Goblins, Saints, and the Outcasts of Vathak

As I mull over the nature of goblins and their kin in Vathak, I've also begun to ponder the roles of the Saints. Now this seems tangential to the goblins I said I'd be dealing with over the next few weeks (and it kinda is), but it is their similar limbo-like state that led my train of thoughts to them.

Vathak is a place suitable for telling many tales and one of those is certainly the conflict between the One True God and the Great Old Ones. Unlike most fantasy settings, Vathak is largely monotheistic. The civilized world has taken the One True God (hereafter the OTG) as a sort of patron protector. For some--the native romni and bhriota especially--this is a forced decision. Others come to accept the OTG as a beacon of stability and hope in a chaotic and dangerous world. Other still use the tenets of the OTG to justify their detestable actions in the name of the "greater good." The Old Ones stand as a dangerous counterpoint to the OTG, offering secret truths and bizarre power to those willing or able to claim it. Other deities take minor roles, be they the ancestor spirits of the svirfneblin, the cult of signs of the romni, or the ancient gods of Vathak the bhriota continue to venerate.

Saint Piotr, the Divine Carpenter

The Saints exist in some sort of middle ground. They are not ostensibly servants of the OTG, but few share the same alignment or profile of their benefactor. They are capable of granting divine powers to clerics, as any god could, and even have an entire class of Vathak devoted to their individual roles, the Disciple. Unlike other faiths, they are not exactly heretical under the monotheistic principles of the OTG... but neither are they truly worshipers of the OTG. They're like some bastard child rebelling against the mold while still maintaining just enough orthodoxy to avoid getting into any real trouble (whether or not these disciples even realize it).

Looping this long-ass rant all back together, followers of Saints are caught between two worlds much like I envision the goblins of Vathak might be. On one hand, they are devotees of the OTG and loyal to the Konig's word and decrees. But on the other, they have another figure they venerate and may prefer when those decrees come into conflict with their personal values. Sure, the goblins I wrote about last week are divided between their ancestral barbarism and a newfound need to integrate with "civilization" to survive as a society, but they are similarly outcasts. Wretched, hauntlings, and cambions share similar difficulties in vindari society, and might also strain against the mold in order to find a place for themselves in a world aligned against them.

To that end, Saints and their disciples are the first publicly "acceptable" face of dissent from the OTG and the vindari's imperialistic sprawl across Vathak. That makes them a great set of deities (or demi-deities) for those outcast faces of Vathak to find acceptance. It also makes them a great candidate for the naturally chaotic tendencies of many players, offering a publicly-lawful-but-secretly-dissenting means of rebelling against the fist of authority.

And for players looking to overthrow an oppressive authority, Vathak offers no shortage of interesting antagonists.

Expanding the Races of Vathak

As most GMs will do, I've tweaked Vathak slightly to fit my needs and those of my players. The world is still recognizable as the same Shadows over Vathak that caught my interest in the first place, but it's got a few other little tidbits that I enjoy and my players have (so far, at least) enjoyed.

One of these was adding a few more Vathak-specific languages. Bhriota skin-script has already proven an interesting addition as an entirely nonverbal language and provided a little bit of depth to a group of people who, previously, had struck my players as an entirely one-trick-pony of evil cultish Old-One barbarians. Master linguists in this language flourish in their trade even in Eisin'dorf, where subtle tattoos might be signs of resistance against King or Konig, or simply a marker of a culture finding acceptance in a world that had thought them enemies.

One that hasn't gotten a whole lot of mileage so far, though, are the goblins of Vathak.

 

I give good haircuts, cheap, for you, yeah?

I've bumped them up from essentially a nonfactor in the story of Vathak to another tale of the terrible things that might happen there. In my Vathak, they've survived extinction only to find oppression under the yoke of their supposed kinsmen. They are as pitiable as they are dangerous... but like so many other cultures of Vathak, they simply want a means to survive in a world that seems determined to destroy them (and all of sanity and/or existence, but that's neither here nor there). Some have managed to escape the barbaric slavery they might face to integrate into Vathak society, but often with about as much success as a hauntling or wretched.

To reflect this, I've tweaked goblins' racial traits as following.

Goblin Racial Traits

Ability Score Racial Traits: Vathak's goblins have bridled their typical overeager alacrity and learned how to better navigate society without being killed on sight. They gain +2 Dexterity, and +2 Charisma, but lose –2 Wisdom from years of abuse and cultural isolation.

Type: Goblins are humanoids with the goblinoid subtype.

Small: Goblins are Small creatures and gain a +1 size bonus to their AC, a +1 size bonus on attack rolls, a –1 penalty to their CMB and CMD, and a +4 size bonus on Stealth checks.

Quick Feet: Goblins have a base speed of 30 feet.

Senses (1 RP): Vathak goblins fled the Filth Reaches long ago, and lost their natural darkvision. Vathak's goblins have low-light vision.

Black Powder Savant (Static Bonus Feat, Weapon Familiarity—3 RP): Goblins took to firearms like no other natives of Vathak. Goblins are always proficient with simple and martial firearms and treat any weapon with the word “goblin” in its name as a martial weapon.

Goblin Tenacity (Hardy-ish—3 RP): In the face of extinction, goblins have become even more resilient. They gain a +2 bonus on saving throws against disease, poison, death effects, and fear effects.

Outcast (Defensive Training, Medium—2 RP): Goblins were hunted to near extinction by the vindari and subsequently enslaved by bugbear kinsmen. To avoid an untimely demise, they have trained to gain a +2 dodge bonus to AC against humanoids with the goblinoid or human subtypes.

Scrapper (Skill Bonus+--3 RP): Goblins are well adapted to working with inferior materials. They receive a +2 racial bonus on a Craft skill of their choice and this skill is always considered a class skill. In addition, they do not receive a penalty (if one exists) for crafting without appropriate materials (although the resulting crafts may still be of inferior quality, at the GM's discretion).

Languages: Goblins begin play speaking Common and Goblin. Those with high Intelligence scores can choose from the following: Aklo, Draconic, Dwarven, Elven, Gnome, Sylvan, and Undercommon.

Approximating some of the RP costs, this puts them slightly above the value of standard races, but fits with other Vathak "other" races with the balancing point of interesting or challenging roleplaying opportunities they might face that humans simply would not. It puts another Small race into the player pool beside the grim svirfneblin and, in the spirit of PF2's revealed goblins, has a bonus to Charisma to represent their natural bounciness (for ill or otherwise).

 

Or, you know, when Charisma fails.

Gobbos here courtesy of the Fattest Goblin.

Their racial traits are pretty different from the standard, representing how Vathak has changed them from your average bestiary entry. They're still small, scrap-hoarding little madmen, but there's a history there. There's a reason they build their weapons from garbage and know how to survive in the worst places the world has to offer. There's a reason they tend to keep to themselves and are distrustful of others. There's a reason that most vindari would look twice at one of these creatures, but might not draw a blade at first sight. Like so many others in Vathak, there is a grim story to be told there--or, if that's not your thing, at least an interesting template to build your heroes upon.

I'm curious what others think of these changes, so let me know! Am I way off base? Is this a terrible redesign? Should goblins just not exist in Vathak? Spoilers: there will be more Vathak gobbo stuff to come as I continue to tweak and develop them, so if you've come to hate on goblins you've come to the wrong place.

But this is all still a work in progress. Maybe goblins would make the perfect addition to your Vathak game as well?