Calibans. The children of humans warped by magical forces in the womb. So, do other races produce Calibans, or is it only humans? I'm not looking for Caliban-variants, I'd keep the same template for a Caliban born to any race, but does anyone think it happens?
And also...what happens if a Caliban has a child with another being? Is the offspring of a Caliban and a human a human or a Caliban? How about elves? Halflings? (I've -always- been of the opinion that humans and halflings are so close that crossbreeds would be inevitable, although hard to peg as human or halfling, it'd really depend on size).
- Yulian
"None of us can choose where we will love."
Phantom - Susan Kay
Calibans are the result of human adaptability gone horribly wrong. Exposed to dark magic in the womb or during conception, the resultant fetus adapts to survive the taint of negative energy. This has the effect of twisting the child into a hulking brute, damaging its mind even as its body grows strong. From the view of adaptability, either demihumans cannot be twisted in this fashion, or the twisting inevitably kills the child. Personally, I hold this theory to be correct, and that only humans produce calibans.
More supplemental material based around others' opinions can be found through the netbooks available at http://www.fraternityofshadows.com . Coming soon, they're actually going to be doing a book about calibans, The Guide to the Hidden.
Hope that helps!
Hida Jiremi
(Jeremy Puckett)
Personally I would say only humans produce calibans as they are and other race's calibans are different.
An easy way to deal with this just make the 'freak' varients of the races the calibans. Elf calibans are drow and dwarf calibans are deugar and so on.
That reminds me, I think I'll go through the Ravenloft DMG and add up all the population figures and come up with a world population for the demiplane.
So, what about breeding? If a caliban and an elf have a child (just work with me here), would that child be caliban or fey-touched? How about humans? In a Gothic Horror type setting I'm sure there have been occasional doomed romances or unwilling impregnations. So, what opinions do you have on the offspring? Straight human? Straight caliban? Ugly human? ;)
- Yulian
"Let them hate, so long as they fear." Lucius Accius
I even got far enough along to think about misfit small hunchbacks sired by halflings and gnomes which would have adjustments for small size but no other effect (slower move, reduced carrying capacity, +1 AC & to hit) - same stats as other calibans.
Just another thought.
-Eric Gorman
Ravenshadow, I don't think you really get the full tragic thrust of the character if they're sterile. In fact...this gives me an idea.
A lot of RL players are familiar with HP Lovecraft, and one concept that came up in his work time and again was the 'degenerate ancestor'. Imagine the horror of a PC learning that one of their relatively recent ancestors was a hulking, misshapen brute, barely human. It doesn't matter how said caliban acted the revelation is going to be call for at least a Horror Check, if not Madness. They'll wonder "Does this seed of darkness lie within me?" Fun for all!
But that still leaves open the question about calibans and demihumans. I think my opinion is now that, unless circumstances dictate, a caliban/human crossbreed will produce a human, but perhaps one with 'buried' traits that may show up in their offspring. Or does anyone think an elf/caliban cross isn't possible, or would produce a fey-touched?
- Yulian
"It is when power is wedded to chronic fear that it becomes formidable." -Eric Hoffer
I have to say as well that I've always been somewhat disdainful of crossbreed races in fantasy. They're different species, for goodness' sake! They shouldn't be able to produce viable offspring! (Though there are a very small number of real-world examples that directly contradict my argument...) Now, if you're not using science to explain anything, then having fantasy race crossbreeds makes as much or little sense as anything else in your setting - it's all about the paradigm. Having science explain some things, however, opens the door for science to explain everything. Again, paradigm has to decide where the balance lies on that.
I really like the degenerate ancestor plot; Lovecraft is a stunning source for horror ideas. Another good one would be the traditional Deep South horror story of the cousin who's kept locked up in the basement "for his own good." If you haven't read the Ravenloft Gazetteers, there's a nice section in the third one about an independent city militia force that's made a reputation off of their honesty and the fact they all wear masks; all of them are secretly calibans, trying to help a world that shuns and hates them. I think that's really cool. (One of the PCs in my current RL game has a commendation from le Serrure et Cle, but she despises calibans. Glee. ;) )
Ravenshadow, I don't think you really get the full tragic thrust of the character if they're sterile. In fact...
I wouldn't be so quick to write that off, especially if you consider the Lovecraft angle. Perhaps an isolated town in the hills has become so inbred and "decadent" that they can no longer produce offspring amongst themsleves. Now, in order for the bloodlines to continue, they need to buy, lure, or abduct "pure stock" outsiders for breeding purposes.
There are numerous possible variations on this "Mars needs women" theme, and with the right combination of characters, motivations and methods a "caliban sterility" plot can be as dark or as tragic as you want it to be.