Say I'm a half-elf fighter 5/wizard 3. Both classes are my favored classes thanks to my multi-talented racial trait.
Every level I have the option of choosing +1 HP, +1 skill rank, +1 to CMD when resisting a disarm or overrun combat maneuver, or +1/3 to effective caster level of enchantment spells, but only to determine the spell's duration.
My question is this: Can I overlap favored class bonuses? For example, can I get a +8 to my CMD, or +8 effective caster level increase to enchantment spells?
Why or why not? Please explain your answer.
You get one bonus when you level up in a favored class. You can pick the class specific bonus only if you take that class. So at most you could have +5 CMD and +1 (3*1/3) to CL.
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Say I'm a half-elf fighter 5/wizard 3. Both classes are my favored classes thanks to my multi-talented racial trait.
Every level I have the option of choosing +1 HP, +1 skill rank, +1 to CMD when resisting a disarm or overrun combat maneuver, or +1/3 to effective caster level of enchantment spells, but only to determine the spell's duration.
My question is this: Can I overlap favored class bonuses? For example, can I get a +8 to my CMD, or +8 effective caster level increase to enchantment spells?
Why or why not? Please explain your answer.
I don't believe so, and here's why ;
Each character begins play with a single favored class of his choosing—typically, this is the same class as the one he chooses at 1st level. Whenever a character gains a level in his favored class, he receives either + 1 hit point or + 1 skill rank. The choice of favored class cannot be changed once the character is created, and the choice of gaining a hit point or a skill rank each time a character gains a level (including his first level) cannot be changed once made for a particular level. Prestige classes (see Prestige Classes) can never be a favored class.
From the PRD, emphasis mine. So, when you gain a level of Fighter, you can get +1 Hit Point, +1 Skill Point, or, as a Half Elf,
"Fighter: Add +1 to the fighter's CMD when resisting a disarm or overrun combat maneuver."These are your three options. Even though you have a second favoured class, as per
"Multitalented: Half-elves choose two favored classes at first level and gain +1 hit point or +1 skill point whenever they take a level in either one of those classes."
you are not gaining a level in that class, so cannot take the favoured class bonus of that class, in this instance
"Wizard: When casting wizard enchantment spells, add +1/3 to the effective caster level of the spell, but only to determine the spell's duration."
Now, this is just my reading of it, but I can see it being read that as long as you have a class as one of your favoured classes, you can pick whichever favoured class bonus you like. In which case, I'd say they do stack, on the basis of the Racial Favored Classes entry in the Advanced Player's Guide, namely
In most cases, these benefits are gained on a level-by-level basis—your character gains the specified incremental benefit each time she gains a level. Unless otherwise noted, these benefits always stack with themselves. For example, a human with paladin as a favored class may choose to gain 1 point of energy resistance each time she gains a level; choosing this benefit twice increases this resistance bonus to 2, 10 times raises it to 10, and so on.
Emphasis mine.
Now, this is just my reading of it, but I can see it being read that as long as you have a class as one of your favoured classes, you can pick whichever favoured class bonus you like. In which case, I'd say they do stack, on the basis of the Racial Favored Classes entry in the Advanced Player's Guide, namely
In most cases, these benefits are gained on a level-by-level basis—your character gains the specified incremental benefit each time she gains a level. Unless otherwise noted, these benefits always stack with themselves. For example, a human with paladin as a favored class may choose to gain 1 point of energy resistance each time she gains a level; choosing this benefit twice increases this resistance bonus to 2, 10 times raises it to 10, and so on.
All that means is that the bonuses stack. For example, a halfling rogue who picks the alternate bonus gets a +1/2 to confirm a crit, but only up to a +4. After +4 it stops stacking. That's what that quote is talking about. When it tells you the maximum is +4 then that is the "otherwise noted" part. It has nothing to do w/ the half-elf exception to favorite class, etc, which the OP is asking about.
My question is this: Can I overlap favored class bonuses? For example, can I get a +8 to my CMD, or +8 effective caster level increase to enchantment spells?
Why or why not? Please explain your answer.
I see that the wording is left somewhat ambiguous in RAW. But, we must ask ourselves a question. Do we think a half-elf fighter can choose fighter and rogue as it's favorite classes, then never take a level of rogue but still choose the rogue favored class bonus when leveling up as a fighter? I would say no. That, in my mind, contradicts common sense. In my games I would rule that you must actually level up in a class in order to choose the alternate favorite class option on a level by level basis. I believe that is RAI, but experience has shown me that what I believe RAI to be is not always accurate.
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All that means is that the bonuses stack. For example, a halfling rogue who picks the alternate bonus gets a +1/2 to confirm a crit, but only up to a +4. After +4 it stops stacking. That's what that quote is talking about. When it tells you the maximum is +4 then that is the "otherwise noted" part. It has nothing to do w/ the half-elf exception to favorite class, etc, which the OP is asking about.Now, this is just my reading of it, but I can see it being read that as long as you have a class as one of your favoured classes, you can pick whichever favoured class bonus you like. In which case, I'd say they do stack, on the basis of the Racial Favored Classes entry in the Advanced Player's Guide, namely
In most cases, these benefits are gained on a level-by-level basis—your character gains the specified incremental benefit each time she gains a level. Unless otherwise noted, these benefits always stack with themselves. For example, a human with paladin as a favored class may choose to gain 1 point of energy resistance each time she gains a level; choosing this benefit twice increases this resistance bonus to 2, 10 times raises it to 10, and so on.
Let's take this level by level.
Half Elf, level 1, favoured classes Fighter and Wizard. Chooses his first level to be Fighter.
Question 1 : Can he choose either favoured class bonus? He can obviously pick +1 HP, +1 SP or +1 CMD when resisting a disarm or overrun. But can he also pick +1/3 to the effective caster level of an enchantment spell, but only to determine the spell's duration? I'd rule no, for the first reason I explained above, but if the answer is yes (in which case the OP would like you to explain why), then we move on to our next question.
Let's say our Fighter picked his Fighter bonus, +1 CMD. Next level, he takes a level in Wizard, now Fighter 1/Wizard 1. He decides he wants to take +1 to his CMD again. If you answered he can't do that above, no worries, ignore the rest of this, it doesn't apply anymore. But if you answered, yes, that's perfectly okay, then we have our next question.
Question 2 : Do the two +1's make a +2, or do they count for two separate +1's, that do not stack? For the sake of the argument, and answering the OP's query, were I to allow this thing (that I've already said that I, specifically, wouldn't), then I would allow them to stack, on the basis of the bolded sentence. Unless otherwise noted, these benefits always stack with themselves. Does Half Elf call them out as not stacking? No? Then it is not otherwise noted, and they do stack.
Let's say our Fighter picked his Fighter bonus, +1 CMD. Next level, he takes a level in Wizard, now Fighter 1/Wizard 1. He decides he wants to take +1 to his CMD again. If you answered he can't do that above, no worries, ignore the rest of this, it doesn't apply anymore. But if you answered, yes, that's perfectly okay, then we have our next question.
Question 2 : Do the two +1's make a +2, or do they count for two separate +1's, that do not stack? For the sake of the argument, and answering the OP's query, were I to allow this thing (that I've already said that I, specifically, wouldn't), then I would allow them to stack, on the basis of the bolded sentence. Unless otherwise noted, these benefits always stack with themselves. Does Half Elf call them out as not stacking? No? Then it is not otherwise noted, and they do stack.
Fair enough. I missed what you were trying to say before.