can you leave a savage progression early?

[RedDragons]

can you leave a savage progression early in the middle of the class levels of a monster?

[WhatBigTeeth]

"Savage Progression" like the templates in the Savage Progression article series (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/arch/sp) or like Savage Species (and subsequent dead-tree books) monster classes?

If the former, yes (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20030824a). If the latter, no.

[The Viscount]

But one must still complete the savage template progression, right? One can take any number of class levels in between, but one must finish it?

[RedDragons]

Not if the game ends by then :P ahbahwhahwha



the ghost and werewolf progressions, if one takes them, they do not get any HD or skill points?

[WhatBigTeeth]

But one must still complete the savage template progression, right? One can take any number of class levels in between, but one must finish it?
Sure, but that doesn't mean anything practice. Multiclassing out and intending to return in a level doesn't matter if the character dies or the game ends before then; same if you intend to return in two levels, or in three, or in twenty...

the ghost and werewolf progressions, if one takes them, they do not get any HD or skill points?
Ghost doesn't gain any HD; the levels are burning off pure LA.

Werewolf is funky. See how it has two level progression charts? The werewolf savage progression comes as two classes: template class and animal class. The template class does not come with HD. The animal class does, but you can't multiclass into it until you have at least one level of the template class.

[Soranar]

Actually there's an online article that specifies that you can leave a template progression at any time you choose.

found here:

https://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20030824a

for savage species progression, just ask your DM

and now I noticed someone else already linked to that site, sorry for the pointless extra post

[RedDragons]

So if a player was to play a level one ghost or were wolf, it would not be possible due to having no HD? they would have to take a base class first?

[Flickerdart]

So if a player was to play a level one ghost or were wolf, it would not be possible due to having no HD? they would have to take a base class first?
Correct. Both lycanthropes and ghosts must have been something else first.