Understanding Heal [Archive] - Wizards Community

Understanding Heal [Archive] - Wizards Community

Post/Author/DateTime Post
Eric888
05-26-07, 05:44 AM What exactly does the Heal skill do?

What I meen to say is that it is listed as a cleric class skill, but clerics have spells, Cure Minor Wounds most notibly, that seem to far exceed what the heal skill is able to do.

I am just trying to understand what the skill is for, and why a cleric would feel he needs to take it?
Rerecros
05-26-07, 06:08 AM The heal skill is just what is possible to do without magic, something doctors do on a daily baisis.

The big advantage is that the heal skill doesn't wast spells per day, and can be used on an unconscious cleric.
TheDanishCartoonist
05-26-07, 11:34 AM Right, it doesn't cost spell slots and you can use it in, say, a Dead Magic zone or an antimagic field.
navar100
05-26-07, 11:45 AM You might need some Rule 0 ingenuity. You could use the heal skill to:

1) Determine how a creature died. (Can synergize with spellcraft if by spell, religion if by undead, etc.

2) Identify poisons, create anti-toxins (Synergize with herbalism).

3) Identify and cure diseases. (Synergize with herbalism).

4) Increase natural per day healing rate of hit points and ability score damage.

5) Synergize with Sense Motive and/or appropriate Knowledge skill, determine how close to 0 hit points a party member/bad guy/monster is during combat as well as Death's Door negative hit point amount for a party member.

6) Create non-magical remedies for fatigue, exhaustion, stunned, nausea, sickness, shaken, dazed, etc. even if magical in nature. (Probably requires DC checks relative to level of spell creating the affliction. For lower DC perhaps just allows another saving throw.)
El_Machinae
05-26-07, 02:00 PM It is a rather inefficient skill, since it requires so much effort to use. That said, it's a godsend at lower levels when healing is tight.
primemover003
05-26-07, 02:10 PM It's also great when used in conjunction with Healing Lorecall!!!
VrecknidjX
05-27-07, 09:20 AM I was going to post basically the same thing that navar100 did. The Heal skill is actually a very nice skill. On the battlefield, for instance, when a character drops, the cleric in the party shouldn't have the same knowledge that the cleric's player does. Whether that character is really dead or only unconscious is something that a successful Heal check should reveal.

If this issue is being abused by metagaming, then all that has to happen is for the DM to have the cleric waste some high-level curative spells on a character that is dead but doesn't seem dead and then the cleric's player may take the time to make a Heal check in the future.

In all the campaigns I play in, the DMs make good use of a decent Heal check--if a party lacks it, it's a lot harder to get through the day sometimes.

Dave

Post/Author/DateTime	Post
Eric888 05-26-07, 05:44 AM	What exactly does the Heal skill do? What I meen to say is that it is listed as a cleric class skill, but clerics have spells, Cure Minor Wounds most notibly, that seem to far exceed what the heal skill is able to do. I am just trying to understand what the skill is for, and why a cleric would feel he needs to take it?
Rerecros 05-26-07, 06:08 AM	The heal skill is just what is possible to do without magic, something doctors do on a daily baisis. The big advantage is that the heal skill doesn't wast spells per day, and can be used on an unconscious cleric.
TheDanishCartoonist 05-26-07, 11:34 AM	Right, it doesn't cost spell slots and you can use it in, say, a Dead Magic zone or an antimagic field.
navar100 05-26-07, 11:45 AM	You might need some Rule 0 ingenuity. You could use the heal skill to: 1) Determine how a creature died. (Can synergize with spellcraft if by spell, religion if by undead, etc. 2) Identify poisons, create anti-toxins (Synergize with herbalism). 3) Identify and cure diseases. (Synergize with herbalism). 4) Increase natural per day healing rate of hit points and ability score damage. 5) Synergize with Sense Motive and/or appropriate Knowledge skill, determine how close to 0 hit points a party member/bad guy/monster is during combat as well as Death's Door negative hit point amount for a party member. 6) Create non-magical remedies for fatigue, exhaustion, stunned, nausea, sickness, shaken, dazed, etc. even if magical in nature. (Probably requires DC checks relative to level of spell creating the affliction. For lower DC perhaps just allows another saving throw.)
El_Machinae 05-26-07, 02:00 PM	It is a rather inefficient skill, since it requires so much effort to use. That said, it's a godsend at lower levels when healing is tight.
primemover003 05-26-07, 02:10 PM	It's also great when used in conjunction with Healing Lorecall!!!
VrecknidjX 05-27-07, 09:20 AM	I was going to post basically the same thing that navar100 did. The Heal skill is actually a very nice skill. On the battlefield, for instance, when a character drops, the cleric in the party shouldn't have the same knowledge that the cleric's player does. Whether that character is really dead or only unconscious is something that a successful Heal check should reveal. If this issue is being abused by metagaming, then all that has to happen is for the DM to have the cleric waste some high-level curative spells on a character that is dead but doesn't seem dead and then the cleric's player may take the time to make a Heal check in the future. In all the campaigns I play in, the DMs make good use of a decent Heal check--if a party lacks it, it's a lot harder to get through the day sometimes. Dave