Goblins of the Multiverse: Zendikar

If you ask someone what the most dangerous plane in the multiverse is, most will say Innistrad. It’s true that every non-human on Innistrad is some sort of aggressive predator, with even the cats and dogs occasionally killing someone, but Innistrad, itself, is just a land like any other. If you die on Innistrad, it’s almost certainly because something wanted you dead. Zendikar, of all the planes, is the one most likely to do the deed itself.





Goblin Ruinblaster by Matt Cavotta

A lush, vibrant, mana-rich planet, Zendikar is characterized by excessive geological activity. Its volcanoes are particularly powerful, it has as many elementals as any humanoid race, it thinks ‘plate tectonics’ is the excuse of worlds too lazy to have a never ending stream of earthquakes, it hungrily devours settlements fast enough that almost none can be called permanent, and its relationship with gravity is officially listed as ‘It’s complicated.’ Due to the rough nature of the world, all humanoid species tend toward nomadic life, and civilization is sparse. War is rare, and all sentient species work together to ensure mutual survival. Fighting over territory is a waste of time, as any given territory is likely to make itself uninhabitable after a point anyway. Agriculture is awkward, as the soil eagerly grows new plants, but just as eagerly destroys entire farms. For these reasons, Goblins tend to be treated as just another race on Zendikar, rather than actively thought of as savage or lesser as they are on other planes. Zendikari goblins have the following characteristics:





Goblin Bushwhacker by Mark Tedin

Long and Thin: Zendikari goblins tend to be on the taller side of goblins, with an average height over four feet tall. Their bodies are slender, with particularly long arms and distinct feet with two long toes. These differences make them some of the best climbers in the multiverse, capable of climbing along rock walls and moving through trees.





Brute Strength by Wayne Reynolds

Grit: Zendikar’s goblins are extreme omnivores, capable of eating nearly anything. Though they only derive sustenance from objects that are actually food, they regularly eat rocks as well. These rocks are ground into a powder that they refer to as ‘grit,’ and as a goblin ages its skin will include aspects of the grit they’ve eaten. This results in harder, thicker skin over time, as well as stony growths on various parts of the body that make them tougher and more durable.





Lavastep Raider by Matt Stewart

Artifacts and Government: Though spellcasting among Zendikar’s goblins is primarily limited to pyromancy, every one of them collects magical items from wherever they go. While goblin society is a strict meritocracy, the only merits they focus on are the ability to survive in and explore the wild, and the best way they know to determine someone’s experience and skill at exploration is by the number and power of magical artifacts they have collected. Thus, goblin leaders are invariably whichever ones have the best toys. Occasionally, a goblin with many artifacts will grind some up to eat and permanently empower himself. Depending on the artifact, this process has wildly mixed results.





Zada, Hedron Grinder by Chris Rallis

Tribes: Like on many worlds, Zendikari goblins are divided among tribes. There are dozens of tribes, but the Tuktuk, Lavastep, and Grotag are the largest tribes by a wide margin over the rest. The Tuktuk tribe, led by Zada, are the most knowledgeable about ancient magic and artifacts. The Lavastep tribe, native to Akoum, are aggressive alchemists and pyromancers. The Grotag tribe, the friendliest of the three, are known for their high-risk, high-reward attempts to tame beasts that normally eat them.





Goblin Shortcutter by Jesper Ejsing

Roles: On the whole, Zendikar’s goblins fit in better with the other races than goblins of most worlds. While there are still warlike goblins, most notably the Lavastep tribe, most of the tribes have some sort of economic interaction with non-goblins. Goblins often hire themselves out as wilderness guides, as eager to earn coin as they are to have help in their attempts at artifact hunting. A strong shamanistic tradition among Zendikar’s goblins also encourages other races to seek them out as oracles, especially to ask about future geological activity. Merchants often travel to human and kor settlements to trade mineral wealth and fungal crops. Many goblins, usually of the Grotag tribe, live among the human and kor in an attempt to learn more about the world.





Sure Strike by Jakub Kasper



The Eldrazi War: Since the rise of the Eldrazi, Zendikar’s races have grown closer together in their desperation to survive. As the humans, kor, and merfolk were forced to ally with the vampires, goblins seemed comparatively better and better, and relations with the Tuktuk and Grotag tribes have grown stronger. Now, though the Eldrazi seem to be gone, the resulting devastation and reduced population ensures that goblins, humans, and kor will be relying on each other even more closely to survive than they did in the world before.

