Goblinhole

Goblinhole was a small swamp-town located on the continent of Sparwood in former Arxella. It now lies abandoned within the borders of The Kartek Diarchy. As its name suggests it was a humble hamlet mainly inhabited by Goblins.

### Founding

Goblinhole was founded by a band of Goblins on the 15th of April, 2020. They made the trek from Uldarash to Sparwood, nearly perishing in the Lotus City State of Vraelea, which had been under siege by ogre bandits. After the discovery of a sacred willow in the Arxellan Marsh, Chieftain Snurgle and Shaman Blungbrbeng decided to settle there. Unbeknownst to them, however, this site was located mere minutes from the City of Arxella (now Sologrod), capital of the Tzardom of Arxella. After the first hut had been constructed, more goblins were summonned and a thriving little community of greenskins emerged. The surrounding area was defended by the planting of a dense thicket of oak trees and berries, making the swampy terrain even more difficult to traverse. The intricate network of strip-mine tunnels was also explored and mapped, noting the location of settlements aboveground and their underground entrances.

### The Shadow of Kostuco

The goblins timed a fortunate arrival, as the continent of Sparwood had recently seen the decline and fall of one of its prominent kingdoms: Kostuco. This left many a town and city within the borders of the kingdom undefended, and the greenskins of Goblinhole took full advantage of this fact. Often travelling at night, using the labyrinth of tunnels underground to move unseen by both Arxellans and Kostucans, they raided several sites. The cities of Lansi, Wielky Kostuco, Deoyr and Kostonia were raided of all their valuables, including stacks of gold and diamonds, named artifacts of ancient events, an expansive collection of music discs and an enchanted set of Netherite Armor, previously owned by a legendary warrior-general of Kostuco. The wealth plundered from these early expeditions financed much of the later activities of Goblinhole and put its denizens in a comfortable position.

During this time, the Goblins of Goblinhole developed their own style of architecture, based around Dark Oak, Spruce, Andesite, Cobblestone and Mossy Cobblestone. The interior of their buildings are recognized by their large amounts of nooks and crannies, low ceiling and irregular sizes. Plant life plays a large role in the architecture of Goblinhole, with many walls of leaves, flowers and vines being spread everywhere.

### Arxellan Vassalage

After days of the brimming Goblin settlement going undetected while at the doorstep of the Arxellan capital, the Goblins made themselves known to their De Jure overlords. With a brief period of negotiations, the Goblins and Arxellans decided to accept the Goblins as an autonomous minority, part of the Tzardom. They were made citizens during a grand feast, surprising the Arxellans by not entering their city through the locked gates, but instead sneakily digging their way up through a tunnel from underneath. The Goblins of Goblinhole were convinced to convert to the Creed of Gottrick, but lacked the concepts to understand the faith. They mistook the green parrot of Arxella for the supreme god of the empire and started worshipping the animal. Relations between the Chieftain of Goblinhole and the Tzar of Arxella were always jovial, and Chieftain Snurgle was eventually named Governor of the Goblinhole Area.

The Goblins were, however, quite territorial. They surrounded their swamp with a variety of threatening signs, in hopes of scaring off potential intruders. Signs that read ominous lines such as "humies will be snickered at menacingly" and "stupid humie no come swamp". They constructed an array of structures throughout the swamp: fishing camps, large pyres, hidden tunnels, farming cabins, fishing docks and full on emergency bunkers. The only guests they welcomed were their Arxellan allies, with whom they would often fish and partake in Goblinhole's Specialty: Goblin Cake. From this, a tradition was born where the chieftain of Goblinhole would always pay a cake in tribute when attending Arxellan meetings.

### Disappearance

While Goblinhole flourished under Arxellan rule, its amount of citizens slowly declined. Most believe that this was caused by the incredible increase of humans in the area, pushing the territorial Goblins underground by their presure. It has been long since a Goblinhole goblin was sighted by the inhabitants of The Kartek Diarchy, and the settlement is now officially abandoned. It has even been raided and briefly occupied by the Frosterium.