D&D 3E/3.5 [3.5] Leadership and Followers

[Archade]

I've just glanced through my new DMG, and I'm curious. I don't see under the Leadership feat that followers are restricted to the NPC classes. Is this right? Have I missed something?

If this is the case, would a proud owner of followers be able to roughly determine class, race, and alignment for their followers? My gut feeling is yes, but this is a change from 3.0.


Thanks!
Archade

 

[Sejs]

I've just glanced through my new DMG, and I'm curious. I don't see under the Leadership feat that followers are restricted to the NPC classes. Is this right? Have I missed something?

No change - it was the same way in 3.0, too.

DMG, p46, "Followers"

Followers can be warriors, experts, or commoners. The leader can generally choose their race and classes. A leader attracts followers whose alignment are within one step of his own.

 

[Archade]

Aha! But there is a change! It now says "followers are typically 5 levels lower than the PC". It doesn't say anything about restrictions to commoners, experts and warriors at all!

 

[Datt]

I will have to check my 3.5 DMG when I get home from work today, but in 3.0 you could have followers of PC classes but they were treated as being higher level for purposes of followers. ie. A 1st level Fighter would be considerd a 3rd level follower, if I remember right.

Like I said, I am not sure if that has changed in 3.5 because like an idiot I forgot my books at home this morning.

 

[Dr_Rictus]

... in 3.0 you could have followers of PC classes but they were treated as being higher level for purposes of followers. ie. A 1st level Fighter would be considerd a 3rd level follower, if I remember right.

If you can provide a quote to that effect from the 3.0 DMG, I hereby offer to eat a shoe.

 

[Speaks]

I do not believe there is anything in the 3.0DMG about a third level follower equalling a 1st level fighter. BUT if you check under Epic Leadership in the Epic book they do suggest a mechanism to have followers take classes that a normal PC would.

Speaks

 

[Archade]

But, has all that been changed with 3.5? Anyone have the conversion booklet to say?

 

[der_kluge]

This is what the SRD says regarding cohorts.

"Special Cohorts: With the DM's permission, a leader may seek out a special cohort who is not a member of the standard PC races (the common races).

Followers: A leader attracts followers whose alignments are within one step of his own. These characters have gear appropriate to NPCs of their level. As the leader's Leadership rises, he can attract more followers. If his Leadership goes down, followers may desert.

Replacing Cohorts and Followers: If a leader loses a cohort or followers, he can generally replace them, according to his current Leadership score. It takes time (1d4 months) to recruit replacements. If the leader is to blame for the deaths of the cohort or followers, it takes extra time to replace them, up to a full year. Note that the leader also picks up a reputation of failure, which decreases his Leadership score."

Nothing in there specifying that the cohort has to be of an NPC class.

 

[Datt]

My bad. I was thinking of the ELH and not the DMG.

ELH pg 36

A folloower with any levels in a PC class counts as a follower three levels higher than his character level.

Looking at the 3.5 DMG pgs 104-106 and the PHB pg 97, I don't see any class restriction at all any more. In 3.0 it said so, so I would say that since it doesn't restrict then there are no restrictions. Definetly a change. Not sure if that is a good or bad change, but definetly a change.