Book Review: Kobolds of Golarion
We end off this week with Kobolds of Golarion, the second of only two “Ancestries of Golarion” books that cover more monstrous peoples than the likes of elves, dwarves, and halflings.
Kobolds are one of my favorite diminutive peoples in all of fantasy gaming, the small dragonfolk match industriousness with a major chip on their shoulders and the knowledge that they are kin to dragons… but also the knowledge that they lack the inherent might of their cousins and so must get by with the guile and cunning they possess and whatever power they can gather for themselves, or gain by way of supporting a more powerful entity.
Now, while kobold lore has evolved a bit from D&D to Pathfinder, and into Pathfinder 2e, what does remain true is that they are cunning creatures that know they are physically weak, but have the pride and the proactive attitude to work hard to make up for it.
And so we have today’s book, one that offers insight on the ways of kobolds both as enemies and as heroes, as well as plenty of options tied to them.
Keep in mind that this was still the early days of Pathfinder though, so new lore like the kobold ability to passively absorb magical energies and traits from powerful beings they form symbiotic relationships with (not just dragons) had not yet been conceived of. So some of this may be a little outdated with how kobolds are in the modern game if you choose to use that updated lore.
We start with a reprint of the kobold ancestral traits and a sampling of kobold names on the front-inside cover, which is a good place to put them.
Next is a foreword about what kobolds are, a bit of their history in the game, and some finer points of the cornerstones of kobold culture. These aren’t as numerous or endearing as the “Ten Facts About Goblins”, but they are valuable for characterizing the culture of kobold-kind.
We then have a quick look at kobold physiology and life cycle, as well as some new kobold alternate ancestral traits and not one but three short myths about their origins, which is nice. Having only one myth would lead many to assume that it was one hundred percent true.
Next up is a bit about their culture, of how widespread and industrious they are, as well as community driven, though not without personal ambition. There’s even a nice collection of regional traits, as a sidebar on what sort of non-dragon allies and beasts that kobolds might befriend and/or tame.
A list of kobold tribes and how they vary based on regional pressures and more is next, along with a list of common enemies that kobolds face.
Our next section is on the deities that kobolds worship… and this list is unfortunately very evil-centric, with the likes of Asmodeus, Mammon, Dahak, and so on. It may be useful for hostile kobold tribes, but I suspect many would prefer a more varied list. There are a handful of new subdomains though, as well as a sidebar on the worship of dragons.
We then look at guidelines for kobold player characters, including two suggestion sets for kobold builds, some new favored class options, and thoughts on creating kobolds as characters. The book does sadly linger on the idea that most kobolds are lawful evil, but you’re safe to ignore that.
We then have a two-page spread of an incredibly complex and detailed map of a kobold warren drafted by a kobold (with annotations scrawled on it by one of their compatriots), showing off how maze-like traditionalist kobold communities can be.
Next is a section on kobold scale coloration, including not just the chromatic dragon colors but rare colorations as well, as well as special traits they can take based on the sort of environments and cultures they find themselves in.
Kobolds are well-known for evening the odds with traps, and so our next section has a list of new ranger traps available to the trapper archetype and of course any other archetype that that gains access to them.
Next up is a trio of new archetypes, being the dragon herald, snare setter, and swarm fighter, all being very kobold-like in flavor and mechanics.
And then we have some new feats, some being tied to kobold biology, others to tap into their understanding of magic, traps, or the divine, and also include a new line of style feats as well!
Spells come next, naturally, and we get some fun ones, directly affecting their scales and other aspects of biology, tapping into the idea of being a dragon with shadow illusions, and even creating invisible servants geared towards crafting complex mechanical devices. There’s even a sidebar for what sort of familiars kobolds favor.
Next is mundane and magical equipment, ranging from trap modifiers to new alchemical tricks on the mundane side, to magical weapons meant to hinder and ensnare foes on the combat side, and other tricks and traps otherwise.
Finally, we end with a set of random tables for determining random traits both cosmetic and mechanically significant for kobolds, in case you want to mix things up.
There is a lot of good art in this book starting with the iconic sorcerer being ambushed by kobolds on the cover. From there, however, nearly all the art in the book is various kobolds both adventurous and typical, doing kobold things, though I think I’m not alone in saying my favorite is probably the kobold riding a remorhaz into battle.
This is a fun resource for anyone wanting to play a kobold character, as well as anyone who isn’t but can still make use of at least some of the options in the book. It also has some neat lore bits that help get into kobold society.
That being said, the book does lean into a lot of assumptions about kobolds leaning evil automatically when that isn’t necessarily the case, especially in the modern lore. And of course, what insights are available are a bit out of date for that reason too, since kobolds aren’t as completely tied to dragons as they were before.
That will do for tonight, and for this week in general. I hope you enjoyed this week-long dive into reviewing the old Pathfinder books, because I hope to do even more in the future!
