Sylph Sorcerer levels

[Schattenbach]

Hello,

I'm not exactly sure about how the Sylph's own sorcerer casting interacts with actual sorcerer-type class levels/casting progressions and need some information about how it actually works.

The Sylph herself provides sorcerer spellcasting equal to HD+4 ... so what happens once the Sylph actually aquires sorcerer casting through classes and such? How does the Sylph's own casting progression interact with the class-specific casting progression?

And what's the ruling again in regard to how to handle prestige class access for races that have arcane spellcasting on their own? Under what circumstances do they actually need to take at least sorcerer one level first? For prestige classes that progress a specific classes casting?

Thanks in advance.

[The Viscount]

I'm not 100% on this, but I believe that you would take the next appropriate level in sorcerer if you entered the class.

As for entering prestige classes, because they don't have explicit level caps for entry, all you have to do is instead meet the prerequisites. For example, loremaster (http://www.d20srd.org/srd/prestigeClasses/loremaster.htm) has skill, feat, and spell level requirements, but if you have those you can enter.

[Troacctid]

Racial spellcasting stacks with levels of the same spellcasting class. Taking sorcerer levels will advance your racial casting. However, the HD+4, IIRC, is referring to racial hit dice, not hit dice from class levels, so no double-dipping.

Most prestige classes will only advance a spellcasting class that you already have levels in, which rules out racial spellcasting. There may be exceptions—for example, Icesinger will advance a Gloura's racial bard casting even if she has no bard levels—so refer to the text of the prestige class.

[Anthrowhale]

Slyph casting is keyed off of HD rather than Racial HD by RAW, but I think just about everyone uses Racial HD which is likely RAI.

[Schattenbach]

As for entering prestige classes, because they don't have explicit level caps for entry, all you have to do is instead meet the prerequisites. For example, has skill, feat, and spell level requirements, but if you have those you can enter.

Racial spellcasting stacks with levels of the same spellcasting class. Taking sorcerer levels will advance your racial casting. However, the HD+4, IIRC, is referring to racial hit dice, not hit dice from class levels, so no double-dipping.

It is using some general terms (i.e. "sylph’s Hit Dice + 4") but well ... double-dipping would be quite extreme in plenty of cases ... and its not 100% clear what actually gets progressed at this rate as, like plenty of older materials, they forgot to add important bits/assumed them to be obvious and such that have later on become standard to take note of later on (like the Incanatrix entry itself that doesn't exactly point out if it actually advances spell known or not - which obviously leaves sorcerers with quite a lot of irritation as they need their level-up spells known to actually do something while wizards could simply learn from scrolls - as it hasn't yet been spelled out like in regard to plenty of other caster prcs that were created later on or the Improved Invisibility issue noted below).


Most prestige classes will only advance a spellcasting class that you already have levels in, which rules out racial spellcasting. There may be exceptions—for example, Icesinger will advance a Gloura's racial bard casting even if she has no bard levels—so refer to the text of the prestige class.

Which means unless it is decleared unnecessary by the prestige class itself or the prestige class doesn't simlpy advances some type of spellcasting (without actually taking note of the requirment to select some existing class) but requires one to posses some type of class-based source of spellcasting, it doesn't advance racial spellcasting (that hasn't already been stacked on top of whatever existing casting class there is) at all, correct?


Slyph casting is keyed off of HD rather than Racial HD by RAW, but I think just about everyone uses Racial HD which is likely RAI.

So in case one would actually use this strict ruling and, for example, advances Racial HD ... what would happen once one actually advances the Sylph beyond its normal RHD advancement to something like, for example, 20 RHD as far as its sorcerer progression and such is concerned?

Slightly off-topic but ... what happens with its Improved Invisibility that lacks any specific caster level pointed out in its entry (not that that would be much of an issue for at will abilities ... expect in regard to attemps of getting ride of it ... but it could make it outright broken - as in ... not working at all - by reducing the time it lasts to 0 or increasing it to indefinite length, depending on ow on rules in that regard)?