Kobold
"Deep within your skinny, scaly chest burns the certainty that you were once a dragon - and that if you amass enough wealth and power, you will be again."
Though few of these tiny dragonkin become adventurers, they have the following traits. (Italics for details for a homebrew ruleset, ignore)
- Ability Score Increase. Your Dexterity score increases by 2. (8)
- Age. Kobolds reach adulthood at age 6 and can live well over 200, but rarely do so.
- Alignment. Kobolds tend to be fundamentally selfish, making them evil, but their reliance on the strength of their group makes them trend toward law.
- Size. Kobolds are between 2 and 3 feet tall and weigh between 25 and 35 pounds. Your size is Small. Your racial hit die is a d6. (0)
- Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet. (0)
- Flighty. As a reaction to a hostile creature ending its turn within 5 feet of you, you may move 10 feet directly away from that creature, without provoking opportunity attacks from it. (3ish)
- Darkvision. You can see in dim light within 60 feet of you as if it were bright light. (1)
- Deepsight. You can see and in darkness within 60 feet of you as if it were dim light. You can't discern color in darkness, only shades of gray. (2)
- Light Sensitivity. You have disadvantage on attack rolls and on Wisdom (Perception) checks that rely on sight when you, the target of your attack, or whatever you are trying to perceive is in very bright light such as direct sunlight and more than 60 feet away from you. (-1-2)
- Kobold Weapon Training. You are proficient with the shortspear, and the heavy spear is considered a simple weapon for you. Both weapons have the finesse property when you use them. (2-3)
- Tunnel Fighter. When you are squeezing through a space, your attacks do not have disadvantage, and attacks against you do not have advantage. (0-1)
- Languages. You can speak, read, and write Draconic and one other language. (0)
- Talent. Ordinary kobolds tend not to become adventurers - the ones who do usually were something exceptional even before that. Unless looking for a challenge, choose one of the following options.
(14-18)
Variant: Weak but skilled
If you prefer your races more impactful and min-maxing friendly, have kobold characters suffer a -2 reduction to Strength but double the ability increase granted by the chosen talent.
Scaleguard
The largest of their kin (though not by much), Scaleguard are the kobolds who inherited (or were deliberately imbued with) a measure of draconic resilience. They are equally likely to be bold protectors as bullying tyrants.
- Ability Score Increase. Your Constitution score increases by 1. (4)
- Dragon Scale. When you aren't wearing armor, your AC is 10 + your Dexterity modifier + half your proficiency bonus (rounded up). You can use your natural armor to determine your AC if the armor you wear would leave you with a lower AC. A shield's benefits apply as normal while you use your natural armor. (3)
- Dragon Heart. Despite your flighty nature, there is a defiant spark within you which feeds on adversity. When you succeed on a saving throw, you have advantage on the next attack or saving throw you make before the start of your next turn. (3ish?)
(24-28)
Scavenger
Scouring humanoid settlements for anything useful and abandoned (or at least insufficiently guarded) is a common kobold activity, but their warrens are abuzz with tales of true masters of the craft - those who can calm any beast, deceive any guard, open any door and, their deeds done, disappear into the crowd with nary a trace.
- Ability Score Increase. Your Wisdom score increases by 1. (4)
- Naturally Stealthy. You can attempt to hide even when you are obscured only by a creature that is at least one size larger than you. (4)
- Quick Witted. You are proficient in thieves' tools or one of the following skills of your choice: Animal Handling, Sleight of Hand, Stealth, Investigation, Insight, Deception. (3ish)
- Extra Language. You can read, speak, and write one additional language of your choice. (1)
(26-30)
Skirmisher
Lacking in strength and stature, kobolds often rely on numbers and teamwork in a fight. Woe betide those who run across a kobold that does have the strength to combine with those talents.
- Ability Score Increase. Your Strength score increases by 1. (3 - antisynergy)
- Gang Up. If you attack a creature with advantage on the roll, you can deal additional damage equal to your proficiency modifier if you hit. If you do, you cannot deal this extra damage to that creature until it completes a long rest. (3ish)
- Pile On. If you attack a creature on your turn, you can use the help action to assist a creature of your choice to attack the same target as a bonus action. Once a creature has benefited from this help action, it cannot do so until it completed a long rest. (4ish)
(24-28ish)
Sorcerous
Occasionally, a kobold inherits a bit of the magic that is their distant draconic forbearers' birthright. Whether it manifests as the ability to spit bolts of fire or as more traditional spellcasting, such gifts are the subject of awe and envy from their peers.
- Ability Score Increase. Your Charisma score increases by 1. (4)
- Draconic Magic. You know one cantrip of your choice from the Sorcerer spell list. When you reach 3rd level, you may choose a 1-st level spell from the Sorcerer spell list, and cast it once with this trait, regaining the ability to do so when you finish a long rest. Charisma is your spellcasting ability for these spells. If a chosen spell deals fire, cold, lightning, acid or poison damage, you can cast it without providing material components, and you can perform its somatic components even if your hands are bound or full. (5-7)
(23-30)
Trapper
Kobolds are infamous for their skills in trapmaking. Inventing, creating and maintaining these traps requires a particular mixture of creative spark, patient diligence, mad genius and, occasionally, reflexes bordering on the supernatural.
- Ability Score Increase. Your Intelligence score increases by 1. (4)
- Trapper's Tools. You are proficient with one set of artisan's tools of your choice. (1)
- Trapper's Expertise. You can double your proficiency bonus when using artisan's tools, thieves' tools or Intelligence (Investigation) to set, disarm, or figure out the workings of a trap. (2)
- Trapper's Intuition. Your continued survival around your own creations is testament to seemingly developing a sixth sense for danger. When forced to make a Dexterity saving throw, you can drop prone as a reaction to give yourself advantage on the roll. If the saving throw lets you take half damage on a success, you instead take no damage if you succeed on the saving throw, and only half damage if you fail. Once you use this feature, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest. (3ish?)
(24-28)
Urd
A rare kobold offshoot, the winged urd are believed to be blessed by the traitorous and cowardly god Kuraulyek, and thus often shunned in kobold society. Or perhaps it's simple envy.
- Wings
- That's it
- No ASI.
- Just a 30ft flight speed (16)
(30-34)
On the shoulders of dragons
Kobolds, alongside their big cousins the dragonborn, are perhaps the single most often reworked race. And why wouldn't they? The Volo's entry for them is an abomination, with a laughingstock ability that doesn't even make sense (why would it automatically work? Why use limited?) and what little power they have put into an ability that near-completely removes any play with Advantage from the game for this character.
Having spent some time searching for a kobold remake that would work for me, I haven't found one that was quite right, but at the same time, it'd be disingenuous of me not to credit the homebrews without which this one would not have existed.
Thus, in no particular order, I wish to thank and, in case they suit you better, recommend you see:
- d'Artagnan / /u/Fazhira whose kobold race quite clearly formed the backbone of this one - in particular, the subraces and the idea of a caster kobold spitting firebolts
- /u/nielspeterdejong whose kobold player race (revised) has the best ability name in Fleeting Courage and great art.
- /u/elevatorampage whose The Kobold v3.0 has some great personality tables and has a neat random consumable crafting feature I meant to steal for the Tinker but ultimately didn't.
- thoroughlysketchy, whose Detect Greater Balance gave me the idea to tweak but keep the sensitivity and to help them squeeze.
- other kobold
- for reasons you don't readily discuss, you aren't welcome back
- you're looking to free your god, or failing that, for a god who isn't trapped
- defending your warren starts far away from it
- actually a dragon