- For the DROD RPG monster, see Goblin (RPG).
Goblin | |
A goblin preparing to attack |
|
Monster ID | 3 |
Layer | Monsters |
Movement | Goblin |
First appears | Webfoot DROD |
Is required | Yes |
Is brain visible | No |
Traverses shallow water | No |
Goblins are intelligent monsters as diverse and widespread across the Eighth as humanity. Most communities on the surface feature an uneasy harmony of goblins and humans working side-by-side, but in the caves and tunnels throughout the Beneath, isolated and xenophobic tribes are far more prevalent.
Hostile goblins hold a healthy fear of weapons and believe that honor takes a second place to staying alive.
Description[]
Goblins found underground are one of the few kinds of monsters smart enough to match wits with intruders from above and below. They're cunning, wily, and even speak vague approximations of aboveground languages. Their societies tend to be rudimentary and tribal, often found in the lower and safer levels of dungeons. While straightforward and quite brutal, goblin societies can be surprisingly specialized and have complex belief systems. However, these unique cultures are typically eroded by first contact with humans.
Though most goblin tribes are intensely hostile, the few that have occasional contact with humans are somewhat more friendly. They tend to assimilate the more materialistic values of human society and place a premium on trading. For the adventurous goblins who leave these tribes to explore the world above, they often dabble in making small wooden ornaments with varying degrees of skill. Unfortunately, most goblins feel that carving and whittling grates the soul, and many end up turning to a life of crime to support themselves. They most often resort to mugging passers-by.
Goblins who fully integrate into human society, having learned to temper their impulsive and aggressive nature, tend to prefer menial jobs. They enjoy the simplicity and directness of physical labor as opposed to the politicking and bickering that accompanies the more cerebral endeavors that humans undertake. Some humans are strongly prejudiced toward goblins, and not all societies recognize goblins as equal citizens, but for the most part they are treated kindly.
Goblins are well-respected within the Rooted Empire as effective laborers. Citizens seem to hold no animosity toward them. It's not known if the feeling is mutual or if goblins are simply cowed into submission for fear of the Empire's retribution.
Behavior[]
- See Smitemastery/Goblins for gameplay techniques on dealing with goblins.
Target[]
- Goblins target the player (if not stealthed), decoys, temporal clones, stalwarts, and soldiers.
- Goblins prioritize the closest target first using Manhattan distance. In the case of a tie, goblins prefer the target with the latest movement order.
- Decoys are always prioritized last as long as there is another target within five tiles of the goblin.
- Brained goblins ignore decoys.
Movement[]
- Goblins are terrestrial creatures. They cannot swim, fly, or move into solid objects or other creatures.
- Goblins cannot traverse shallow water.
- A goblin calculates distance to its target using the Pythagorean Theorem. It assigns a score to all the open tiles adjacent to it as well as its current position. The highest score goes to the tile that contains the target. The lowest scores go to the tiles adjacent to the target's weapon. All other tiles are assigned scores based on their distances from the target, with closer tiles receiving higher scores. The goblin then picks the highest score of the nine possibilities and moves to that tile.
- If multiple tiles have the same best score, the goblin will break the tie by using the following preference order: NW, N, NE, W, its own square, E, SW, S, SE.
- Brained goblins move similarly to non-brained goblins. If there is no visible path to the target, or if the tile the goblin wants to move to is within two tiles of the target according to the brain, then the goblin will pick its next destination as normal. Otherwise, the goblin uses the brain's pathfinding algorithm to calculate where to move next, with a preference toward orthogonal moves.
Vulnerabilities[]
- Goblins are vulnerable to sharp weapons, hot tiles, active firetraps, floor spikes, puffs, explosions, briar, and being eaten by adders.
- Goblins will die when dropped or pushed into pit, water, or shallow water.
External Links[]
Article on Goblins