Goblin
Goblins are a race of small, green-skinned humanoids. Often cited as the most downtrodden race in all of Apa Axas, the Goblins are seen as nuisance pests at best by the other races, and dangerous monsters to be killed in sight at worst. Many goblins exist in large and savage tribes, which often force more passive goblins into violence, while others dwell in the dark shadows of the cities, such as the sewers and abandoned homes. However, this has led to a great underestimation of the Goblins, and they are more than capable to being a threat to much larger creatures than one would imagine, with incredibly speed and many deploying a surprisingly tactical fighting involving hit and run techniques. This fighting prowess leads many city Goblins into life in crime syndicates, acting as enforcers or mercenaries.
Basic Information
Anatomy
Goblins tend to adapt to their environments, leaving a few variations of the creatures, including:
- Green Goblins, found in grasslands. These are the original Goblins, from which all other variants stem.
- Ice Goblins, found in the snowy areas of Apa Axas.
- Coastal Goblins, found by the beaches and oceans.
- Dust Goblins, found in the sandy areas, such as deserts.
- Forest Goblins, found in the forested areas.
- Rock Goblins, found in the mountainous areas.
- Swamp Goblins, found in the swampy areas.
- Dark Goblins, found in The Underdark.
- Demogoblins, found in the Fiend-Touched outer planes, but are often stranded in Apa Axas.
Civilization and Culture
History
The Goblins first stepped foot onto Apa Axas as part of Sangroke Bliss' The Great Horde, as the lowliest rank within this great army. Although weak and craven in comparison to their larger compatriots such as the Orcs and Bugbears, the Goblins’ natural ruthless cunning, joy in destruction and nimble speed made them excellent infiltrators, often used to sabotage Dwarven siege engines and Elven magical equipment. These saboteurs were often covered in scars and soot, darkening their hue to an extent that the early Dwarves believed the goblins to be a different species entirely, the mythical Gremlins that would cause faults in tools and machinery. To this day, Dwarves will use the words Gremlins and Goblins interchangeably to describe the Goblinfolk.
While under the protection of the Horde, Goblins grew greedy and sadistic, with the most famous examples being the Greenblood Regiment, a small elite task force of goblins dedicated to Sangroke Bliss’ ally Thija. These Goblins’ sole purpose was to invent new methods of torture, both physical and spiritual to ensure their enemies suffered even past death. However, the Horde soon met their match in the guise of The Most-Favoured, a monstrous race created by The Vida Quda to inherit Apa Axas that would later evolve into Humans, Halflings and Gnomes. Sangroke Bliss was defeated by this unstoppable new force, and her armies were scattered across the Roving Reality. The Goblins were decimated by these events, and the few survivors managed to hide away on The Putric Isles, in particular Green Man's Rock, a small barren island off the coast, in an event known as The Green Exodus. These Goblins soon founded the Cragclaws, first of the Goblin Tribes. However, once again, these Goblins were forced from their homes as the early Humans, Halflings and Gnomes came to claim their lands. Rather than remaining as a consistent horde, the Goblinfolk split off into many tribes, and their small stature, wily demeanour and propensity for remaining hidden allowed them to take root in nearly every continent, becoming even more widespread than the Humans. This fact has led Goblin Scholars (few as they are) to believe that the Goblins are the true inheritors of Apa Axas in regards to the Vida Quda’s prophecy, but this statement is seen as blasphemy by nearly every other sect of the The Murky Path.
Interspecies Relations and Assumptions
Despite their widespread success across Apa Axas, Goblins are predated upon in nearly every habitat they appear in, to the point where Goblin Steak is a delicacy to the Yuan-ti. To counteract this, many Goblin tribes have become adept at scavenging, and forming weapons out of scrap. Either due to a lack of patience or imagination, Goblins do not produce their own unique weaponry, instead they salvage what they can from raids and skirmishes. This method of crafting has led to each tribe of Goblins gaining a unique look to their weapons, and many tribes are named after this fact, such as The Bloody Club Tribe of Kelnilgaru and The Speartooth Clan. When these tribes clash, they will often attempt to intimidate their rivals with the size of the weapons, in an attempt to avoid any actual combat. Being able to use large and great weapons is seen as a feat of ultimate skill in Goblin culture.
Goblins are seen as simplistic creatures by the other races of Apa Axas, but their societies are often intricate and nuanced. The tribes are usually run by a joint alliance of the male Chieftain and the female Booyagh or Shaman, that are selected, to the surprise of many scholars, democratically. However, due to the self-centred and treacherous nature of most Goblins, these elections are usually filled with damaging propaganda, spy craft, corruption and sometimes even violence at most of their elections. Religion is also highly important to the Goblins, although the exact gods they worship vary from tribe to tribe, with Sangroke Bliss, Vox and Gutrot being the most popular candidates. Some Goblin Booyagh state that the Travesties themselves ignite wars between the Goblin Tribes as some kind of perverse sport, a belief the Goblins relish in, although no real evidence of this has been found.
Goblin tribes often engage in raids, and therefore are at constant risk of defeat or retaliation. Many destroyed Goblin tribes never reform, and the survivors are forced to scrimp and beg in the poorer parts of the settlements or other races. These disenfranchised Goblins often tell tale of a so called “Goblin Nation ”, although no one can agree on where this mythical country may be, or if indeed it is a country, or an organisation. It was this belief that sparked interest in the Goblin communities when Lucidity appeared on Apa Axas. Many stowed away on the ships of other races, and quickly established new tribes in the more remote places in Apa Axas, in particular the Harpy's Wing. However, these Goblins have dived headfirst into the madness of Lucidity, and most have already fallen victim to the strange mutagenic effects of the island.
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