Hobgoblin

Hobgoblins are larger, stronger, smarter, and more menacing forms of goblinoids than goblins, but not as powerful as bugbears.

Description

Hobgoblins stand on average about 5 and a half feet and weigh about 175 pounds. They have flat faces, sloped back foreheads, broad bright blue noses, and small, sharp fangs. Their eyes vary in color from yellow to dark brown, and their skin is almost always a deep ruddy red color. The brightness of their blue nose dictates how strong the individual hobgoblin is.
Hobgoblins have a war-like society and always keep their gear in top shape whenever they can. They favor brightly colored garments, especially outfits of blood red. When they cannot get this, they much prefer clothing of black as it aids them in stealth.

Personality

By and large, hobgoblins, like their kin, are considered to be evil creatures and often meet this expectation. While goblinoid society is typically cruel and harsh, some individuals escape it to carry on lives of virtue. The few who take this risk and succeed often meet carutious praise and acceptance from outsiders. Those that manage to escape goblinoid society, however, are continuously plagued by their goblinoid nature. Though hobgoblins are not necessarily evil, they are prone to violence and hot tempers, and often find it difficult to be truly altruistic.
When provoked, which is not a hard task, hobgoblins are vindictive creatures who take glee in causing pain to those that injure them. Those hobgoblins who overcome this nature often manage this because of the rewards they find in serving good, rather than evil.

Combat

Combat and warfare are the bread and butter of hobgoblin society. They tend to form organized ranks and strike with a high level of tactics and strategy. Like goblins, they will use ambushes, overwhelming odds, and any other dirty tricks they can, but have no problem with toe-to-toe combat when it comes down to this.
Hobgoblins are less nimble than goblins, but are much stronger and willing to enter combat. They tend to use stealth when they can, and fall back to martial strength when the stealth has either failed or paid off.
Even when outnumbered or outmatched, most hobgoblins would rather die in combat than surrender or retreat.

Society

Hobgoblins are mostly found in communities where they are in command of either goblins or bugbears, or sometimes both. The most civilized goblinoid communities are ruled by the race. This is in large part because hobgoblin society is more industrious and less savage than that of goblins or bugbears. Though bugbears sometimes take control due to their raw strength, most such communities are ruled over by the strongest hobgoblin, who serves as the warchief.
Hobgoblins have a long tradition of mastering and breeding the creatures of the world into slaves of various sorts. Many, for instance, enjoy working with wolves and worgs. SImilarly, many drake breeds were first bred by hobgoblins. Some even believe hobgoblins carry on this practice within their own race, creating the goblins and bugbears in such a manner.
Hobgoblins are immensely protective of their tribe's reputation and military status, so much so that meetings between different groups can turn violent if proper protocol is not followed. However, though hobgoblin tribes are territorial and egotistical in nature, they often unite for a common purpose, such as war against non-goblinoids.

Religion

Hobgoblins once had many more of their own gods, but Gharghulak, the god of war and rulership, killed most of their gods. Since then, he has served as the chief deity of the hobgoblins, with them praying to much of the Goblinoid Pantheon. Many follow Dhurglakk the deity of war and authority or Mhorthakth, the goblinoid deity of unity, territory, and cooperation.

Magic

Hobgoblins are warriors by nature and prefer martial combatants to those who draw on magic. Those few spellcasters who are to be found are expected to work well with soldiers. Despite this, hobgoblins do not intrinically dislike magic, and understand its strength. As such, any combat against a group that includes spellcasters will have the hobgoblins hailing arrows upon the caster until incapacitated or dead.

Notable Hobgoblins

Notable Tribes

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Table of Contents

Game Statistics

Custom System

To Be Made

5th Edition

To Be Made

4th Edition

To Be Made

3.5th Edition

To Be Made

2nd Edition

Ability Score Adjustment. The initial ability scores are modified by a -1 penalty to Charisma.

Ability	Minimum	Maximum
Strength	6	18
Dexterity	6	18
Constitution	5	18
Intelligence	3	18
Wisdom	3	18
Charisma	3	14

Class	Maximum
Fighter	11
‎ ‎ ‎Paladin	—
‎ ‎ ‎Ranger	—
‎ ‎ ‎Barbarian	—
Mage	7
‎ ‎ ‎Specialist	—
‎ ‎ ‎Warlock	7
Cleric	9
‎ ‎ ‎Druid	—
‎ ‎ ‎Monk	—
‎ ‎ ‎Shaman	7
Thief	12
‎ ‎ ‎Assassin	12
‎ ‎ ‎Bard	—
Psionicist	—

Special Advantages. Hobgoblins have infravision with a range of 60 feet.
Special Disadvantages. Hobgoblins can detect new construction, sloping passages, and shifting walls in underground complexes 40% of the time (1-4 on 1d10).
Role-Playing Suggestions. Most other humanoids and human societies attack hobgoblins on sight.
Languages. Hobgoblin, orc, goblin, common, carnivorous ape (rare).
Monstrous Traits. To hobgoblins, war is almost a religious experience. They fight for the glory of battle and to cause carnage, not to expand territory or right wrongs against them. Their outlook on war is much more pure than that. Conflict and strife are their meat and drink.
Hobgoblin PCs are rare in the extreme, but those that do take up the life of adventurers usually fall into one of two patterns. The first is the hobgoblin pacifist. These individuals detest war, though they may be extremely good at its brutal arts. Having grown tired of the constant fighting, they leave their tribes and seek to find a new life somewhere away from their people. Of course, as battle is what they do best, they often find themselves using their militaristic arts to earn a living. However, at least as an adventurer they only have to fight when absolutely necessary. These type of characters will often way until the last minute before entering a fray—not because they are cowards, but because they grow sick and tired of shedding blood.
The second pattern of hobgoblin PCs are those who turn away from the evil of their society. They reject the hobgoblin gods and perhaps even discover the faith of a non-evil deity. These characters seek to make aends for their old life styles, trying to repair the damage the hobgoblins have done and continue to do in the name of glorious war.
Even the best hobgoblin PCs find it hard to overcome all of their natural tendencies. Brutality, stoicism, courage, and cold-bloodedness are always with them, like dark cloaks they can never shed.
Superstitions. Weakness is feared and actively destroyed in hobgoblin society. A weapon which breaks during combat is an extremely bad omen.
Weapon Proficiencies. Composite longbow, morning star, scimitar, spear, whip, any polearm.
Nonweapon Proficiencies. Armorer, blacksmithing, bowyer/fletcher, brewing, chanting, close-quarter fighting, direction sense, fire-building, hiding, intimidation, looting, religion, weaponsmithing, wild fighting.

Pathfinder 2nd Edition

To Be Made

Genetic Descendants

• Half-Orc

Lifespan

70-80 years

Average Height

5-6 feet

Average Weight

150-200 pounds

Related Organizations

• Red Fang Tribe