Goblins and Hobgoblins
My fictional Faerie Folk are a combination of creatures of mythology, my own imagination, and a bit of pure whimsy, inspired in part by the fanciful creations of Jim Henson and his movie, Labyrinth.
My Goblins are Faerie Folk who broke away from their cousins, the Elves and because of a magical accident many thousands of years ago that went horribly wrong not only warped and mutated into all manner of bizarre shapes, but unlike other Faeries became quite fertile. Unfortunately, they retained the immortality of the Faerie Folk, and as a result not only breed with damn near anyone and anything (including humans), but tend to invade other universes with distressing frequency.
To further complicate matters, the Goblin Folk eventually split into two subspecies: the High Goblins, who in many ways were like the Daoine Sidhe--the mighty Faerie Folk who were the ancestors of the Goblin Folk--and the Low Goblins. The High Goblins became the aristocracy of the Goblin Folk, and through their superior magic ruled their lesser brethren.Establishing alliances with the Daoine Sidhe of the Unseelie Court, the High Goblins established the Council of Thorns, opposing the Seelie Court and the Council of Flowers. Meanwhile, other Goblins established alliances with the Mine Faeries and discovered the untold riches of Svartalfheim, tapping sources of magic previously unknown to the Faerie Folk. Giving up their ability spontaneously cast spells in favor of alchemy and enchantment, they evolved into the Mine Goblins, a warped but brilliant species of crafters, miners, alchemists, and inventors who dwelled in the depths of the Earth with their friends and allies, the Dwarves, Gnomes, Knockers, and Kobolds.
The Mine Goblins became masters of alchemy and magical devices, and over the next two thousand years transformed Svartalfheim into a fantastic underground world filled with steam-powered machines, clockwork automatons, mechanical computers, alchemical engines, and other magical wonders. By the twentieth century, the Mine Goblins had constructed steam locomotives, zeppelins, and even shining cities of glass and steel floating in the clouds, all under the rulership of the Clockwork Empress: Queen Vivienne Underhill, one of the few High Goblins gifted with the creative spark allowing her to invent new things like a Human.
At the same time, another species was evolving from the Low Goblins: the Hobgoblins. Bigger, stronger, tougher, and meaner than their smaller cousins, they were to weapons what Mine Goblins were to tools and devices; while Mine Goblins could do fantastic things with technology, Hobgoblins could make weapons do the impossible. A Hobgoblin wielding a simple knife was far more deadly than a knight armed with the finest sword, and a Hobgoblin could actually wield a four-gauge shotgun like an oversized hunting rifle--in spite of its huge size and considerable weight. Fortunately for everyone concerned, Hobgoblins are short-tempered, trigger-happy, and somewhat lacking in common sense, and were it not for their superhuman toughness and resilience, few of them would ever survive to adulthood!
My Goblins are Faerie Folk who broke away from their cousins, the Elves and because of a magical accident many thousands of years ago that went horribly wrong not only warped and mutated into all manner of bizarre shapes, but unlike other Faeries became quite fertile. Unfortunately, they retained the immortality of the Faerie Folk, and as a result not only breed with damn near anyone and anything (including humans), but tend to invade other universes with distressing frequency.
To further complicate matters, the Goblin Folk eventually split into two subspecies: the High Goblins, who in many ways were like the Daoine Sidhe--the mighty Faerie Folk who were the ancestors of the Goblin Folk--and the Low Goblins. The High Goblins became the aristocracy of the Goblin Folk, and through their superior magic ruled their lesser brethren.Establishing alliances with the Daoine Sidhe of the Unseelie Court, the High Goblins established the Council of Thorns, opposing the Seelie Court and the Council of Flowers. Meanwhile, other Goblins established alliances with the Mine Faeries and discovered the untold riches of Svartalfheim, tapping sources of magic previously unknown to the Faerie Folk. Giving up their ability spontaneously cast spells in favor of alchemy and enchantment, they evolved into the Mine Goblins, a warped but brilliant species of crafters, miners, alchemists, and inventors who dwelled in the depths of the Earth with their friends and allies, the Dwarves, Gnomes, Knockers, and Kobolds.
The Mine Goblins became masters of alchemy and magical devices, and over the next two thousand years transformed Svartalfheim into a fantastic underground world filled with steam-powered machines, clockwork automatons, mechanical computers, alchemical engines, and other magical wonders. By the twentieth century, the Mine Goblins had constructed steam locomotives, zeppelins, and even shining cities of glass and steel floating in the clouds, all under the rulership of the Clockwork Empress: Queen Vivienne Underhill, one of the few High Goblins gifted with the creative spark allowing her to invent new things like a Human.
At the same time, another species was evolving from the Low Goblins: the Hobgoblins. Bigger, stronger, tougher, and meaner than their smaller cousins, they were to weapons what Mine Goblins were to tools and devices; while Mine Goblins could do fantastic things with technology, Hobgoblins could make weapons do the impossible. A Hobgoblin wielding a simple knife was far more deadly than a knight armed with the finest sword, and a Hobgoblin could actually wield a four-gauge shotgun like an oversized hunting rifle--in spite of its huge size and considerable weight. Fortunately for everyone concerned, Hobgoblins are short-tempered, trigger-happy, and somewhat lacking in common sense, and were it not for their superhuman toughness and resilience, few of them would ever survive to adulthood!