Buy me a coffeeNuglub: The Malicious Gremlins of Sabotage, Misfortune, and Unraveling Chaos
Where tools fail, straps snap, and plans unravel, a nuglub is already grinning in the dark.
Nuglubs are spiteful gremlin saboteurs—tiny agents of entropy that haunt the edges of civilization, delighting in broken gear, spoiled supplies, and the slow collapse of order through relentless, malicious interference.
Lore
“Blame bad luck if you must—but if it keeps happening, something small is laughing at you.”
Nuglubs gather where craft and care are most relied upon—roads, camps, workshops—and patiently unmake them. A loosened buckle here, a dulled blade there, a single missing nail at the worst possible moment; their work is never grand, but always catastrophic in accumulation.
They are not conquerors, nor hunters in the traditional sense. Nuglubs exist to erode certainty itself, turning preparation into failure and confidence into doubt. To face one is to discover that the world no longer behaves as it should.
Appearance
A nuglub is a small, hunched humanoid, its thin, wiry frame built for creeping through shadows and narrow spaces. Its limbs are long and crooked, fingers ending in sharp, nimble claws stained with oil, rust, and grime. Its skin is mottled green or ash-grey, stretched taut over a restless, twitching body.
This hideous, hunchbacked creature bears three glowing blue eyes, set unevenly across its brow, each gleaming with sharp, malicious awareness. Its wide mouth curls into a jagged grin filled with needle-like teeth, rarely closed and never friendly.
Oily, matted hair sprouts from its scalp and continues down its back in thick, greasy strands, draping over its body like a filthy cloak. The hair clings in uneven patches, catching dirt and debris, giving the creature a perpetually unclean, scavenger-like appearance.
Every movement is abrupt and skittering, its posture coiled and unstable, as though it might spring, scuttle, or vanish at any moment—an embodiment of nervous energy and spite barely held in check.
Behaviour
Nuglubs are cowardly, patient, and obsessively destructive. They avoid fair fights, preferring to observe, interfere, and withdraw. A nuglub rarely destroys something outright if it can instead weaken it—loosening, dulling, fraying, or contaminating—then returning later to worsen the damage. They delight in repetition, often sabotaging the same object multiple times simply to ensure its failure occurs at the worst possible moment. In groups, they become bolder, their chittering laughter rising as their mischief compounds.
Habitat
Nuglubs haunt liminal places where order meets neglect: roadside ruins, abandoned structures, derelict camps, and poorly maintained outposts. They are especially drawn to transient settlements—caravans, expeditions, and military encampments—where tools, supplies, and structures are numerous, but vigilance is thin. Rarely do they linger where discipline and maintenance are constant.
Modus Operandi
A nuglub wages war long before blades are drawn. Under cover of darkness or distraction, it sabotages equipment, fouls provisions, and undermines structures. Only once frustration sets in—when weapons fail, supplies spoil, and tension rises—does it strike, darting from hiding to deliver quick, opportunistic attacks before vanishing again. In numbers, nuglubs orchestrate cascading failure, overwhelming foes not with strength, but with the collapse of everything they rely upon.
Motivation
Nuglubs are driven by an intrinsic devotion to entropy. They crave the unraveling of order, feeding—whether emotionally or supernaturally—on confusion, frustration, and failure. They neither hoard nor rule; their purpose is fulfilled the moment something carefully made is rendered useless.
Ecology
They scavenge and steal rather than hunt, favoring spoiled, tainted, or stolen food. Their dens are chaotic nests of broken tools, twisted metal, frayed rope, and half-ruined objects, many still in the process of being dismantled. These hoards serve no practical purpose beyond providing endless opportunities for destruction. Most creatures despise nuglubs, and even powerful monsters drive them away rather than endure their constant interference.
Scholars & Rumours
Some claim they are not creatures, but manifestations—fragments of chaos given form wherever order grows too rigid. Others insist they are drawn to frustration itself, feeding on the anger and despair of their victims. A darker theory suggests nuglubs are harbingers, softening the world for greater forces of ruin. Whatever the truth, one conclusion is universally agreed upon: where a nuglub lingers, failure is never an accident.
Nuglub 2024 5.5e
Nuglub, Pathfinder
Nuglub
Small fey (gremlin), chaotic evil
Armor Class 14 (natural armor)
Hit Points 27 (6d6 + 6)
Speed 30 ft., climb 20 ft.
| STR | DEX | CON | INT | WIS | CHA |
|---|---|---|---|---|---|
| 8 (−1) | 16 (+3) | 12 (+1) | 10 (+0) | 12 (+1) | 8 (−1) |
Saving Throws Dex +5
Skills Stealth +7, Sleight of Hand +5, Perception +3
Damage Resistances fire
Condition Immunities frightened
Senses darkvision 60 ft., passive Perception 13
Languages Common, Undercommon, Sylvan
Challenge 1 (200 XP)
Proficiency Bonus +2
Traits
Saboteur’s Touch.
As a bonus action, the nuglub tampers with a nonmagical object within 5 feet that isn’t being worn or carried. The next time that object is used before the end of the nuglub’s next turn, it malfunctions. The DM chooses one effect:
- A weapon attack is made with disadvantage.
- An ability check using the object is made with disadvantage.
- A simple mechanism (strap, hinge, fastening, or similar) fails at a critical moment.
Malicious Interference.
Once per turn, when a creature the nuglub can see within 30 feet makes an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw involving a nonmagical object, the nuglub imposes a −1d4 penalty on the roll.
Skulker of Ruin.
They can take the Hide action as a bonus action while in dim light, darkness, or lightly obscured terrain.
Pack Harrier.
The nuglub has advantage on attack rolls against a creature if at least one of the nuglub’s allies is within 5 feet of the creature and the ally isn’t incapacitated.
Actions
Claw. Melee Weapon Attack: +5 to hit, reach 5 ft., one target.
Hit: 6 (1d6 + 3) slashing damage.
Ruinous Sabotage (Recharge 5–6).
The nuglub targets one creature within 5 feet that is wearing or holding nonmagical equipment. The target must succeed on a DC 13 Dexterity saving throw or one piece of equipment (chosen by the DM) is compromised. Until repaired with 1 minute of work, the item imposes disadvantage on checks or attacks made using it.
Bonus Actions
Scatter!
They can move up to half its speed without provoking opportunity attacks.
Reactions
Spiteful Jinx.
When a creature the nuglub can see within 30 feet rolls a natural 1 on an attack roll, ability check, or saving throw, the nuglub releases a shrill, delighted cackle. The creature takes 3 (1d6) psychic damage and has disadvantage on the next roll it makes before the end of its next turn.
Tactics
Nuglubs rarely engage directly unless advantage is assured. They stalk from shadow and clutter, sabotaging gear, spoiling supplies, and undermining defenses before ever revealing themselves. Once frustration and failure take hold, they dart in to strike, retreating immediately after. In groups, nuglubs create cascading chaos—ensuring that weapons fail, plans unravel, and no enemy can rely on their equipment when it matters most.
Nuglub
This hideous, hunchbacked creature has three glowing blue eyes. Oily hair grows from its head and back, covering it like a cloak.
This content is from the Paizo Core Rules.
Gremlin, Nuglub CR 2
XP 600
CE Small fey
Init +4; Senses Darkvision 120 ft., Low-Light Vision; Perception +9
DEFENSE
AC 18, touch 15, flat-footed 14 (+4 Dexterity, +3 natural, +1 size)
hp 19 (3d6+9)
Fort +3, Ref +7, Will +2
DR 5/cold iron; SR 13
OFFENSE
Speed 30 ft., Climb 20 ft.
Melee bite +3 (1d4+1 plus grab), 2 claws +4 (1d3+1 plus trip)
Spell-Like Abilities (CL 3rd; Concentration +4)
- At will – prestidigitation
- 1/hour – heat metal, shocking grasp, snare
STATISTICS
Strength 13, Dexterity 18, Constitution 15, Intelligence 8, Wisdom 9, Charisma 12
Base Atk +1; CMB +1 (+5 grapple and trip); CMD 15
Feats Step Up, ToughnessB, Weapon Focus (claw)
Skills Acrobatics +10, Climb +9, Craft (traps) +9, Intimidate +8, Perception +9, Stealth +14; Racial Modifiers +4 Craft (traps), +4 Intimidate, +4 Perception
Languages Undercommon
SQ kneecapper
SPECIAL ABILITIES
Kneecapper (Ex) A nuglub has a +4 racial bonus on combat maneuver checks to trip an opponent.
ECOLOGY
Environment any underground or urban
Organization solitary, pair, or mob (3-6)
Treasure standard
Nuglub gremlins are deranged; they enjoy combat with a manic glee that other gremlins reserve for destroying devices or creating complex traps. Indeed, they spend long hours sharpening their claws, filing their teeth, and looking for the perfect ledge from which to leap into the fray. If combat doesn’t come to them, they seek it out, entering villages and killing innocents by night.
Their idea of a good time is murder so silent that the victim never wakes up, so the family members find the remains the next morning and accuse one another of the atrocity. Nuglubs jealously attack armored foes, as the gremlins’ hunchbacked forms make it difficult to wear armor made for other Humanoids. A group may use its heat metal and shocking grasp abilities to weaken an opponent before mobbing it and trying to knock them prone. As soon as an enemy falls to the ground, all nuglubs descend on that target in a frenzy of bloodlust, grappling and biting, holding on like perverse leeches until nothing remains.
Though less technically inclined than some of their kin, nuglubs like using traps. Unlike most gremlins, who prefer to sabotage existing machines, nuglubs delight in the stealthy construction of traps in areas their victims consider familiar, rigging these painful and often deadly surprises on front doors, around the floor of beds, or near cribs in nurseries.
Nuglubs are the brutes of gremlin-kind. Groups of nuglubs remain small, as they tend to quarrel with each other and cannibalize those on the wrong side of an angry argument. Lone nuglubs often work with other gremlins, as they like proving they’re the strongest, and aren’t likely to kill and eat their smaller allies (though those slain by other enemies are fair game for a little snacking).
Nuglubs typically stand 2-1/2 feet tall and weigh approximately 25 pounds.
Section 15: Copyright Notice – Bestiary 2
Pathfinder Roleplaying Game Bestiary 2, © 2010, Paizo Publishing, LLC; Authors Wolfgang Baur, Jason Bulmahn, Adam Daigle, Graeme Davis, Crystal Frasier, Joshua J. Frost, Tim Hitchcock, Brandon Hodge, James Jacobs, Steve Kenson, Hal MacLean, Martin Mason, Rob McCreary, Erik Mona, Jason Nelson, Patrick Renie, Sean K Reynolds, F. Wesley Schneider, Owen K.C. Stephens, James L. Sutter, Russ Taylor, and Greg A. Vaughan, based on material by Jonathan Tweet, Monte Cook, and Skip Williams.