[SixOfSpades]

When you drop an NPC from the party, all they do is stand there--they don't practice swordsmanship or lockpicking, they just stand. Similarly, when you pick them back up into your party, they will not have gained a single point of EXP, no matter how long it's been. Imoen is the only plot-related exception, and even with her, the increase is barely noticeable.

The version of NPC X (let's say it's Jan) that you can summon from the Pocket Plane is always exactly the same--same equipment, same known spells, same EXP (I think they're all 2.5 million).

This version is wholly separate from the version that you could recruit in SoA. Theoretically, you could take Jan up to 4 million in SoA, drop him right before the final battle, then go to the Pocket Plane and summon him for re-recruitment . . . and he's lost all the stuff you gave him to wear/carry, and he's at only 2.5 million EXP.

And the word "epitome" does not mean what you think it means.