Goblin 5e: Stats, Tactics and the 2024 Goblins

Goblin Stat Block (2014)

This is the goblin from the 2014 rules (SRD 5.1), the same stat block as the 2014 Monster Manual.

Two numbers matter more than the rest. Stealth +6 beats the passive Perception of most level 1 characters (usually 10 to 13), and 7 hit points means almost any hit drops one. A goblin is a glass cannon with a smoke bomb.

The 2024 Goblins: Minion, Warrior and Boss

The 2024 rules (SRD 5.2.1) replace the single goblin with three stat blocks, so you can build a goblin warband with a real hierarchy instead of six copies of the same creature.

What changed from 2014:

The three changes that change how the fight plays:

• •Advantage pays off. The Warrior and Boss deal an extra 2 (1d4) damage whenever they attack with Advantage. Hiding gives them the Invisible condition, which gives Advantage, so a hidden Warrior's average hit goes from 5 to 7.5 damage.
• •The Boss protects itself with its minions. Its Redirect Attack reaction swaps places with a Small or Medium ally within 5 feet and makes that ally the target. Kill the bodyguards first or catch the Boss alone.
• •They are Fey now. Spells that only target Humanoids, like Hold Person and Charm Person, can't target a 2024 goblin. Protection from Evil and Good, which covers Fey in the 2024 rules, gives the warded creature protection: goblins have Disadvantage on attacks against it. Under the 2014 rules all of this is reversed, because goblins are Humanoids.

If your table uses the 2014 books, use the 2014 goblin. If you mix rules, the 2024 Warrior is a slightly tougher drop-in replacement at the same CR and XP.

How Goblins Fight

A goblin played straight (walk up, swing, repeat) is a speed bump. A goblin played the way its stat block intends is one of the most dangerous CR 1/4 creatures in the game. The difference is Nimble Escape.

Shoot and hide. From behind cover, a goblin attacks with its shortbow, then uses its bonus action to Hide. How hiding works depends on the rules you use:

• •2014: the goblin must be out of sight (heavy obscurement, total cover or a solid corner), and its Stealth check is compared to the party's passive Perception. With +6, it beats a passive Perception of 13 about two times in three. While unseen it attacks with advantage, and the attack gives away its position.
• •2024: Hide is a DC 15 Stealth check made while Heavily Obscured or behind Three-Quarters or Total Cover, out of every enemy's line of sight. With +6 the goblin succeeds on a 9 or higher, 60% of the time. Success gives it the Invisible condition, so its next attack has Advantage (and, for the Warrior and Boss, the extra 1d4).

The math against a typical level 1 front-liner with AC 16 (chain mail):

Four 2024 Warriors that all attack with Advantage deal about 21 damage a round to that character. That is more than most level 1 characters' total hit points, which is why "four goblins in the dark" is a classic first-session party wipe.

Hit and run in melee. A goblin that gets into melee attacks, then Disengages as a bonus action and walks 30 feet away without provoking an opportunity attack. Melee characters spend their turns chasing. Archers and spellcasters stay safe.

Use the terrain. Goblins with darkvision fighting in an unlit cave see the party's torchbearer as a lit target, while anything beyond the torchlight is dim light or darkness for characters without darkvision. Put goblins on ledges, behind barricades and around corners, and give them an escape route. A goblin that has nowhere to hide is a 7 HP target.

Run them like goblins. Goblins flee when the fight turns. When the Boss falls or half the band is down, have the rest scatter, and let a captured goblin bargain for its life with information. It's a cheap way to give the party a lead and make the world feel alive.

How Many Goblins for a Level 1 Party?

Use the encounter XP budget for your rules version. For four level 1 characters:

The 2024 XP budget per character at level 1 is 50 (Low), 75 (Moderate) and 100 (High), from the SRD 5.2.1 encounter table. Add up the creatures' XP and stay at or under the budget.

The 2014 guidelines (from the 2014 Dungeon Master's Guide, which our encounter calculator uses) are harsher on groups. Four goblins are 200 XP, but groups of 3 to 6 creatures double the effective XP to 400, which is exactly the Deadly threshold for four level 1 characters. In other words, the book math agrees with what DMs see at the table: four well-played goblins can kill a level 1 party.

Practical rules of thumb:

• •For a first session, start with 3 or 4 goblins and play them aggressively but not perfectly.
• •If you want a long, dangerous fight, add cover and darkness rather than more goblins. Tactics raise the difficulty more than numbers do.
• •At level 3 and up, goblins work best as a swarm (8 to 12 Minions or Warriors) or as support for something bigger, like a goblin boss riding a worg or a bugbear chief.

How Players Beat Goblins

Goblins hit hard for their CR but fold the moment they're caught. The counters:

• •Take away their cover and darkness. Light sources, dim-light cantrips and fighting in the open shut down Hide. Faerie Fire is the hard counter: outlined creatures can't benefit from being invisible and attacks against them have advantage.
• •Area damage. At 7 hit points, most 1st-level area spells kill a goblin on a failed save. Thunderwave deals 2d8 (average 9), which kills a goblin on a failed save about three times in four. Burning Hands deals 3d6 (average 10.5) in a cone.
• •Ready actions. If a goblin pops out from behind the same rock every turn, a character can Ready an attack for the moment it appears.
• •Spread out, but not too far. Goblins focus fire on whoever is isolated or easiest to hit. Keep the wizard behind the fighter, but don't leave anyone alone.
• •Check your rules version before casting. Against 2014 goblins, Hold Person and Charm Person work. Against 2024 goblins (Fey), they can't target them at all.

Goblin Encounter Ideas

The toll bridge. Six goblins have taken over a rope bridge over a ravine and charge a "toll" of whatever shiny things travelers carry. Three wait on the far side with shortbows behind a log barricade. Two hide in the scrub on the near side to cut the party off. The Boss stands on the bridge itself. Negotiating is a real option: they'll take a good bribe and some flattery over a fight they might lose.

The kitchen raid. A tavern's storeroom is being emptied every night. The culprits are three goblins coming up through a collapsed cellar wall from an old tunnel. In the dark cellar, among stacked barrels (three-quarters cover everywhere), they're far more dangerous than their CR suggests. Following them back reveals what they're running from.

The prisoner. The party finds a goblin minion tied up and left behind by its own warband after it failed the Boss. It offers to lead them to the camp in exchange for its freedom. It's telling the truth, mostly. It wants the Boss dead and will happily let the party do it.

Frequently Asked Questions

What CR is a goblin in 5e?

The 2014 goblin is CR 1/4 (50 XP). In the 2024 rules, the Goblin Minion is CR 1/8 (25 XP), the Goblin Warrior is CR 1/4 (50 XP), and the Goblin Boss is CR 1 (200 XP).

How does Nimble Escape work?

It lets a goblin take the Disengage or Hide action as a bonus action on its turn. In practice a goblin can attack and then either walk away without provoking opportunity attacks or hide to set up an attack with advantage on its next turn.

Are goblins Fey in 5e?

In the 2024 rules, yes: all three goblin stat blocks are Small Fey (Goblinoid). In the 2014 rules goblins are Small Humanoids (goblinoid). The type matters for spells: Hold Person and Charm Person target Humanoids only, so they work on 2014 goblins but not on 2024 goblins.

How many goblins should I use for 4 level 1 players?

Three or four goblins is a solid first fight. Under the 2024 rules, four Goblin Warriors use the whole Low-difficulty budget (200 XP) and eight make a High-difficulty fight. Under the 2014 guidelines, four goblins already reach the Deadly threshold for a level 1 party once the group multiplier is applied.

What is the difference between a goblin and a hobgoblin?

Both are goblinoids, but they play differently. A goblin (CR 1/4) is small, sneaky and fragile and relies on hiding and hit-and-run. A hobgoblin (CR 1/2) is a disciplined Medium soldier with AC 18 and Martial Advantage, an extra 2d6 damage when an ally is next to its target. Goblins ambush. Hobgoblins hold a line.

What do goblins ride?

Goblins are often paired with wolves or worgs, and a worg-riding goblin boss is a classic low-level miniboss. The worg is CR 1/2, can knock a target prone with its bite, and speaks Goblin.

Stat blocks: System Reference Document 5.1 (2014) and 5.2.1 (2024), Wizards of the Coast, CC-BY-4.0. Tactics, encounter math and ideas are Loreify's own.