Kobold Backgrounds
T
his document outlines a comprehensive list of
seven new backgrounds to be used for your
D&D 5th Edition kobold characters or
similarly-themed characters. Always consult
with your DM before using the backgrounds
provided in this document. Make sure they
know what they're getting into beforehand.
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Table of Contents
Background Page Number
Brood Caretaker 1
Dragon Cultist 2 the Noble background listed in the PHB. You may add the
Engineer 2 additional characteristics listed below to your options, or you
Hunt Leader 3
Master Trapper 3 d10 Personality Trait
Pack Tactician 4 9 I dote over everyone no matter how old they are.
Toolmaker 4 10 I approach conflicts with a calm, soothing approach.
Brood Caretaker
You work in the hatchery where kobold eggs are laid, cared
for, and hatched, and where young kobolds learn the basics of
life in your den. Your job has always been to ensure that the
youngest and most vulnerable of your pack survive.
Skill Proficiencies. Insight, Medicine
Other Proficiencies. Herbalism Kit, and one musical
instrument of your choice.
Equipment. 3 blankets, a cooking pot, flint and tinder, a
herbalism kit, and an instrument you are proficient in.
Caretaking Specialty
d4 Specialty
1 Babysitter
2 Hatcher
3 Incubator
4 Teacher
Matriarch / Patriarch
From your work in the hatchery, you are trusted implicitly by
young kobolds. Kobolds don't have individual family units
distinct from the pack (aside from their mate), so they see you
as the closest thing to a parent. If you have been working in
the hatchery for a very long time, there may be adult kobolds
who still treat you with the same reverence as they did when
they were children under your care.
Suggested Characteristics
Refer to the personality traits, ideals, bonds, and flaws from
may simply write your own.
d8 Ideal
7 Innocence. The young should be protected. (Good)
8 Tradition. The ways of our people should be passed
down as accurately as possible. (Lawful)
d8 Bond
7 The eggs of my mate and I have never been hatched
and I would do anything to make that happen.
8 Long ago, I failed to stop a monster from slaughtering
my hatchery. I will never let that happen again.
d8 Flaw
7 I can't see the big picture over unimportant details.
8 I push people away due to my overprotectiveness.
Dragon Cultist
Kobolds dream of ascending to dragonhood, but few entertain
such notions as wholeheartedly as you. You strive to ever
strengthen your understanding of such majestic creatures
and bring glory to your pack through their power.
Skill Proficiencies. Performance, Religion
Other Proficiencies. Draconic (or one language of your
choice), and 1 gaming set of your choice.
Equipment. A dragontooth dagger, a small dice set, a robe
made from crocodile leather, and an augury kit made up of
7 dragon teeth and 3 large dragon scales.
Variant: Fallen Dragon
If you choose, your obsession with dragons can
stem from the fact that you once used to be a
dragon before you were cursed to live out the
remainder of your days in kobold form. In such a
case, replace your skill proficiencies with History
and Intimidation, replace your other proficiencies
with two languages (Draconic and one of your
choice) and note that any references to dragon
parts in your equipment come from scraps of your
previous form.
Commune with Dragons
Once every sunrise, you can use your augury kit to consult
with the spirits of ancient dragons. There is absolutely no
evidence that this works (or that you are even performing a
magical ritual at all) but other kobolds are more inclined to
believe you and trust your judgement when you do so.
Suggested Characteristics
Refer to the personality traits, ideals, bonds, and flaws from
the Acolyte background listed in the PHB. You may add the
additional characteristics listed below to your options, or you
may simply write your own.
d10 Personality Trait
9 I am obsessed with everything related to dragonkind.
10 I model my behaviour after a great dragon of legend.
d8 Ideal
7 Wisdom. The dragons were keepers of great knowledge
and we can learn much from their past. (Lawful)
8 Power. I will obtain their fire for myself. (Evil)
d8 Bond
7 I have returned to kobold society after a long absence
spent in the company of other cultists.
8 I've fallen in love with a dragon. Only by ascending can
we be together.
d8 Flaw
7 I've lost touch with the ways of the kobolds.
8 Even by kobold standards, I am selfish and self-serving.
Engineer
Kobolds rely on technically-minded members of their pack to
construct and maintain a suitable den for their numbers. The
job of engineer is long and tough, but certainly not thankless.
Skill Proficiencies. Acrobatics, Investigation
Other Proficiencies. Carpenter's Tools, Thieves' Tools
Equipment. Carpenter's tools (a hammer, 20 nails, a clamp,
and other miscellaneous tools), a metal helmet fashioned
out of a bowl, a complicated series of pulleys and weights,
and 2 leather belt straps.
Engineering Specialty
d4 Specialty
1 Climate Control
2 Construction
3 Logistics
4 Plumbing
Secret Passageways
Having helped with the construction and regular
maintenance of the den, you know of many secret alcoves and
hidden passages which happen to be conveniently within
range of movement whenever you're in any sort of danger in
the den. Small creatures can fit through these secret
passageways with ease. Medium creatures must squeeze. Any
creature larger than Medium cannot fit at all.
Suggested Characteristics
Refer to the personality traits, ideals, bonds, and flaws from
the Guild Artisan background listed in the PHB. You may add
the additional characteristics listed below to your options, or
you may simply write your own.
d10 Personality Trait
9 I've never found a problem I couldn't solve.
10 I get antsy if I'm not moving around or working on
something important.
d8 Ideal
7 Function. The only thing we can use to evaluate what
we create is its functionality. (Lawful)
8 Beauty. A finely constructed building is useless if one
cannot appreciate its aesthetic value. (Good)
d8 Bond
7 I once made a mistake that caused a cave-in. Many still
don't forgive me.
8 I wish to create structures to surpass those created by
my mentor, a master engineer who has long passed.
d8 Flaw
7 I view other kobolds as logic problems. They are
limitations to my designs.
8 I constantly get in everyone's way.
Hunt Leader
Though the majority of a kobold's dinner comes from game
caught by trappers, young kobolds aspire to be invited to the
hunts, where a small group will set out in search of more
dangerous game than can be caught with simple traps.
Leading such a hunt is a great honor.
Skill Proficiencies. Perception, Survival
Other Proficiencies. Navigator's Tools, Cartographer's Tools
Equipment. A rudimentary compass, a set of outdated and
incomplete maps, 2 javelins, a sling, and 20 sling bullets.
Eye for Detail
Whenever you spend time recovering expended ammunition
after a fight, you always somehow end up with more
ammunition than you started with. Occasionally, you even
find unique ammunition with strange effects, the functions of
which are up to the discretion of your DM.
Variant: Urd
You may have been nominated as the hunt leader
due to the fact that you are a more powerful type
of kobold: an urd. Most urds have wings, but yours
are either too tiny to support flight or were
removed entirely, most likely by violence.
Regardless, the touch of the dragons is in your
blood and you replace the Eye for Detail trait with
the following feature:
Urd Presence. You are feared and respected by
other kobolds, who defer to you in matters of war.
Often seen as both the face and hand of the den,
you are trusted solely with many crucial decisions.
Suggested Characteristics
Refer to the personality traits, ideals, bonds, and flaws from
the Outlander background listed in the PHB. You may add
the additional characteristics listed below to your options, or
you may simply write your own.
d10 Personality Trait
9 I live for the chase.
10 I skulk in the shadows, waiting to strike.
d8 Ideal
7 Natural Selection. Our intelligence elevates us above the
common beasts. (Neutral)
8 Domination. The weak deserve to perish. (Evil)
d8 Bond
7 I learned all I know studying a tribe of lizardmen.
8 My javelins are a prize won in a contest between myself
and a rival kobold from another den.
d8 Flaw
7 I don't know when to stop. I often end up hurting
myself and others.
8 I frighten others with my cold-blooded outlook.
Master Trapper
To feed an entire den of kobolds, many are tasked with
venturing out into the surrounding wilds in the hopes of
laying their hands on a live meal through the use of clever
traps. Over time, you've improved your trap-making skills
enough to consider your trapping to be an art form, not a
profession.
Skill Proficiencies. Nature, Stealth
Other Proficiencies. Tinker's Tools, Poisoner's Kit
Equipment. Tinker's tools, a vial of poison, a black cloak, and
a hunting trap designed around your specialty.
Trap Specialty
d4 Specialty
1 Nets
2 Cages
3 Darts
4 Snares
Infallible Ensnarement
Your traps always trigger on at least one creature within half
a day of when they are set. Usually, it only takes a few hours.
The DM decides what creatures you ensnare and how long it
takes for one to stumble across your trap.
Suggested Characteristics
Refer to the personality traits, ideals, bonds, and flaws from
the Outlander background listed in the PHB. You may add
the additional characteristics listed below to your options, or
you may simply write your own.
d10 Personality Trait
9 There are two types of creatures: those who set the
lures, and those who take the bait.
10 I constantly experiment with new and dangerous
ideas for traps.
d8 Ideal
7 Necessity. The role of a trapper is to provide for the
den. That must always be my priority. (Lawful)
8 Mastery. I make traps to get better at making even more
traps. I will be the best trapper of all time. (Neutral)
d8 Bond
7 My mate and I met when they were caught in one of
my traps by accident.
8 I once caught a legendary beast, but it broke free. I will
catch it again, mark my words.
d8 Flaw
7 I leave live traps in extremely inappropriate locations.
8 I suffer from crippling claustrophobia. Being caught in
a trap would be a fate worse than death.
Pack Tactician
Kobolds, being a vicious little race, get into combat more
often than they can afford. A kobold with a gift for tactics and
strategy in combat situations is valued very highly for sorting
out these kinds of unfortunate confrontations.
Skill Proficiencies. Insight, Persuasion
Other Proficiencies. Vehicles (land), and 1 language of your
choice.
Equipment. A notebook filled with exhaustive details about
battle maneuvers, a peacock-feathered hat, a funnel device
that amplifies your voice, and a pet lizard.
Variant: Skirmish Trainer
If you prefer, your role in the den can be that of a
mentor, guiding young kobolds in the ways of
combat as they come of age, rather than simply as
a skilled commander. If you choose to be a
skirmish trainer, replace your equipment with the
following list:
A whip, a straw dummy, 5 darts, and a helmet.
Skirmish Commander
Ordinary kobolds, when fighting alongside you, listen
carefully for your orders and do their best to model their
moves as closely as they can to your intentions. Outside of
combat, however, they don't follow you with such a high
degree of dedication. Also, kobolds controlled by other
players don't follow your commands unless they want to.
Suggested Characteristics
Refer to the personality traits, ideals, bonds, and flaws from
the Soldier background listed in the PHB. You may add the
additional characteristics listed below to your options, or you
may simply write your own.
d10 Personality Trait
9 I think in terms of vectors of movement. The world is
an enormous chess board.
10 I live hedonistically without care until it's time for
battle, and then I am focused on nothing else.
d8 Ideal
7 Perfection. No amount of practice is enough. (Lawful)
8 Improvisation. A tactician adapts to change. (Chaotic)
d8 Bond
7 I was raised by wolves. What came naturally to them
became textbook for me.
8 I vowed to be a leader, not a follower, when my mate
was killed in the chaos of battle.
d8 Flaw
7 I have trouble getting people to listen to me outside of
battle.
8 I am unwilling to endanger myself to the degree to
which I endanger others.
Toolmaker
Kobolds are well known for their experimentations with
strange tools, often involving simple machines and live
animals. A kobold toolmaker is often gifted with random junk
with which to construct new and wondrous tools, most of
which fail immediately but still offer a valuable purpose.
Skill Proficiencies. Arcana, Sleight of Hand
Other Proficiencies. Forgery Kit, Tinker's Tools
Equipment. A useless device that carries great emotional
significance, a set of tinker's tools with nearly a dozen
iterations of every tool, a jacket lined with random chunks
of wood and metal at odd angles, and a crowbar.
Tool Specialty
d4 Specialty
1 Curious Utensils
2 Inventive Weapons
3 Miscellaneous Mechanisms
4 Outrageous Curios of Entertainment
Fanciful Designs
Given the materials available to you, any design you can come
up with will ultimately come to pass; the DM will find a way
to make it happen. Creating a tool takes about one day (or
longer for more complex machines) and the tools are usually
very fragile and unreliable. Otherwise, the only limit is your
imagination, as anything -- even that which stretches the
bounds of plausibility -- is fair game.
Suggested Characteristics
Refer to the personality traits, ideals, bonds, and flaws from
the Guild Artisan background listed in the PHB. You may add
the additional characteristics listed below to your options, or
you may simply write your own.
d10 Personality Trait
9 I experiment with EVERYTHING.
10 I carry around enough tools to solve every problem,
even if digging them out takes way more effort.
d8 Ideal
7 Creativity. Invention should be FUN. (Chaotic)
8 Innovation. Tools are an extension of our natural
abilities and should be treated as such. (Neutral)
d8 Bond
7 I have an acquired brain injury.
8 I will become a world-renowned inventor.
d8 Flaw
7 I rely WAY too much on otherwise unreliable tools.
8 The way my mind works is utterly baffling to the
ordinary kobold.