While I don't think adding goblins as playable would work, I like idea of making goblins a little more challenging with your (lore-appropriate) suggestions. One might ask if this makes some fights too hard, like the very first time you encounter them when they attack the mercenaries in front of the grove. But Larian could change a couple goblins in that fight to "wounded goblin" to reduce their stats a bit and make the fight easier, or reduce amount of opponents.
Then, later in the game we could go up against (or ally with) a whole tribe of non-Absolute following goblins.
