Bloodletting

Placeholder Giblin by Katy Smith

A goblin’s lot in life is one of pain and suffering although some tribes have managed to pull themselves out of the cesspit and into the gutter. They are birthed into the world usually in small litters. The strong babes are nourished on a mixture of blood and milk but within a couple of weeks they are weaned off of milk and entirely subsist on the blood of rodent cattle. Once they come of age, they begin to start eating raw flesh. Due to this reliance on blood as a nourishing substance throughout their short lives, goblins find themselves seeking blood as a form of comfort food. The poorest or weakest of the tribe don’t have some of the luxuries that their larger, luckier relations are accustomed to. As such, they sometimes seek to draw blood from themselves.
Roughly one goblin in a thousand is born latently attuned to the magicks of the world. Although it is unknown to the tribes why some members are able to call upon powerful magicks, some have managed to stumble upon rituals that seem to rarely activate these abilities. Large scale ritual sacrifice of rodents or slaves is carried out after important victories or following the crowning of a new chieftain.
Depending on the level of success of the ritual and the amount of latent ability present within the goblin will result in different outcomes. From a simple, but enormous hulk that stands over 5 times taller than your average goblin or a potent shaman that can control the rock and ground itself. In some of the greatest wars that the goblins have fought, great victories have only been achievable as a direct result of these powerful beings amongst the usual ranks of shoddy makeshift pikelins and bowlins.
In most cases however, this act of bloodletting and soothing the wound is simply an act of comfort eating for those that live painfully short and desperate lives.

This is a submission for my first ever Summer Camp in 2024 - I hope you enjoy my writings and I'm looking forward to hearing your feedback!