Goblins are the opposite of Gods in the sense that they are a very straightforward strategy. They are extremely strong early on, which helps you ride a winning streak in the early-mid game. They are most vulnerable in the mid-late game when their (3) Goblins (2) Mech synergies start to fall off and you still can’t find Techies. Once you do, however, you are again on a power spike, which gives you a chance to secure the game.



The reliance of the strat to get Techies (i.e. you are a bit at the mercy of RNG) means it's hard to take a top spot with Goblins consistently in high-rank lobbies. That said, Goblins give you the best possible start, which is very helpful for low-to-mid tier players.

Goblins are quite good in the late game thanks to the latest buff: Nanobots now work on all allied heroes, not only on Goblins. This makes important late-game heroes like e.g. Tide/Medusa/Disruptor/Enigma really tanky and guarantees that they will cast their spells even if they get focused.

The fact that Alchemist got buffed recently (they gave him back armor reduction) also helps.

Mages are the best secondary synergy for Goblins for two simple reasons:

Mages are currently (arguably) the best secondary synergy overall thanks to the value that the (3) Mages bonus and CM give to your whole team.

Most Goblins (most importantly Tinker) deal magic damage with their abilities, so they benefit from the magic resistance reduction (and CM) as well

Counters:

Goblins have Armor and Regen, which makes them vulnerable to Magic burst damage – Mages. The easiest counter, however, is to try to block the Goblins player from getting Techies fast. If you’re fighting with a Goblins player for the top spots, try to buy every Techies you see even if you don’t use it. This will decrease the chance that the Goblins player will get it, and even delaying it with a few rounds could cost the Goblins player a lot of health.