Making Goblins a threat for a 3rd level party.

[Zandel]

Use TRAPS lots and lots of TRAPS and small spaces and attacks from hiding and ambushes.

 

[clark411]

As already mentioned, Swarmfighting screams goblins, and it goes well with Phalanx Fighting (also in Complete Warrior)

Swarm'll get a Dex 16 goblin up to +3 to hit,
Phalanx'll get 3 goblins +3 AC and +1 to Reflex Saves.

Putting them together probably won't be feasible for a few more levels unless you're planning a very hard encounter... Goblins would have to be CR 2's (npc class level 3) each for the feat combo, and a base of 10+3dex+3phalanx+2shield+2armor... 20 AC assuming minimal armor is a bit much for a level 3 group.... without sleep that is.

 

[Shallown]

The Idea of using odd weapons works well. Try nets and Bolos. Get them on the ground or at least busy trying to deal with other problems. Two goblins with nets one on each side makes it hard for the fighter to fight. Shuts a wizard down since his chance of casting is fairly small.

Also common things like caltrops to control movement and such work well.

Just to mess with the players bad use trap door goblins. I did this once against a 2nd level party using goblins in prepared trap doors covered with grass in the open plains. I had some close to the roadway and hid some more on a hill. The ones on the hill had archers and were in a hole for cover. The others waited until some goblins drew fire in a nearby set of trees/bushes were the characters assumed the ambush was coming from when suddenly up out of the ground pops a bunch of other goblins. two each hole. One opens the trap door the other fired a crossbow. Then they took turns shooting and loading. You can set this up out in the open and still keep the goblins under cover. Sure some Goblins die as the characters charge them but keep them far enough apart and the other gobs get shots at them. Also as soon as the Characters charge at them in a hole they close the hole and hide in a blind in the back of it opposite a fake short tunnel. So when the character gets there they smash the cover off and see no goblins with a short escape tunnel. The will probably not chase them since others are firing at them and if they do they move into a tunnel too small for them to get ambushed by the two hidden goblins. if they move to the next hole then those two come back out and shoot some more.

Just a few ideas

 

[Goolpsy]

Run multiple encounters.. with lots of traps and such.... wandering monster will keep them from sleeping... change some of the goblins warrior class to wizards or sorcerors.. shoting a couple of magic missiles (Ouch)... use disarm, grapple, trip, sunder.. if the players uses mounts.. either for combat of jsut for riding... shoot the mounts... Every creature with a bit intelligence play'd the right way.. can challenge even level +7 Characters

 

[Corsair]

Feral goblin barbarians. Lots of them. All of a sudden those goblins that your player's thought would be cakewalks go raging crazy, ending up with 18 str during rage, clawing away at your player's kneecaps. Grapple any small party members and bite their faces off.

 

[interwyrm]

Crenelated walls on high ground grant a +4 cover bonus to AC, and a +1 bonus for high ground.

+1 to attack only for melee. No high ground bonus for ranged. (?!?)

Start by tripping (+1 BAB -4 size + 2 flanking + 14 aid another + 1-4 morale (from the Marshall) + 4 from improved trip and maybe even another +2 from Bull's Strength (Cleric buff). When they fall prone (try not to with a +23 modifier) every time they get up they inncur an attack of opprotunity from each of the surrounding goblins (with the +14 aid another bonus and the +2 flanking bonus).

I'm not sure all of that works out... I am pretty sure that the aid another and flanking bonus does not apply to the opposed strength check, just on the touch attack. A good idea would be to have them have improved trip and weapons specially suited for tripping. Also, I think that when they do the attacks of opportunity, they won't all be getting aid another bonuses.

 

[Chaldfont]

There are some great rules in the DMGII about making PCs fight in cramped quarters. IIRC, it also has rules for some very low level traps (like bags of chalky dust that make you lose a round couging and choking if you fail your save).

Make the PCs crawl through a tight tunnel only to have goblins above dump bags of scorpions or spiders or snakes or somesuch on them. Or big rocks. Or caustic lime.

Have the goblins set a fire at the mouth of the cave to draw all the air out, making it hard to breathe.

Goblins are mean bastards.

 

[werk]

Use TRAPS lots and lots of TRAPS and small spaces and attacks from hiding and ambushes.

That's what I was going to recommend. If you don't want to level the goblins, then the only thing left that you can alter to raise the challenge would be the environment.

I remember an old Dungeon adventure where the party became trapped inside a goblin fun house/video game/traptastic dungeon. Tons of protected kill-holes for them to attack out of from safety, traps designed to keep the party moving through the 'game' like cattle at the stockyard, and one room with goblin 'high-rollers' trying to drop large boulders on party members. It was great when we played it a long time ago.

Personally, I like to add class levels...

 

[Kazuel]

Just give all the goblins Keen vorpal ghosttouch Bladed gauntlets.

 

[IcyCool]

Just give all the goblins Keen vorpal ghosttouch Bladed gauntlets.

Make sure those Bladed Gauntlets are per the pre-errata 3.0 rules.