The Mad Macnaghtens (Goblins 2.0, Part II)

In an abandoned holdfast up on Innismoor live three brothers. Known as the Mad Macnaghtens, they terrorise the local populace and prey upon travelers on the road, especially in spring and summer when traffic is relatively frequent. No ordinary highway robbers, they are Redcaps, and their interest is not in gold or silver but blood and blood alone. For if ever the blood they use to colour their woolen hats should run dry, they would quickly die.

Rab, Jeb and Morgan are their names, and they call themselves the Lairds of Innismoor. They long ago bullied the local people of Clan Maclachlan into submission; the Redcaps allow the clan to live in peace so long as they do not warn away travelers passing through the moor. The Maclachlans know better than to break this agreement, lest the Macnaghtens find out and seek retribution.

The brothers keep a constant watch on the road from their tower. Once they have spotted a potential victim they descend from the tower and hide in a low copse of fir trees, from where they can launch their ambushes. Captives are dragged to the cellar of the holdfast for the Macnaghtens to do with as they please.

Goblin (Redcap)

A Redcap is a particularly large, fierce and sadistic form of Goblin. Almost as big as a man and much stronger, their only purpose in life is violence and bloodshed. For them murder is a sport and a kind of art form, and in a fight they spur each other on to ever more grotesque and brutal deeds. If possible, they prefer to disable an opponent so they can dispatch him or her at will.

In appearance, a Redcap is a stocky, tautly muscled figure, with pasty white features and sunken eyes which glow a faint red at night. Its fang-like teeth are black and its long pink tongue frequently hangs out like a hungry dog's, oozing drool.

They typically inhabit abandoned castles and other ruins, where they style themselves 'Lairds' of the surrounding areas. Their equipment is often pilfered from their victims, with preference for great, two-handed claymores.

Redcaps gain special succor from their woolen hats. So long as the hat is wet with blood, they can regenerate at a rate of 1hp per round in the manner of a troll. If their hat ever runs dry or is lost, they lose this ability and become stricken as if by a weakness spell.

Redcap

Frequency: Rare
Habitat: Ruined castles on Highland moors and heaths
Intelligence: Average (8-10)
Alignment: Chaotic Evil
AC: 4 (chain mail)
Movement: 12
HD: 5+5
THAC0: 15
No. of attacks: 2
Damage/Attack: By weapon +2
Special Attacks: None
Special Defenses: Regeneration (1 hp / round)
Morale: Elite (13-14)
Size: Medium (5' tall)
Other: Characters who know about the Redcap's weakness can attempt to remove the hat and destroy it. They can do this through a natural 19 or 20 on a called shot, or through overbearing the creature.