Go-blin-al (Goblin)

Overview

Editor's note: Pronounced with a long “o” as in the word “go.”

Go-blin-als are servants to Chaos and are thought by scholars to have been created from the warped experiments of the Chaos Lords. It is rumored they are remnants of a once-powerful race, twisted into their present form by magicks horrifying and unimaginable.

They are pack rats and save everything they can find, much of which is repugnant to the general population. Players who choose this race are advised to look to the Gremlins films (and a certain Bugs Bunny cartoon) for guidance on their tone and mischief.

Background

Go-blin-als dwell in caves and tight-knit clans, thriving in darkness and disorder. They delight in trouble, and their small size keeps them weak in extended fights, but they are quick and dangerous in packs.

Appearance

Temperament

Nasty, violent, and full of mischief. They are punks and bullies by nature, sadistic when the balance is in their favor, and cowardly when it turns against them.

Tendencies

Go-blin-als avoid sunlight, live in clans, and love to harass weaker creatures. Their bravado fades against real threats, but their speed and numbers can be deadly. A large pack of experienced Go-blin-als is like fighting a small army.

Spitting at each other is a common form of greeting.

Traits

Advantages: Night vision, quickness, agility, and dexterity.

Hindrances: Known troublemakers and fairly weak. Speech and societal barriers with other races.

Abilities: A propensity for getting into mischief and trouble.

Alignment: Chaotic

Professions: Thief. Rare: Fighter, Barbarian, Rune Mage.

Speech

Go-blin-als tend to speak with something between a lisp and poorly developed Common. Some may speak clearly, but most follow patterns like these:

Bushwig exclaims, "zkrew dat!"

Condie exclaims, "wut yoo wuntz!"

Condie asks, "gotz mah lolliz?"

Condie says, "juz yoo weit.."

Leroy exclaims, "iz krazy in heeyah!"

Bushwig says, "dat ting almoz kil yuz"

Bushwig says, "diz ting kilin dem"

Role-Play Considerations

• Lean into mischief, bravado, and clan dynamics
• Play the cowardly-but-dangerous-in-groups angle
• Use speech patterns to reinforce race flavor
• Quickness and agility keep you alive in close fights
• Sunlight aversion and cave life shape habits