Nibblers, kobolds, gremlins, goblins, gnolls, flinds, oh my!

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Devi · #1 Post by **Devi** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 4:27 pm

Does anyone know the exact difference between all of these things?

The in-game descriptions are rather lacking.

As far as I can tell, nibblers are kobolds that nibble. Kobolds are dog-things, but so are gnolls. Flinds are big gnolls. Gremlins are just some evil thingies, probably like goblins... but not? Goblins are the green-skinned little monster with the pointy noses and big ears that everyone knows from fantasy.

Any ideas?

Devi · #2 Post by **Devi** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 4:27 pm

Furthermore, what exactly is a bugbear?

jezz · #3 Post by **jezz** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 4:31 pm

I agree with Devi, while many of us surely know what i s a bugbear mainly from DnD, descriptions would be nice for such npc's.

Drake · #4 Post by **Drake** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 4:35 pm

*gives Jezz a pen and paper*

Mail them to me when your done.

Devi · #5 Post by **Devi** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 4:42 pm

while many of us surely know what i s a bugbear mainly from DnD

If it's the same sort as DnD, I can google it.

http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_ ... 5_PG29.jpg

So that's what a bugbear in Geas is supposed to look like?

http://crazymoon-badru.tripod.com/siteb ... 00h276.jpg

So I guess that's a gnoll.

http://faculty.winthrop.edu/sinnj/fun/Gremlin.jpg

And a gremlin?

And a nibbler!

http://home.comcast.net/~page.jason/avatars/nibbler.jpg

I'm still horribly lost.

tessa · #6 Post by **tessa** » Sat Mar 04, 2006 5:12 pm

Nibblers are baby kobolds, if I remember. Kobolds are rat-like things if I remember correctly, and gnolls are dog-like things. Flinds are supposed to be smaller, but stronger versions of flinds. Bugbears are a mix of goblin and something else (bear? giant?).

I guess it would be nice to have a definite idea of what they all look like for GEAS.

Possibilities?:

Gnoll
http://upload.wikimedia.org/wikipedia/en/5/59/Gnoll.jpg

Ettin
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_ ... _PG107.jpg

Goblin
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_ ... _PG133.jpg

Hobgoblin
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_ ... PG153a.jpg

Troll
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_ ... PG248a.jpg

Bullete
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_ ... 5_PG30.jpg

Orc
http://www.wizards.com/dnd/images/MM35_ ... _PG203.jpg

jezz · #7 Post by **jezz** » Sun Mar 05, 2006 1:40 pm

Drake wrote:*gives Jezz a pen and paper*

Mail them to me when your done.

Drake, I'd really like to write such things, but my mastery of english is close to 0, that's the reason I didn't send descs for plain swords and stuff when it was asked too.

You'd end with more work than you'd have inventing the descs yourself

But for example, do trolls in Geas look like DnD troll? -> Thin, big nose, some hair, claws... or like LoTR troll at the movie? -> fat, hairless, "goonie guy face"

Sairina · #8 Post by **Sairina** » Thu Feb 15, 2007 5:39 am

Flinds are supposed to be smaller, but stronger versions of flinds.

Of gnolls, you mean? Hm. I always imagines them taller, because they're said to resemble lions. But then that's not necessarily a reference to size.

If nibblers are indeed baby kobolds, then it should be said so. I would have seen those as some other kind of kobold.

Trolls are one of the few beats I would imagine without fur or hair, but maybe I'm wrong there again...

How long do you think a good description for a creature should be? More than the usual one sentence probably, so maybe three lines? Or four, like a character description?

anglachel · #9 Post by **anglachel** » Thu Feb 15, 2007 8:43 am

Hi,

all these races are called 'GOBLINOIDs'. The main difference is the size.
goblin -> hobgoblin -> orc -> ogre

Some are specials forms of one of these races:
A 'ettin' is a ogre with two heads.
A 'gnoll' is a orc with a head of a hyena.
A 'snottling' is a very small goblin with three legs and arms.
A 'kobold' is a small goblin, who normaly lives in/under towns.
A 'flind' is a kind of gnoll (shorter, broader, and stronger)

Olrane · #10 Post by **Olrane** » Fri Feb 16, 2007 9:17 am

It's hard to reach the ideal of a good longdesc for all monsters...but perhaps we players could help to write these descriptions, especially those of you who find the goblinoids to look too similar without better descriptions.

I'm sure the wizards would be glad to insert well-written and appropriate longer descriptions if the work's done for them. I'll see what I can write, though I know I'm not the perfect person to do so.

chara · #11 Post by **chara** » Fri Feb 16, 2007 9:26 am

You're right, Olrane - providing text, even imperfect text, is a great way to help us improve more quickly. We can detypo or rewrite even flawed text much more easily then we can generate it all on our own.

vurdijak · #12 Post by **vurdijak** » Fri Feb 16, 2007 11:00 am

Just a place to start.

A 'ettin' is a ogre with two heads.
A 'gnoll' is a orc with a head of a hyena.
A 'snottling' is a very small goblin with three legs and arms.
A 'kobold' is a small goblin, who normaly lives in/under towns.
A 'flind' is a kind of gnoll (shorter, broader, and stronger)

Ettin
A deformed head sits atop broad shoulders. Muscles in strange clumps
ripple down this creatures chest and arms. The skin is scarred all over,
signs of many past battles.

Gnoll
Wiry yet strong, this body is painted with many black stripes. The head is
covered in matted fur and a long dog-like snout sniffs the air carefully. A
tuft of brown fur juts out from the scalp at an angle.

Snottling
The eyes of this little goblinoid peer back and forth nervously, as it shuffles
around on its trio of legs. Its arms seem to function independent of its
body, waving around wildly. It snivels through a runny nose.

Kobold
Flapping ears extend out from its head like wings. Its red, beady eyes smack of greed and angst. Its thin frame is perfect for slipping in and out of small crevices and enclaves. Strange blue boils over its body indicate it has been stricken with an exotic disease.

Flind
A squat body supports a hyena head, complete with gnashing teeth. Two red
eyes search for prey at all times. Its strong arms and legs are covered in human body hair, but much thicker and in colorful patches like a canine.

Sairina · #13 Post by **Sairina** » Fri Feb 16, 2007 2:33 pm

If an Ettin is supposed to have two heads, then this description doesn't make sense. Otherwise nice.

vurdijak · #14 Post by **vurdijak** » Fri Feb 16, 2007 3:02 pm

Good point Sairina. How about "A deformed pair of heads sits atop broad shoulders"

chara · #15 Post by **chara** » Fri Feb 16, 2007 3:18 pm

Very nice! I've either replaced the descriptions of the ettins, gnolls, snottlings, kobolds, and flinds that I have found to include the new descriptions, or I modified existing descriptions where they were already pretty nice to spice them up with new info (and I made sure that the ettin had two heads).

This might not be every one of these monsters in the game, but there should at least be a good chunk of them.

If you find monsters of these types in-game without new descriptions, please leave a report so that I can find them. And if you'd like more descs, let me know!

Sairina · #16 Post by **Sairina** » Sun Feb 18, 2007 6:01 am

Upon closer inspection, maybe it's not such a good idea to include the color of hair and eyes, as this is usually an individual trait with monsters as well, isn't it? So we get a kobold with red eyes in the description and yellow eyes below.

Maybe it's better to go with something like:
Gnoll: "A tuft of bristly fur juts out from the scalp at an angle."
Kobold: "It's glowing, beady eyes..."
Flind: "It glares at you bloodthirstily, its bloodshot eyes searching for prey at all times."

I've tried myself as well, though I don't know if I'm any good at it:

Nibbler
A small and skinny, kobold-like creature with filthy hair and ragged clothes. It has the large, bulging eyes of a being that prefers darkness over light, and long, protruding pointed teeth lend it the appearance of a constant evil grin.

Troll
A large, sturdy creature with naked green-brown, dirt-covered skin and a comparably small head on a thick, muscular neck. The broad face features a flat nose, a tusked mouth and small, dim-looking eyes.

Bugbear
A powerfully built and tall goblinoid with pointed ears, resembling a mix of bear and goblin. Small eyes glare at you from out of the thick ragged fur that stretches over its strong muscles, showing an expression of unpredictable madness.

Thilden
A disgusting creature with mad humanoid features. Its skin is covered with warts and suppurating pustules that emid a rotten smell, reminding of death and disease. It squints at you hatefully out of its swollen eyes.

Nibblers, kobolds, gremlins, goblins, gnolls, flinds, oh my!

Nibblers, kobolds, gremlins, goblins, gnolls, flinds, oh my!

Just a starting point

heads