a nearby alcove waiting for the PCs to step in the right place. It's a good idea, and I'm gratefully that actual rules were made for this classic situation. However, the rules don't work.
First problem is with the unreliability of this tactic. According to the mechanic, a kobold makes a dexterity check against a DC determined by the traps CR to activate it at the proper time. A simple trap of CR 1 presents a forty-five percent chance of failure to the average kobold with a dexterity of 13. This is way too unreliable; the check ought to be a trapmaking skill check to simulate acquired expertise at activating such traps. The second problem is that setting the activation DC by CR doesn't always make sense. For instance, why is a Pit Trap (20 ft. Deep) easier to activate than a Spiked Pit Trap (100 ft. Deep)? It makes no sense. The DC should be gauged by trap complexity, not CR.
Overwhelming odds are another trait of combat with kobolds. How do we implement an encounter with the infamous "kobold horde?" How do the kobold traits of cowardice, cruelty, trickery, and order manifest in large groups of combatants?
"When they are forced to fight, kobolds are ferocious and relentless. They need only remember the abuse they have received at the hands of every race in existence to fire their little hearts into a battle frenzy. When in this state, they can fall by the hundreds and still keep coming in a seemingly endless wave of scaled fury." (p.20)
Well, that subverts the established character of kobold-kind. Seriously, a horde of kobolds worked into battle frenzy, eh? But there's more! The kobolds have a technique of grappling to simulate this situation, called "latching." Basically, a kobold makes a grapple check at a +2 bonus, which, if successful, causes their victim to have a circumstance penalty to attacks, damage and AC. Once four kobolds have "latched" the victim loses their dexterity bonus to AC. Sounds interesting.
So, given that there is only a +2 bonus to implement this tactic, why don't the kobolds use the regular grappling rules instead. If they win the grapple check, they put their foe into a much worse situation than "latching" does. The +2 bonus just isn't worth it. I can understand the purpose of this mechanic, simulating the difficulty of fighting while countless kobolds leap and yap around you, like a pack of angry Chihuahuas. However, this mechanic doesn't do it.
Another point that could have been implemented here which would have been in accordance with establish kobold characterization would have been "morale" or "rout" mechanics. What conditions need to be met to send the "ferocious" and "relentless" horde running back to their odious lairs? If these mechanics had been addressed, then the GM would have been able to design encounters with truly overwhelming odds in terms of CR, yet provide a simulative guideline to maintain a balanced challenge. Unfortunately, we get "latching" instead.
Technique
Technique is how we implement the mechanics and design engaging encounters for the players. This book offers fiction, adventure ideas, and an example lair.
The fiction is decent, but doesn't really add to our understanding of kobolds. It's just typical warnings about underestimating the little beasts. Likewise, the adventure ideas are all adequate, but they are just too brief and conventional to be of use to the typical GM. This is also true of the sample lair. It works just fine in implementation, but it does nothing new.
All in all, this does nothing to further our understanding of the kobold. It's just a fluffy revisit of the same old things. There are missed opportunities here. How can I design a series of encounters that explore kobold challenges? What are the salient traits of kobolds and how do I highlight this in adventure design? If we are going to raise kobolds beyond their status as the ultimate cannon fodder, we need advice on thematic explorative techniques. This book offers no technique of significant utility.
Appraisal
In spite of my harsh criticisms, I feel that the premise of is valid. There is a lot of exploration that can be done into the challenges presented by kobolds. This book has some fine ideas, but very little is developed in a manner that offers value to the reader. That which is developed is plagued by mechanical difficulties. I wanted to like this book, but it fumbles the execution in too many ways. In addition to my complaints above, I have two big issues with the thematic direction of the writer.
First, in the process of making a "ferocious" kobold, this supplement lost sight of established depiction of the kobolds. Kobolds are the ultimate cannon fodder; even goblins look down on them. Kobolds are the weakest of the weak, but, through trickery and organization, they create a level field of challenge. Beefing them up by "dragonizing" them or boosting their stats is simply contrary to their premise as monsters. If the book had focused on implementing them as a joke that suddenly turns deadly, we could have gotten more value for our game.
Second, kobolds are far more alien than most of the traditional humanoid foes faced in fantasy adventure. This book does nothing to establish an alien feel to their reptilian nature or their subterranean worldview. The concept of spite is mentioned plenty, but what does it mean? How does the intrinsic quality of spite pervade the everyday life of the kobold? How does spite influence their relationship with other races? This book doesn't really go into deep exploration of spite and its ramification in terms of adventure design. I get the feeling from this supplement that kobolds are just angry little guys in a silly reptile costume.
In conclusion, I feel that this book fails at meeting its premise. It offers very little of actual utility for a GM to incorporate into her game. The few mechanics detailed are poorly designed. If you're an inexperienced GM, who can't envision an interesting encounter with kobolds, maybe this supplement will help. However, I feel that the advice offered in this book will not add value to the average DM's kobold scenarios.
Therefore, I do not recommend this product.
---OMW
This book is a supplement for D&D, focusing on those small reptilian humanoids that everyone loves to disdain, the kobolds. Cowardly, sadistic, and full of trickery, kobolds are the bottom of the monster food chain in many a fantasy setting. Their voices sound like the yapping of dogs. They have a non-prehensile tail like a rat. They have a racial hatred towards gnomes and sprites. In short, they are rather pathetic little beasts, rightfully mocked at gaming tables for over two decades.
So, why do the folks at Mongoose want you to buy this book? How will it enhance your gaming experience?
"No race in any campaign world exists solely to provide cannon fodder for allegedly heroic adventurers. The purpose of this supplement is to redress this imbalance somewhat by giving Games Masters the information they need to make kobolds a solid and coherent part of their campaign. No longer will players merely scoff and draw their swords when they meet a group of kobolds within some ancient ruin. Finally, kobolds will have the respect they always deserved." (p.2)
That's an uphill challenge. This goal is to be met be detailing the kobold's physiology, habitat, society, and methods of warfare. By offering mechanics and techniques of implementation the premise is to be met; kobolds will be enemies worthy of fear and respect for your D&D characters.
Mechanics
So, if the premise is an exploration into the challenges presented by kobolds, how do the mechanics enable it? There are three areas where mechanical implementation could facilitate this premise: individual ability, habitat/society, and warfare.
Individual ability regards elements of physiology and talent. Although the text provides interesting tidbits on the biological factors of the kobold, it gives no mechanics. Their scales are helpful in resisting disease, so what does this mean in game terms? They have a strong, repugnant body odor, but does this have an in-game effect? Kobold eyes are important components in enchanting items due to their reflective qualities; so what does this mean in terms of fulfilling the crafting expenses? No answers are given just empty fluff of no help in implementation.
Unfortunately, the book does give a decent amount of mechanics on the "draconic" heritage of the kobolds. We are offered two new takes on the "draconic" kobold, the "winged caste" kobold, a medium sized dragon, and the chromatic kobolds, a template to beef up the kobold sorcerers. The mechanics for both types are overpowered, with a host of goodies like superior range to their darkvision, innate sorcery, improved natural armor, and resistances towards specific energy attacks. Both offerings are prime examples of power creep in rpg supplements; "Don't play that drow sorcerer, when you can be a chromatic kobold at the same cost!" I wonder when we'll get to see the "shadow ninja vampiric kobold archmage" template.
While the draconic concepts may be interesting to some, regardless of their mechanical imbalance, I found them to be off the main premise. We are supposed to be exploring kobolds, not wannabe dragons. I want mechanics to make my normal kobolds more interesting; if I wanted wimpy dragons, I'd go buy a dragon supplement!
Speaking of power creep, the rules for generating a PC kobold are also a treat to creative powergaming. Some would consider that the kobold's racial traits, such as the dexterity bonus, natural armor, improved speed, skill bonuses, and darkvision, to be sufficient mechanical perks. Not here. Instead, kobolds also get a constitution bonus, the Alertness feat, and a bevy of the most important adventuring skills as class skills, in addition to those offered by the PC's actual class. Kobold fighters with ranged combat feats just got a bit tougher.
Habitat and society are the next areas of interest in our exploration of kobold-kind. In a straight up encounter, kobolds are pathetic opponents, but, in their narrow and twisting warrens, they suddenly get a bit scary. A good exploration to kobold habitat would offer rules for designing a "typical" warren. There would be mechanics for squeezing through narrow passes using Escape Artist, traveling on ledges designed for small creatures using Balance, guidelines for "encounter distances" within various types of tunnel structures, and rules for altering "threatened" area according to weapon type and available space. Unfortunately, this book does none of this.
How about the social elements of the kobold? How is the tendency towards cowardice, cruelty, and trickery modeled in game terms? Given that kobolds are usually lawful, what are the mechanical ramifications of alignment in terms of encounter design? What of their animosity towards gnomes and sprites; how do the rules facilitate this trait? Heck, where are the dire weasels?!!
Again, a solid exploration of the kobold would have addressed these questions with mechanical options. There should be racial feats or skill applications to simulate "playing dead," groveling, or sadism, such as deriving a morale bonus from the glee of inflicting pain upon the opposition. There should be rules on implementing a rigid and paranoid "alert" or "watch" system in a typical kobold controlled area, including recommended encounter tables according to APL. Racial feats or skill applications could have rounded out their hatred of gnomes and sprites. Perhaps even a "gnome killer" prestige class could have been offered as a specific foil to challenge gnomish PCs. A "weasel master" prestige class would have been fun too. The opportunities missed in this book are numerous.
Warfare is the heart of this exploration. Most kobold encounters in actual play will revolve around combat, so it makes sense to give this area a heavy treatment. There are three significant areas of warfare under consideration: guerrilla tactic, traps, and overwhelming odds.
Guerrilla tactics involve issues like setting ambushes, using tactical elements of familiar terrain, setting "fields of fire" for disorienting volleys, fighting on the run, and "baiting" the opposition into reckless aggression. This section could have been included in discussing the habitat. Unfortunately, like the mechanical exploration of habitat, this section contains no useful rules or guidelines to implement guerrilla tactics. Kobolds are lawful and treacherous; methods of gaining a tactical advantage should have been addressed or else the whole project becomes meaningless.
Given that kobolds are weak combatants, how do I make them into a viable threat? This book suggests the utilization of guerrilla tactics. What are the mechanical applications of sample tactics? This book gives no answer. This is a big disappointment.
Traps are the primary trait many players think of when facing a kobold challenge. This book details seven types of traps and gives a sample of their implementation. Decoy traps are a splendid example of psychological warfare, meant to deceive the PCs into thinking that it's an actual trap. Alarms make a lot of noise and give kobold sentries a bonus to their checks in discovering the intrusion of the PCs. Delays are used to slow down pursuers by imposing obstacles between the PCs and the fleeing kobolds. Capture traps are meant to, well, capture the victim. Incapacitating traps, while causing some damage, are actually meant to create a tactical advantage for the kobolds engaging the victim in combat. Battle traps are used to injure the intruders without requiring the kobolds to directly engage them. Finally, there are lethal traps that are detailed in the DMG; they work with no kobold required. All in all, this is a helpful and engaging section.
Furthermore, mechanics are given for manually activated traps, the kind which have a kobold hidden in a nearby alcove waiting for the PCs to step in the right place. It's a good idea, and I'm gratefully that actual rules were made for this classic situation. However, the rules don't work.
First problem is with the unreliability of this tactic. According to the mechanic, a kobold makes a dexterity check against a DC determined by the traps CR to activate it at the proper time. A simple trap of CR 1 presents a forty-five percent chance of failure to the average kobold with a dexterity of 13. This is way too unreliable; the check ought to be a trapmaking skill check to simulate acquired expertise at activating such traps. The second problem is that setting the activation DC by CR doesn't always make sense. For instance, why is a Pit Trap (20 ft. Deep) easier to activate than a Spiked Pit Trap (100 ft. Deep)? It makes no sense. The DC should be gauged by trap complexity, not CR.
Overwhelming odds are another trait of combat with kobolds. How do we implement an encounter with the infamous "kobold horde?" How do the kobold traits of cowardice, cruelty, trickery, and order manifest in large groups of combatants?
"When they are forced to fight, kobolds are ferocious and relentless. They need only remember the abuse they have received at the hands of every race in existence to fire their little hearts into a battle frenzy. When in this state, they can fall by the hundreds and still keep coming in a seemingly endless wave of scaled fury." (p.20)
Well, that subverts the established character of kobold-kind. Seriously, a horde of kobolds worked into battle frenzy, eh? But there's more! The kobolds have a technique of grappling to simulate this situation, called "latching." Basically, a kobold makes a grapple check at a +2 bonus, which, if successful, causes their victim to have a circumstance penalty to attacks, damage and AC. Once four kobolds have "latched" the victim loses their dexterity bonus to AC. Sounds interesting.
So, given that there is only a +2 bonus to implement this tactic, why don't the kobolds use the regular grappling rules instead. If they win the grapple check, they put their foe into a much worse situation than "latching" does. The +2 bonus just isn't worth it. I can understand the purpose of this mechanic, simulating the difficulty of fighting while countless kobolds leap and yap around you, like a pack of angry Chihuahuas. However, this mechanic doesn't do it.
Another point that could have been implemented here which would have been in accordance with establish kobold characterization would have been "morale" or "rout" mechanics. What conditions need to be met to send the "ferocious" and "relentless" horde running back to their odious lairs? If these mechanics had been addressed, then the GM would have been able to design encounters with truly overwhelming odds in terms of CR, yet provide a simulative guideline to maintain a balanced challenge. Unfortunately, we get "latching" instead.
Technique
Technique is how we implement the mechanics and design engaging encounters for the players. This book offers fiction, adventure ideas, and an example lair.
The fiction is decent, but doesn't really add to our understanding of kobolds. It's just typical warnings about underestimating the little beasts. Likewise, the adventure ideas are all adequate, but they are just too brief and conventional to be of use to the typical GM. This is also true of the sample lair. It works just fine in implementation, but it does nothing new.
All in all, this does nothing to further our understanding of the kobold. It's just a fluffy revisit of the same old things. There are missed opportunities here. How can I design a series of encounters that explore kobold challenges? What are the salient traits of kobolds and how do I highlight this in adventure design? If we are going to raise kobolds beyond their status as the ultimate cannon fodder, we need advice on thematic explorative techniques. This book offers no technique of significant utility.
Appraisal
In spite of my harsh criticisms, I feel that the premise of is valid. There is a lot of exploration that can be done into the challenges presented by kobolds. This book has some fine ideas, but very little is developed in a manner that offers value to the reader. That which is developed is plagued by mechanical difficulties. I wanted to like this book, but it fumbles the execution in too many ways. In addition to my complaints above, I have two big issues with the thematic direction of the writer.
First, in the process of making a "ferocious" kobold, this supplement lost sight of established depiction of the kobolds. Kobolds are the ultimate cannon fodder; even goblins look down on them. Kobolds are the weakest of the weak, but, through trickery and organization, they create a level field of challenge. Beefing them up by "dragonizing" them or boosting their stats is simply contrary to their premise as monsters. If the book had focused on implementing them as a joke that suddenly turns deadly, we could have gotten more value for our game.
Second, kobolds are far more alien than most of the traditional humanoid foes faced in fantasy adventure. This book does nothing to establish an alien feel to their reptilian nature or their subterranean worldview. The concept of spite is mentioned plenty, but what does it mean? How does the intrinsic quality of spite pervade the everyday life of the kobold? How does spite influence their relationship with other races? This book doesn't really go into deep exploration of spite and its ramification in terms of adventure design. I get the feeling from this supplement that kobolds are just angry little guys in a silly reptile costume.
In conclusion, I feel that this book fails at meeting its premise. It offers very little of actual utility for a GM to incorporate into her game. The few mechanics detailed are poorly designed. If you're an inexperienced GM, who can't envision an interesting encounter with kobolds, maybe this supplement will help. However, I feel that the advice offered in this book will not add value to the average DM's kobold scenarios.
Therefore, I do not recommend this product.
---OMW
Mouseferatu
Hero
If it's not too immodest to suggest one of my own works...
You might want to look at "The Hero Snare" from MonkeyGod Enterprises. It's a module for characters of around 7th level, and it's designed specifically around kobolds as villains. It makes use of tiny warrens and intricate traps, and gives rules for handling them. It makes the kobolds tough foes without giving them new powers, abilities, prestige classes, etc. In short, even though it's a module and not a sourcebook, it sounds like it may well have what you're looking for.
I hope you'll give it a look-see.
You might want to look at "The Hero Snare" from MonkeyGod Enterprises. It's a module for characters of around 7th level, and it's designed specifically around kobolds as villains. It makes use of tiny warrens and intricate traps, and gives rules for handling them. It makes the kobolds tough foes without giving them new powers, abilities, prestige classes, etc. In short, even though it's a module and not a sourcebook, it sounds like it may well have what you're looking for.
I hope you'll give it a look-see.
Merova
First Post
Hi Ari!
Thanks for the recommendation. I'll definitely check this mod out!
BTW: after my grilling of this product, that's quite a vote of self-confidence you're showing.
I've definitely enjoyed the work you've done for White Wolf. VAV is excellent, especially the "Chasing Sunset" chapter, which made the setting so visceral to me (Note: Venice is creepy!) I'm also fond of the politics book, "Gilded Cage," which addressed the essential matters of implementing social challenge in an accessible way. And that "Serpent" cycle stuff for SSS was nifty as well.
I'm looking forward to reading your take on the kobold menace.
Again, thanks for writing.
---OMW
Thanks for the recommendation. I'll definitely check this mod out!
BTW: after my grilling of this product, that's quite a vote of self-confidence you're showing.
I've definitely enjoyed the work you've done for White Wolf. VAV is excellent, especially the "Chasing Sunset" chapter, which made the setting so visceral to me (Note: Venice is creepy!) I'm also fond of the politics book, "Gilded Cage," which addressed the essential matters of implementing social challenge in an accessible way. And that "Serpent" cycle stuff for SSS was nifty as well.
I'm looking forward to reading your take on the kobold menace.
Again, thanks for writing.
---OMW
John Cooper
Explorer
The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds
Mongoose Publishing product number MGP0018
Alejandro Melchor and Matthew Sprange
32 pages, $9.95
In my mind, Mongoose's "Slayers Guide" series can be broken down into three different categories. There are the 32-page "tongue in cheek" ones ("The Slayer's Guide to Rules Lawyers," "The Slayer's Guide to Female Gamers"), there are the 128-page ones covering a wide variety of similar monsters ("The Slayer's Guide to Dragons," "The Slayer's Guide to Undead"), and there are the 32-page "focus on a single monster" ones. "The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds," the 18th in the line, is in the latter category.
Before I move on with the review, it seems only fair to point out that "Slayer's Guides" aren't going to be everybody's cup of tea. They are primarily DM-focused, since the whole point of a "Slayer's Guide" is to give the DM (or "Games Master," the term preferred by Mongoose) enough information about the monster in question to integrate it seamlessly into his campaign. This isn't to say that players won't get anything from picking up a "Slayer's Guide" - on the contrary, most have sections adapting the monster as a Player Character and suggestions on roleplaying the monster - but a DM is bound to get more use out of any given book in the series than a player is.
It seems only fair to compare "The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds" against others in the same category (32-pagers focusing on a single monster). As far as that goes, "Kobolds" is one of the better ones I've seen so far.
The cover, by David Griffiths, is a full-color depiction of a band of kobolds in a typical subterranean environment. The rest of the illustrations are black and white, but above average ones at that. I'd like to make a few quick points about the artwork. First of all, there are 14 pieces of interior art, plus the Chris Quilliams anatomical diagram on the inside front cover and a map of the sample kobold lair on the back cover. The Quilliams piece is up to his fantastic standards (despite the rather embarrassing misspelling, "Kolbolds," displayed prominently above the artwork), rendering the best-looking kobold head I've ever seen, bar none. (Here's a book idea for Mongoose: Why don't you get Chris to do an anatomical drawing of every monster in the SRD? His artwork is heads above that appearing in the Monster Manual; I'd love to see him do something along the lines of Wayne Barlowe's Guide to Extraterrestrials.) Together, Quilliams and Griffiths account for every bit of artwork in the book. I really like this approach, as it gives a more unifying look to the kobold. (Some of the earlier "Slayer's Guides" had up to half a dozen artists each, of differing levels of artistic talent, resulting in monsters depicted very differently from page to page.) All of these kobolds look like they're part of the same race.
Another thing I noticed is that the artists apparently read the book before drawing their illustrations. For the first time I can recall in a "Slayer's Guide," much of the artwork actually depicts specific scenes in the book rather than just generic poses of the monster in question. The three kobolds hiding from an ogre and the female kobold chasing newly-hatched broodlings with a stick are both illustrations from the short bits of fiction interspersed throughout the book; the seven kobolds piling onto a dwarf are a depiction of the kobold "latching" combat maneuver the book provides. I definitely see this as a step up in quality and something I hope continues in future "Slayer's Guides."
Also, I have to applaud the many little details found in the artwork. In the discussion of kobold "pecking order" we learn that kobolds demonstrate their caste in society by wearing colored ribbons on their arms and that a scarf worn around the neck is the highest status symbol in kobold society. Right there on that page is a smug-looking kobold wearing a scarf. When I checked the cover painting, sure enough, the lead kobold's prominently wearing a ribbon on his left arm, as are the kobolds in many of the interior illustrations. The text points out that kobolds prefer the crossbow and the shortspear. Guess which two weapons are featurted prominently in virtually all the pictures of kobolds wielding weapons? Good job, Chris and David!
Okay, enough about the artwork, let's move on to the text. The Table of Contents page credits both Alejandro Melchor and Matthew Sprange as the authors of the work, although oddly only Alejandro's name is featured on the cover. These two stick very close to the standard "Slayer's Guide" layout - that it to say, we get the following:
Some things worth pointing out:
Mongoose Publishing product number MGP0018
Alejandro Melchor and Matthew Sprange
32 pages, $9.95
In my mind, Mongoose's "Slayers Guide" series can be broken down into three different categories. There are the 32-page "tongue in cheek" ones ("The Slayer's Guide to Rules Lawyers," "The Slayer's Guide to Female Gamers"), there are the 128-page ones covering a wide variety of similar monsters ("The Slayer's Guide to Dragons," "The Slayer's Guide to Undead"), and there are the 32-page "focus on a single monster" ones. "The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds," the 18th in the line, is in the latter category.
Before I move on with the review, it seems only fair to point out that "Slayer's Guides" aren't going to be everybody's cup of tea. They are primarily DM-focused, since the whole point of a "Slayer's Guide" is to give the DM (or "Games Master," the term preferred by Mongoose) enough information about the monster in question to integrate it seamlessly into his campaign. This isn't to say that players won't get anything from picking up a "Slayer's Guide" - on the contrary, most have sections adapting the monster as a Player Character and suggestions on roleplaying the monster - but a DM is bound to get more use out of any given book in the series than a player is.
It seems only fair to compare "The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds" against others in the same category (32-pagers focusing on a single monster). As far as that goes, "Kobolds" is one of the better ones I've seen so far.
The cover, by David Griffiths, is a full-color depiction of a band of kobolds in a typical subterranean environment. The rest of the illustrations are black and white, but above average ones at that. I'd like to make a few quick points about the artwork. First of all, there are 14 pieces of interior art, plus the Chris Quilliams anatomical diagram on the inside front cover and a map of the sample kobold lair on the back cover. The Quilliams piece is up to his fantastic standards (despite the rather embarrassing misspelling, "Kolbolds," displayed prominently above the artwork), rendering the best-looking kobold head I've ever seen, bar none. (Here's a book idea for Mongoose: Why don't you get Chris to do an anatomical drawing of every monster in the SRD? His artwork is heads above that appearing in the Monster Manual; I'd love to see him do something along the lines of Wayne Barlowe's Guide to Extraterrestrials.) Together, Quilliams and Griffiths account for every bit of artwork in the book. I really like this approach, as it gives a more unifying look to the kobold. (Some of the earlier "Slayer's Guides" had up to half a dozen artists each, of differing levels of artistic talent, resulting in monsters depicted very differently from page to page.) All of these kobolds look like they're part of the same race.
Another thing I noticed is that the artists apparently read the book before drawing their illustrations. For the first time I can recall in a "Slayer's Guide," much of the artwork actually depicts specific scenes in the book rather than just generic poses of the monster in question. The three kobolds hiding from an ogre and the female kobold chasing newly-hatched broodlings with a stick are both illustrations from the short bits of fiction interspersed throughout the book; the seven kobolds piling onto a dwarf are a depiction of the kobold "latching" combat maneuver the book provides. I definitely see this as a step up in quality and something I hope continues in future "Slayer's Guides."
Also, I have to applaud the many little details found in the artwork. In the discussion of kobold "pecking order" we learn that kobolds demonstrate their caste in society by wearing colored ribbons on their arms and that a scarf worn around the neck is the highest status symbol in kobold society. Right there on that page is a smug-looking kobold wearing a scarf. When I checked the cover painting, sure enough, the lead kobold's prominently wearing a ribbon on his left arm, as are the kobolds in many of the interior illustrations. The text points out that kobolds prefer the crossbow and the shortspear. Guess which two weapons are featurted prominently in virtually all the pictures of kobolds wielding weapons? Good job, Chris and David!
Okay, enough about the artwork, let's move on to the text. The Table of Contents page credits both Alejandro Melchor and Matthew Sprange as the authors of the work, although oddly only Alejandro's name is featured on the cover. These two stick very close to the standard "Slayer's Guide" layout - that it to say, we get the following:
- Introduction - describing the purpose of the book followed by a page-long bit of fiction
- Kobold Physiology - where we learn about their enhanced vision and hearing and their "wet dog smell" (which they are blissfully unaware of, apparently) as well as maturation rate, diet, and innate penchant for sorcery
- Habitat - describing their narrow subterranean passages
- Society - including an interesting caste structure, lack of family values, and the vast numbers a kobold tribe can attain, as well as touching on slaves, mining, religion, and two kobold variants (a "Chromatic" template and the winged caste kobold)
- Methods of Warfare - a very nice look at kobolds' trapmaking skills, including an example of each of the many types of traps they focus on
- Roleplaying With Kobolds - focusing on their spite and hatred of all other races
- 8 Scenario Hooks and Ideas
- Kobolds As Player Characters - using different racial traits than those given in the Monster Manual)
- Ki'chkeeshla's Lair - a sample lair, incorporating many of the ideas in the book and usable as-is for a decent night of gaming
- Kobold Reference List - giving stats for various kobolds (Warband Leader, Warband Sorcerer, Sergeant, Taskmaster, Trapmaker, and Hatchling)
Some things worth pointing out:
- I was very pleased with the bit not only explaining that kobold eyes actually shine when exposed to light (and checking the cover, sure enough, we've got glowing eyes on kobolds in the background - good job again there, David!), but also tying it in with their light sensitivity and from that deriving the use of bright lights as a way to extract information from kobolds (in effect, it's a lightweight form of "torture"). On the other hand, while it says that kobold eyes are "important components in the crafting of many magical items," no examples were given.
- While I was pleased to see the inclusion of a winged kobold variant (previous editions of AD&D included the urd, a winged kobold), I was a bit underwhelmed by the presentation. Whereas an urd was pretty much just a kobold with batlike wings, the winged kobold presented here is bigger, tougher, and stronger than a kobold - it even has the innate powers of a 2nd-level sorcerer, resistances to cold, fire, and acid, and the standard dragon immunities to sleep and paralysis - but the silly things are even bigger cowards than the typical kobold. That doesn't make a whole lot of sense to me.
- Likewise, the "chromatic" kobold seems to be a watered-down version of a half-dragon kobold. (Chromatic kobolds don't get breath weapons, for one thing.) I was a little disappointed that the authors chose to go that rather obvious route, given the supposed link between kobolds and dragons in the first place. I'm all for variant races, but this one seemed rather lackluster.
- The map of Ki'chkeeshla's Lair is well done, one of the better maps to grace a "Slayer's Guide."
Things have changed a bit since I took my first turn behind the DM's screen. The rules have been changed more than once, and my old yellow cardboard DM screen from Judges Guild has been replaced with newer and newer models (although I still have the original and use it when I have the occasion to play OD&D). When I first started, monsters like kobolds were little more than an armor class and a few hit points, and were just a minor obstacle between the players and a pile of treasure.
These days, however, I try to make monsters more lifelike, and this extends even to creatures as lowly as kobolds. Because of this, I find that products like the Slayer's Guides are useful. The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds is 32 pages of material that sells for $9.95, and it will absolutely will not fail to give you an idea of two that you can use to make kobolds more lifelike in your game.
It will give you ideas about kobold society and how different types of kobolds fit into it as well as ideas about how kobolds wage warfare. It will give you an idea of how kobold settlements might be laid out and where kobolds prefer to live. It will give an overview of kobold physiology. It will even give you a few pointers on how to use kobolds in your game. In short, it will give you enough to breathe life into your kobolds and turn them into more than a speed bump on the player's road to treasure and XP. If that's what you're looking for in a book, you can't go wrong with The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds.
On the other hand, you might ask yourself why you need to pay someone else to think of ideas about kobolds and their behavior. After all, you're perfectly capable of thinking about kobolds and having a few ideas of my own, aren't you? (I'm one of those people who, in general, don't use published modules, preferring instead to create my own scenarios, but not everyone's like me.) So if you're the type who doesn't rely on published material much, you will probably have no use for this product. Because of this, I'm a bit ambivalent about the Slayer's Guides in general, and this one's no exception, and thus, I'm hard-pressed to give The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds more than an Average rating.
These days, however, I try to make monsters more lifelike, and this extends even to creatures as lowly as kobolds. Because of this, I find that products like the Slayer's Guides are useful. The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds is 32 pages of material that sells for $9.95, and it will absolutely will not fail to give you an idea of two that you can use to make kobolds more lifelike in your game.
It will give you ideas about kobold society and how different types of kobolds fit into it as well as ideas about how kobolds wage warfare. It will give you an idea of how kobold settlements might be laid out and where kobolds prefer to live. It will give an overview of kobold physiology. It will even give you a few pointers on how to use kobolds in your game. In short, it will give you enough to breathe life into your kobolds and turn them into more than a speed bump on the player's road to treasure and XP. If that's what you're looking for in a book, you can't go wrong with The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds.
On the other hand, you might ask yourself why you need to pay someone else to think of ideas about kobolds and their behavior. After all, you're perfectly capable of thinking about kobolds and having a few ideas of my own, aren't you? (I'm one of those people who, in general, don't use published modules, preferring instead to create my own scenarios, but not everyone's like me.) So if you're the type who doesn't rely on published material much, you will probably have no use for this product. Because of this, I'm a bit ambivalent about the Slayer's Guides in general, and this one's no exception, and thus, I'm hard-pressed to give The Slayer's Guide to Kobolds more than an Average rating.
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