Hobgoblin

Hobgoblin is a 1981 Problem Novel by John Coyne which follows Scott Gardiner, a player of "Hobgoblin", an Irish-themed Role-Playing Game as he deals with the death of his father, his mother's new job documenting the history of Ballycastle, and dealing with a new school.


 * Badass Grandpa: Conor and are easily in their 70's, but a lifetime of menial work still lets them wreak havoc with medieval weapons when they wish to.
 * The Blacksmith: Conor's role at Ballycastle is to restore the items therein including the weaponry.
 * Broken Aesop: The epilogue of the story implies that Scott's obsession with Hobgoblin was a childish thing which he's since put aside upon starting college. On the other hand, it was skills associated with the game that let him.
 * Jerk Jock: Borgus and his crew.
 * Knight in Sour Armor: Scott doesn't so much want to save the high-schoolers as that he's less than sane at that point.
 * Loners Are Freaks: Played with to some degree. Scott wants little to do with the town of Flat Rock and it's portrayed as unhealthy. However, they wanted nothing to do with him either.
 * Ripped from the Headlines: The book was put out at the same as Mazes and Monsters to ride upon the Moral Panic of the Egbert incident.
 * There Are No Therapists: Averted. Scott sees a therapist both after his father's death and after.