GoCorral

Physical Description

Goblins are small, wiry humanoids with pointy ears, sharp teeth, and a mischievous glint in their eyes. Their skin tone varies, but it tends to range from green to gray, and some even have a sickly yellow hue. Their faces are often adorned with warts and wrinkles, adding to their ugly appearance. Their eyes are typically small and bright, almost like beads, giving them an intense and cunning look. Goblins are known for their agile and nimble movements and their small stature, standing at two to three feet tall and weighing less than 40 pounds. Their fingers are long and dexterous, perfect for crafting and tinkering with all sorts of peculiar contraptions. Typically, goblins have a penchant for wearing tattered, earth-toned clothing that allows them to blend into their natural surroundings, making them adept at sneaking and hiding.

Culture

Goblin culture puts heavy emphasis on an individual’s usefulness to the tribe. Everyone must have a purpose, however small it is. Additionally, everyone must learn how to fight. The goblins were defeated centuries ago during the Goblin War so now they are constantly preparing for a new war that they plan to win. Their focus on military activity often leads goblin communities into conflict with others.

Goblins have a special talent for animal husbandry and breeding. Many of the more exotic animals of Cimmeria are a result of goblin breeding programs. Goblins have a particular love for canines. Every tribe has a few wolves and dogs around. A tribe is truly blessed if intelligent wargs join in. Warg mounted goblins are a vicious combination of ferocity and speed. Surprisingly, despite their love of animals of all kinds, goblins also value being clean. Social status in goblin communities is not based off of your wealth, but on your cleanliness.

Since before the Olympian invasion the goblins practiced ritual cannibalism. At funerals a goblin’s family would consume portions of their corpse so that the goblin’s spirit would continue to reside with the family. Additionally, the goblins consumed the flesh of powerful foes they had defeated to absorb the spiritual strength of that foe into themselves. In the six centuries since the Goblin War, cannibalism has become common within the Hobgoblin Lands. The scarcity of resources in some regions has led to cannibalism out of necessity. A fresh body can command a decent price among the upper-class. Poor goblin families occasionally sell their children, not as slaves, but as meals for a local noble to eat.

The goblinoids of Cimmeria have a diffuse population distribution. Most of them do not live in centralized communities, but instead in small villages supported by subsistence farming. Each of these smaller communities are typically ruled by the hobgoblins within them. A hobgoblin birth is considered a blessing for a goblin family as their child will be strong and enjoy an elevated position within the community. Bugbear births are more akin to a curse. Most goblins eat their bugbear children or kill them through exposure. If they reach adulthood, they can be an asset to their family, but they’re also a risk. After all, what’s stopping the violent cannibal from eating its parents?

History

The goblins were the first people of Cimmeria. The great Phoenix burned across Cimmeria and out of the ashes came the goblins. They worshipped their creator and the other animal gods for centuries. After the Trojan War the Olympians came to Cimmeria with the races of the Conclave. The Goblin War raged for one hundred years and at the end the goblins had lost. Within Cimmeria the goblins were enslaved. The maintain their old ways as a subculture. A shady remnant of what once was.

Subraces

As the Goblin War against the Olympians turned against them the goblin gods, Lion and Ants, blessed their people. One out of every hundred births was a hobgoblin. One out of every five hundred births was a bugbear. One out of every twenty thousand was a barghest. Various other sub-races came about as well (bakemono, dekanter, tasloi, etc.). Each of these new goblinoids were more powerful than the original goblins and better suited for war agains the Conclave races of the Olympians. The Animal Pantheon had hoped that this infusion of strength would bring their petitioners victory, but it was sadly not enough.

Hobgoblins: Hobgoblins stand between six and seven feet tall with muscular builds. Their skin ranges from yellow to red in color. They have small protruding tusks. Hobgoblins are well known for their militaristic culture established long ago by their great emperor, Kruk-Ma-Kali. This same emperor also instilled in them a cutthroat sense of competition. The easiest way for a hobgoblin to gain a promotion is for his superior to die, something that they often arrange themselves.

Bugbears: Bugbears are large, furry creatures standing at least seven feet tall. They have tufted ears growing out of the sides of their heads and large eyes giving them an excellent talent for perception. Additionally their fur grows in to match their current environment giving them a natural ability to camouflage. Bugbears delight in ambushing animals as well as humanoids. This allows them to indulge in their favorite pastime, cannibalism. Bugbears love to capture humanoids to cook and eat them. If no other humanoids are available they will turn on their goblinoid brethren. If bugbears are in a goblin community they must be provided with constant humanoid flesh for sustenance, lest they turn on their fellow tribe mates.

Barghests: Barghests are the greatest of goblinoid kind. They are demons in mortal skin with shapeshifting powers. While their natural form is a large wolf-like creature with a goblin face, barghests are able to assume the form of any goblinoid type. The greatest weapon granted by Lion and Ants and also the goblin race’s greatest curse. Barghests grow more powerful by consuming the souls of the recently deceased. They have the potential to rival any champion of the Olympians, but their appetite often leads barghests to consume their fellow goblins. Additionally their shapeshifting power allows barghests to become a wolf in sheep’s clothing amongst goblin society. A barghest born to a goblin mother is often immediately killed and eaten before it has the chance to grow and do the same to its progenitors.

Other Subraces: There are many other lesser known subraces of goblins. Most of them are only slight variations on the standard goblin form and personality. These other subraces provide advantages in specialized situations, but did not develop a unique culture in Cimmeria, unlike the hobgoblin, bugbear, and barghest subraces.

Location

Goblins live throughout Cimmeria either as slaves or in small tribal communities. Enslaved goblins often act as house servants. They are too small and weak to be useful for manual labor, but their predilection towards cleanliness makes them excellent at keeping a house. Goblin tribes exist in small enclaves in the wild areas of Cimmeria. They are an annoyance to the cities of Cimmeria and a safe haven for escaped goblin slaves.

Outside of Cimmeria, goblins live within the Hobgoblin Lands. As one might guess from the region’s name, goblins are typically ruled by their larger cousins, the hobgoblins. Goblin culture truly thrives in the hobgoblin lands where the different city-states have a variety of rituals and practices that make each of them unique. Unfortunately, the Hobgoblin Lands are agriculturally unproductive. The different cities are often at war for resources. The region is occasionally unified, but only briefly before internal fighting takes hold once more.

Relations with Other Races

Goblins dislike many of the other races of Cimmeria. They have a particular hatred for humans due to widespread enslavement of goblins in human cities. Similarly animosity towards dwarves and elves generated during the Goblin War with the Conclave continues today. There is a respect for dwarves and elves as worthy adversaries for combat-trained goblins. Goblins view halflings in a more neutral light due to being a similar size.

Orcs have an unusual relationship with goblins. Near the end of the Goblin War humans changed from fighting goblins for land to raiding the goblin tribes for slaves. Orcs were disgusted by this behavior. They left the Conclave to continue the fight, but triggered a war with humans in the process. Ironically, the outcome of this war was an alliance between orcs and goblins within the land now known as the Orclands. In this region goblins and orcs live side by side, but in almost completely isolated communities. While they cooperate for food, there is little other direct communication between orcs and goblins despite living in the same villages. Orcs provide meat and protection. Goblins provide cereal, vegetables, and simple hygiene practices. The sharing ends there. The two races have no shared rituals or cultural contact even after centuries of cohabitation.

Common Deities

Place in Adventuring

Goblins’ marginal position in Cimmerian society often forces them into careers of theft and raiding. Their natural cunning and talent for stealth reinforces these behaviors. Unfortunately living outside of society and committing crimes puts goblins on the wrong side of the law. Adventurers often target goblins due to their notorious reputation for mischief and thievery. Goblins who become adventurers themselves possess a remarkable aptitude for the fighter, rogue, wizard, and alchemist classes. Their cunning nature and natural affinity for manipulation make them formidable opponents in these fields. This combination of skills makes goblins both intriguing adversaries and potential allies, depending on how one approaches them in the quest for adventure.