How should a substitution level be read?

Question

The Races of Stone dwarf cleric substitution level at 1st level grants the dwarf cleric the supernatural ability smite giants, yet the ability's description concludes with this sentence: "This substitution benefit replaces the standard cleric’s ability to turn or rebuke undead" (146).

But why include that sentence? Races of Stone on Racial Substitution Levels just told the reader, "When you take a substitution level for your class at a given level, you give up the benefits gained at that level for the standard class, and you get the substitution level benefits instead" (145), so the dwarf cleric was already getting only the supernatural ability smite giants and spellcasting (i.e. "Unless… noted…, a character who takes a racial substitution level gains spellcasting ability… as if he had taken this level in the standard class" (146)). The dwarf cleric wasn't ever going to get turn or rebuke undead… nor cleric weapon and armor proficiencies, spontaneous casting, domains, or even a patron deity or concept!

As a further example, the goliath barbarian substitution level at 1st level grants the goliath barbarian the extraordinary ability mountain rage, but the goliath barbarian substitution level doesn't grant the poor level 1 goliath barbarian any weapon proficiencies.

Assuming they're incomplete, is it up to the DM to determine what they should say and how incomplete they are? Or is there a guide in a later or different book that better describes what, exactly, is carried over from a parent class when a creature takes a substitution level? Or is there a different answer than either of these?

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Note: Went changeling. Went rogue 1. (K-2SO Forever!) Took Racial Emulation. Killed monsters. Advanced a level. Took the barbarian substitution level goliath barbarian 1. Wanted barbarian weapon proficiencies. Asked question. Hasn't happened yet but it soon could.

Answer 1

Weapon and armour proficiencies are not features of the first level of a class. They are an inherent property of the class which you get if you have any levels in it. Similarly the spontaneous spellcasting, domain spells, etc are not first level cleric class features; they are properties of the cleric's overall spellcasting ability, which it is explicitly noted the cleric would get as usual.

For the "the benefits gained at that level for the standard class", you should be reading the benefits listed on the class's advancement table for that level. If it's not listed on that table, it is not an ability which is dependent on a particular level of the class, and it's not affected by a substitution level unless explicitly called out. For the cleric, the first level benefits are simply:

• BAB +0
• Fort +2
• Ref +0
• Will +2
• Turn/Rebuke Undead
• some spells per day

Apart from spells per day, which is explicitly kept as if taking a normal cleric level, you just replace those qualities with the ones listed for the substitution level - in the cleric case, functionally just replacing Turn/Rebuke Undead with Smite Giants.

For the character mentioned in your note, they would get normal barbarian weapon proficiencies because those are a general feature of the barbarian class, not a benefit specifically granted at or by any particular level.