Goblinoids

The Zatahili were a lineage created by a group of Gods who were in thrall to the Dark Lords. Demanding that their creations call them 'the Masters', these minor divinities created a creature on the pattern of an orc, but created to serve the Orcs - another mortal lineage - instead of the gods. They were created to be weak, biddable and disposable, but proved instead to be adaptable, beyond even the limits of the Gnomes. Thanks to their adaptable natures, the Zatahili of the Horde had soon divereged into three distinct forms, known as the Bili, Mahili and Rogili.
After The Uprising, the zatahili abandoned the Masters entirely, instead seeking new gods as they sought for a place in the World. Some borrowed gods from allies or rivals, while others simply created idols and wove a legend around them until their gods Became. The Masters, left unworshipped, simply faded, having ceded their creators' due from the zatahili to the Dark Lords.
The bili, commonly known as Goblins, were originally technical specialists who worked in confined conditions, very often underground and rarely in combat conditions. As non-combatants, they were always low status and the first to lose out on rations or gear. As a result, this demographic adapted to be small and nimble, to need less space and less food. Becoming a coherent subculture, they passed on their technical skills, along with a body of quite specific folk wisdom regarding the best way to knock down someone bigger than them.
Goblin settlements, goblin quarters in cosmopolitan settlements, and goblin homes tend to follow a traditional pattern of many small, interconnected rooms and passages, with neither the open spaces, larger chambers, nor separation of individual properties common in other cultures. This pattern, especially as regards small settlements or distinct cultural quarters, is called a braggan, and the community a brag. Instead of private residences, individual goblins or small kinship groups - gabs - lay claim to a space by filling it with their things. To take or move another goblin's possessions is a grave offence, but property which is left unattended and not clearly associated with the home assemblage is deemed forfeit. Goblin gabs are related through the maternal line, as goblins - and other goblinoids - have little recognition of the role of the father in pregnancy. The core of the group is always the Sisters - a group of mutually sympathetic goblin women who have adult children in the group - although the political leadership belongs to active adults of either sex, known as gabbas.
Disputes within the braggan are resolved by the elders of the brag, which can include anywhere between three and fifty gabs. There are usually one or two elders for every hun­dred goblins, chosen by acclaim from all the gabbas of the brag. In order to speak and vote on the council, a goblin must arrive at a closed session with sufficient followers to be heard within and over the de­bate. The elders rule on complaints brought to them, with the deciding opinion belonging to the chosen leader and elder of elders, who holds the honoured title of braggart.
The bili have little formal religion, instead worshipping the constructed gods of their community, who are chosen in the same way as elders. The members of a gab create their own gods, fashioned through sculpture and collective storytelling. If one of these gabby-gods gains a following with the neighbours, it becomes a braggy-god.
The Mahili are the goblinoids who found their place on the open plains that would become Kyuzh-magh. They lived alongside human auxiliaries of the Horde and came to have a similar size and body form. They also shared a love of and knack with horses, and a tanned and weathered look from their life outdoors. The human auxiliaries called their horses 'hobbinai' (sing. hobbin) and so called these zatahili 'hob-goblins.'
The mahili developed a highly-regimented society and a series of warrior codes which enabled them both to avoid the displeasure of their overseers, and to protect vulnerable members of the Horde. While this gained them respect and status, they never grew to accept the role of slave-soldier. Instead, they learned to hide their hate behind a cold mask of constant, martial fury that they called the Fire Face, and quietly developed the Three Institutions to build a resistance.
The First Institution of Mahili was the Monastery of the Iron Mind. Beginning as an association of runaways and renegades, it came to be the backbone of the Horde's culture, the source of their discipline and drive. The central precepts of the Monas­tery are personal discipline, dedication to community, and social unity. The Second Institution, the Circle of Spears, was created by the Monastery with the mission of translating the precepts of the Iron Mind into something that could be applied to the life of a soldier in the Horde. The Third was the League of Devastators, which developed the discipline of war Magic as a means to gain greater access to arcane teachings.
The Institutions were instrumental in leading the Horde into the Uprising, and later in the formation of Kyuzh-magh's government. That government is built around the bakhars-literally 'tent cities' - which grew out of military camps to form administrative centres. The Institutions initially took a very active role, but especially after the emancipation of the non-goblin population, they withdrew to focus on their respective fields, and to make amends for their part in the years of slavery.
The Hobgoblins were the ones who made the most effort to find gods suited to a nation, creating over time the Pentetheon. Each of the gods of the Pentetheon is aligned with a part of society, in addition to their broader portfolio, They also have a ziqetta, a short phrase that encompasses their purpose, and may be adopted as a mantra by the faithful.

Shar-tak the Cloud Mirror is the god of the sky, authority, law and social hierarchy, their portfolio is represented by the ziqetta 'as above, so below.' Shar-tak is also the patron of Kyuzh-magh.

Uzhau-sar the Ringed Spear is the god of flame and battle, strategy and tactics. They represent both sides of war, the visceral and the cerebral, represented in the ziqetta 'action is the start of victory, ignorance the root of defeat.'

T'hao-ked the Unbending Reed is the god of earth, roots and stability, of learning, knowledge and non-destructive magic. They are the patron of the Monastery of the Iron Mind and of educators. Their ziqetta is 'without strong roots, you will not stand.'

Izhanda-Rao is the god of the sea and rivers, of things hidden and forbidden, and of destructive magic. As the patron of the Devastator's League, Izhanda-Rao's ziqetta is 'power comes from that which is hidden.'

Hara-zan the Endless Path is the god of time and Fate, change and constancy. They are the god of the people, who are the soul and destiny of a culture, and often petitioned to bring justice for the powerless. They are also a god of both physical death and the transmigration of the soul. The ziqetta of Hara-zan is 'to crave the destination is to end the journey.'
The third major morpheme are the Rogili, or Bugbears. While the bili developed their current form in caverns and tunnels, and the mahili on the open plains, the rogili made their home in the forests. The form that emerged was taller than most orcs, with long and rangy limbs, but flexible enough to squeeze into small gaps or contort into irregular shadows. They were used as shock troops and ambushers in the Horde, and thereafter became hunter-gatherers.
Perhaps because of their size and strength, the rogili were subjected to more brutal treatment from their overseers than any other goblinoids. This engendered a cultural mistrust for authority so deep that even now there are no uniquely bugbear settlements larger than a forest village. These villages are built on many levels, with tree platforms and bridges to accommodate the long-limbed residents.
Like their settlements, bugbear religions are simple and small in scale, typically revolving around a powerful local spirit, which may or may not be an actual divinity. The nature of the spirit or spirits chosen can have a profound effect on a community's outlook, and Bugbear enclaves are broadly categorised as aggressive, territorial, benevolent, or dark.

Aggressive enclaves worship ambitious gods who desire a greater dominion. Often shortlived, if an aggressive enclave manages to thrive and grow it can become a danger to all of its neighbours. It is not uncommon for such an enclave to grow beyond all usual limits by absorbing conquered populations, nor for the original enclave to be lost amid these newcomers.

Territorial enclaves go the other way, defending their woods against all comers, whether they have hostile intentions or not. Worshipping insular gods - or, more often, spirits with aspirations of divinity - they tend to be small enclaves and to stay that way.

Benevolent bugbear communities are driven by more gen­erous gods to value hospitality and charity. They live peacefully, but the intrinsic size and strength of the rogili protects them against casual exploitation. While they rarely grow, they thrive at what they are.

Finally, Dark enclaves are those who fall into the worship of gods or fiends of cruelty, rage and destruction. More violent and dangerous than either the aggressive or territorial enclaves, they are driven to destroy. When such groups arise, other bugbear communities converge on them to eliminate what they see as a stain on the lineage.
The Zerhili are a much rarer morpheme of goblinoid. The adaptive nature of goblins is significant, but such an elaborate modification as amphibious breathing only rarely takes. The change is recent enough that the zerhili have not yet integrated into the hybrid lineages of Seafolk, but instead stand apart as a separate stock. Some live in ports and fishing harbours, others in the Sea Kingdoms, but there are no communities of only gerbils.
Finally, the Ilib or Nilbog is a rare occurrence in an otherwise ordinary goblinoid community. Sometimes attributed to the actions of a trickster god, or to a mental adaptation to societal pressure, they are chaotic, individualistic and defiant. In ideal circumstances, they challenge abuses of power that others dare not, and ridicule those who will not listen. Protected by strange mages, they can provide a vital morale role, or expose abuse. For this, and for fear of their mockery, ilibi are given high respect, and often a wide berth.