To the Goblins, to Hastily Brine

To the Goblins, to Hastily Brine (perhaps better-known by its first line, "Gather ye gnoll-heads while ye may") is a poem composed by the skald Bogo Grodog to commemorate The Fishwives' defeat of the gnolls on Hag Island. The poem takes the form of advice to young goblins from the perspective of a seasoned warrior, urging them to properly preserve the meat gathered from a successful battle while it is still fresh - and, metaphorically, to taste the fruits of youth while youth remains. It was first performed by Grodog during the poetry portion of the inaugural Sharkless Bay Games, where it won him acclaim and an officer's commission in The Glittering Legion of Ka-Ess.

Original Text

Gather ye gnoll-heads while ye may,

Black blood is still a-flying:

The severed Skull that grins to-day,

Soon will be putrifying.

That hateful, searing Flame, the Sun,

Will rot the Mortal Flesh;

Already have his Rays begun

To spoil lopped Heads, once Fresh.

Those Heads are best, which are the first,

To be properly treated;

The longer left, the worse, and worst

The Meat when it is eated.

Then be not Coy; use well your time,

Ye Butchers Expeditious:

With skillful Salting, Smoke and Brine,

Their brains are quite delicious.

Musical Setting

"To the Goblins..." was later set to music by the Fishwife Ka-Ess Lizardkin, and it became a popular anthem and drinking song among the goblins and halflings of Hagless-Town. Ka-Ess scholars of The Spinecracker Amphitheater for Contemporary Poetics assigned the work the KWC number 813 within the category "recipes and drinking songs."