Hobgoblin Rulers): Hobgoblins Have Roughly the Same Life Spans As Humans (Being Slightly Shorter Than Humans), Though Mature Quicker

Name: Makaru Caliphate Species: Goblinoids (hobgoblin rulers): Hobgoblins have roughly the same life spans as humans (being slightly shorter than humans), though mature quicker. Bugbears and goblins have shorter lifespans, standing 6-7 foot tall for bugbears and 4 foot tall for goblins Colour: red (ff0000) P1, 2: Environment, culture and architecture P3: Government, economy, religion P4: Military P5, 6, 7: Important goblinoids P7: Notes and TLDR

Location: Eastern steppes. While the race only really has one city (Makaru), the rest of the population is spread around the many military bases and fortifications that litter the countryside. In the case of the slaves, they reside in the many farms, mines and industry areas in the bases and outlying areas. The makaru caliphate is based largely around hilly steppes, with small streams and rivers winding their way through the mountains. The caliphate has put great effort into building a complex interconnecting road system within their territory so as to allow easier movement of troops and supplies. The weather in the area is rainy and foggy due to close proximity to mountainous regions, and much of the forest is undergoing logging to support the growing nation. To the north are the “cloudy peaks” mountains. To the northeast lies great untamed wilderness, and to the southwest great plains. The kingdom of Antegria over the red desert to the west, draped around Lake Kol’un, and to the south the nation of Hypha Agracia, nestled in the shadow of the southern mountains.

Though the countryside was once mountainous, much has been converted into great farm paddies stretching as far as the eye can see, with occasional listening posts dotting the hills. Though the soil is average in this region, the sheer amount of mountain converted to paddies balances this out. Hidden within the more mountainous regions are countless mines, and the ever present billowing clouds of black smoke that mark mountain tops where military bases lie well defended. Although it would be reasonably easy to conquer the lowlands and farm areas (were it not for the considerable military presence), the highlands are more difficult, with the military minded hobgoblins building fortresses where strategically viable. In the middle of the caliphate lies an great plain covered in farms and military posts, and in the centre rises a grand hill. Perched somewhat precariously on top is the heavily fortified city of Makaru, ramshackle towers rising high above the surrounding countryside.

Goblin camps are typically found outside the military camps and are hidden in the many caves and hills that cover the landscape, shrouded in the ever present fog that marks this land. Bugbears make their dens underneath existing hobgoblin military bases, ready to stream out of hidden bolt holes and exits that mark such installations. Caves that extend for more than a few hundred feet are distrusted by the goblins and bugbears, who fear the “evil spirits” that occasionally stir in the deep. The hobgoblins ignore such impracticalities and seal them off, if only to quieten the lesser goblinoids. Finally, the grand mountain named “Trak’as” (“the eye” in goblinoid) looms above the landscape, sitting right at the southern edge of the mountains to the north. It is said that a beast of great power lives there, one who has slain countless aspiring warlords. Most avoid the cursed place, but occasionally a hero will arise, professing to be able to slay the beast. None return. Spymaster Bryeen, for her part, has never even attempted the journey, claiming that those who journey there die of the bitter cold, or the mountain trolls. If one looks closely though, you can see a glimmer of fear in the grizzled veterans eye CREATURES: for the most part, anything edible has been either hunted to extinction or domesticated. Great gnubeasts, the size of rhinos, graze in the lowlands. The slaves tend these, as well as to the yoko birds which resemble an emu. Nearly all predatory life has been extinct in these lands, as anything that challenges the makaru caliphates superiority is ruthlessly slain. Nevertheless, the greatest of these predators have been (barely) trained under the harsh whip, with trolls, cave bears and Dire wolves all unwillingly brought into the military to use as shock troops. The dire wolves are an interesting animal: following much the same domestication pattern as dogs in human colonies, although these horrid bests being bred for size, ferocity and loyalty to the goblins riding them, growing to the size of a pony. Mass ecological disaster follows the caliphate, as the old ecosystem is torn down and replaced with sprawling farm plots and grazing areas, forests are turned into lumber and anything living is slaughtered and eaten.

Government: Military dictatorship. Each extended family of hobgoblins is called a “house”, with the oldest and most esteemed houses holding great power and wealth. The eldest healthy member of each greater house serves as representative in the meetings, where opinions are met on what to do in the future of the caliphate. Heavily military orientated society, with the actual hobgoblins making up ~20% of the population, other goblinoids (goblins, bugbears etc) around 30% and slaves a further 50%. While the bugbears and goblins may be seen as less than equal, their loyalty is as ironbound as the hobgoblins. The slaves they guard, on the other hand, undergo many revolts and uprisings.. At odd with their brutal slave driving outward appearance, Hobgoblins are actually steadfast allies and abhor lying to associates unless it would bring about the ruin of their caliphate. When encountering other goblinoids, the leader of a war party will often challenge the enemy leader to 1 on 1 combat for control of the horde. Their skill at arms more often than not means entire clans will join with very little bloodshed, and are allowed to keep their own customs, ranks and houses. Absorbed goblins and bugbear tribes will be considered the same as any other of the goblinoids: above the slaves, but below the hobgoblins

Economy: The hobgoblin society is powered by legions of slaves. Hobgoblins are almost exclusively in the military, with a select few too old, weak or otherwise damaged living out their final days, or serving in governmental and administrative positions. Slaves are the backbone of goblinoid society, and produce all of the goods in the caliphate, from mining to farming to metalwork. They are pushed hard, but it is known that will skill comes freedom, and a slave who has proven their worth is allowed to choose to leave, or stay and receive a comfortable lifestyle. The leaders of nations the goblinoids conquer chafe the most, especially in oligarchies, as the work required of slaves of te caliphate is roughly similar to peasants of any other society, keeping what they need and producing the rest for the caliphate Hobgoblin-ruled society doesn't typically use currency in day to day life, with the 99% being given what they need, and the rulers living comparatively simple lives when compared to other nations. Most of their produce goes directly toward fueling more war materiel and research into new and deadlier weapons. When dealing with other races, they typically keep a treasury of precious metals, gems and trinkets to barter, as the only “beauty” worth a Hobgoblins time is something directly related to the art of war. The only metal the holds beauty to them is solid steel.

Religion: Maglubiyet, the conquering god, defeated the other goblinoid gods. Goblinoids work tirelessly to spread his influence, and will often target enemy clerics when in battle, and churches when not. He demands that his chosen worship the two aspects of war: the honoured sword and the unseen knife, representing brute force and strategy respectively. All goblinoids pay homage to him through warfare, and he expects no cowardice or defeat. Honour is everything to a hobgoblin, and they would rather die than have their honour stained. After all, a hero in death is a hero immortal, and as such, if the leader of a war party ever catches sight of an enemy commander, he is obliged to challenge them in 1 on 1 combat. An interesting facet of hobgoblins as opposed to their lesser kin, is their hatred for the daemonic and devil. Once imprisoned by the beasts, hobgoblins will fight with the fury of the sun against these creatures, their raw anger at being collared and mind controlled for so long coming to the surface. Most consider fey to be a lesser threat, with a select few considering them to be the same thing Worship of maglubiyet was outlawed as part of the antegrian accords in 1040. There is a rising amount of goblinoids now worshipping elgrad, god of the hunt and warriors

Military: skilled with swords, spears, shields, simple bows, heavy armour and siege weaponry While Hobgoblins stand a little shorter than the average human, they make up for this with perfectly aligned ranks of heavily armoured soldiers, iron shod boots churning the ground as one in perfectly synchronised and highly trained war machine. Most Hobgoblins begin military training from the moment they can walk and hold a weapon. The cultures coming of age ceremony involves the child dueling their instructor/foster parent, and if they can hit them then they are considered an adult. There is no set time to attempt the challenge, with records of hobgoblins as young as 8 succeeding. As such, by the time they are inducted into the military, every hobgoblin is an expert with the sword, shield and longbow. Although most prefer the sword, some hobgoblins prefer more exotic weapons, with each major house including some form of training with them. This is evidenced by Warlord Fulloks strange looking axe, or the scimitars carried by the Iron shadows

Most often, hobgoblin warbands will seek slaves, land or raw materials with which to make warfare anew. As such, many within the society who show magical ability are used as mobile siege engines, training in every spare minute and loosing their power against the enemy, to the cheers of their allies. Bugbears are typically used as lightly armoured fast assault units, supreme ambush troops for their skill at stealth coupled with a huge size and ferocious nature, or bodyguards. They prefer light armour, as it does not impede their movement, and use simple weapons such as clubs, axes and maces Goblins are typically found crewing siege weapons, scouting, spying or riding wolves into battle, preferring non combat roles wherever they arise Finally, slaves that show military ability are given simple weapons and driven forwards into the enemy, serving as a screen or distraction for the rest of the force. Finally, a little known aspect of hobgoblin society is the “iron shadows”. Members of this organisation are incredibly rare, possessing both skill in illusion magic, for concealing themselves when deployed, quick wit and speed. They serve as the nation's secret police, working in the shadows for the glory of the caliphate.

A typical war party of hobgoblins will involve 2-3 hobgoblin platoons, around 100 hobgoblins in each. These make up the strongest part of a force, being the elite backbone tactically and skill wise. There will usually be 1-2 bugbear platoons of around the same numbers, although these are usually used as heavy shock troops due to their speed and size, as they prefer hit and run tactics to break a foe then withdraw. They also fight in the slave platoons, as their huge size and ferocity keeps the slaves more scared of them than the enemy. There will usually be about 600 goblins on a battlefield, although these are less organised, spread across light archer units, wolf riders and siege weapon crews. Finally, there will be around 1000 battle slaves in 10 or so brigades of vastly differing size. These are used as a meatsheild or to test enemy defences for the most part, and are usually heavily drugged with fear reducing chemicals. Should a slave show promise, they will be assembled into units of “Hatkra En” (or mud warriors), better equipped and used more wisely than the timid masses. Admission into a unit of these involves proving loyalty to the commander of the force in assorted ways, with Warlord fulloks being a staged escape attempt. If the slave attempts escape, they are slaughtered by the wolf squadrons lying in wait. If they refuse, warlord fullok personally fights them in “kraghk gar”, a less lethal version of the battlefield equivalent, in order to test their combat skills. If they manage to hit him once, he allows them to join the mud warrior units, and enjoy the perks that come with that. Naval warfare is somewhat of a conundrum to the goblinoids, as they are terrible at it. Why fight on the ocean when you can fight on land?

Notable hobgoblins: Spymaster bryeen: a somewhat small hobgoblin who has risen to the top of the “iron shadows”, she recently retired as both ambassador and secret police chief in the empire. Her hand has slain almost as many as Warlord fulloks, although her method is a little more distasteful, her enchanted dagger “backslash” earning its name. Her entire body is covered in deep scars from many assassination attempts, some of which were even from other races. Although the years march on, her body ages slower than other hobgoblins, thanks in part due to her immense magical talent, something almost unheard of in hobgoblins. That being said, her shadow magic would not be the equal of a drow or feys though her solution to this is simple: backslash has an anti magic charm on it, cutting through magical wards easier than a normal blade. After her retirement, she is very rarely heard of from the empire, using her skills gained to carve out a life in the wilds, alone Was assassinated in 1050

Warlord Fullok: Though he stand at medium height for a hobgoblin (5”5’) this intelligent goblinoid’s abilities lie in the swell of battle. His axe, nightfell, has claimed scores of kills in battle, most of which are in direct challenges to military officials, as he does not waste his time with the common soldiery. Interestingly, he prefers his unenchanted blade over the many offered to him, customised channels running through the blade to dispense basilisk venom to those unfortunates cut by it. When and if he barks a challenge, his personal troll/bodyguard bellows it out above the din of battle so all may hear. How a troll has achieved a level of intelligence high enough to speak is phenomenal for the species. Most of the hobgoblin soldiery back of at this point, and begin beating their swords against their shields, chanting “kraghk” (challenge/fight in goblinoid) until the enemy leader accepts. If not, they charge back in with renewed fury at the insult to their leader. His small stature makes him appear the underdog, but he is nothing if not shrewd, and uses this to his advantage, feigning injury or slowness to gain the upper hand. Only three have ever managed to best Fullok: ● A wily elf wearing no armour was able to avoid the massive axe swings and plant a dagger in the tiniest chink in his armour, leaving fullok with a slight limp ● A rival warlord once bested him and took his army, falling ill and eventually dying to the basilisk venom Fullok coats his blade in. This battle took one of his eyes ● A masked figure of strange biology. The battle was over in a flash, the figures spear piercing his armour with suspicious ease and grace. Fulloks left hand only has two fingers as a result. Fullok was killed in the battle of 1040, a summer knight of tylwyth teg cutting him down

Warmaster Kylaar: The Niece of warlord Fullok, Kylaar was talented in the sphere of warfare from a young age, pushed into age classes far above her and coming out victorious against far older opponents. After the battle of 1040 she was summarily promoted to warmaster due to her taking control of the battle lines after Fulloks demise. Her personal combat skills are equal to his in his prime, though she prefers a polearm for its versatility. Her black warlords armour is made by her own hand, as is custom, and sports heavily spiked pauldrons bearing the image of wolves. An interesting note is that she is rather beautiful, even by other humanoids standards, only sporting a single long scar across the bridge of her nose.

The Mud Kings: Ouienn Graine, leader of the destroyed Clann Grainne of the Kingdoms Of The Marche. Ouienn was a Border Reaver, and led his clan on horseback across the Kasrath border and burned villages in King Mal Mayecunn's name. For his crime, his clan was outlawed and anyone who bore the name Graine were to be executed on sight. He is a huge man, even for the marchers, standing 6'7 and his eyes are said to be yellow and slit-pupiled. After his exile, a band of raiders captured him and the remains of his clan, selling them into slavery illegally in Ealunyth. After a long sailing journey in the frozen north, he was finally bought and purchased in the Osterland slave markets by the makaru caliphate. Put into the slave legions in the attack on antegria, it was soon realised that this slave had enormous potential, both in the field of battle and in commanding slaves, when his battalion was surrounded by a far better trained Antegrian force, yet he took command and held out for several weeks in hilly terrain. When the slaves were recaptured, his intelligence and strength were respected, and he was promoted to the title “mud king”, a leader amongst slaves. He now enjoys a rather comfortable life, and is even allowed to address hobgoblins directly without being beaten, due to getting not one, but four hits on warlord Fullok when challenged to “kraghk gar”. Deceased as of the battle of 1040, he was in the rearguard when vaporised by a blast from the Sadowan empires superweapon. His successor was La'kurm the mud king, of antegria At five years of age he was taken to the lands of the caliphate and slowly rose from lowly slave to mud king and lives a life of relative luxury. His speed and skill with his gythka caught the eye of Kylaar, who struck up a friendship with him. His lowly upbringing

Diplomat Colx: Colx is a young and incredibly short Hobgoblin in her 15th year, far past the age of adulthood for a hobgoblin. After joining the Iron shadows from a young age, her magical skills were not up to standard, but her ability to learn languages and her great intelligence marked her perfectly for something unheard of before now: a hobgoblin diplomat. Some of the more traditional hobgoblins scorn her, but bryeen before her grew tired of the job, and understood the need for relations between empires if the caliphate would be to survive the war season. She is also talented at rooting out plots in the empire, and helped bryeen foil two slave revolts before they started, helping raise the mud king to his current position She gets on immensely well with the Phyragom lizardmen, having spent much time in their company, and has become interested in ancient civilizations as a result. Was to be hanged as part of the 1050 peace agreements, instead moved with the kingdoms of the marche to the new world

Diplomat Krikk: Diplomat Colxs main scribe, Krikk has a way with words that is rare in goblins. Standing at a tall 3” 6”, his bulbous nose marked him as great from birth. Much smarter than your average goblin, his articulation is such that he can even say 4 syllable words and not get bored halfway through. Studying under colx up until her death, he learned of his magical talent quite late in life, but refused offers to serve as his tribes shaman, preferring to talk to his enemies rather then blast them with magic. He has an interest in fine clothes after a stint in Osterland, and enjoys strolling through the city of makaru, letting all see his fine clothes 4 sizes too large draping on the ground. After the reform of the makaru house council, far more trust was put into the other races in the society, and due to Krikks intelligence, he was promoted to the rank of Diplomat: as long as he promised not to pick his abnormally large nose in front of dignitaries. Died of old age in 1070

Diplomat Uraxxal This huge and well muscled hobgoblin was once part of a slave clan, condemned for treason after the events of the great goblin war. Rising up the ranks, he gained great renown among his peers and his boundless energy helped him make up for past errors. Closely watched by the iron shadows, his allegiance to maglubiyet was only recently turned over, as he was indoctrinated by a cult from birth. Nevertheless, once he learned the truth he helped wipe out the wayward hobgoblins and rejoined his home empire, earning himself a hideously scarred face in the meantime. He is known to travel across all of the makaru states, and fancies himself somewhat of a seafarer.

Culture/Notes: Not all slaves are treated terribly. Those with high intelligence and an aptitude for teaching become tutors and mentors, while those that display decent military skill and loyalty to their masters (not to mention a survival instinct to survive the horrific slave casualties in battle) become an elite force called “the mud legion” who are allowed to wear armour and carry weapons of their choice into battle. These slaves enjoy rather comfortable lives, having shown honour in teaching or military, and are considered equal to the bugbears and goblins. All slaves have heard of this life, thanks to loyal ones spreading the word amongst the masses, as it boosts the morale of the slaves to know that it is possible to escape that existence.

TLDR: Lawful, but considered evil by most Economy: 4/10 Population: 9/10 Military: 8/10 Navy: 1/10 Magic: 2/10 Life quality: 3/10 (well defended but little choice)

Trading exports: lumber, unrefined gems, precious metals and trained slave soldiers Trading imports: refined metal (mostly steel), Horrendous amounts of slaves and war materiel