From: ecrjbruce@economics.adelaide.edu.au
Newsgroups: rec.games.frp.dnd
Subject: Re: Kobolds (Re: Intelligent opponents)
Date: 16 Oct 92 05:35:55 GMT
Organization: Economics, University of Adelaide
NNTP-Posting-Host: eco.economics.adelaide.edu.au

In article <COVIN.92Oct13174755@despair.cs.uchicago.edu>, covin@tartarus.uchicago.edu (David Covin) writes:
> In article <1992Oct13.193607.16424@umbc3.umbc.edu> cs202144@umbc8.umbc.edu (cs202144) writes:


>   Just
> because the leader, who is a one-in-a-million genius, can come up with
> nifty plans for lair defense, doesn't mean that the followers can
> understand or execute them. 

I thought those defensive plans were rather simple and easy to follow myself.


> 
> Later articles from the original poster seem to explain that his
> kobolds are not very much like D&D kobolds, inasmuch as they are far
> more intelligent. 

Not really, just more organised which a strong leader could do - a human
fighter of level 6 could start the whole show rolling with his LE aligned
kobolds doing all the work.

> I have no problem with this, though I might ask
> why the other races on the world are unaware of how ingenious kobolds
> are.  Why do people think that they're stupid?  Is this a widespread
> prejudice, based on the fact that they're individually weak and easily
> cowed? 

Perhaps, but this posting was concerned with the defence of their home.  Some
of the ancient civilisations have techniques we still don't fully understand so 
does that make us unintelligent?

I don't think so.

> 
> If they are so intelligent, why aren't they more powerful as a race?
> (Or are they?).

If they remain organised they probably do, but being of lower intelligence they
need more supervision than others.  Thus it is difficult to organise lots of
separete groups to co-ordinate their attacks but it is relatively easy to get
them to fortify one stronghold - their home.

> "They've had 10 thousand years to develop their lair's defenses"
> sounds awfully nice, but I don't really buy it, if individual kobolds
> live only a minute fraction of that time.  At least, I know of no 
> examples of human efforts continued in pursuit of a single purpose
> for even a tenth that long.

the pyramids went on for hundreds of years, some of the European cathedrals
went on for something approaching a thousand with all the work that was done on
them.  


> Making kobolds somewhat sneaky and devious is a good idea, and it's
> fine to surprise players who thought, "Oh, these are weak creatures,
> it'll be an easy fight"; but here some important changes have been made
> to kobolds' behaviour (making them smarter and damn efficient at laying
> sneaky traps and tricks).  It isn't entirely right to say, then, 
> "Oh, kobolds can be really effective if they're played right"; this
> is sort of like saying "Oh, paladins can be very sadistic if they're
> played right," neglecting to mention that you mean, of course, Lawful
> *Neutral* paladins...

And here we have it.  Kobolds are weak creatures so 1 driven creature can bend
them to its will and get all this stuff done.  Perhaps this is the Kobold
equivalent to a PC human, i.e. way above the ordinary.

It's also entirely different from sadistic paladins, no-one can force a paladin 
by sheer weight of will - this becomes a forced alignment change and he ceases
to be a paladin.



regs

Rob