Attack the goblins

No time like the present. You decide. The goblins may have the advantage in numbers, but they are still a bunch of weak goblins, and most of them are wounded. Besides, if you keep waiting the next wave might arrive, and then you'll have **** but to retreat.

With your mind made up you run after the goblins... as fast as your armor will allow.

There's an abandoned cart in the middle of the road. Two young human women wielding bows are hiding on the far side of it, using the cart as a makeshift barricade. Most of the goblins are already half way to it, but one is limping behind, an arrow stuck in its thigh. Naturally, you choose him as your first target.

As soon as you are close enough you attack the goblin from behind. He lets out a scream of pain that is promptly silenced by your second strike.

As the dead goblin falls down the rest of them stop and turn around to see what's going. When they see you and notice that you just killed one of their own they... just stand there. The goblins' low intelligence combined with the lack of a proper leader leaves them confused. For a few seconds they just keep looking from you to the archers, and then back to you, as if they can't decide if they should continue with their charge, or attack you instead.

You use the time to close the distance and strike at another wounded goblin. This one must have been almost dead, as he died from just one hit. At the same time the archers take out three more of the stupid creatures.

Finally the goblins all turn their attention to you... and start trying to stab you with their knives. Only they target your armor for some reason. Naturally, this results in you taking no damage - your defense is too high. You retaliate by trying to hit them with your hatchet. You don't do a very good job - what with you having zero combat experience until today - but you still manage to get a few lucky hits in and kill a few of the most wounded goblins. Meanwhile the two archers keep shooting and take out the rest of them.

Finally the last goblin falls dead. You take a quick look around, worried that the sound of fighting might have attracted more enemies, but see no one. You then turn your attention to the two archers as they come out from behind the cart. To your surprise they are both younger than you thought. One of them looks like she came of age only a few weeks ago at most, the other looks like she's only an year or two older. Both have short brown hair, cheap brown leather armor, and cheap shortbows. Sisters? You think, surprised. As far as you know it is pretty rare for adventurers to be related like this.

"Thank you for the help." Starts the older one. "We came here hoping to get some easy experience, but we did not expect that there would be so many goblins. Lucky for us you showed up when you did."

"Same. I came here hoping to get some easy experience, but I was not feeling confident taking on this many goblins at the same time. Luckily, you two were here as well." You tell them.

Further conversation is cut short by the sound of footsteps from behind. You turn and see that more goblins have arrived. This time there are just five of them, but they are not like the the ones you killed. Four of them are holding short stone-tipped spears and small wooden bucklers. They are all bigger than the first group and each one has at least two small scars somewhere. But it is the last one that makes you worried. He is bigger than the other four, with a sharp-looking bone spear in one hand and a bone shield in the other. On his head is the skull of some animal, used as a makeshift helmet. He has more scars than the rest of them combined, and seems to be the leader of the group; the fact that he is standing in the middle, with two goblins on each side of him, reinforces that impression.

Looks like the next wave is here. You realize as you examine the new arrivals.

"The next wave is here already? Fuck!" Apparently one of the sisters has reached the same conclusion as you. And it sounds like she's not pleased by this development. For that matter, neither are you. The five goblins are clearly much stronger and you don't like your odds of victory against them...