Can Kobolds be saved? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Can Kobolds be saved? [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
FreezieFreak
03-27-05, 09:46 AM Is there any use for a kobold in an optimized build? I really think that kobolds are sweet and kobold sorcerors with an affinnity for dragons even sweeter :D The problem is just that with the nerf of kobolds ind 3.5 they dont seem to even get close to the power of the standard PHB races.

Looking for some help to get some good use out of the kobolds abilities and would also like to get some sorceror usage out of the kobold.

I've got the PHB, DMG, MM, Draco, EBC, Sharn, SS, S&S, MotW, CA, CW, BoED and MotP

Dont let the Kobolds down :(
Tytalus
03-27-05, 09:52 AM Is there any use for a kobold in an optimized build?

Stat-wise, kobolds are rather weak compared to other races. however, their stats make them decent sorcerers and wizards. Even better are they as druids, where their -4 strength doesn't really matter at levels 6+.

In general, however, a strongheart halfling is simple superior in most repects.

BTW, a fun option for a kobold sorcerer is (if you can use flaws) to take Draconic Heritage, Draconic Breath, and Precocious Apprentice (all Complete Arcane). It's very neat, especially at very low levels.
FreezieFreak
03-27-05, 09:59 AM Well sadly i dont have UA but i was thinking about taking the heritage and breath feats, but i think that precocius spellcaster is a wasted feat at later levels.

Anyone got any suggestions for draconic prestige classes, feats even templates etc.?
Vecna
03-27-05, 10:21 AM Stat-wise, kobolds are rather weak compared to other races. however, their stats make them decent sorcerers and wizards.

Why a race with
Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 8
would be a decent wizard/sorcerer/cleric/druid?
FreezieFreak
03-27-05, 10:36 AM It Actually has 10, 10 & 10. the stats you are looking at is those for a 1st level warrior. but still it isnt good stats. just normal
ShadowWarrior
03-27-05, 01:06 PM For kobolds I'd look at the Dragon Disciple PrC. It's not that great for other races but for kobolds it does get rid of the racial penalties except the size, IIRC. Then take dragon feats such as wingover, and hover. Whatever you do, learn the metabreath spells. Namely Animate Breath. The other option is to go Psion and get your Int as high as possible taking Speed of Thought and Up the Walls, to get yourself away from danger.
Kintara
03-27-05, 01:30 PM They're actually pretty great spellcasters. Being small is good for a spellcaster, because of the attack and AC boost. They get +1 to Natural Armor. And they get a Dex bonus on top of that. Plus, they have Speed 30 ft.. The Con penalty is annoying, but not a deal-breaker.

If you're not playing a spellcaster, though, then it's probably better to be a Poison Dusk Lizardfolk (from MM3).

I know this isn't optimized, at all, but since they get +1 natural armor, they can take Improved Natural Armor from level 1. I think it would be funny to play a Kobold Barbarian/Sorcerer/Dragon Disciple with +12 Natural Armor.
FreezieFreak
03-27-05, 05:09 PM Well Dragon Disciple would suit the flavor perfectly though i dont think i will put all those strength bonuses to any use. gotta love the wings though :rolleyes: Might also go something a'la Mage of the Arcane(draconic) Order. As for Draconic Heritage what would be a good ancestor? I was thinking of Black dragon as i like the hide skill and acid is a less resisted element. I'm pretty stuck with the kobold though as i just love those cute thingies :D
Talen Lee
03-27-05, 06:00 PM The benighted kobold supposedly trades -2 Strength for +10 movement and +1 natural armour. Honestly, to a caster or a rogue, that's really quite irrelevant.

Yes, the Strongheart Halfling is going to be strictly superior. But you don't care. Druids and sorcerors are your two best options. Also, you can be a fun Gish build with (Paladin 8 or Ranger 8)/Sorceror 4/Geomancer 8. Just focus on bowmanship.
derfenrirwolv
03-27-05, 07:35 PM You're forgetting the -2 con, which for a spellcaster is a big deal.

The thing to do though is to NOT look like a spellcaster. Dress in livery, carry around a ledger and an enormous (for you) backpack. The monsters will think you're small and tastey, but inteligent enimies may say "oh, its just a kobold"... at least untill you let loose with the fireballing.
FreezieFreak
03-27-05, 08:16 PM Hmm might just add a level of Dragon Slayer and Spellsword and get a big mithril armor with the twilight ability and of course add inn the levels of dragon disciple, and then get the Dragon Cohort feat so that i can be riding a black dragon.
Just imagine the gishie kobold sorceror charging against you mounted on his black dragon while breathing acid like crazy :D
Better look at those sorceror and gish threads so that the killing can begin. Could also go the Arcane trickster road as it suits the kobold a little more.
Ahh so many options and so little levels to cram it all into...
Ryzouken
03-29-05, 06:19 AM Lv 1 Kobold.
Assume the following:
20 Dex. Swashbuckler. Starting Feat is Phalanx Fighting. Swashbuckler grants Weapon Finesse. For this example we'll utilize a short sword.

Now. Armor it up with Studded Leather Armor and a Hvy Steel Shield.

We now have a kobold with +1 Size +1 Nat Armor +3 Armor +3 Shield (Phalanx adds +1 whenusing a light weapon and a heavy shield) +5 Dex Mod all to AC. That's 23. Assume further a bit of collaboration with fellow PC's. Phalanx Fighting allows the creation of a Shield Wall for +2 AC and +1 Reflex. Fight Defensively in a Shield Wall. Your AC balloons up to a whopping 27 AC at level 1. Add a few levels in until we're about sixth level. Assume DM approval for the Leadership feat. You gain a bunch of level 1 followers. Give them all Phalanx Fighting as their starting feat. Armor them too. You also gain a cohort. Give her Phalanx Fighting. make her a Cleric.

You now have a formation of nine fighting kobolds (or whatever) in a Roman Shield Wall giving all of you at least 27 AC. Not bad for a bunch of followers. Granted, you're a kobold. You aren't exactly dishing out damage, but when you can afford Mithral Shirts and Mithral Hvy Shields, all of a sudden you don't really have to.

Following this basic idea, a group of three fifth level kobolds and a fifth level cleric were able to take out an eight headed hydra. And our cleric never attacked. We each had AC in excess of 30 and our Hp was high enough that even if the hydra DID hit, we survived the hit long enough for the cleric to heal. My full build for these guys is:

1/2 Shadow Dragon (3) Kobold (0) Swashbuckler (3) Fighter (4) Duelist (10)

Big Bad AC Mongering Roman Kobolds. I love Kobolds too.
Ivarrius
03-29-05, 06:43 AM I am pretty sure that swashbuckler doesn't get Heavy Steel Shield proficiency.
TheMrBlack
03-29-05, 08:21 AM Kobolds Rock!
GrayC63
03-29-05, 11:31 PM I’ve never posted here before, but my husband and one of our gaming friends both read this thread and suggested that I post about my somewhat recently created (but already beloved) kobold swashbuckler/rogue. This topic is kind of made for me. My kobold is not only optimized (thanks in large part to my husband), but she has even been declared a bit broken (which I find extraordinarily amusing). I am not a stat person myself so I came up with a character concept first. I love playing unlikely heroes, and I asked myself what kind of hero a kobold was likely to be. My answer? Zorro, of course. I wrote up a lengthy and colorful character history. The party I was joining had a bit of a need for a face and a rogue (and I play rogues almost exclusively). My husband declared he would optimize the character to fit both her role and my character concept. Stats and character quickly meshed, and Meah Zelabeni’Zilnn was born.

Meah is a desert kobold (an Unearthed Arcana racial variant). Desert kobolds exchange the -2 Con for a -2 Wis, but keep the -4 Str and +2 Dex. They also don’t get the kobolds’ racial bonus to the Profession (Mining) skill because they don’t live underground like other kobolds. However, they also don’t suffer their kinfolk’s sensitivity to light. Their favored class is Rogue, not Sorcerer. They get some minor benefits with regard to heat for being a desert race.

Meah was created with a 32 point buy, and the GM gave her a bonus feat of desert direction sense (+2) which she has yet to have any opportunity whatsoever to use. She concentrated on spending her points on dexterity (14 +2 racial bonus + 1 ability boost) and intelligence (16). With Weapon Finesse, her attack bonus becomes a fairly impressive (for a kobold) +10 when she attacks with her rapier (+4 base attack + 3 dex modifier +1 size modifier +1 weapon focus +1 magical adjustment). If she manages to sneak attack, her damage is d4 +4 (weapon modifier + insightful strike) +d6 (sneak attack)/18-20x2. Until she manages to get Improved Feint at 6th-level, she typically tries to tumble into a flanking position. In most situations she uses her Combat Expertise to improve her AC to 24 and her attack bonus is still +8 (if she is flanking, or +6 if she is not). At 6th-level, she intends to take another level of rogue. She’ll not only get Improved Feint but an extra sneak attack die (and her damage will be d4 + 2d6 +4).

She was created as a 5th-level character and given 13,000 gp with which to buy her starting equipment. She purchased a +1 rapier and a handy haversack. The haversack keeps Meah from being encumbered despite her average strength and allows her to pick up quite a few bright shiny objects (which she does all the time). The +1 mithral chain shirt, glamoured not only gives Meah a high AC, but is light weight and has no negative adjustment to her skill checks. Even better, the glamour (in combination with the hat of disguise, the disguise kit, and her high disguise skill check) has the added bonus of letting her create alternate personas (discussed below).

Here’s Meah’s statistics:

Meah Zelabeni’Zilnn: Female desert kobold swashbuckler 3/rogue 2; CR 5; Small humanoid (kobold); HD 3d10 + 2d6 + 5; hp 37; Init +3; Spd 30 ft.; AC 20, touch 15, flat-footed 17; Base Atk +4; Grp 0; Atk or Full Atk +10 melee (d4 +1/18-20, +1 rapier) or +8 ranged (d4/x3, shortbow); SA sneak attack +1d6, insightful strike; SQ evasion, darkvision, trapfinding, grace +1, heat endurance (+4), no light sensitivity, desert direction sense (+2); AL CG; SV Fort +4, Ref +8, Will 0; Str 10, Dex 17, Con 12, Int 16, Wis 8, Cha 12.

Skills and Feats: Bluff +9, Diplomacy +13, Disable Device +10 (+12, masterwork thieves’ tools), Disguise +9 (+11, disguise kit), Hide +11, Jump +8, Move Silently +7, Open Lock +10 (+12, masterwork thieves’ tools), Search +12, Sense Motive +6, Spot +3, Tumble +13; Weapon Finesse, Combat Expertise, Weapon Focus (rapier).

Possessions: +1 mithral chain shirt, glamoured, +1 rapier, masterwork cold iron dagger, masterwork silver dagger, short bow, hat of disguise, Heward’s handy haversack, masterwork thieves’ tools, disguise kit.

But really the joy in playing Meah is not found in her stats. As a character, she dreams of being a hero (a kobold’s typically inflated sense of worth) and won’t be deterred whatever her outward limitations may appear. Her low Wisdom has been incorporated into her character concept. She is exceedingly brave, but foolhardy and reckless. She’s made more than one miraculous tumble in an attempt to save a party member, diving into danger with heedless abandon. She has almost died on at least 3 or 4 different occasions but managed to scrape by somehow (if a little bruised). She has let (actually encouraged) the Wizard fireball her (and opponents) on three separate occasions and was barely singed. She is easily distracted by bright shiny objects. She has the attention span of a gnat, and if the other party members dawdle too long or don’t keep track of her, then she invariably wanders off into some new (and deadly) adventure. One of her flaws is her low Wisdom (Listen -1, Will 0), and she has failed more than one saving throw against illusions and mind-altering affects.

In line with her character concept as The Kobold Zorro, Meah is working her way toward becoming a Blade Bravo (from Races of Stone). The GM agreed to waive the gnome racial requirement. She’s looking forward to the day when she can Goad creatures big enough to snap her in two (most everything). In fact, even though she doesn’t have Goad yet, she taunts many opponents who tend to snicker at and ignore the little kobold. She is a surprisingly good fighter against humanoid opponents, but when she can’t sneak attack (undead suck!) or faces something with high damage resistance, she is clearly at a disadvantage. She’s not perfect, but even still, she remains great fun to play because, in those situations, she tries to protect the wizard, rushes headlong into danger to try and draw attacks away from the rest of the party, and/or tumble behind enemy lines to create flanking opportunities for the party fighters.

Courtesy of my husband, here is Meah’s planned class progression:

1 Rogue 1 Sneak Attack 1D6, Trapfinding, Feat - Combat Expertise
2 Swashbuckler 1 Weapon Finese
3 Swashbuckler 2 Grace +1, Feat - Weapon Focus (Rapier)
4 Rogue 2 Evasion, +1 Dex
5 Swashbuckler 3 Insightful Strike
6 Rogue 3 Sneak Attack 2D6, Trap Sense +1, Feat - Improved Feint
7 Blade Bravo 1 Flourish, Goad
8 Rogue 4 Uncanny Dodge, +1 Dex
9 Blade Bravo 2 Mobile Fighting, Feat - Improved Critical
10 Rogue 5 Sneak Attack 3D6

When not in combat, Meah has even more fun. First, with her high dexterity and intelligence, she has good rogue skills and has no fear in being in the front of the party searching for traps, secret doors, and generally things that will eat her. Second, with her better than average charisma (and good diplomacy, bluff, disguise, and sense motive checks), Meah is actually the party face! Meah tends to lie at the drop of a hat (but never maliciously) and loves to tell tall tales. A surprising number of people believe her. Using her hat of disguise (which for flavor looks like a mask), disguise kit, and the glamour on her armor, she has created a variety of false identities (among others, a dashing halfling, a dour gnome, and even a human child) to hide her secret identity as a kobold (and a kobold hero to boot!). In her most recent adventure, set in a jungle, she became Camo-Meah by donning “camouflage” (she glamoured her armor green, painted her face in a jungle hue, and even used the hat of disguise to make her skin green because her normal skin color is a variety of browns and desert hues). She became a sniper by hiding in the thick foliage and using her short bow to surprise the “friendly natives” who insisted on “welcoming” the party as they trekked through the jungle.

Meah is truly a fun character to play, but optimized as well for her role as the party face, the party rogue, and a secondary fighter. I’ve enjoyed her so much that Meah has actually been re-created as a second character in a high-powered Eberron campaign as a 3rd-level gestalt swashbuckler/rogue who can often do more damage than the 3rd-level gestalt dwarf fighter/cleric. Gestalt Meah is really, really fun. All of this is to say that, with a little creativity, IMO even the lowly kobold can be both optimized and plain good fun.

Sorry for the length of the post. I get a bit carried away when I am rhapsodizing about the joys of playing a kobold.
Sentient
03-30-05, 02:34 AM I cannot, for the life of me, imagine a kobold wearing a mask.

great story, though! real inspiring.

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
FreezieFreak 03-27-05, 09:46 AM	Is there any use for a kobold in an optimized build? I really think that kobolds are sweet and kobold sorcerors with an affinnity for dragons even sweeter :D The problem is just that with the nerf of kobolds ind 3.5 they dont seem to even get close to the power of the standard PHB races. Looking for some help to get some good use out of the kobolds abilities and would also like to get some sorceror usage out of the kobold. I've got the PHB, DMG, MM, Draco, EBC, Sharn, SS, S&S, MotW, CA, CW, BoED and MotP Dont let the Kobolds down :(
Tytalus 03-27-05, 09:52 AM	Is there any use for a kobold in an optimized build? Stat-wise, kobolds are rather weak compared to other races. however, their stats make them decent sorcerers and wizards. Even better are they as druids, where their -4 strength doesn't really matter at levels 6+. In general, however, a strongheart halfling is simple superior in most repects. BTW, a fun option for a kobold sorcerer is (if you can use flaws) to take Draconic Heritage, Draconic Breath, and Precocious Apprentice (all Complete Arcane). It's very neat, especially at very low levels.
FreezieFreak 03-27-05, 09:59 AM	Well sadly i dont have UA but i was thinking about taking the heritage and breath feats, but i think that precocius spellcaster is a wasted feat at later levels. Anyone got any suggestions for draconic prestige classes, feats even templates etc.?
Vecna 03-27-05, 10:21 AM	Stat-wise, kobolds are rather weak compared to other races. however, their stats make them decent sorcerers and wizards. Why a race with Int 10, Wis 9, Cha 8 would be a decent wizard/sorcerer/cleric/druid?
FreezieFreak 03-27-05, 10:36 AM	It Actually has 10, 10 & 10. the stats you are looking at is those for a 1st level warrior. but still it isnt good stats. just normal
ShadowWarrior 03-27-05, 01:06 PM	For kobolds I'd look at the Dragon Disciple PrC. It's not that great for other races but for kobolds it does get rid of the racial penalties except the size, IIRC. Then take dragon feats such as wingover, and hover. Whatever you do, learn the metabreath spells. Namely Animate Breath. The other option is to go Psion and get your Int as high as possible taking Speed of Thought and Up the Walls, to get yourself away from danger.
Kintara 03-27-05, 01:30 PM	They're actually pretty great spellcasters. Being small is good for a spellcaster, because of the attack and AC boost. They get +1 to Natural Armor. And they get a Dex bonus on top of that. Plus, they have Speed 30 ft.. The Con penalty is annoying, but not a deal-breaker. If you're not playing a spellcaster, though, then it's probably better to be a Poison Dusk Lizardfolk (from MM3). I know this isn't optimized, at all, but since they get +1 natural armor, they can take Improved Natural Armor from level 1. I think it would be funny to play a Kobold Barbarian/Sorcerer/Dragon Disciple with +12 Natural Armor.
FreezieFreak 03-27-05, 05:09 PM	Well Dragon Disciple would suit the flavor perfectly though i dont think i will put all those strength bonuses to any use. gotta love the wings though :rolleyes: Might also go something a'la Mage of the Arcane(draconic) Order. As for Draconic Heritage what would be a good ancestor? I was thinking of Black dragon as i like the hide skill and acid is a less resisted element. I'm pretty stuck with the kobold though as i just love those cute thingies :D
Talen Lee 03-27-05, 06:00 PM	The benighted kobold supposedly trades -2 Strength for +10 movement and +1 natural armour. Honestly, to a caster or a rogue, that's really quite irrelevant. Yes, the Strongheart Halfling is going to be strictly superior. But you don't care. Druids and sorcerors are your two best options. Also, you can be a fun Gish build with (Paladin 8 or Ranger 8)/Sorceror 4/Geomancer 8. Just focus on bowmanship.
derfenrirwolv 03-27-05, 07:35 PM	You're forgetting the -2 con, which for a spellcaster is a big deal. The thing to do though is to NOT look like a spellcaster. Dress in livery, carry around a ledger and an enormous (for you) backpack. The monsters will think you're small and tastey, but inteligent enimies may say "oh, its just a kobold"... at least untill you let loose with the fireballing.
FreezieFreak 03-27-05, 08:16 PM	Hmm might just add a level of Dragon Slayer and Spellsword and get a big mithril armor with the twilight ability and of course add inn the levels of dragon disciple, and then get the Dragon Cohort feat so that i can be riding a black dragon. Just imagine the gishie kobold sorceror charging against you mounted on his black dragon while breathing acid like crazy :D Better look at those sorceror and gish threads so that the killing can begin. Could also go the Arcane trickster road as it suits the kobold a little more. Ahh so many options and so little levels to cram it all into...
Ryzouken 03-29-05, 06:19 AM	Lv 1 Kobold. Assume the following: 20 Dex. Swashbuckler. Starting Feat is Phalanx Fighting. Swashbuckler grants Weapon Finesse. For this example we'll utilize a short sword. Now. Armor it up with Studded Leather Armor and a Hvy Steel Shield. We now have a kobold with +1 Size +1 Nat Armor +3 Armor +3 Shield (Phalanx adds +1 whenusing a light weapon and a heavy shield) +5 Dex Mod all to AC. That's 23. Assume further a bit of collaboration with fellow PC's. Phalanx Fighting allows the creation of a Shield Wall for +2 AC and +1 Reflex. Fight Defensively in a Shield Wall. Your AC balloons up to a whopping 27 AC at level 1. Add a few levels in until we're about sixth level. Assume DM approval for the Leadership feat. You gain a bunch of level 1 followers. Give them all Phalanx Fighting as their starting feat. Armor them too. You also gain a cohort. Give her Phalanx Fighting. make her a Cleric. You now have a formation of nine fighting kobolds (or whatever) in a Roman Shield Wall giving all of you at least 27 AC. Not bad for a bunch of followers. Granted, you're a kobold. You aren't exactly dishing out damage, but when you can afford Mithral Shirts and Mithral Hvy Shields, all of a sudden you don't really have to. Following this basic idea, a group of three fifth level kobolds and a fifth level cleric were able to take out an eight headed hydra. And our cleric never attacked. We each had AC in excess of 30 and our Hp was high enough that even if the hydra DID hit, we survived the hit long enough for the cleric to heal. My full build for these guys is: 1/2 Shadow Dragon (3) Kobold (0) Swashbuckler (3) Fighter (4) Duelist (10) Big Bad AC Mongering Roman Kobolds. I love Kobolds too.
Ivarrius 03-29-05, 06:43 AM	I am pretty sure that swashbuckler doesn't get Heavy Steel Shield proficiency.
TheMrBlack 03-29-05, 08:21 AM	Kobolds Rock!
GrayC63 03-29-05, 11:31 PM	I’ve never posted here before, but my husband and one of our gaming friends both read this thread and suggested that I post about my somewhat recently created (but already beloved) kobold swashbuckler/rogue. This topic is kind of made for me. My kobold is not only optimized (thanks in large part to my husband), but she has even been declared a bit broken (which I find extraordinarily amusing). I am not a stat person myself so I came up with a character concept first. I love playing unlikely heroes, and I asked myself what kind of hero a kobold was likely to be. My answer? Zorro, of course. I wrote up a lengthy and colorful character history. The party I was joining had a bit of a need for a face and a rogue (and I play rogues almost exclusively). My husband declared he would optimize the character to fit both her role and my character concept. Stats and character quickly meshed, and Meah Zelabeni’Zilnn was born. Meah is a desert kobold (an Unearthed Arcana racial variant). Desert kobolds exchange the -2 Con for a -2 Wis, but keep the -4 Str and +2 Dex. They also don’t get the kobolds’ racial bonus to the Profession (Mining) skill because they don’t live underground like other kobolds. However, they also don’t suffer their kinfolk’s sensitivity to light. Their favored class is Rogue, not Sorcerer. They get some minor benefits with regard to heat for being a desert race. Meah was created with a 32 point buy, and the GM gave her a bonus feat of desert direction sense (+2) which she has yet to have any opportunity whatsoever to use. She concentrated on spending her points on dexterity (14 +2 racial bonus + 1 ability boost) and intelligence (16). With Weapon Finesse, her attack bonus becomes a fairly impressive (for a kobold) +10 when she attacks with her rapier (+4 base attack + 3 dex modifier +1 size modifier +1 weapon focus +1 magical adjustment). If she manages to sneak attack, her damage is d4 +4 (weapon modifier + insightful strike) +d6 (sneak attack)/18-20x2. Until she manages to get Improved Feint at 6th-level, she typically tries to tumble into a flanking position. In most situations she uses her Combat Expertise to improve her AC to 24 and her attack bonus is still +8 (if she is flanking, or +6 if she is not). At 6th-level, she intends to take another level of rogue. She’ll not only get Improved Feint but an extra sneak attack die (and her damage will be d4 + 2d6 +4). She was created as a 5th-level character and given 13,000 gp with which to buy her starting equipment. She purchased a +1 rapier and a handy haversack. The haversack keeps Meah from being encumbered despite her average strength and allows her to pick up quite a few bright shiny objects (which she does all the time). The +1 mithral chain shirt, glamoured not only gives Meah a high AC, but is light weight and has no negative adjustment to her skill checks. Even better, the glamour (in combination with the hat of disguise, the disguise kit, and her high disguise skill check) has the added bonus of letting her create alternate personas (discussed below). Here’s Meah’s statistics: Meah Zelabeni’Zilnn: Female desert kobold swashbuckler 3/rogue 2; CR 5; Small humanoid (kobold); HD 3d10 + 2d6 + 5; hp 37; Init +3; Spd 30 ft.; AC 20, touch 15, flat-footed 17; Base Atk +4; Grp 0; Atk or Full Atk +10 melee (d4 +1/18-20, +1 rapier) or +8 ranged (d4/x3, shortbow); SA sneak attack +1d6, insightful strike; SQ evasion, darkvision, trapfinding, grace +1, heat endurance (+4), no light sensitivity, desert direction sense (+2); AL CG; SV Fort +4, Ref +8, Will 0; Str 10, Dex 17, Con 12, Int 16, Wis 8, Cha 12. Skills and Feats: Bluff +9, Diplomacy +13, Disable Device +10 (+12, masterwork thieves’ tools), Disguise +9 (+11, disguise kit), Hide +11, Jump +8, Move Silently +7, Open Lock +10 (+12, masterwork thieves’ tools), Search +12, Sense Motive +6, Spot +3, Tumble +13; Weapon Finesse, Combat Expertise, Weapon Focus (rapier). Possessions: +1 mithral chain shirt, glamoured, +1 rapier, masterwork cold iron dagger, masterwork silver dagger, short bow, hat of disguise, Heward’s handy haversack, masterwork thieves’ tools, disguise kit. But really the joy in playing Meah is not found in her stats. As a character, she dreams of being a hero (a kobold’s typically inflated sense of worth) and won’t be deterred whatever her outward limitations may appear. Her low Wisdom has been incorporated into her character concept. She is exceedingly brave, but foolhardy and reckless. She’s made more than one miraculous tumble in an attempt to save a party member, diving into danger with heedless abandon. She has almost died on at least 3 or 4 different occasions but managed to scrape by somehow (if a little bruised). She has let (actually encouraged) the Wizard fireball her (and opponents) on three separate occasions and was barely singed. She is easily distracted by bright shiny objects. She has the attention span of a gnat, and if the other party members dawdle too long or don’t keep track of her, then she invariably wanders off into some new (and deadly) adventure. One of her flaws is her low Wisdom (Listen -1, Will 0), and she has failed more than one saving throw against illusions and mind-altering affects. In line with her character concept as The Kobold Zorro, Meah is working her way toward becoming a Blade Bravo (from Races of Stone). The GM agreed to waive the gnome racial requirement. She’s looking forward to the day when she can Goad creatures big enough to snap her in two (most everything). In fact, even though she doesn’t have Goad yet, she taunts many opponents who tend to snicker at and ignore the little kobold. She is a surprisingly good fighter against humanoid opponents, but when she can’t sneak attack (undead suck!) or faces something with high damage resistance, she is clearly at a disadvantage. She’s not perfect, but even still, she remains great fun to play because, in those situations, she tries to protect the wizard, rushes headlong into danger to try and draw attacks away from the rest of the party, and/or tumble behind enemy lines to create flanking opportunities for the party fighters. Courtesy of my husband, here is Meah’s planned class progression: 1 Rogue 1 Sneak Attack 1D6, Trapfinding, Feat - Combat Expertise 2 Swashbuckler 1 Weapon Finese 3 Swashbuckler 2 Grace +1, Feat - Weapon Focus (Rapier) 4 Rogue 2 Evasion, +1 Dex 5 Swashbuckler 3 Insightful Strike 6 Rogue 3 Sneak Attack 2D6, Trap Sense +1, Feat - Improved Feint 7 Blade Bravo 1 Flourish, Goad 8 Rogue 4 Uncanny Dodge, +1 Dex 9 Blade Bravo 2 Mobile Fighting, Feat - Improved Critical 10 Rogue 5 Sneak Attack 3D6 When not in combat, Meah has even more fun. First, with her high dexterity and intelligence, she has good rogue skills and has no fear in being in the front of the party searching for traps, secret doors, and generally things that will eat her. Second, with her better than average charisma (and good diplomacy, bluff, disguise, and sense motive checks), Meah is actually the party face! Meah tends to lie at the drop of a hat (but never maliciously) and loves to tell tall tales. A surprising number of people believe her. Using her hat of disguise (which for flavor looks like a mask), disguise kit, and the glamour on her armor, she has created a variety of false identities (among others, a dashing halfling, a dour gnome, and even a human child) to hide her secret identity as a kobold (and a kobold hero to boot!). In her most recent adventure, set in a jungle, she became Camo-Meah by donning “camouflage” (she glamoured her armor green, painted her face in a jungle hue, and even used the hat of disguise to make her skin green because her normal skin color is a variety of browns and desert hues). She became a sniper by hiding in the thick foliage and using her short bow to surprise the “friendly natives” who insisted on “welcoming” the party as they trekked through the jungle. Meah is truly a fun character to play, but optimized as well for her role as the party face, the party rogue, and a secondary fighter. I’ve enjoyed her so much that Meah has actually been re-created as a second character in a high-powered Eberron campaign as a 3rd-level gestalt swashbuckler/rogue who can often do more damage than the 3rd-level gestalt dwarf fighter/cleric. Gestalt Meah is really, really fun. All of this is to say that, with a little creativity, IMO even the lowly kobold can be both optimized and plain good fun. Sorry for the length of the post. I get a bit carried away when I am rhapsodizing about the joys of playing a kobold.
Sentient 03-30-05, 02:34 AM	I cannot, for the life of me, imagine a kobold wearing a mask. great story, though! real inspiring.