The Phandalin Chronicles

Bozzlewick examines the strange goblin.  He runs several theories through his mind.  What he can see though is that the crystalline growths are not attached to the goblin like armor, jewelry, or a parasitic fungus. They are growing from within the creature itself. The crystals emerge from the bone beneath the skin, particularly around the skull, spine, shoulders, and joints. In several places, the goblin's skeleton appears to have partially transformed into the same mineral-like substance. More troubling, there are signs that the goblin lived with these growths for many years. The surrounding tissue is healthy and well-integrated, suggesting the creature was born with a predisposition toward the condition or inherited it from previous generations. The growths do not resemble any disease, infection, or natural mutation you have ever encountered. Whatever caused them altered the goblin's biology at a fundamental level.

You also notice faint traces of the crystals in younger bone tissue and around the teeth. This was not a recent affliction. The condition appears to have been passed down through bloodlines for generations, becoming part of the creature's natural development. Curiously, the crystals seem to follow no natural pattern of growth. They ignore muscle attachments, blood flow, and structural stresses that normally shape bone. It is almost as if they grew according to some other set of biological rules entirely.