Brazen Wolfe Tabletop

Kobold Lairs

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The walls of the cavern passageways are crudely chiselled away, not neatly dug like a dwarf’s halls or other humanoids races. The passage floor was rough and uneven and at points the cut rock and dirt was sharp enough to slice through boot or pierce the skin. Not a problem for the scaled foot of a kobold but for humans, elves and other surface dwelling races it was a hazardous process.

The trek was not without other hazards though. Traps were laid out at an infuriatingly random nature where the trap itself was decided by rolling the dice. Pit fall traps littered the halls but not in a way where you couldn’t avoid them if you knew what to look for. Ceilings with trapdoors would randomly open with scorpions, spiders or snakes falling out of them and unto the people underneath, dart or arrow traps would shoot forth from what appeared to be normal cracks in the wall. But these were the easy ones, the worst where the rooms or pits with creatures within. Slimes, gelatinous cubes, or even a giant ant. Many different traps awaited those who sought out the kobolds lair.

But after he traps died down, and more random ones were found, the smell of the nest would waft from the passage. A mixture of dog and musky-reptilian would hit the adventurers exploring the cave and the sound of yipping and chattering in draconic could be heard. But the closer you get to the nest the more likely you are to be ambushed. Not just clever with concealing traps the Kobolds are clever with concealing themselves. Hidden ledges enable a lookout to watch for intruders so they can drop down onto creatures, or humanoids who invade.

Not strong in single numbers the Kobolds are quick to sound the alarm to warn the others and to seek aid. Although they appear cowardly they are distant half-cousins of dragons and so their cunning should not be ignored. The first thing with the kobolds lair defences is the traps, then its its guards. But these guards are not like the guards for a city, oh no. These have the keys to the cages that release captured beasts that have been teased and starved so they are hungry enough to attack just about anything.

These animals are generally medium or large and range from wolves and bears to giant frogs and giant insects; such as centipedes and scorpions. These creatures double as a source of food when time gets rough but they are never far from these animals when they want to get more.

The kobolds sleep in communal piles, nests if you will. These enable them to stay warm and conserve energy. It also makes them difficult to sneak up on take take out one by one. Having said that they are a fantastic target for an area of affect spell that would incinerate, enhance or enthral several of them at once. While not true dragons, or members of the family at all, they do have a fondness for gold and treasure. This may be due to their anticipation of a giving it as a bargaining chip to stronger humanoids (or a dragon) to spare their lives or, as payment for protection from something bigger with more teeth, scales and wings.

What ever the situation with these little creatures the kobold is a worthy adversary, cunning and tricky while being smart enough to know when they can not win but frightened enough to fight frantically in the hope of saving their own skin by luck.

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