PC stats for Howling One Calibans?

[Hell_Born]

In the Ravenloft Gazetteer #3, the entry on Mordent's local population mentions that there is a very distinct strain or subrace of calibans endemic to the domain. Locally known as "Howling Ones" or "Wailing Ones", signature characteristics include pitch black eyes, chalk-white skin and hair, wiry yet strong builds, and distorted mouths. No mechanics are given for Wailing Ones, leaving them as just a cosmetic reskin of calibans.

But... Quoth the Raven #8 featured an article titled "Brutes & Banshees", which introduces a new set of racial mechanics for Calibans (far superior to the "official" cosmetic reskin of half-orcs, in my opinion), which centers on using an array of magic-imbued physical deformities to give each caliban a distinct set of mechanical traits, both positive and negative - rather like the infamous expanded rules for tieflings in 2nd edition. This article covers five homebrewed caliban strains; the Brute (closest to the official caliban), the Banshee, the Bestial, the Cannibal, and the Witchspawn. But it also includes rules for "generic" calibans as well.

What I'm interested in is this: in folks' opinions, how would you go about creating a Howling One caliban strain using the mechanics from Brutes & Banshees? What deformities from the list there would you use to make up the signature mutations of a Howling One? Do you think that maybe some homebrewed mutations might be in order, such as a signature "soul-rending shriek" type mutation?

[alhoon]

I would treat them as hagspawn and tie them to hags in the swamps of Mordent.

[Speedwagon]

Perhaps, alongside a "soul-rending shriek", the Howling Ones can be made to be a mix of Witchspawn (somewhat related to what alhoon was saying) and the Banshee strain of caliban? Aside from the "soul-rending shriek", I'd think that there would be some affinity for the Near Ethereal plane, allowing such calibans to see the ghosts that haunt Mordent (which might not be the best for their psyche but could give them advantage on history checks or persuasion checks when speaking to ghosts)?

In terms of more specific mutations, I think that Gaunt, Pale, Skulk, Eyes of Darkness, and Voice of the Many should be useful fits. It certainly makes the Howling Ones feel like ghosts, which probably would spook the rather isolated Mordentish!

[Hell_Born]

After re-reading both the Ravenloft Gazetteer 3 and Brutes and Banshees, this would be my tentative first draft for the Howling Ones as a distinct caliban race using the B&B mechanics...

Ability Score Modifiers: +2 Strength, -2 Charisma
Breed Deformities: Gaunt, Pale, Eyes of Darkness
Favored Class: Sorcerer (can, at DM's permission, substitute Cleric or Dread Necromancer)

My justifications? Well... sadly, our entire body of canon lore on the Wailing Ones is this single excerpt from pages 59 and 60 of the Ravenloft Gazetteer III:
Also deserving of special mention are those wretched souls known as calibans. While quite rare, Mordentish folk view the birth of one of these deformed monstrosities as the sign of great evil in the area, matched only by the shame and horror of the parents. Keeping such a child in the community is forbidden, in the belief that doing so would encourage the evil to dwell there as well, but harming the child is also strictly forbidden, for fear of inviting further wickedness upon the family. Many such children are thus left abandoned at the doorstep of a local church of Ezra or given to be raised by wise women in the wild. Those that attempt to seek out their true parents find themselves treated as strangers and turned out by the local population at the first opportunity, a too painful reminder of the evil that visited the town long ago. While many of the calibans here display the variety of deformities common to their race (if that is what to call them), a certain set of characteristics seems more common to Mordent than elsewhere, what is called Howling or Wailing Ones. These calibans are born with chalk white skin and hair, pure black eyes, and wide, distorted mouths, as though set in a perpetual unearthly howl. They also tend to be more wiry than other calibans, though still retaining the peculiar strength of these cursed beings, and the birth of a caliban is considered a sure sign that a powerful spirit rests uneasily nearby.

So, we know that Howling Ones have unnaturally pale skin and dark eyes (Pale and, technically, Eyes of Darkness, though the example deformities for the Magical Affinity trait does list "black, pupilless eyes" as a signature characteristic of a caliban able to use Unnerving Gaze as a spell-like ability), we know they tend to be wiry in build (Gaunt), and we know they're just as strong as the "standard" caliban (+2 Strength). We're not given any specific negative traits for them, so falling back on the tradition of -2 Charisma makes sense, especially given their iconic oral deformities. On the other hand, -2 Constitution might be a better direction, since it a) reinforces the "wiry build" angle (-1 Con is even the penalty for the Gaunt deformity), and b) meshes better with having a Charisma-based spellcaster as a favored class.

I went with "Sorcerer" as the default favored class for this breed because the minimal lore we have suggests a strong association with restless spirits and vengeful ghosts, even if the mechanics admittedly don't quite gel at the moment. Dread Necromancer was offered as a potential alternative favored class because it emulates the sorcerer's "inborn talent" for arcane magic - which is noted to be the more common way of expressing arcane potential amongst the Mordentish unless one is of noble birth and can thus afford tutelage - and likewise Cleric makes sense given that the default option for Mordentish calibans is that they will be raised by a church of Ezra or a convent of Hala (the latter also tying into the sorcerer connection).

There aren't especially any other deformities in the Brutes & Banshees article that stand out to me as innate to the Howling Ones the way those three did. We have a "Deformities of the Mouth" category, as well as a "Deformities of the Face" one, but nothing that quite meshes the "perpetual unearthly howl" or "too wide mouth" angle. I could see both the Eerie Whispers and Voice of the Legion deformities from that category making sense, tying into the Wailing Ones as a kind of ghost-touched caliban, but I don't know if anyone else agrees. Hmm... on reflection, could the distorted mouth qualify them for the Face of Nightmares (+2 Intimidate, -2 Diplomacy) deformity? Skulk, which gives a +2 to Hide & Move Silently in exchange for -1 Charisma, could maybe tie into the Wailing Ones' being pushed to avoid social contact?

I don't know, what do folks think?

[TheArcaneWeirdo]

After re-reading both the Ravenloft Gazetteer 3 and Brutes and Banshees, this would be my tentative first draft for the Howling Ones as a distinct caliban race using the B&B mechanics...

Ability Score Modifiers: +2 Strength, -2 Charisma
Breed Deformities: Gaunt, Pale, Eyes of Darkness
Favored Class: Sorcerer (can, at DM's permission, substitute Cleric or Dread Necromancer)

My justifications? Well... sadly, our entire body of canon lore on the Wailing Ones is this single excerpt from pages 59 and 60 of the Ravenloft Gazetteer III:
Also deserving of special mention are those wretched souls known as calibans. While quite rare, Mordentish folk view the birth of one of these deformed monstrosities as the sign of great evil in the area, matched only by the shame and horror of the parents. Keeping such a child in the community is forbidden, in the belief that doing so would encourage the evil to dwell there as well, but harming the child is also strictly forbidden, for fear of inviting further wickedness upon the family. Many such children are thus left abandoned at the doorstep of a local church of Ezra or given to be raised by wise women in the wild. Those that attempt to seek out their true parents find themselves treated as strangers and turned out by the local population at the first opportunity, a too painful reminder of the evil that visited the town long ago. While many of the calibans here display the variety of deformities common to their race (if that is what to call them), a certain set of characteristics seems more common to Mordent than elsewhere, what is called Howling or Wailing Ones. These calibans are born with chalk white skin and hair, pure black eyes, and wide, distorted mouths, as though set in a perpetual unearthly howl. They also tend to be more wiry than other calibans, though still retaining the peculiar strength of these cursed beings, and the birth of a caliban is considered a sure sign that a powerful spirit rests uneasily nearby.

So, we know that Howling Ones have unnaturally pale skin and dark eyes (Pale and, technically, Eyes of Darkness, though the example deformities for the Magical Affinity trait does list "black, pupilless eyes" as a signature characteristic of a caliban able to use Unnerving Gaze as a spell-like ability), we know they tend to be wiry in build (Gaunt), and we know they're just as strong as the "standard" caliban (+2 Strength). We're not given any specific negative traits for them, so falling back on the tradition of -2 Charisma makes sense, especially given their iconic oral deformities. On the other hand, -2 Constitution might be a better direction, since it a) reinforces the "wiry build" angle (-1 Con is even the penalty for the Gaunt deformity), and b) meshes better with having a Charisma-based spellcaster as a favored class.

I went with "Sorcerer" as the default favored class for this breed because the minimal lore we have suggests a strong association with restless spirits and vengeful ghosts, even if the mechanics admittedly don't quite gel at the moment. Dread Necromancer was offered as a potential alternative favored class because it emulates the sorcerer's "inborn talent" for arcane magic - which is noted to be the more common way of expressing arcane potential amongst the Mordentish unless one is of noble birth and can thus afford tutelage - and likewise Cleric makes sense given that the default option for Mordentish calibans is that they will be raised by a church of Ezra or a convent of Hala (the latter also tying into the sorcerer connection).

There aren't especially any other deformities in the Brutes & Banshees article that stand out to me as innate to the Howling Ones the way those three did. We have a "Deformities of the Mouth" category, as well as a "Deformities of the Face" one, but nothing that quite meshes the "perpetual unearthly howl" or "too wide mouth" angle. I could see both the Eerie Whispers and Voice of the Legion deformities from that category making sense, tying into the Wailing Ones as a kind of ghost-touched caliban, but I don't know if anyone else agrees. Hmm... on reflection, could the distorted mouth qualify them for the Face of Nightmares (+2 Intimidate, -2 Diplomacy) deformity? Skulk, which gives a +2 to Hide & Move Silently in exchange for -1 Charisma, could maybe tie into the Wailing Ones' being pushed to avoid social contact?

I don't know, what do folks think?

I'd say cleric or druid (like, what else would 'wise woman in the wild' be?)

Low constitution is classic for ghost-related racial mechanics - banshee, fetch, even the Godefroy family stats in Legacy of the Blood - and for a good reason: it emphasizes the character literally being closer to death than most people. The ghost-touched character is marked by death from the very beginning, claimed by it, and no matter how powerful, they're always one step away from it - and that's what makes them so precious. They're volunrable, thus you're compelled to protect them. They might not last very long out here, thus they can't be taken for granted. It's thematically powerful. For me, it's part of the player fantasy.
The classic isn't a strict rule, however, and maybe we want this ghost-touched species to be different and unique.
High strength, low con is an unusual combination, and I wonder what you'd do with it in combat. On the one hand, you'd do the most damage in a martial class, but on the other hand, you're too frail for melee. The most efficient strategy is to stick to ranged or thrown weapons - racial modifiers aren't everything, though.

Frankly, I imagine the 'mouth open as though set in a perpetual howl' thing as more awkward than intimidating. Like, in the right atmosphere it could be creepy - but in daylight, when you're trying to have a normal conversation but the second you stop conciously monitoring your facial expression your mouth just slips back into howl mode? I think it would very quickly start looking like this weird tick. It won't scare people, it'll make them think you're an idiot.
So I say, we make this a seperate deformity, that gives you -2 diplomacy, -2 intimidation, +4 deception, cause nobody takes you seriously and you can take advantage of that.