Savage Progressions?

[schreier]

I am just getting into the Savage Progression classes for monster levels. Looking at both werewolves and ghosts actually (which conveniently were the same article -
https://rpg.nobl.ca/archive.php?x=dnd/sp/20040117a)

Just so I understand ... reading the werewolves, it seems clear you do not have to take the animal levels. Is there any reason you would take them? Generally, it seems like class levels are more valuable.

With ghost, could you stop at any point? Say lvl 3 gives you all you want - can you stop and just take other classes?

Lastly - can these HD-less levels be bought out as other LA -buyoffs?

[SirNibbles]

I am just getting into the Savage Progression classes for monster levels. Looking at both werewolves and ghosts actually (which conveniently were the same article -
https://rpg.nobl.ca/archive.php?x=dnd/sp/20040117a)

Just so I understand ... reading the werewolves, it seems clear you do not have to take the animal levels. Is there any reason you would take them? Generally, it seems like class levels are more valuable.

With ghost, could you stop at any point? Say lvl 3 gives you all you want - can you stop and just take other classes?

Lastly - can these HD-less levels be bought out as other LA -buyoffs?





Characters are not required to complete all the levels of a given template class in uninterrupted succession. For example, a character who takes a level of wereboar could then take a level of fighter and a level of rogue (or any other combination of other class levels) before taking another level of wereboar. A character must still take the first level of wereboar before taking the second, just as with a normal class.

Gaining a Template Midcampaign (https://web.archive.org/web/20161101074307/http://archive.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/sp/20030824a)


There's nothing preventing you from buying off the LA, but remember that you need 3x the LA in class levels (not including RHD) from the point you acquired that LA in order to buy it off.

EDIT: The following does not apply to the scenario you posted (acquired template classes), but there are a few more rules to keep in mind for monster classes, i.e. playing a monster starting at level 1 by selecting it as your race:




The only way to take a level of a monster class is to be that monster. A mind flayer cannot multiclass as a minotaur, nor can a human take levels as an astral deva.

Savage Species, page 25





A monster character using these rules may not multiclass until it completes the full progression in its monster class. This rule keeps characters from gaining the benefits of a monster’s type and then quickly switching to a standard class.

A monster class imposes an experience point penalty for multiclassing, just as other classes do (depending on preferred classes for the creature or race). A monster class is a character class for purposes of determining whether a character takes an experience point penalty. See the sample classes in Appendix 1 for specifics.

Savage Species, page 27

[nedz]

Savage Progressions works differently in that regard — you don't have to take all the levels and you can mix and match.

Here's the entry from the template rules, the other sections are similar.


Characters are not required to complete all the levels of a given template class in uninterrupted succession. For example, a character who takes a level of wereboar could then take a level of fighter and a level of rogue (or any other combination of other class levels) before taking another level of wereboar. A character must still take the first level of wereboar before taking the second, just as with a normal class.

[Darg]

Even though you don't have to take template progressions successively, you do suffer the multiclass penalty if you don't keep your classes within 1 level of each other. So you do have a pretty good incentive to keep them apace of each other if you don't want to fall behind.