Topic: kobolds and Lizard men

[Elton Robb]

I had to remake the kobold from the Goblin to a Reptilian so that kobolds in my fantasy world would stay consistent with Pathfinder/D&D kobolds.  So, there's some artistic license.

But the real question is, how many of you have played lizardmen PCs?  I'm pretty sure a lot of DMs i know have used Kobolds and lizard men to great effect, though.

[markc]

 I had a friend play a "frogman" from the race book after getting very excited about the lizardman. The frogman worked out well in a SM:P game so I do not have any real good info for a fantasy game.
MDC

[Thom @ ICE]

I have played lizardmen PC's (well actually one time it was due to a reincarnation gone wrong)....     I've also played reptilian races in more futuristic campaigns.  If you'd like some info about the experiences just ask...

As for Kobolds, there is no way a kobold should be considered reptilian. My past research has always indicated Kobolds are sprites or fae folk from Germanic folklore.   They are related to gnomes and dwarves.  I know that D&D 3e decided to connect them to Dragons and it seems to have continued in that direction.... For me, I prefer to stay consistent with folklore. 

[OLF, i.e. Olf Le Fol]

As for Kobolds, there is no way a kobold should be considered reptilian. My past research has always indicated Kobolds are sprites or fae folk from Germanic folklore.   They are related to gnomes and dwarves.  I know that D&D 3e decided to connect them to Dragons and it seems to have continued in that direction....

Though it's wikipedia so people would be best with reading the sources it mentions, according to the wiki entry about kobolds, they could be both... and more. I think the most important part is "Kobolds are spirits and, as such, part of a spiritual realm. However, as with other European spirits, they often dwell among the living." meaning kobolds could take just about any physical form.

For me, I prefer to stay consistent with folklore.

You know, folklore isn't much consistent with itself, with variations of the same depending on the region and time period.

But the real question is, how many of you have played lizardmen PCs? 

In my world, lizardmen can only be played as NPCs, being subservants to a dragon and all.

"In accordance with his powers, a dragon has the faculty to create for himself servants, or to take ones. (...)
The first kind of servants a dragon owns is the lizardman. As soon as he reaches adulthood, a dragon gains the ability to create lizardmen. (...)"

[providence13]

I have played lizardmen PC's (well actually one time it was due to a reincarnation gone wrong)....    

I remember an incident like this in an old AD&D npc book. http://grognardia.blogspot.com/2009/04/retrospective-rogues-gallery_16.html

I definitely keep with the old D&D version of kobolds.
I use Races and Cultures:Underground racial stats. Goblin reptile dogs, I guess.

I haven't played a Lizardman, but the PC's have been exposed and know that they aren't mindless brutes waiting to fall on their swords. Language, writing, culture, religion.. they are fleshed out enough that you could play one.

[jdale]

I played a lizardman, of a small chameleon breed, in a non-RM game. He was small (3'3") but quick and smart. He wore spectacles not because of a vision problem but because it forced people to reassess their expectations. A bit of a con man actually... Class in RM probably would have been Dabbler.

[Elton Robb]

According to sacred texts:

"THE Kobold is exactly the same being as the Danish Nis, and Scottish Brownie, and English Hobgoblin. He performs the very same services for the family to whom he attaches himself."

Exactly the same.

Wikipedia says that "Although usually invisible, a kobold can materialise in the form of an animal, fire, a human being, and a mundane object."

Sounds like a pooka to me.

Actually what does it matter if they look like Pathfinder's kobolds or this?



I prefer my lizard men to look like this:



It's a little big.

Plus, Patrick Reichel was good enough to grant permission.  It's a bit ironic, though, you can go up to a Copyright holder and ask and they say yea or nay.  But if you go up to a CC user who doesn't under stand what CC means, it can get confusing.

[jdale]

There are numerous examples of how D&D used the names of mythological creatures for new things. E.g. Gorgon and Medusa.

If you want multiple types of lizardmen, some large and some small, I don't know that Kobold is a particularly bad name for the small ones, even if it is not the original meaning. There's already quite a difference in how Brownie and Hobgoblin have been interpreted.

[yammahoper]

I have not played any variety of lizardman/kobold since RuneQuest in the early 80's, in which they were called Dragonewts.  I played several actually, as did others.   They were not very hard to kill with low Con and light armor, but eventaully I got one strong enough to be reincarnated into the next stage of Dragonewt, a tougher warrior.  I never did make priesthood.

DnD's Kobold/Dragon relationship always reminded me of RQ. 

Kobolds as feys...I have yet to have a great gaming exp with feys as players, but your experience may vary.

[OLF, i.e. Olf Le Fol]

According to sacred texts:

Which "sacred texts"?

[Elton Robb]

According to sacred texts:

Which "sacred texts"?

Internet sacred text archive.

"Welcome to the largest freely available archive of online books about religion, mythology, folklore and the esoteric on the Internet. The site is dedicated to religious tolerance and scholarship, and has the largest readership of any similar site on the web."

http://www.sacred-texts.com/