Favored Enemy Stacking

[Sesharan]

The Lantern Bearer prestige class from Paths of Prestige has the Favored Enemy ability, which stacks with a Ranger's Favored Enemy, but operates on a different schedule.

Lantern Bearer Favored Enemy:

Favored Enemy (Ex)

At 2nd level, a Lantern Bearer selects a creature type from the following:

Aberration, animal, fey, humanoid (elf ), outsider (evil), and plant.

This ability functions exactly like the ranger class ability of the same name, and Lantern Bearer levels stack with other class levels that grant the favored enemy ability.

At 8th level, the Lantern Bearer may select an additional favored enemy from this list. In addition, the bonus against any one favored enemy from this list (including the one just selected, if so desired) increases by +2.

So my question is, what does it mean that the two Favored Enemy abilities stack? Do I get another favored enemy when my total level reaches 10, like I would if I were a single-classed ranger?

[Shin Bilirubin]

No, when taking levels in Latern Bearer, you only get favoured enemies at the stated levels, but the bonuses you get against those enemies can be added to when you get Favoured Enemy bonuses from Ranger levels.

[Majuba]

Shin - that's not what the class ability says. Might be the intention though.

Sesharan - It's odd, but I interpreted it as: "As of 2nd level, add your levels in Lantern Bearer to any other class you have that grants favored enemy, for the purposes of that ability. If you don't have such a class, you gain the ability. Either way your next favored enemy must be chosen from this list: xxx".

It may work otherwise, either way it's very odd.

[Sesharan]

My confusion is basically that Favored Enemy doesn't really have any effects that are based on level except for gaining a new favored enemy and increasing one favored enemy bonus every five levels. The way the ability is phrased would seem to imply that I get that periodic bonus in addition to the bonuses at 2nd and 8th level. So a Ranger 5/Lantern Bearer 8, for example, gets two additional favored enemies more than the average ranger receives.

[Elven_Blades]

My guess would be that you are supposed to get the next level of progression of the Favored enemy class feature.

For example, if you were high enough ranger to be have JUST received Favored Enemy (5th level) then took 2 levels Lanter Bearer, you would gain the next level of FE progression. If one of your first enemies was on the list of what Lantern Bearer can pick, you could improve that bonus to +4 (or maybe even +6) looking like +6/+2/+2. If your old FEs are not on the list, you could pick a new enemy and maybe even improve it to +4, leaving your old FEs at +4/+2.

After this point it is still 5 levels (ranger or LA, doesn't matter either way) until you get your next progression of FE.

Thats my interpretation anyway.

[Majuba]

So what happens when a Ftr6/LtB2 adds a level of Ranger? Do I get any bonus? Do I get two +2 bonuses? Or do I just now count as a L.3 Ranger for favored enemy?

This ability needs clarification. It should either be re-written to merely say that the bonuses stack with other sources of favored enemy, or it should say if you already have favored enemy, add Lantern Bearer levels to that ability and all new favored enemy choices need to be from this list.