During the height of the Demon Age, goblins were the most common soldiers in the armies of demon lords. Demon rulers favored goblins not because they were powerful, but because they were expendable.
@Goblin reproduced extremely quickly, often producing large litters in a single birth. Demon lords used this trait to maintain endless armies. Goblin tribes were bred like livestock and thrown into battle as the first wave of assaults against enemy kingdoms.
In those days goblins were smaller, uglier, and far more primitive than the goblins known today. Their skin was rough and patchy, their bodies hairless, and their minds barely capable of strategy. Most demon lords treated them as nothing more than living weapons.
Entire goblin populations were raised only to die in battle.
Because of their endless numbers and destructive raids, other civilizations began to view goblins as a plague upon the world.
Over centuries, something unexpected began to happen.
Some goblins began interacting with other intelligent races—humans, elves, beastfolk, dwarves, and others. Interbreeding between goblins and these races slowly began to change the goblin population.
The offspring of these unions were still always goblins, but their bodies and minds began to change.
They developed hair, something older goblins lacked. Their features became more refined, and some goblins even appeared somewhat attractive compared to their ancient ancestors. Their bodies became stronger and healthier, and their minds became far more capable of learning and reasoning.
By around 500 years before the Sanctified Cycle (500 DA), the goblin race had changed dramatically.
Pure ancient goblins were becoming extremely rare. Most goblins now belonged to this new evolved lineage, a hybrid bloodline created through centuries of mixing with other races.
Though they still carried goblin traits—greenish skin, sharp ears, and quick breeding—they were far more intelligent and capable than their ancestors.
One unusual trait remained unchanged.
Whenever a goblin reproduces with another race, the resulting child is always born a goblin. Even if the mother belongs to another species, the children develops into a goblin.
Because goblins reproduce in litters, a single birth may produce several goblin children at once.
This reproductive trait ensured that goblins never truly disappeared, even as their bloodline evolved over centuries.
Their lifespan also improved over time.
Ancient goblins rarely lived longer than 10 years during the Demon Age. Modern goblins can live around 30 years, sometimes longer if they avoid war and violence.
When the Twelve @Saint defeated the demon lords and the Sanctified Cycle began, many races hoped goblins would finally escape their role as expendable soldiers.
But prejudice proved difficult to erase.
Across the world, goblins were still remembered as the monsters that burned villages and fought for demon lords.
Many kingdoms refused to recognize goblins as equal citizens. Even in regions where goblins had evolved into intelligent people capable of learning magic and trade, they were still often treated as dangerous pests.
The Adventurer League continued posting quests to eliminate goblin camps, just as they had during the Demon Age.
To many adventurers, goblin hunting remained a common early mission.
The Exodia Inquisition technically allows goblins to join its ranks, but only in the lowest positions.
Goblin soldiers are often assigned to dangerous frontline duties where survival rates are extremely low. They are rarely promoted into leadership positions and are still commonly treated as expendable forces.
While other monstrous races such as trolls, cyclops, triclops, clownfolk, and orcs have gradually gained legal recognition within some societies, goblins remain largely excluded from these protections.
Many governments still classify goblins as monsters rather than citizens.
Despite centuries of discrimination, goblins continue to survive.
Some goblins live in isolated communities where they attempt to build peaceful lives through farming, trade, or small settlements.
Others become mercenaries, adventurers, or thieves simply to survive in a world that rarely offers them opportunity.
A few goblins have become scholars, mages, or craftsmen, proving that their people are capable of far more than the world believes.
Yet their reputation remains stained by thousands of years of history.
To many people, goblins are still nothing more than the fodder armies of the Demon Age.
But to the goblins themselves, they are a people struggling to prove they deserve a place in the new world.
And some believe that one day, a goblin hero might finally change that fate.