An intense, passionate species; incredibly hardworking and cooperative with each other, while rejecting the other species of the world. These are the hobgoblins as they are known today. Rare in most places outside their homeland, hobgoblin socialization is unusual, and the species bears traits that can make it difficult for others to get along with them. But those who grow to understand may find the mighty power of companionship at their side.
Hobgoblins are not related to goblins or bugbears, despite their common name. Historically, it seems the name arose due to the species working together at significant points in the past. Hobgoblins appear somewhat similar to orcs, closer to the size and shape of humans, though they have squat, ape-like snouts and pointed ears. Some tribes have longer teeth, resembling the iconic orcish tusks. Most have brown or reddish head and body hair, and their skin color ranges across tones of red. Hobgoblins exhibit noticeable sexual dimorphism; female hobgoblins tend to be larger and slightly stronger than males. Hobgoblin pregnancy, birth, and lifespans are also very similar to that of humans.
The species' most notable trait is their use of pheromones in socialization. While science attests that many species the world over utilize pheromones unconsciously, none are developed even a fraction as much as those of hobgoblins. Similarly to those utilized by insects such as bees and ants, hobgoblin society is driven by their ability to regulate and detect chemicals which are culturally understood to change the meaning and intent behind words and actions. Female hobgoblins tend to produce stronger pheromones than males. A well-practiced team of hobgoblins may be able to work together wordlessly, using invisible signals which they understand instinctually. Those same hobgoblins may be frustrated to encounter other species who can't understand the nuance of this behavior.
It's believed that goblins and bugbears are unique in that they have the senses required to better-comprehend these signals when hobgoblins communicate with them; though they cannot produce the same pheromones on their own.
Hobgoblins in the World
Unlike most species, whose origins are inscrutable through the annals of history and who have spread collectively across the planet, hobgoblins have long taken to isolation. Though not excessively unfriendly to outsiders, few other species live among the many thriving hobgoblin nations upon the continent nearest West of Des Forabis, across the Sea Narawa. The easternmost region of that land is named Kanta, and the easternmost port of Kanta is Nazar; which occasionally sees trade and travel from the East.
Though one might assume them a monolith, the hobgoblins of the west have long battled with each other. Many disparate nations with their own ideals, religions, and needs have gone through eras of uneasy cooperation and bitter war. Some would say the rest of the world should be glad that the hobgoblins are ever focused inward, for if they were to ever unite, their sights would turn outward.
Hobgoblin pheromones make the species famously difficult for others to interact with. At home, hobgoblins communicate with nuance including these chemical scents to enhance their use of verbal and body language. Perfumes and flower-language are an important part of many hobgoblin cultures; burning the wrong incense at dinner could trigger a feud lasting a generation. Many of these nuances are instinctual to the species, while many others are a learned mass of cultural language; the latter is far easier for other humanoids to learn to replicate.
For hobgoblin travelers, who make their way to Des Forabis or other parts of the world, it's common for them to find speaking with other species banal. These other species' words seem plain and blunt, like those of naive children. They fare better speaking to goblins and bugbears, who can somewhat comprehend the hobgoblins' meaning. On the other hand, humans and their neighbors might find hobgoblins standoffish or stiff; their noses can't catch the meaning hidden in the air, and so words that the hobgoblin meant to convey but left unsaid are lost.
For those hobgoblins and other humanoids who learn to understand each other better, working together to build this cooperation of language, their teamwork can be scarily impressive.
Hobgoblin Player Characters
As a hobgoblin, you are an exotic rarity outside of your homeland. It's not unheard of for hobgoblin companies or families to travel abroad, but you'll rarely find more of your kind far from your home continent. Some people you meet in these far away places may consider you a novelty, or you might bump into rumors that claim your people to be barbaric warmongers.
You are defined by your hidden meanings and intention that are conveyed through pheromones produced by your body, such as in your sweat. While these pheromones do not constitute an entire language on their own, you may find you have trouble communicating with other species the way you do your own; the same way a human might have trouble communicating with someone who never smiled or moved their eyebrows. Likewise, foul odors can seriously trouble you due to your sensitive sense of smell.
Hobgoblins are born and raised in ways similar to humans, so consider this when deciding where you are from and why you are on your quest. You may have been born far from your family's homeland, an immigrant of generations whose parents or grandparents settled here some time ago; or you may be fresh off a boat from the western sea on some quest of dire urgency.
Hobgoblin Traits
Ability Score Bonus. You gain a +2 to Constitution and a +1 to Intelligence.
Age. Hobgoblins are born as infants after 9 months of pregnancy; they mature around age 18 and can live to about 80.
Size. Your size is Medium; hobgoblins stand between 5 and 6 feet tall and weigh between 150 and 200 pounds. Male hobgoblins tend to be slightly smaller than females.
Speed. Your base walking speed is 30 feet.
Keen Smell. Your highly sensitive sense of smell grants you Advantage on Insight, Nature, and Perception checks relying on smell. You also have Disadvantage on Saving Throws made to resist foul odors and similar effects, such as a Troglodyte's Stench.
Jolly Cooperation. Your unique pheromones can take effect on the battlefield, helping your allies or hindering your foes whether or not they're even aware of it. Through training or talent, you've learned to master this trait to your advantage. On your turn, you can take the Help action as a bonus action. Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
Starting at 3rd level, choose one of the following options each time you take the Help action with this trait:
Hospitality. You and the creature you help each gain a number of temporary hit points equal to 1d6 plus your proficiency bonus. This increases to 2d6 at 9th level and 3d6 at 15th level.
Passage. You and the creature you help each increase your walking speeds by 10 feet until the start of your next turn. This increases to +15 feet at 9th level and +20 feet at 15th level.
Spite. Until the start of your next turn, the first time the creature you help hits a target with an attack roll, that target has disadvantage on the next attack roll it makes.
Cunning Assistance. Your pheromones can even compel your allies - and yourself - to unconsciously bolster your own failures. If you miss with an attack roll or fail an ability check or a saving throw, you can gain a bonus to the roll equal to the number of allies you can see within 30 feet of you (maximum bonus of +5). Once you use this trait, you can't use it again until you finish a short or long rest.
