Goblins

in: Races

## Introduction

The race of goblins are varied and wild creatures and even their societies are scattered and wild. Rarely do these creatures have a particularly united way of living or acting aside from their natural impulses. Where their larger distant cousins the Orcs are driven by battle the Goblins are driven by greed. Obsessed with all things that are shiny and glitter, Goblins are known to seek and collect everything of worth that they can get their hands on. Whether the duller, dumber land goblin or the more cunning sea goblins. One thing that ties them together is that incredible and overwhelming greed.

## The Basics

* **Other Names:** Gobbo
* **Lifespan:** 80 Years
* **Height:** 135 cm (4'5") - 150 cm (4'11")
* **Common Character Roles:** Brutes, Pirates, Thieves, Sneaks
* **Common Allies:** Orcs
* **Common Enemies:** Everyone Else
* **Regions Found:** Sea Goblins can be found lurking in port towns when not on ships. Land Goblins favor hills and mountainous areas.
* **Views on Magic:** Terrified of fire (pyromancy) and fear of other types of magic.
* **Abilities:** Too Shiny to Ignore. Nothing can distract them when they set their sights on a treasure.
* **Weaknesses:** Too shiny to Ignore. They will follow the object of their focus.
* **Quirks:** Greedy, selfish, destructive, and violent.

## Appearances

Goblins are short creatures with Land Goblins usually being taller than their ocean dwelling kin. Likewise, Land goblins are usually more muscular and better built than Sea Goblins. Their skins vary in color from greens to browns, with the occasional gray skinned goblins who often prove far more cunning and hateful than others of their kind. Most commonly black-haired, Sea Goblins are also often found with red hair. With wide eyes, tusks, and fang filled mouths, Goblins can be frightening little beasts. Goblins are frequently big nosed and covered in darker spots, the Goblin is quite easy to identify. Their eyes range a whole array of colors with the most common being yellow, red and black. Males wear scraggly beards as most goblins are incapable of growing a thick beard or even a thick mane of hair.

## History & Culture

Violence and greed best define Goblin culture, if such a word can be ascribed to the chaos around these creatures. They tend to serve Orc warlords, strike out for their own violent gain on land, or cluster in floating city ships. They are often under the command of another race… as long as those overlords can keep them in check.

## Society

It is said that there are two types of goblins. Those that are cunningly dangerous and those that are brutally stupid. The most common difference between the two types of goblins comes down to a matter of where they live. Those goblins that have long stayed on land are often incredibly stupid creatures. Recently they have been called to join the Northern Orcs and assist them in their warfare. By the score these goblins have moved northward, abandoning their masters and swarming to the call of their great and powerful cousins. They now take to the lands of the Dwarves and the mountains alongside the Orcs, fighting their way into the tunnels too short for their larger cousins. They harry the Dwarves at every chance, striking hard and fast before scurrying back into the holes from which they came. Violent creatures, driven to even greater violence than ever before. The Land Goblins care for little more than bloodshed and the chaos of their assaults. Tempted only by blood and the treasures held deep within the dwarven holds. They care little for any other desires of flesh or fantasy. Dedicated only to violence… and the pursuit of treasure. Their not so distant kin are far from the same sort of subservient creature. The Sea Goblins are sailors and pirates of great renown, cunning and devious creatures that seek to gain as much as they can with as little resistance as possible. As they are not great shipwrights, Sea Goblins create massive floating fortresses that are constantly in danger of sinking. These great City ships are horrible to behold. They crawl with goblins on every surface, usually working hard to ensure that they don't sink and all die in the unforgiving oceans. The city ships are ruled by the most cunning and ruthless creature on the ship, often a goblin but occasionally an Orc or Nienne.

On very rare occasions a particularly cunning human has been known to captain a city ship. Though, they always meet some terrible and sudden end when they grow too comfortable. City ships are nothing short of chaos, vast swarms of Sea Goblins rush about the place making sure it stays afloat. They rob one another. They rob their allies. They rob their enemies. Every City ship is filled with goods that have been stolen multiple times over... and the Goblins would have it no other way. Whether Sea Goblins or Land Goblins, both sorts of creatures live by much the same code. Make things suffer if they have things you want, everything you want belongs to you, you should take what belongs to you. These are important creeds for the goblins and considering they want everything. These creatures are often seeking to harm and take from everyone and everything. Land Goblins are almost always thinking of some way to take things from their masters but the intelligence and cunning of their Sea dwelling kin are simply not present in them, often leading to them never quite figuring it out. Sea Goblins on the other hand, take everything that isn't nailed down, and even then if they've got something to pry it up with they'll take things nailed down too. Shiny things. Goblins covet shiny things more than anything else in the world. A particularly shiny coin to a goblin is worth far more than a priceless statue. That isn't to say they don't know the worth of things, but they often simply don't care. Goblins are not keen on works of art or abstract concepts. Even the Sea Goblins care only for what they can take to prove that they are wealthy. They often wear a lot of jewels and silk, to prove their position, and thus their importance. For a goblin with a lot of shinnies must certainly be important.

## Relationships

When it comes to genders, Goblins don't really care what you are. Male and Female goblins are both known to take mates because they're appealing, or wealthy, or particularly cunning. It matters not whether the mate is already paired with another Goblin or not. Very few goblins believe in the concepts of romance, giving something to someone else is just unheard of among Goblin kind. More often than not Goblins have a variety of partners throughout their lives. Usually to obtain something they want. Male and Female goblins both take part in such matters, using one another to obtain things so that they can move on to the next shiny thing that catches their eye.

## Racial Relations

Land Goblins are quite subservient to other races, always finding themselves following the commands or orders of some other race. They do not really hate anyone except anyone who treats them as lesser beings. Which is usually everyone. Land Goblins have very few innate racial dislikes with the exception of the elves. Tall, pretty, and most often highly intelligent. They're everything goblins are not. Only Dark Elves ever employ goblins and usually only the strongest and dumbest of their lot. Sea Goblins are another matter entirely. These creatures believe themselves to be the masters of the ocean, the true rulers of all the seas. They have a long running feud with the honorable Saurians, believing that they infringe on their territory. They also dislike sea faring Humans and Sirens. It isn't uncommon for Goblins to have a great deal of animosity toward the raiders of the North, having fallen prey to their longboats a few too many times.

## Perception of Magic

The Goblins have a great fear of powerful sorcery, primarily that which makes use of fire. They do not like fire at all, fearing its touch on land and its ability to burn their ships at sea. Any other form of magic is still a frightful thing, but not as terrifying to Goblins as fire. Land Goblins do not use magic, they're far too stupid to manage it. There are however intelligent goblins among the Sea Goblins who make a great deal of use of wind and water magics. Mostly this magic is used to benefit their ships, and hamper the ships of their enemies.

## Racial Traits & Weaknesses

### Too Shiny to Ignore

Goblins love treasure, they have an innate sense for it even. The shinier the better. As long as a goblin can see something shiny in close proximity the goblin cannot be distracted. A goblin is immune to any magic that would cause it to ignore something shiny if it has set its sights on that object.The downside to this determined focus however is that a goblin is easily distracted by something that is shiny. A goblin that has set its sights on something can easily be distracted by it being thrown in another direction. Indeed, the goblin's will to obtain the shiny thing is so great they find it almost impossible to ignore.

## Attachments & Kit Items:

The items listed in the kits below are made with the Season 6 modlist. They have been updated as of **14th December 2023**.

*Expand for Goblin Racial Kits*

## *Lore Contribution*

***Credit for Lore Contribution:** RideEternal*