Gen here, jumping on on my Goblin alt.
By all means, jump on board that innovative, ruthless edge and make-shift can-d attitude that the race is famous for … after all, you likely grew up in Kezan, or in one of the Steamwheedle cities, and that’s a rough place to grow up.
The Steadwheedle might be the more healthy areas to grow up, since those Trade Princes tend to be well liked, even beloved, by their workers since they take care of their workers, pay them a good wage and make sure there’s all the amenities and proper protections in place to keep business booming and the cartel protected from both inside and outside forces. But they still kept an iron fist on the wheel and were more than willing to exile, or even kill, any uppity member of their Cartel who threatened the status quo and was a threat to their profits.
And yet, even the most beloved Trade Prince or Baron can be toppled, either bought out, ousted via a coup or simply becoming too old to run such a sprawling, chaotic enterprise.
Growing up on Kezan means you grew up under the chubby, greasy thumb of Gallywix of the Many Chins, and Kezan might have been the homeland of the Goblins, but it was not a happy place. The vast majority of the population lived in the slums, dwelled in shanties cobbled out of scrap and sheet metal, and the few individuals who did have decent homes all paid exorbitant rent to Bobby Kottick Gallywix and were constantly on the edge of crushing debt just to make ends meet.
You do not grow up in either of those environments without taking the lessons that kept you alive out into the wider world.
Goblins aren’t stupid, however. There’s not much room left to grow without getting into trouble with the natives or the Mega-Factions, there’s been a massive expenditure of resources and nobody’s quite sure where the next mine, lumber mill or farm can be built and actually provide useful materials. Everybody’s economy is in shambles and thanks to Gallywix and Sylvanas, Goblins are held in the lowest regard since they started selling weapons and equipment to the Dark Horde/Old Horde.ee
So, take the above and blend it together. You’re driven, you’re ambitious and you’re conditioned to make your mark and rise to the top, by hook or by crook. But you’ve also got to live in this world, and having everyone as your enemy is a baaaaaaaaaaaaaaad idea. Gazlowe is a good example of a Goblin who balances his ambition and the inherent drive for power and gold that thrives within each Goblin, and the needs of not just his crew, but the politics of the world around him. He pushes for advancement, works hard to secure resources and trade agreements, doesn’t send his people off on suicide missions, pays them well above what they’d normally get and rewards ambition and talent even when it doesn’t immediately net him a profit, even when it ends up costing him significantly.
Vikesha could be interested in exploring potential new food sources and animal breeds that could be useful to the Horde as beasts of burden or even potential war-machines, as well as the thrill of testing her personally-modified equipment against dangerous and hostile creatures and beings, and everybody has reason to hate the Scourge and the Legion after everything we’ve been through … and there’s a lot of alchemists, mages and other, shady types who’d pay through the nose for the reagents that come from such dangerous and hostile creatures.
Just a random brain dump on the subject.
