Kobold Wizard Fluff Help (3.5)

[Element Zero]

I am starting a new game where I'll be running a Kobold Conjuror, 1st level. I'm planning on taking the Collegiate Wizard feat (no Dragonwrought), but I'm having a hard time trying to think of/find a magical college that I think would take a Kobold student. Anyone have any suggestions to help me build my character's background?

[Gavinfoxx]

One run by a Tome Dragon, of course.

[Element Zero]

My God, I can't believe that, in my haste, I forgot to mention the most important part! I'm playing in the Forgotten Realms! A college in the -Forgotten Realms- that would take a kobold student. If such a thing exists.

[Amoren]

One that had a student exchange program with a dragon? As in, students that got into too much trouble were sent to go serve a dragon under threat of fiery death while the dragon got some of its kobold minions trained in wizardry on the side. :P

[Namfuak]

I don't think it would be all that far-fetched to say that you were trained by a school for the "dragon" races with a dragon headmaster. Alternatively, since apparently your party isn't going to kill you on sight for being a kobold, maybe kobolds aren't killed on sight in your particular FR setting, so you could have studied at any old wizard college.

[umbergod]

Any true wizard's college, devoted purely to the teaching and learning of arcane magic, will ignore an applicant's race and instead pay attention to said applicant's skills and aptitude.

[Ravens_cry]

Maybe you are self taught. Your tribe raided a caravan full of books destined for a wizards library, but you were able to convince them to let you read them instead of burning them for warmth.

[kharmakazy]

Good will hunting kobold.

They had you as a specimen for some manner of magic lesson when you inadvertently learned the spell being taught before any of the students. Flabbergasted by this turn of events the teacher sponsors your probationary membership pending you not eating any of the students.

[Akal Saris]

Some more ideas:

1. You were previously X race before being reincarnated as a kobold.
2. The Saurians (dinosaur-people...) would probably accept a kobold to their school in the realms, run by Triceratops-people.
3. The Cult of the Dragon, a group of crazy nutjobs that want to create skeletal super-dragons, would probably accept a kobold wizard to their top secret school of evil necromancy.

[Slipperychicken]

You convinced your Dragon master to call in a "favor" with the Wizard's College. However, in return, the Dragon commanded that you build a library and teach Wizardry in the Kobold dens (greatly improving the Kobold's magic-arsenal). You already taught a few of your tribe the bare basics (1st level spells), but you need to adventure to improve your understanding of Magic. The Dragon went through a lot of trouble to get you educated, and expects results. Do not disappoint him.

You convinced people you were a Dragonborn Halfling, and not a Kobold. Word spread, and you eventually didn't need to lie any more.

After a well-liked Halfling student died in a tragic sling-related accident, you convinced people that you were him, Reincarnated as a Kobold. The Halfling's friends keep running into you, expecting you to be someone else, and hilarity ensues as you struggle to maintain the facade.

[Spuddles]

Any true wizard's college, devoted purely to the teaching and learning of arcane magic, will ignore an applicant's race and instead pay attention to said applicant's skills and aptitude.

This.

Are the forgotten realms particularly racist?
Do monsters not have their own academies?

[Darrin]

This.

Are the forgotten realms particularly racist?
Do monsters not have their own academies?

Forgotten Realms is somewhat notorious for every innkeeper/barmaid being a retired adventurer with 15-20 wizard levels. A kobold at a wizard academy would barely elicit a "Ho-hum... hey, did Mystra get assassinated again this tenday, or is that every other tenday?"

[Diarmuid]

If you're an abnormal kobold and you're generally benevelent, then the college in Silverymoon might work for you. Silverymoon is a very racially blind place if you're generally considered to be a "good person".

[Psyren]

Any true wizard's college, devoted purely to the teaching and learning of arcane magic, will ignore an applicant's race and instead pay attention to said applicant's skills and aptitude.

This. I don't see any racial requirements on Candlekeep, for instance.

In practice, obviously a monstrous wizard would get picked on - few apprentices would consider their goblin classmate to be an equal, for instance - but a merit-focused headmaster would be unlikely to care. He wouldn't even have to be Good (though that would help) - admitting the kobold doesn't mean he has to be particularly nice or supportive.

[Slipperychicken]

This. I don't see any racial requirements on Candlekeep, for instance.

In practice, obviously a monstrous wizard would get picked on - few apprentices would consider their goblin classmate to be an equal, for instance - but a merit-focused headmaster would be unlikely to care. He wouldn't even have to be Good (though that would help) - admitting the kobold doesn't mean he has to be particularly nice or supportive.

Bonus points if you were one of the first nine Kobolds admitted to the school as part of a controversial racial-integration program, and you all came from a tribe called Little Rock.



Reference to the American civil rights movement's Little Rock Nine.

[oldkingkoal]

I ran into a problem a little similar to this one time, this is what I came up with.
Kobolds tend towards sorcery, which is a natural thing most characters are kinda born with right? So you could RP it as the kobold was obsessed with learning about magic but because he lacked the knack for sorcery he had no way of learning magic, being in a culture that generally ignored magic that was not innately draconic in origin.
If I remember correctly in the races of the dragon book Kobold warrens tend to have ancient historical writings on their walls. Perhaps a wizard on a mission from a collage to investigate said markings convinced the warren to allow him to view their history. The kobold meets the wizard and learns from him that magic can be learned and not always something you are born with. When the wizard leaves the kobold convinced him to take him with him.

EDIT: oh right forgotten realms, Yeah I got no clue on the kobold lore in forgotten relms, my bad.

[ThiagoMartell]

Any true wizard's college, devoted purely to the teaching and learning of arcane magic, will ignore an applicant's race and instead pay attention to said applicant's skills and aptitude.

You're not really familiar with FR, right.

[Duke of URL]

An arcane college with a really expansive and aggressive "diversity recruiting" department.

[umbergod]

You're not really familiar with FR, right.

You're not really familiar with DM fiat, right. Not every square inch of FR is bound in inexplicable, unbending lore. It is quite easy to add a wizard school/college that would gladly take a brilliant kobold who shows an interest in wizardry.

[kharmakazy]

You're not really familiar with DM fiat, right. Not every square inch of FR is bound in inexplicable, unbending lore. It is quite easy to add a wizard school/college that would gladly take a brilliant kobold who shows an interest in wizardry.

In fairness, he asked for help finding a college, not creating a new college.

[Psyren]

You're not really familiar with FR, right.

Hey, it's not like he's trying to do an internship on Evermeet :smalltongue:

I find it tough to swallow that no wizards would take him.

[ThiagoMartell]

In fairness, he asked for help finding a college, not creating a new college.

Indeed. Otherwise, he wouldn't need to ask for help. You don't need any help to say "I come from the kobold wizard college".



Hey, it's not like he's trying to do an internship on Evermeet :smalltongue:

I find it tough to swallow that no wizards would take him.
I believe many wizards would take him, but no official FR colleges would.

[Psyren]

I believe many wizards would take him, but no official FR colleges would.

Again - I can find no race restrictions on Candlekeep. Or the Harpers. Or Church of Mystra/Azuth. (The latter would largely be learning from MTs, but still, wizards are wizards even if they take crappy PrCs.)

For a darker spin, there are rules for getting some Greyhawk institutions into Faerun, e.g. Nightshade Covenant, which (a) has wizards and (b) welcomes anyone with the Light Sensitivity racial.

[ThiagoMartell]

Again - I can find no race restrictions on Candlekeep. Or the Harpers. Or Church of Mystra/Azuth. (The latter would largely be learning from MTs, but still, wizards are wizards even if they take crappy PrCs.)


Those are not wizard colleges.

[Psyren]

Those are not wizard colleges.

"Formal school for wizards" is more than broad enough - especially in Candlekeep's case, which explicitly has classes/curriculums etc.

[ThiagoMartell]

"Formal school for wizards" is more than broad enough - especially in Candlekeep's case, which explicitly has classes/curriculums etc.

That's not what the OP asked for, though.
If you want to have broad readings, "formal wizard school" could be two apprentices under a senior wizard.

[Psyren]

That's not what the OP asked for, though.
If you want to have broad readings, "formal wizard school" could be two apprentices under a senior wizard.

What he ultimately wants is to be able to qualify for the feat. "Formal wizard school" is the requirement, and even if no other examples qualify, Candlekeep absolutely does.

[umbergod]

Those are not wizard colleges.

Name the FR wizard colleges for us then please, if you can say for certainty what is and isn't a wizard college/school in the FR setting.

[danzibr]

Good will hunting kobold.

They had you as a specimen for some manner of magic lesson when you inadvertently learned the spell being taught before any of the students. Flabbergasted by this turn of events the teacher sponsors your probationary membership pending you not eating any of the students.
Ha. I like this one.

[ThiagoMartell]

Name the FR wizard colleges for us then please, if you can say for certainty what is and isn't a wizard college/school in the FR setting.

The only ones I remember are the academy in Silverymoon and the wizard college in Mulhorand.
I'm pretty sure there is one in Evermeet and there should be one in Halruaa as well.

[Gavinfoxx]

So that's four wizard colleges in all of Faerun, then?

[umbergod]

Do the Harpell's ever train someone not of their family? If so, I would say that counts as a school, having an entire family of wizards teaching you magic.

[Psyren]

So that's four wizard colleges in all of Faerun, then?

No, there's more than that - according to Magic of Faerun, every Wizard's Guild doubles as a wizard school. It uses the Silverymoon one (which was mentioned) and the mage guild in Waterdeep (which was not mentioned) as examples.