MercuryAlloy
2021-04-11, 04:03 PM
The Dirty Bastards tribe is a tribe of outcast and pariah kobolds, the "those who stole from their own kind", those who lost the tribe in the attack of adventurers or plague, grown-up circus children and runaway slaves from drow and goblins. The tribe consist of a few unrelated bands, who share only the desperation and common belief – Dirty Bastards believe the entire world to be at war with them and for them that justifies any means.
This belief in total war against kobolds explains all their behaviour: everyone must know how to hold the weapon, everyone must think of survival of the tribes above everything else, there is no art in these tribes but the art of war, etc. Yes, growing the food is good for the tribe, but stealing the food not only good for the tribe, but also makes it worse for the enemy, so you must stole and burn everything you can't stole – that's how Dirty Bastard thinks. Dirty Bastards can make an alliances or an agreement with other factions, but they stub the former ally in the back the moment they won't need them, because they "know" everyone else want to destroy them and this alliance merely a way to trick them into some kind of trap and it will take a lot of effort to make them see anyone, but kobold and dragon, as someone more than an enemy or a trickable enemy.
So that's Dirty Bastards for you. And it's time to show the stats. I tried to make them something outstandingly nasty and make the battles with them more mobile, so I double the abilities and cut HP in half. Enjoy!
https://sun9-22.userapi.com/impg/gjPrOLAHH98jAH_dGN_v_iOaESbpzPo7iKMeYg/ouIfHulVjUw.jpg?size=617x655&quality=96&sign=74746871c04e0de6147f5fd03f193c8d&type=album
Tactics
At the start of encounter servants roughly equally splits between melee and range, changing the role according the situation. Kobold-servants tries to stays in a shadows and retreat after each melee attack, using Shifty . They will try to lure the opponent into the traps and ambushes of the higher caste. Alternatively they may retreat into the different directions trying to split the group.
Behavior
Servant caste can be founded almost exclusively nearby the lair in the “core land” of the tribe and only during the night. They gather mushrooms, herbs, berries, and checking the traps, so following them may be a good way to locate the outside traps and lair.
They hold the ground only if they outnumber the enemy a least 2 to 1, otherwise retreating into the lair. In fact, unless the tribe is in the active war actions, they will leave the warding from trespassers to other casts. Note, however, that attack of adventurers targeting the tribe can be something required active war actions for the kobolds.
Inside the lair they cook, clean, sew, making the weapon, etc., so most rooms are used by them and any unusual noise in the lair will likely attract few more servants from nearby rooms, unless the mundane life in the tribe is stopped.
However if the war actions has started they will participate the ambushes and skirmishes with others, often ambushing from the trees, as the smallest and lightest caste.
https://sun9-13.userapi.com/impg/6I9GSL3FCi_JyaUu14jyhQOZTftDT0ryJd0xjA/fRYJHARf0gw.jpg?size=553x653&quality=96&sign=384327af640889e21df8517b969750c1&type=album
Tactics
Kobold-hunter start the battle from Special shot and prefers to act simultaneously with other kobolds to gain maximum bonus from Mob attack and Combat advantage, while still using hit and run tactics with Shifty. If severely harmed or if he feels that enemy is too strong in melee, he switches to range combat, leaving Caltrops between the enemy and himself. He also uses Caltrops to guide enemy by the “right” way, the one with the trap, by blocking others.
Behavior
Hunter caste is the caste that performs most duties outside the lair during the day. They hunt, rob the wagons, guarding the watchtowers and patrolling the land. Since everything outside the “core lands” are enemy territory they always are on the alert. Unlike servants they may attack anyone who just wanders around if they the opportunity presents itself, but more likely they will follow the intruders to their camp and attack during the night or preparing the ambush, burying themselves in the dirt and old leaves.
They often crave marks on the trees and rocks near the ground for each other, marking the paths to the important or dangerous locations or the way they followed the intruders and their description. In the forest, where tribe only arrived it required Perception DC 15 check to spot any mark, but in the forests, where the tribe stayed for a long time almost every root covered in symbols, making it hard to determine what is new for those who don’t live here.
https://sun9-1.userapi.com/impg/bm5jTk-Oqa0gXaoUwgxDZh2nZbF6kjGSWLtg0A/t-wE1jZ79Vo.jpg?size=532x143&quality=96&sign=a16600f0cdefe12bc4cbb88d5892170d&type=album
https://sun9-48.userapi.com/impg/88PvafIMMx4koxrPbYQmsq1H799WuhlAFQNxCQ/PYtEjBI8Llo.jpg?size=480x272&quality=96&sign=339fc9adcf1e361fea9aa25c507f5f79&type=album
Examples of marks.
To communicate secretly, kobold hunters imitates the sound of birds. Moreover they use different sounds during the day and the night. It require Nature DC 8 Nature DC 13 to identify that it’s not a real bird.
Note that both marks and bird signals known to castes higher then hunters, but not to the servants, the higher castes keep it in secret.
Night signals:
Whip-poor-will sound – “Time to attack!”.
Barred owl – “Dangerous intruders!”
Screech owl – Check call
Common loon – “They are close!”
Sandpiper – “I killed/deal with him!”
Barn owl – “Retreating!”
Tawny owl – “Non-humanoid danger!”
Cuckoo bird – for number
Day signals:
Black woodpecker – “Danger!””
Cuckoo bird – for number
Kingfisher – “Retreating”
https://sun9-66.userapi.com/impg/cCWhy9I2U0fjqywYTiLz2a6sc3C6VnD4ZMAmEg/jcaZaoPWDXw.jpg?size=509x161&quality=96&sign=e74dadcac27c7a4b5472d681e1d8eaac&type=album
Sorry this post took a bit longer than I thought so other two kobolds will be later.
But if you playing the dark and grim game, you can add the next dark secret for kobolds: caste are age-dependent. Servants are those who 6-9 years old and Hunters 9-11. That's where size difference came from and why kobolds don't let the servants far from lair.
This belief in total war against kobolds explains all their behaviour: everyone must know how to hold the weapon, everyone must think of survival of the tribes above everything else, there is no art in these tribes but the art of war, etc. Yes, growing the food is good for the tribe, but stealing the food not only good for the tribe, but also makes it worse for the enemy, so you must stole and burn everything you can't stole – that's how Dirty Bastard thinks. Dirty Bastards can make an alliances or an agreement with other factions, but they stub the former ally in the back the moment they won't need them, because they "know" everyone else want to destroy them and this alliance merely a way to trick them into some kind of trap and it will take a lot of effort to make them see anyone, but kobold and dragon, as someone more than an enemy or a trickable enemy.
So that's Dirty Bastards for you. And it's time to show the stats. I tried to make them something outstandingly nasty and make the battles with them more mobile, so I double the abilities and cut HP in half. Enjoy!
https://sun9-22.userapi.com/impg/gjPrOLAHH98jAH_dGN_v_iOaESbpzPo7iKMeYg/ouIfHulVjUw.jpg?size=617x655&quality=96&sign=74746871c04e0de6147f5fd03f193c8d&type=album
Tactics
At the start of encounter servants roughly equally splits between melee and range, changing the role according the situation. Kobold-servants tries to stays in a shadows and retreat after each melee attack, using Shifty . They will try to lure the opponent into the traps and ambushes of the higher caste. Alternatively they may retreat into the different directions trying to split the group.
Behavior
Servant caste can be founded almost exclusively nearby the lair in the “core land” of the tribe and only during the night. They gather mushrooms, herbs, berries, and checking the traps, so following them may be a good way to locate the outside traps and lair.
They hold the ground only if they outnumber the enemy a least 2 to 1, otherwise retreating into the lair. In fact, unless the tribe is in the active war actions, they will leave the warding from trespassers to other casts. Note, however, that attack of adventurers targeting the tribe can be something required active war actions for the kobolds.
Inside the lair they cook, clean, sew, making the weapon, etc., so most rooms are used by them and any unusual noise in the lair will likely attract few more servants from nearby rooms, unless the mundane life in the tribe is stopped.
However if the war actions has started they will participate the ambushes and skirmishes with others, often ambushing from the trees, as the smallest and lightest caste.
https://sun9-13.userapi.com/impg/6I9GSL3FCi_JyaUu14jyhQOZTftDT0ryJd0xjA/fRYJHARf0gw.jpg?size=553x653&quality=96&sign=384327af640889e21df8517b969750c1&type=album
Tactics
Kobold-hunter start the battle from Special shot and prefers to act simultaneously with other kobolds to gain maximum bonus from Mob attack and Combat advantage, while still using hit and run tactics with Shifty. If severely harmed or if he feels that enemy is too strong in melee, he switches to range combat, leaving Caltrops between the enemy and himself. He also uses Caltrops to guide enemy by the “right” way, the one with the trap, by blocking others.
Behavior
Hunter caste is the caste that performs most duties outside the lair during the day. They hunt, rob the wagons, guarding the watchtowers and patrolling the land. Since everything outside the “core lands” are enemy territory they always are on the alert. Unlike servants they may attack anyone who just wanders around if they the opportunity presents itself, but more likely they will follow the intruders to their camp and attack during the night or preparing the ambush, burying themselves in the dirt and old leaves.
They often crave marks on the trees and rocks near the ground for each other, marking the paths to the important or dangerous locations or the way they followed the intruders and their description. In the forest, where tribe only arrived it required Perception DC 15 check to spot any mark, but in the forests, where the tribe stayed for a long time almost every root covered in symbols, making it hard to determine what is new for those who don’t live here.
https://sun9-1.userapi.com/impg/bm5jTk-Oqa0gXaoUwgxDZh2nZbF6kjGSWLtg0A/t-wE1jZ79Vo.jpg?size=532x143&quality=96&sign=a16600f0cdefe12bc4cbb88d5892170d&type=album
https://sun9-48.userapi.com/impg/88PvafIMMx4koxrPbYQmsq1H799WuhlAFQNxCQ/PYtEjBI8Llo.jpg?size=480x272&quality=96&sign=339fc9adcf1e361fea9aa25c507f5f79&type=album
Examples of marks.
To communicate secretly, kobold hunters imitates the sound of birds. Moreover they use different sounds during the day and the night. It require Nature DC 8 Nature DC 13 to identify that it’s not a real bird.
Note that both marks and bird signals known to castes higher then hunters, but not to the servants, the higher castes keep it in secret.
Night signals:
Whip-poor-will sound – “Time to attack!”.
Barred owl – “Dangerous intruders!”
Screech owl – Check call
Common loon – “They are close!”
Sandpiper – “I killed/deal with him!”
Barn owl – “Retreating!”
Tawny owl – “Non-humanoid danger!”
Cuckoo bird – for number
Day signals:
Black woodpecker – “Danger!””
Cuckoo bird – for number
Kingfisher – “Retreating”
https://sun9-66.userapi.com/impg/cCWhy9I2U0fjqywYTiLz2a6sc3C6VnD4ZMAmEg/jcaZaoPWDXw.jpg?size=509x161&quality=96&sign=e74dadcac27c7a4b5472d681e1d8eaac&type=album
Sorry this post took a bit longer than I thought so other two kobolds will be later.
But if you playing the dark and grim game, you can add the next dark secret for kobolds: caste are age-dependent. Servants are those who 6-9 years old and Hunters 9-11. That's where size difference came from and why kobolds don't let the servants far from lair.