Page 66 - Volo's Guide to Monsters

routes and who is responsible for blocking tunnels to
deter pursuit.
Kobolds feel a cool affinity or something like kinship
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for other members of their tribe, but they are rarely af- 0 ds are 1
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fectionate with each other. Two kobolds who've known llrebau,. ••ra .Ito_, to cau
each other for over a decade might consider each other
friends or enemies, but the strength of this sentiment
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is much fainter than any comparable human emotion.
Since most of their waking time is spent working, ad-
versarial kobolds rarely have opportunities to exchange
insults, let alone come to blows over their differences. teeth stolen or harvested from others in an attempt to
Kobolds choose mates primarily for convenience. make them seem older and more respectable.
Their lack of emotional bonding means they have no
Most kobold tribes avoid eating what they call "talking
concept of marriage or permanent family relationships.
meat" -intelligent creatures- because such behavior
Their eggs are placed in a common tribal hatchery with prompts retaliation. The fear of starvation can make
no effort to keep track of who each one's mother is. This them flexible about this principle, however, and if their
practice and the communal raising of the hatchlings options are either attacking such creatures or going
mean that the tribe operates like a group of cousins. hungry, kobolds are practical. A few tripes, particularly
Because they lay eggs, and the eggs don't require those in lightly populated areas, practice cannibalism,
much tending, kobold females aren't exempted from believing it is foolish to waste good meat.
war or work. Furthermore, kobolds can slowly change In any case, kobolds that eat humanoids don't simply
sex. If most males or females of a tribe are killed, some start consuming ·corpses or prisoners right after a bat-
survivors change over several months until the tribe is tle; they're more inclined to tie their victims to saplings
balanced again. In this way, the tribe can quickly repop- and slowly roast them over a fire, or put them in a giant
ulate with just a few survivors. Because of these factors, cook pot to make stew. Fortunately for the prisoners, the
kobolds don't have assigned gender roles for young or kobolds' almost comedic preparations sometimes give
adults. A leader, sorcerer, miner, or crafter is as likely to rescuers time to locate and free the captives before the
be female as male.
kobolds settle down for the main course.
GROW FAST, DIE EARLY
HATRED
Kobolds grow and mature much more swiftly than
Because the gnome god Gari Glittergold trapped the
members of other humanoid races. At 6 years old a ko-
kobold god Kurtulmak in an inescapable maze, kobolds
bold is considered an adult. Most succumb to violence,
are bitterly hateful toward gnomes. Although they usu-
accidents, or disease by age 20, but a kobold can live for
ally don't seek out gnomes to do them violence, if hostile
up to 120 years-a longevity they attribute to being dis-
kobolds encounter a mixed group of gnomes and other
tantly related to dragons. A female can lay up to six eggs humanoids, the kobolds instinctively attack the gnomes.
per year, and an egg matures for two to three months
Kobolds in battle with gnomes are much less likely to
before it hatches. run away because their hatred overrules their sense of
Kobolds don't engage in funeral ceremonies; a dead
self-preservation.
kobold's body is burned or disposed of in some other
A kobold's cautious nature doesn't mean it can't get
convenient way (or, in a cannibalistic tribe, eaten). Ko-
angry. The blood of dragons flows in its veins, and like
bolds believe that if they die in service to their tribe,
a raging drake, a kobold that is pushed too far or has its
Kurtulmak immediately sends each of them back to life
back against the wall can become a miniature storm of
as the next egg laid in the hatchery. If a particularly im-
fangs and claws as it desperately tries to defend its life.
portant or respected member of a tribe dies, the hatch-
Likewise, kinship to their own tribe can prompt kobolds
ery is closely monitored. The next egg laid is immedi-
to battle another kobold tribe for resources or territory.
ately separated from the rest and carefully protected.
Such conflicts aren't common, because two tribes will
Once it hatches, the resultant young kobold is groomed
always prefer to expand in different directions if they
to fill a position of importance.
come into contact, but they do happen.
For example, two neighboring tribes that want exclu-
FOOD AND CANNIBALISM
sive claim to a flock of mountain goats might skirmish
Although their sharp teeth would suggest they are car-
with each other every few days. Eventually the leader of
nivores, kobolds are actually omnivores, and can eat
one warring tribe realizes it is losing due to attrition and
just about anything, including meat, fruit, tree bark,
moves its tribe to another area, ceding the contested ter-
bone, leather, and eggshells (a newly hatched kobold's
ritory to its more successful neighbors.
first meal is usually its own shell). A hungry tribe leaves As demonstrated by their hatred of gnomes, kobolds
nothing behind from a kill, eating everything that's edi-
have a persecution complex and easily take offense at
ble and using the rest to make tools or adornments.
the actions or deeds of other races. They aren't forgiving
Kobolds shed teeth as they wear out and grow new
of other races, and they enjoy nursing their hatred until
ones their entire lives. Many wear their own shed teeth
they get a chance to wreak revenge on a creature or a
as jewelry, with more teeth indicating an older-and
race that has wronged them.
wiser- kobold. Some unscrupulous individuals wear