ForceUser
Explorer
As I've played D&D over the years I've grown bored with the standard PHB races. In my current campaign, I've changed gnomes and eliminated halflings for the most part. Instead of halflings, I offer goblins as a player character race. Understanding that the goblin as written in the Monster Manual is somewhat underwhelming, I present the homebrew goblin PC race I've come up with, inspired in part by J. K Rowling and Brian Froud (since I don't use elves in my campaign either, the goblin has usurped one of the elves' traditional roles in an adventuring party. See if you can guess what that is.)
GOBLINS
Once, these servants of the evil god Maglubiyet ruled central and northern Eriador, riding vicious worgs and calling down the thunder and fury of their wicked deity upon the heads of their hapless foes. Once, the Endless Kingdom, as goblins called it, dominated the hills and mountains of the fertile Eisenmark, lording over all the land from the Hagenwald to the northern Alps. They built great temples and settlements first in honor of their dark god, and later in honor of themselves.
Six thousand years later, Maglubiyet’s cleverest children lurk furtively in the alleys of human cities, and in the mountains and barrows once lorded over by their mighty kingdom, fearful of human authority, not to mention performing an honest day’s labor. Although nominally still followers of their creator deity, their worship has in most regions evolved from earnest supplication to fearful appeasement. Maglubiyet, thoroughly disgusted by this rather embarrassing turn of events, is said to despise his wayward children even more than the humans they kowtow to.
Goblins are not without their merits, however. As a group, they tend to be clever, quick, and sneaky. They are not above surrendering in combat if they think it will gain them a greater advantage than fighting. Goblin barristers are said to be the canniest of their ilk, and anyone who’s spent time bargaining with a goblin tends to walk away feeling as though they’ve gotten the better end of the deal, when in fact they’ve been taken for a tidy sum. None of these traits, unfortunately, are seen favorably by members of other races, especially humans. Goblins in human communities often end up performing duties that humans themselves find distasteful. Lazy as they are, they don’t seem to mind.
Other goblinoid groups, such as the militant hobgoblins and insidious bugbears, see the “domesticated” goblins that coexist with humanity as infidels and traitors to Maglubiyet, and they take particular pleasure from capturing and torturing such goblins to death. Likewise, “wild” goblins who’ve never settled peacefully with other races find their domestic cousins to be utterly disgusting.
The goblins of Eriador are short, wiry humanoids with skin that comes in a startling variety of colors, from burnt orange to emerald green to deep indigo. They reach heights of no more than three feet, and weigh around 40 pounds. Goblins have large, protruding pointed ears, and their noses are often long and hooked or flat and broad. Invariably, their teeth are small and sharp and their eyes beady, lending to their reputation for untrustworthiness.
Goblins speak their own language, Gobbledygook, which is similar to Gurgumund, the languages of most other goblinoid creatures.
GOBLIN RACIAL TRAITS
• +2 Dexterity, -2 Strength, -2 Charisma. Goblins are nimble, but weak and repulsive.
• Small: As Small creatures, goblins gain a +1 size bonus to AC, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +4 size bonus on Sneak checks, but they use smaller weapons than humans use, and their lifting and carrying limits are three-quarters of those of a Medium character. As Small creatures, they also suffer a -4 size penalty to grapple checks.
• Goblin base land speed is 30 feet. Goblins are fast little buggers for their size.
• Darkvision: Goblins can see in the dark up to 60 feet. Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and goblins can function just fine with no light at all.
• Run Away!: When a goblin runs away from immediate danger, he moves five times his normal speed rather than four times. A goblin with the Run feat can move six times his normal speed when running away. Goblins cannot use this racial ability when wearing Heavy armor.
• +2 racial bonus to saving throws against poisons: goblins can eat almost anything, and often do. Rancid meat, for instance, is a goblin delicacy.
• +4 racial bonus on Escape Artist checks. Goblins have refined the ability to get out of tight situations into an art.
• +2 racial bonus on Listen and Search checks. A goblin who merely passes within 5 feet of a secret or concealed door is entitled to a Search check to notice it as if he were actively looking for it. A goblin’s senses are so keen that he practically has a sixth sense about hidden portals.
• +2 racial bonus on Appraise checks. Goblins have a knack for turning one gold piece into two gold pieces by knowing the exact worth of an item and how far they can take a particular sale.
• Automatic Languages: Regional human language (usually Arbonnesse, Genovan, or Sturmmen) and Gobbledygook. Bonus Languages: Dragon, Faerie, Giant, Gnome, Gnoll, Gurgumund, Orc, Shissar, and regional human language (Arbonnesse, Eloi, Genovan, Sturmmen, Ulvmann, Vangal, and Vistani).
• Favored Class: Rogue. A multiclass goblin’s rogue class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty for multiclassing (see XP for multiclass characters, page 60 of the Player’s Handbook).
GOBLINS
Once, these servants of the evil god Maglubiyet ruled central and northern Eriador, riding vicious worgs and calling down the thunder and fury of their wicked deity upon the heads of their hapless foes. Once, the Endless Kingdom, as goblins called it, dominated the hills and mountains of the fertile Eisenmark, lording over all the land from the Hagenwald to the northern Alps. They built great temples and settlements first in honor of their dark god, and later in honor of themselves.
Six thousand years later, Maglubiyet’s cleverest children lurk furtively in the alleys of human cities, and in the mountains and barrows once lorded over by their mighty kingdom, fearful of human authority, not to mention performing an honest day’s labor. Although nominally still followers of their creator deity, their worship has in most regions evolved from earnest supplication to fearful appeasement. Maglubiyet, thoroughly disgusted by this rather embarrassing turn of events, is said to despise his wayward children even more than the humans they kowtow to.
Goblins are not without their merits, however. As a group, they tend to be clever, quick, and sneaky. They are not above surrendering in combat if they think it will gain them a greater advantage than fighting. Goblin barristers are said to be the canniest of their ilk, and anyone who’s spent time bargaining with a goblin tends to walk away feeling as though they’ve gotten the better end of the deal, when in fact they’ve been taken for a tidy sum. None of these traits, unfortunately, are seen favorably by members of other races, especially humans. Goblins in human communities often end up performing duties that humans themselves find distasteful. Lazy as they are, they don’t seem to mind.
Other goblinoid groups, such as the militant hobgoblins and insidious bugbears, see the “domesticated” goblins that coexist with humanity as infidels and traitors to Maglubiyet, and they take particular pleasure from capturing and torturing such goblins to death. Likewise, “wild” goblins who’ve never settled peacefully with other races find their domestic cousins to be utterly disgusting.
The goblins of Eriador are short, wiry humanoids with skin that comes in a startling variety of colors, from burnt orange to emerald green to deep indigo. They reach heights of no more than three feet, and weigh around 40 pounds. Goblins have large, protruding pointed ears, and their noses are often long and hooked or flat and broad. Invariably, their teeth are small and sharp and their eyes beady, lending to their reputation for untrustworthiness.
Goblins speak their own language, Gobbledygook, which is similar to Gurgumund, the languages of most other goblinoid creatures.
GOBLIN RACIAL TRAITS
• +2 Dexterity, -2 Strength, -2 Charisma. Goblins are nimble, but weak and repulsive.
• Small: As Small creatures, goblins gain a +1 size bonus to AC, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, and a +4 size bonus on Sneak checks, but they use smaller weapons than humans use, and their lifting and carrying limits are three-quarters of those of a Medium character. As Small creatures, they also suffer a -4 size penalty to grapple checks.
• Goblin base land speed is 30 feet. Goblins are fast little buggers for their size.
• Darkvision: Goblins can see in the dark up to 60 feet. Darkvision is black and white only, but it is otherwise like normal sight, and goblins can function just fine with no light at all.
• Run Away!: When a goblin runs away from immediate danger, he moves five times his normal speed rather than four times. A goblin with the Run feat can move six times his normal speed when running away. Goblins cannot use this racial ability when wearing Heavy armor.
• +2 racial bonus to saving throws against poisons: goblins can eat almost anything, and often do. Rancid meat, for instance, is a goblin delicacy.
• +4 racial bonus on Escape Artist checks. Goblins have refined the ability to get out of tight situations into an art.
• +2 racial bonus on Listen and Search checks. A goblin who merely passes within 5 feet of a secret or concealed door is entitled to a Search check to notice it as if he were actively looking for it. A goblin’s senses are so keen that he practically has a sixth sense about hidden portals.
• +2 racial bonus on Appraise checks. Goblins have a knack for turning one gold piece into two gold pieces by knowing the exact worth of an item and how far they can take a particular sale.
• Automatic Languages: Regional human language (usually Arbonnesse, Genovan, or Sturmmen) and Gobbledygook. Bonus Languages: Dragon, Faerie, Giant, Gnome, Gnoll, Gurgumund, Orc, Shissar, and regional human language (Arbonnesse, Eloi, Genovan, Sturmmen, Ulvmann, Vangal, and Vistani).
• Favored Class: Rogue. A multiclass goblin’s rogue class does not count when determining whether he takes an experience point penalty for multiclassing (see XP for multiclass characters, page 60 of the Player’s Handbook).
