Xolnite Kobold

The Kobolds of Belthuran are a far cry from the others across the planes that are considered weak and pathetic creatures. These are the result of the Dragons uplifting a species and keeping them close by. The Kobolds are very loyal to the Dragons and the Tyrannus who is basically a God-King to them. They were trained in magic directly by the Dragons and encouraged to handle tasks the Dragons themselves were not skilled at. As such they are skilled craftsmen and miners. Every so often a Paragon is hatched among them with an extra dose of draconic energies in them for one reason or another. These paragons are chosen among them to help the Kobold’s and become a Drazgorra of the Tyrannus.
The Kobolds are not mindless servants indoctrinated into the reverence to Dragons and the Tyrannus. They have a long-standing history of being the closest of allies to the Dragons, eager to aid the Dragons who helped them become what they are. A Kobold clan that lives under the protection of a Dragon are fiercely devoted to the protection of the Dragon and what is theirs, this is how it has ever been a very symbiotic relationship. Even the vilest of Dragons appreciates the Kobolds who work for them, treated well the Kobolds will never abandon their patron Dragon and will fight to the last breath for them, mistreated ones are known to pilfer from the hoard and abandon the Dragon at the sign of danger.
The kobolds of Xoln have had a long, long time to refine their crafts and are comparable to the Dwarves in metal and stonework as well as the innovative minds of the gnomes, if to a narrower degree in that they focus on magical innovation. However, they dislike either comparison if made to them, more so the Dwarves given a rather bitter history with them. Their alliance with the Anrasha and the dragons has led them to also have a deep appreciation for artistic expression, and many aspects of Xoln bear a strong balance of form and function. The true area of expertise is in the magical, stonework, and alchemical fields. Regarding those who fight they prefer ranged weaponry when they can, however, they can be trained to use armor and shields.

Basic Information

Anatomy

The Kobolds of Xoln are different from the more standard kobold, which are normally called the feral. They dislike talking about them in general. A kobold from Xoln ranges in height from 3’ to 4’ in height, roughly 35-50 pounds. They appear as mini bipedal dragons in most respects, they lack wings and breath weapons but visually they fit the part. Kobolds lack fine motor control over their lips like dragons and instead express their emotions through their ear fins which protect the sensitive ear holes behind them. Combined with their tails they can express a wide variety of emotions with these ques instead of smiling. The coloration of Xoln kobolds is more varied, feral kobolds tend to run the chromatic colorations and dull metallics. Xoln kobolds have that range in much more vibrant hues as well as access to other colors, from sand colors to dark purple, patterns can also form on their scales as they age. The eyes of Xoln kobolds often have more gem colorations to them.

Additional Information

Social Structure

Two things matter most to the Kobolds, Community, and the Tyrannus. It was a Tyrannus who saw the merit of the Kobolds have brought them into the Draz Tyran as a partner species and their relationship has been symbiotic ever since. The two races being able to cover for the weaknesses of the others and many of the great works of the Draz Tyran have been accomplished by Kobolds. The Kobolds are not slaves as some might think, they are not brainwashed or otherwise. The community of a Kobold city is tightly knit as the quarters are all very close market streets, mining tunnels, even homes can be fit to bursting with Kobolds in such circumstances they tend to form very strong connections with their fellow Kobolds. While squabbles and feuds do occur, the elders who rule Kobold communities tend to settle such conflicts swiftly. The reasons for such a value on the Tyrannus are obvious from the thought of basically being a god(ess) ruler, however, it goes beyond that. The Tyrannus is who gave them a seat in the empire, who allowed them to be taught magic properly and of course who saved them from the terrible fate as the empire crumbled. Before the shield was raised the last Tyrannus said that he is leaving with them a hope for the future of the empire as a whole and that they would be critical in the rebirth of the empire, and asked them, not ordered them to be the defenders of the empire. The kobolds felt they could not refuse such a request and have followed that ancient charge by doing everything they can to help rebuild the empire with what knowledge they have kept from the old days. They felt fortunate they never had to fight to defend the empire, as kobolds, in general, are usually reluctant to fight, but if pushed they are skilled fighters that rely on traps, mechanisms, and magic to make up for their rather weak bodies.
The general living conditions of Xoln are rather high by the other nation’s standards, however, there is a very high population within Xoln leading to crowding. They do not view this as a problem, instead they love feeling so close to their kin and will work towards bettering what they can for their kin as part of that sense of community. A busy kobold marketplace would be impossible to navigate for other species without tripping and pushing others over. The Kobolds move effortlessly through such tight quarters. For all the love of community and each other, the kobolds have they are however capable of often bitter arguments and violence to one another. This is where their police system and the council of elders and arbiters take over, their system is not nearly as harsh as that of the dragons, but they can be hard if they must. Religion is not a very large part of the empire in general, however, the kobolds will often practice faith in the Tyrannus or the Draconic gods of the pantheon.
The leadership of Xoln is made of a council of Elders, one for every thousand kobolds, there are at least a hundred on this council. Above this council is the Tyrannus, it is rather rare that the Tyrannus gives them an order to supersede their authority, such a scenario is considered by them as an emergency that requires their cooperation.

Geographic Origin and Distribution

Lands and Capital
The Kobolds live in Xalandis near the center of Savorah, there is only one efficient way to enter as they are surrounded by mountains. These lands once were barren due to the rage of a then mortal draconic god of vengeance. A long and sad story that the kobolds keep records of quite well. They were spared such a fate by the previous Tyrannus placing a shield over their major city, Xoln. From inside this barrier, they watched as pain and rage scarred the land so deeply as to scorch the root of the Elder Tree, so no life grew again. It was also by the will of a dragon, the current Tyrannus that the land was healed and once it had been the barrier over the city faded for the first time in over ten thousand years.
Xoln itself is a utopian-like society that is fully self-sufficient, and even with the barrier down they continue to live mostly in Xoln with only a few of their number going out to see the world once more. Their food save for some common plants they grow inside the city is provided through magic to the kobolds of Xoln. Regardless of class and standing, no one goes hungry or thirsty. After this basic need, it is on the kobolds to do with their life as they like, luxuries and comforts must still be bought and worked for.
However, they are always encouraged to continue to grow and develop themselves, with food and water taken care of the kobolds are free to pursue art and innovation. With being isolated from the world for so long their technology has advanced in curious ways along the patterns set by the old empire. They refer to this as Arcanotech, likewise, their city is a masterpiece of form and function.
From the outside, a massive ziggurat at the base of a mountain has a large cityscape on top with a large central building over a massive parade ground where dragons would come to land and can do so once again. This is only the highest elements of society that lives in these places, the vast majority lives underground or in the mountains behind the city with an elaborate sewer, aqueduct, and ventilation system supporting the city.

Civilization and Culture

Culture and Cultural Heritage

Kobolds like the rest of the Draz Tyran are a fully magical society, the kobolds show this by even their non-mage populace capable of limited magic, given their fondness for looking the best they can Prestidigitation is a very common spell for the populace to have and allows for the cleaning of homes which has kept the city very hygienic. All kobolds are taught the basic principles of magic likewise they are exposed to basic principles of as many fields as possible to see which a student has an affinity for. Unlike the Spelldancers sorcerers of the kobolds and Drazgor have been forbidden to teach outsiders their methods by an ancient edict from the Tyrannus Sharvaulus'Dorathen, the same one that saved the kobolds. This edict was made so that the younger races must learn for themselves what magic is, this Tyrannus was the only one to have the gift of foresight and foresaw a dangerous situation coming if the mortal empires could not learn to control their own magic and then teach it to others. Beyond that the Draz Tyran feels it is a good way to weight the worth of the mortal empires based on how they can learn of magic and live with it.
Magic is venerated to a point to seem almost in a religious way to the members of the Draz Tyran but more so among the kobolds and even Drazgor, Since the rise of the god of magic their former beliefs in magic have turned to the worship of the god in nearly all aspects of their life. Their religious belief is since without the Arcane there would be no life on Belthuran, and the planes would once more descend into chaos, beyond that they feel like innate casters such as Bards and Sorcerers are living avatars of the arcane. They believe that the being known as the Terrorgheist by the mortal empires is in truth what they refer to as the 'Muldraz' which translates to inner dragon. All members of the Draz Tyran are infused with some level of draconic power either directly or over time and since dragons are indistinguishable from magic as they cannot be separated. A Muldraz is supposed to be a second half of the soul, their physical body is them on the material plane while the Muldraz is them within the Arcane. This belief seems to have its merits as the Muldraz are always at least 'Tamed' on the Terrorgheist chart, combined with the fact that sorcerous powers are a part of their blood there is a unshakeable pride in the knowledge that they are magically inclined with the power of dragons. There is also a belief that the method wizards use to harness magic is fundamentally harmful to the arcane, they follow the logic that the arcane is a give and take empowering those who empower it and it is empowered by thought and emotion, a wizard separates themselves from the arcane with their arcane circles which siphon off arcane energy but give nothing back as a result they generally look down on wizards.
Spelldancers: The Spelldancers of Xoln are a bardic college dedicated to magical performances which are the norm within Xalandis. The Spelldancers are the ones responsible for creating the illusion based sets and appearances of the actors, the very best of them are said to be able to affect an entire audience with a heightened state of emotional receptiveness, essentially making the powerful moments of a play or musical piece more impactful. The Spelldancers are also known to be effective fighters if required to do so either in combat or not when they enter into the dance they have a song or beat either in their head or around them known as the 'Magical Masquerade' where they take on a figurative mask of a character from a story or legend. During the dance their body is wrapped in a light of arcane energy that gives an ethereal and unnatural quality to their movements leaving behind a wisp of energy as they dance about the area, during this dance they cast spells seemingly free of somantic and verbal components. In truth they use instruments or specially designed swords known as the dancer’s blades which are a khopesh style sword with rings worked into the inner curve that produce notes when shook or striking each other under the effect of the dance which the steps itself are the somatic components.
Unlike the sorcerers of Xoln the Spelldancers have been given permission to teach their ways to the other races and have found the most receptive students within Escini in the Silver college with many human followers of Koxenar and bards in general looking to learn their ways. They are often a subject of fascination of illusionists and enchantment focused mages who try to figure out just how they manage their effects.

Interspecies Relations and Assumptions

Kobold's have xenophobic tendencies given how long they spent in only their own company, they are nothing if not adaptive and have already begun making impressive inroads with other races and nations diplomatically speaking.
Humans: The humans have come to accept the kobolds of Xoln as intelligent beings rather than the less developed kobolds they often view as pests. Ormir seems more than happy to open trade with them. However, there is still tension between the two races, as humans were one of the major offenders for hunting and harming dragons, this is only tempered by the knowledge that some humans have helped the dragons in the past.
Elves: The Anrasha are good allies, but they also keep a careful eye on them. This only endears them further to the Anrasha as they see it as a wise move to not fully trust them, even if the Anrasha have never shown any desire to double cross them. The Falsoree are seen most often as just confusing, the kobolds do not really understand the split of the species and often will make the remark that if they wish to be truly separate they need to stop going out of their way to be different from the Anrasha, something the Falsoree dislike hearing. The Woldari are more xenophobic and isolationist than the kobolds and so contact with them is exceedingly rare.
Dwarves: They have a very poor relationship that often comes to outright hostility if the two meets. Dwarves being the first race to attack dragons and being the smiths who created the vile dragon-slaying weapons is bad enough, but they are a race that has gone out of their way to attack the kobolds directly in the past.

Alignment & Religion: Kobolds can run the gambit of alignments though those that begin to show evil tendencies are usually collected, to what end is unknown. When it comes to Religion, they are known to venerate whatever god(s) or aspects their patrons do, in general, they worship the Tyrannus as their God(ess)-King.
Adventurers: Kobolds love to explore and see the various wonders of the world, more so after being in Xoln for so long. While they are very loyal to those who prove worth such they are not the most eager to have a fair melee fight, they will if they must but by and large they prefer to rely on traps, magic, ranged, and mechanisms to fight if they can and if things look to be going bad they will run away, if only to get to a more favorable position.