Naming guide
What makes a great kobold name
Kobolds are small, scaly and devoted to dragons, and their names sound like it. In D&D 5e, kobold names come from the Draconic language and are usually short, with hard consonants and sharp endings: k, x, z, t and sk sounds packed into one or two syllables. A good kobold name sounds like something yipped across a dark tunnel just before a trap goes off.
Common building blocks include openings such as Kr, Sk, Sn, Ix, Vek and Za, and endings such as -ik, -ak, -ix, -ek, -uk and -zz. Put them together and you get names like Krik, Skax, Vexik and Tazzik. Doubled consonants add bite (Drokk, Grekk), while an x in the middle gives that unmistakable Draconic hiss (Tessix, Ixxa).
Volo's Guide to Monsters notes that kobold names usually point to a trait, such as scale color, a body part or a habit. That is why so many kobolds also carry a Common translation or epithet. A kobold called Ixik might be known to the party as Rustscale, and one called Sniv might simply be Quickclaw. These descriptors match how kobolds see themselves: as useful parts of a tribe rather than lone heroes.
Kobolds revere dragons and their god Kurtulmak, and many tribes serve a dragon directly. That relationship leaks into kobold names. A warren in a red dragon's lair might favor fiery epithets like Ashscale or Emberback, while a tribe under a white dragon might prefer Frostsnout or Icetooth.
Male and female kobold names use the same syllables, so gender rarely changes the sound. For a softer feel, use more vowels and sibilant endings (Yessa, Missk, Tessix). For a harsher one, stack consonants (Krakt, Drokk, Zekkt).
Kobold name ideas
Male kobold names
- Krik: quick and twitchy, the tribe's favorite trap tester
- Drokk: blunt and stubborn, a tireless tunnel digger
- Vexik: sly, the best liar in the warren
- Snarx: always growling, a dragonshield in training
- Tazzik: bright-eyed and endlessly inventive
- Grekk: the oldest miner, missing half his claws
- Ziv: tiny, fast and easily forgotten
Female kobold names
- Yessa: a sibilant, clever scale sorcerer
- Missk: careful keeper of the egg chamber
- Tessix: a trapsmith with steady claws
- Ixxa: sharp-tongued and fiercely loyal to the dragon
- Skeela: a scout who never stops moving
- Vrissa: proud of her gleaming scales
- Kezz: small and furious
Kobold names with epithets
- Snik Trapjaw: builds traps that bite
- Ekko Coppertongue: a wheedling negotiator
- Grix Ashscale: hatched in a red dragon's lair
- Pazz Two-Tails: born with a forked tail
- Vekt Shinyfinder: hoards every bright pebble
- Kesska Bellowfoot: far louder than a kobold should be
Kobold names by role
- Rattik the Inventor: lobs hornet nests and loves it
- Skarzz Dragonshield: sworn bodyguard to the wyrm
- Ixen Scalecaller: a scale sorcerer with sparks between the claws
- Turro Deepdig: a miner who can smell gold
- Fessk Nightsnout: a scout with a keen nose
- Drazzle Wickfuse: trusted with anything that explodes
Comic kobold names
- Bimble: means well, causes chaos
- Snoot: named after the most prominent feature
- Pikkle: tiny, round and green-scaled
- Gubbik: always hungry
- Skitter: runs from everything, survives everything
- Yipyip: named for the sound it makes when excited
How to create your own kobold name
Build from one hard syllable. Start with a consonant cluster (Kr, Sk, Dr, Tz, Vr), add a short vowel and finish on a hard stop: Kr plus ik gives Krik, Sk plus ax gives Skax, Vr plus ek gives Vrek. Double the final consonant for extra bite, as in Skaxx.
Give the warren a shared ending. If you are naming a whole tribe, use one ending to show that they belong together. A warren under a blue dragon might use -esk (Tolesk, Varesk, Mikesk), while a mining tribe might use -ug (Kolug, Tarug, Skimug).
Translate a trait. Pick a feature the tribe would notice first and turn it into a Common epithet: scale color (Rustscale, Greybelly), a body part (Longsnout, Stubtail, Bitten-Ear) or a habit (Scurry, Gnaw, Sniffs-Twice).
Borrow from the dragon. A kobold proud of its master can carry a piece of the dragon's name as an honor. If your campaign's dragon is called Vorathrax, its favorite servants might be Vora, Thrax or Rathik.
Make it yippable. Say the name out loud in a high, quick voice. If it trips your tongue or takes more than two beats, cut a syllable.
Tips for using kobold names in your game or story
Keep warrens consistent. Kobolds live and fight in large groups, so NPC names should sound related. Choose three or four syllables for each tribe and remix them, which also gives the party an easy way to tell which warren they are dealing with.
Use epithets to tell kobolds apart. When the party fights twelve kobolds, nobody remembers Krik from Kriss. Epithets such as Bentspear, Sooty or the Loud One help players track the important ones, and a surviving kobold with a memorable epithet makes a great recurring NPC.
Play with contrast for player characters. A kobold PC with a grand name like Szarathix the Unbreakable is funny and endearing because kobolds are so small. A kobold with a tiny name and a huge ambition works just as well.
Write names the way they are said. Use x for a ks sound and double consonants for hard stops. Tell the table in the first session whether Ixik is ICK-sick or ee-ZEEK, and stick to it.
Match the tone to the campaign. Kobolds can be comic relief or terrifying trap-masters. If your kobolds are a real threat, skip silly names like Bimble and lean on sharp Draconic sounds such as Skazzrith. If they are comic, a few goofy D&D kobold names make every encounter lighter.