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View Full Version : My attempt to port over Kobolds Ate My Baby! kobolds into 3.5



celestialkin
2008-08-31, 08:16 PM
Following is my attempt at converting 9 Level Games' take on the kobolds into my homebrewed campaign multiverse, which already is big on the standard kobolds. Please critique it and tell me what you think. Be as honest as you like.

It's traits assume you are using the optional racial rules for kobolds from the official WotC Web Enhancement for their book Races of the Dragon.

Web Enhancement for Races of the Dragon:
http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/we/20060420a

Since the standard kobolds are already one of my favorite things in my games, I decided to make the KAMB! version into a subrace.

My attempt:


Dogbold
http://i39.photobucket.com/albums/e189/Celestialdragon100/jdm032006.jpg


It's not your fault that Dogbolds are gourmets. It's not you fault that King Torg (All Hail King Torg!) is hungry. It's not your fault that the tastiest thing a Dogbold has ever eaten is sweet baby! And it's defineatly, not your fault that Dogbolds are the most incompetent, reckless, and accident prone race to ever crawl out of a cave. But it is your problem...





What the heck is a dogbold?

According to the learned sage Fergulbarq, dogbolds are the greatest threat to humanoidkind since the Black Plague; an innumerable horde of ravaging, fearsome beasts; and extremely tasty when flame-broiled and served with a secret sauce. Fergulbarq was of course an utter madman and an outrageous liar* (except for the part about flame-broiling Kobolds - yum!)

Dogbolds are a racial offshoot of kobolds. Although closely related to kobolds (though most kobolds would deny it), they are their own species which breeds true. Kobolds and dogbolds are still able to interbreed without any problems, but this rarely EVER happens.

Although not flat-out hostile towards their furry cousins, kobolds still try to keep their distance from them. Amazingly kobolds tend to look down on dogbolds much the same way many (OK, lets be honest here, almost ALL) other races look down on them. This says a lot about these critters...

Honestly, dogbolds are a completely insignificant race of tiny, dog-like humanoids with few redeeming qualities. The lowest of the low, dogbolds are weak, stupid, slovenly, cannibalistic little buggers that lead brutal, short, and silly little lives. Outside of enlisting as cannon-fodder for evil armies or acting as lackeys for power-mad (and very cheap) warlocks - dogbolds have little to offer the world, except as cooks, err - I mean being cooked. As we alluded to earlier, dogbolds are damn tasty with a side salad.

Physically, dogbolds are the shortest of the brutish humanoid races, standing only 2 feet tall. Covered in bristly orange fur, they have large heads (to accommodate their even larger mouths, filled with sharp, pointy teeth). Their mouths are so large that most of their face is covered by it, leaving scant room for beady little eyes (and no room for noses).

Dogbolds worship Vor: the Big Red Angry God, which is understandable; wouldn't you be angry if you were the god of the dogbolds? The only thing that Vor hates more than a dogbold is a coward, which is why dogbolds are the most fearless of all the intelligent (and we use that term loosely here) races. Ironically, the complete and total lack of a sense of self-preservation is the only thing keeping the dogbolds going - any other race would have packed it in a long time ago, given up, and faded into extinction.



Dogbold Origins:

The origin of the dogbolds is something kobolds dislike talking about, even among themselves. They are like the retarded cousin everyone in a family knows about, but who never comes up in conversations, for obvious reasons. However, those sages who actually cared enough to unearth this information have recently managed to do so (probably by offering random kobolds at taverns a few measly copper pieces).

As it turned out, dogbolds originated in Kurtulmak's own realm long ago. They came into existence when a group of lonely dragonwrought kobold warriors, who were stationed in a remote and isolated outpost at the fringes of Draukari, turned upon a pack of guarddogs that helped protect their outpost to fulfill their "needs". These kobolds were surprised (and somewhat shocked...) when they discovered that these bitches had laid litters of what would one day be known as "dogbolds".

Needless to say these creatures were quickly kicked out of Draukari. However, when a god eventually somehow emerged from their ranks (how? not even Kurtulmak knows...) Kurtulmak was forced to give them a place in his unholy kingdom. He assigned a small section of Draukari, as far from the center of his realm as possible, for their god known as Vor: The Big Red Angry God to deal with the souls of the dogbolds so they would leave Kurtulmak alone. Vor was not any happier with this job, and since he doesn't stand much of a chance against Kurtulmak he has resorted to taking out his frustrations on the dogbolds instead. (If you can, pick up a copy of Kobolds ate my baby! to get the full scoop on him!).



* Some other learned sages have claimed that Fergulbarq was actually a dogbold - and as such, a genius and visionary, since no other dogbold in history has actually managed to pronounce innumerable.



Dogbold Traits (Ex)
These traits are in addition to the Kobold traits, except where noted.
• (An additional) +2 Dex, -2 Int, -2 Wis, +2 Che (Because they are so damn
cute!)
• Dogbolds posses the Animal Type instead of the Reptilian Subtype.
Although dogbolds usually have an Intelligence Score higher than 1 or 2,
they still possess the Animal Type. This also means that dogbolds due not
suffer the same problems in cold weather as kobolds do.
• Dogbolds do not posses the Claw Attacks of their Kobold cousins.
• A Dogbold's Bite Attack deals 1d6 points of damage instead of 1d3 points
of damage, due to it's unusually large mouth and teeth.


*I based this race of the 9 Level Games' version of the Kobolds in their (amazingly great!) game titled: Kobolds Ate My Baby!

Below is a link to their official page for Kobolds Ate My Baby! on their official site. Here you can find a free PDF preview of their book, which described the game and their take on the classic kobold.

http://www.koboldsatemybaby.com/index.html

I am not attempting to plagerize anything. I am merely attempting to portover this histarical versional of the kobold from one system I own (Kobolds Ate My Baby!) to another I own (D&D 3.5). I have not copied any mechanics from Kobolds Ate My Baby! onto this page, especially since Kobolds Ate My Baby is nota d20 OGL based system. I merely used some of their description, which can be found as a free preview on the above link on their site, and altered it a bit to fit into my homebrewed campaign setting.

I highly suggest that everyone reading this order a copy of this book themselves!

You can find official miniatures for these little guys here:
http://paizo.com/store/byCompany/m/magnificentEgos/koboldsAteMyBaby

Lorien077
2008-09-01, 02:22 AM
Well, I think you're spot on there. They look just right and horribly fun to play. All you need is to grab some low CR silly monsters or make some simple challenges of your own, and you're good.
And the dogbold/kobold differences could be DM discretion. The kobolds in my games are furry. :)

Baron Corm
2008-09-01, 11:12 AM
They sound more like monstrous humanoids to me. It's really not an animal if it has more than 2 Intelligence and walks on two legs and has a humanoid face, etc. You could just go the safe route and make them humanoid (dogbold). They do sound tasty though, I'm kind of hungry now.

Debihuman
2008-09-01, 01:15 PM
Kobolds are Humanoids with the (Reptilian) subtype. Dogbolds should probably be Humanoid with the (Goblinoid) subtype. They really shouldn't have the Animal type if you want them to be a playable race.

Debby

celestialkin
2008-09-12, 08:52 PM
Well, I think you're spot on there. They look just right and horribly fun to play. All you need is to grab some low CR silly monsters or make some simple challenges of your own, and you're good.
And the dogbold/kobold differences could be DM discretion. The kobolds in my games are furry. :)

Thanks. I am glad I did well with them.

That's a good idea of having low level silly monsters. I guess I could do a oneshot game like this. Skeleton chicken anyone? :smallbiggrin:



They sound more like monstrous humanoids to me. It's really not an animal if it has more than 2 Intelligence and walks on two legs and has a humanoid face, etc. You could just go the safe route and make them humanoid (dogbold). They do sound tasty though, I'm kind of hungry now.


Kobolds are Humanoids with the (Reptilian) subtype. Dogbolds should probably be Humanoid with the (Goblinoid) subtype. They really shouldn't have the Animal type if you want them to be a playable race.

Debby

I see. Thank you for the advice. I guess I should change it either to Monstrous Humanoid or Goblinoid.

I had thought of animal to reflect their stupidity, and their...um..."history".