Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast.

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Goblins have always been in the game, as we already know. This is a specific group of them operating in the southern regions of the Vale.

The Lore

Between the Witchlight Fens and the Harken Forest, roughly on the south-central region of the Vale, there is a hidden fort named Daggerburg. It belongs to a large band of goblin brigands, who ride out of it to raid and pillage the surrounding area. Their operation is quite successful because they’re far away from the territories of more powerful monsters, and because their very diverse membership has been extensively trained in guerrilla tactics by their leader Delderosh.

The band also includes a number of remarkable individuals beyond Delderosh himself. There’s Kabo Bomble, a massive bruiser nearly twice the size of a typical goblin; and there are the Mistmane Bugbears, a cult who trains in a fighting style that combines unarmed combat and necromantic magic.

Delderosh really hates enemy spellcasters and likes collecting their eyeballs as trophies. He likes spellcasters just fine when they’re working for him, though, which is why he’s allied to the necromancer Gokof (from the Cadaver Collector entry) and has several war mages on his payroll.

The Daggerburg goblins have become more daring of late, and have been pushing deeper into the Harkenwold region north of the Harken forest, even going so far as to raid settlements. However they haven’t yet worked up the courage to strike at the Woodsinger elves who also live in the same region.

The Numbers

The Daggerburg gang tends to be a cut above your standard MM/MV goblins, their levels covering the latter half of the Heroic Tier instead of the earlier one. Most of them also have at least one of the following signature abilities representing their training:

Combat Adept gives them a +1d10 damage bonus against enemies who haven’t yet acted this combat. Anyone with this trait really likes rolling high for initiative.

Daggerburg Tactics replaces the generic Goblin Tactics trait. When a creature with this is missed by a melee attack, the attacker grants combat advantage to them in this next turn.

Battle Worg

The Daggerburg goblins raise a distinctive breed of giant wolf for use as mounts in battle. Despite being called “battle worgs”, they’re not sapient like standard worgs, and are a little weaker. Their mechanics are still similar, though.

Battle Worgs are Large Natural Magical Beasts and Level 5 Brutes with 78 HP and a speed of 8. Their Frigthful Growls acts as an aura (1) that inflicts a -1 to-hit penalty on enemies caught inside. Their mount trait is Slavering Lunge, which lets the worg move half its speed as a free action when their rider rolls initiative. Their reach 1 Bite damages and inflicts ongoing 5 damage (save ends).

A lot of the people who could use battle worgs as mounts in this entry are higher level than them, but it’s a simple enough task to level up the worgs to match their riders if you want them to last longer in the fight.

Daggerburg Ruffian

An experienced raider, this goblin is a Level 4 Soldier with 58 HP and a speed of 5. It’s armored in mail, wields a light shield and spear combo in melee, and a light crossbow for ranged combat. It has both Combat Adept and Daggerburg Tactics.

The spear and crossbow are used in basic attacks, and the spear can also trip up an enemy, doing the same damage as a basic attack and knocking the target prone.

Ruffians are perfect riders for the battle worgs we just saw.

Daggerburg Theurge

Theurges seem to be goblin spellcasters with a witchy theme. They’re Level 5 Controllers with 64 HP and both signature traits. They’re listed as Medium, but should be Small instead.

They fight in melee with spiked clubs, and once per encounter they can call down a Brimstone Rain that works as an area burst 2 attack. It deals immediate and ongoing fire damage (save ends), half on a miss.

Their most fun power, however, is the at-will Slimy Transformation. Ranged 5 vs. Fortitude, does no damage, but turns the target into a frog (save ends)! This is a mundane Tiny frog, not a giant variety. Frogged targets are considered slowed, and can’t use powers - not even basic attacks. The only limitation here is that the theurge can’t cast this on someone who’s already transformed by it.

So yeah, they are sure to open up with Brimstone Rain and then stay away applying the Transformation to as many PCs as possible while their buddies do the actual damage.

Daggerburg War Mage

Another mage, this one a more straighforward hobgoblin elemental adept. It’s Level 6 Artillery with 58 HP. They have Combat Adept but not Daggerburg Tactics.

War mages fight with their staffs, which also work as implements. At range they can hit you with an at-will Stabbing Flame that does immediate and ongoing fire damage, or with a recharge 5+ Icy Stream that does cold damage and slides the target 3 squares.

Daggerburg Slayer

A beefy hobgoblin with a big axe. It’s a Level 6 Brute with 85 HP. It has Combat Adept but not Daggerburg Tactics. Their greataxe is their sole attack, but it has some riders: it deals +5 damage while the slayer is bloodied, and it deals another +5 damage if the strike bloodies the target.

Once per encounter the slayer can use its Hobgoblin Resilience to immediately roll a save against an (save ends) effect as a reaction.

Daggerburg Zealot

A bugbear trained with the glaive. Not one of the Mistmanes, those are below. Zealots are Level 7 Skirmishers with 78 HP. They have Combat Adept.

The glaive is a solid Reach 2 basic attack and their Mobile Attack ability allows them to shift half their speed and make a glaive attack at any point during the movement. Once per encounter, when an enemy within 5 squares of the zealot attacks one of its allies, the zealot can use Dagerburg Zealotry shift up to 5 squares and hit the attacker with its glaive as a reaction.

A very mobile combatant with a reach weapon, who will use both of these things to get at the party’s back lines and mess up their squishies.

Daggerburg Captain

This hobgoblin officer probably serves directly under Delderosh. It’s a Level 7 Soldier (Leader) with 78 HP. The captain is clad in mail and wields a bastard sword and a shield.

The bastard sword makes attacks that damage and mark for a turn. While the mark persists, the target also grants combat advantage. Once per encounter, and once again after it’s first bloodied, the captain can yell Follow Me! and charge an enemy. Two allies within 5 squares of its starting position can then make a free charge against different enemies.

The captain has none of the signature traits from the start of this section. Instead, it has an improved version of Hobgoblin Resilience named Daggerburg Resilience, which works the same but can be applied either to the captain or to an ally within 5 squares of it.

Daggerburg Reaper

A hobgoblin who specializes in the use of the scythe. It’s a Level 7 Lurker with 64 HP. The scythe can make decent basic attacks, and once per encounter the reaper can use a Blinding Sweep that targets a Close Burst 1, deals heavy damage, and blinds for a turn on a hit. A miss does half damage.

As a move action, the reaper can Stalk, which allows it to shift 1 square and then move its speed. If it ends in a space at least three squares from any other creatures, it becomes invisible until the start of its next turn or until it makes an attack.

These abilities are interesting but the reaper has no powers that specifically exploit them. It’s a very skirmishery lurker.

Mistmane Bugbear

These bugbear adepts received their name from the constant misty aura they project, which disrupts teleportation and can confuse enemies’ minds. Their claws are laced with necromantic energy. They’re Large Natural Humanoids and Level 8 Elite Soldiers with 172 HP.

They have Combat Adept, and their Arcane Mist aura (2) prevents creatures from teleporting as mentioned above. Their basic attack is a Rake with their claws, which damages and marks for a turn. If a marked enemy makes an attack that doesn’t target the bugbear, they take 5 necrotic damage. As elites, they can use this for Double Attacks.

Once per encounter as a minor action they can use the Bewildering Mist ability, attacking the Will of every enemy in a Close Burst 1. A hit dazes the target for a turn.

Mistmanes are excellent front-line fighters, able to keep two PCs marked at once.

Kabo Bomble

One of the Daggerburg gang’s champions, Kabo Bomble is a giant of a goblin, twice as tall as the typical member of the species. This puts him well into Medium size. He fights with a morningstar in one hand and a spiked gauntlet in the other. Kabo is a Level 9 Brute with 116 HP. He has both Combat Adept and Daggerburg Tactics.

Kabo’s morningstar and gauntlet do about the same damage, with the first being a basic attack and the second targetting Reflex and dazing for a turn on a critical hit.

Twice per encounter, Kabo can use a Furious Attack ability to attack with both weapons in a single action. If both hit the same target, it is dazed for a turn.

Once per encounter, Kabo Bomble can Roar as a minor action, attacking the Will of all enemies in a Close Burst 2 and inflicting a -2 defense penalty on a hit (save ends).

Warlord Delderosh

Copyright 2011 Wizards of the Coast.

Delderosh is the leader of the Daggerburg Goblins, and is likely to be found leading their biggest raids or at the center of Daggerburg itself surrounded by his personal guard. This hobgoblin is a Level 10 Skirmisher (Leader) with 200 HP.

Delderosh’s custom traits are Ambush Leader, which gives a +5 to the Initiative rolls of every ally within 5 squares of him at the start of the fight; and Combat Advantage, which gives him some bonus damage when he has that against a target.

Delderosh carries a spear for fighting in melee and a shortbow for ranged attacks. The spear attack allows him to shift 1 square as an effect and it can be used to Skewer (recharge 5+), which deals the same damage as a basic attack and inflicts ongoing 10 damage (save ends). As an effect, it also makes the target grant combat advantage for a turn.

Finally, he has the same Daggerburg Resilience reaction power as the Captains working under him.

The warlord is depicted riding a battle worg here and he would certainly benefit from the thing’s traits, but you’ll likely need to increase the level of his personal mount from the base 5. Everyone else in the encounter where he appears should have Combat Adept to maximize the benefit they get from his initiative bonus.

Final Impressions

The Daggerburg goblins don’t differ much in concept from the “generic” band of goblin brigands, but they’re a very nice worked example of the trope, with several memorable named NPCs. They also show us how to stretch classic goblinoids into a threat that can keep PCs occupied for the whole of the heroic tier.

The band might get involved in factional conflicts with the Iron Circle, a foreign mercenary army that has been moving into Harkenwold. And the druids of Harken’s Heart would be among the groups they avoid. Both of these get their own entries later on.