1 This category includes barbarians, oracles, rogues, and sorcerers.
Fierce and militaristic, hobgoblins survive by conquest. The raw materials to fuel their war machines come from raids, their armaments and buildings from the toil of slaves worked to death. Naturally ambitious and envious, hobgoblins seek to better themselves at the expense of others of their kind, yet in battle they put aside petty differences and fight with discipline rivaling that of the finest soldiers. Hobgoblins have little love or trust for one another, and even less for outsiders. Life for these brutes consists of duty to those of higher station, domination of those below, and the rare opportunities to seize personal glory and elevate their status. Physical Description: Burly and muscled, hobgoblins stand a few inches shorter than the average human, and their long arms, thick torsos, and relatively short legs give them an almost apelike stature. Hobgoblins' skin is a sickly gray-green that darkens to mossy green after long exposure to the sun. Their eyes burn fiery orange or red, and their broad faces and sharply pointed ears give their features a somewhat feline cast. Hobgoblins lack facial hair, and even hobgoblin women are bald. Except for their size, hobgoblins bear a strong physical resemblance to their goblin cousins. Society: Hobgoblins live in militaristic tyrannies, each community under the absolute rule of a hobgoblin general. Every hobgoblin in a settlement receives military training, with those who excel serving in the army and the rest left to serve more menial roles. Those deemed unfit for military service have little social status, barely rating above favored slaves. Despite this, hobgoblin society is egalitarian after a fashion. Gender and birth offer no barrier to advancement, which is determined almost solely by each individual's personal merit. Hobgoblins eschew strong attachments, even to their young. Matings are matters of convenience, and are almost always limited to hobgoblins of equal rank. Any resulting baby is taken from its mother and forcibly weaned after 3 weeks of age. Young mature quickly—most take no more than 6 months to learn to talk and care for themselves. Hobgoblins' childhoods last a scant 14 years, a mirthless span filled with brutal training in the art of war. Relations: Hobgoblins view other races as nothing more than tools—implements to be enslaved, cowed, and put to work. Without slaves, hobgoblin society would collapse, so reliant is it on stolen labor. An injured, sickly, or defiant slave is like a broken tool, useless waste to be tossed out with the day's garbage. Not surprisingly, hobgoblin communities count no other races as their friends, and few as allies. Elves and dwarves earn special enmity, and are devilishly hard to break into proper slavery as both races hold blood feuds against goblinkind. Halflings and half-orcs make especially prized slaves—the former for their agile skills and the ease of breaking them to the collar, and the latter for their talent at thriving under the harshest of conditions. Hobgoblins have little love for the rest of goblinkind, though they typically treat goblinoid slaves better than they do other races. Alignment and Religion: hobgoblin life is nothing if not ordered and hierarchical, and hobgoblins lean strongly toward the lawful alignments. While not innately evil, the callous and brutal training that fills the too-short childhood of hobgoblins leaves most embittered and full of hate. Hobgoblins of good alignment number the fewest, and almost exclusively consist of individuals raised in other cultures. More numerous but still rare are hobgoblins of chaotic bent, most often exiles cast out by the despots of their homelands. Religion, like most non-militaristic pursuits, matters little to the majority of hobgoblins. Most pay lip-service to one or more gods and occasionally make offerings to curry favor or turn aside ill fortune. Those hobgoblins who feel a stronger religious calling venerate fearsome, tyrannical gods and devils. Adventurers: hobgoblin adventurers tend to be iconoclasts, loners who chafe under the strict hierarchy of military life. Others have fled or been exiled in disgrace for showing weakness or cowardice. Some harbor dreams of one day returning to the hobgoblin flock flush with wealth and tales of great deeds. A few serve farsighted hobgoblin generals, who send the most promising youths out into the world that they might someday return as mighty heroes for the hobgoblin cause. Hobgoblins lean toward martial classes, particularly cavaliers, fighters, monks, and rogues. The arcane arts are distrusted in hobgoblin society and consequently their practitioners are rare, save for alchemists, who gain grudging praise and admiration for their pyrotechnic talents. Male Names: Arak, Bekri, Doruk, Fethi, Grung, Hagla, Haluk, Kurat, Malgrim, Mevlut, Oktar, Saltuk, Turgut. Female Names: Afet, Ceyda, Ela, Esma, Huri, Kurmu, Maral, Masal, Melda, Nisa, Nural, Sekla, Sena, Tansu, Vesile. Standard Racial Traits
Feat and Skill Racial Traits
Senses Racial Traits
Alternate Racial TraitsThe following alternate racial traits may be selected in place of one or more of the standard racial traits above. Consult your GM before selecting any of these new options.
Favored Class OptionsThe following favored class options are available to all characters of this race who have the listed favored class, and unless otherwise stated, the bonus applies each time you select the favored class reward.
3rd Party Publisher Favored Class Options - Jon Brazer Enterprises
Racial ArchetypesThe following racial archetypes are available to hobgoblins: Racial FeatsThe following feats are available to a hobgoblin character who meets the prerequisites. |
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Advanced Race Guide © 2012, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Authors: Dennis Baker, Jesse Benner, Benjamin Bruck, Jason Bulmahn, Adam Daigle, Jim Groves, Tim Hitchcock, Hal MacLean, Jason Nelson, Stephen Radney-MacFarland, Owen K.C. Stephens, Todd Stewart, and Russ Taylor.
Shadowsfall: Favored Class Options. ©2012, Jon Brazer Enterprises; Author Dale C. McCoy, Jr.