Ravenloft: Prisoners of the Mist

Public (OOC) => Setting and Lore Discussion => Topic started by: Hypatia on March 12, 2019, 02:28:58 PM

Title: Healer PrC
Post by: Hypatia on March 12, 2019, 02:28:58 PM
I was thinking it might be nice to have a healer-based PrC with a Ravenloft twist. Maybe someone who mixes divine healing with a mad-scientist like study of cadavers in order to gain deeper knowledge of healing.

Anatomist Healer:

HD: d6
Skills: 4
Saves: Will
Spell casting; as per base class
prereq: +10 ranks in heal & Lore, cast 1st level divine spells

Level 1: Augment Healing feat (Adds +2hp per per level of cure spell).
Level 2: Lay on Hands
Level 3: Cure Spells apply "Aid" to recipient
Level 4: Lay on Hands cures disease and poison
Level 5: Doubles radius of mass cure/ heal spells

Maybe an ability to create flesh golems in there somewhere?  Maybe an ability to turn player corpses into flesh golems!?
Title: Re: Healer PrC
Post by: Sloan on March 12, 2019, 03:04:49 PM
If you wanted a scientist sort of approach, maybe giving it to arcane casters instead of divine makes more sense. They don't really need help with healing when you can already take the Healing Domain and channeling feats anyways, and the idea of doing it with arcane magic is a bit more interesting for roleplay. The wizard who knows your body inside and out so well that he can heal it with arcane magic. Maybe a well-studied sorcerer who has been surrounded in death and powerless to help can will herself into directing her magic so it heals her allies.

If that were the case it could also take a few ideas from the Combat Medic PRC from 3.5 ( http://dnd.arkalseif.info/classes/combat-medic/index.html ), granting the ability to trade prepared spells for Cure spells at a certain level (as a Cleric does) and higher level slots for Heal. Or perhaps steal some mechanics from a certain pathfinder archetype ( https://aonprd.com/ArchetypeDisplay.aspx?FixedName=Arcanist%20White%20Mage ). A PRC that keeps full casting doesn't need many features. You're still a wizard or cleric who gets all his spell levels and that's a big deal on its own.

Unless this is going to be an explicitly evil class I would leave flesh golems and such out of it. A crazy evil surgeon can still put his skills to use without hurting his allies and Divine and Arcane casters alike can already create undead. So that would be where your character's actions fall more on the side of RP than mechanics, and should stay that way. I know flesh golems are technically constructs but you're using a corpse to do it. Plus then it's treading on the Pale Master's territory of making spooky zombies while keeping full casting progression.

Of course this is all assuming the server would ever introduce a completely new PRC. All of the ones on the server already exist in some form, just not necessarily in NWN.
Title: Re: Healer PrC
Post by: zDark Shadowz on March 12, 2019, 04:21:37 PM
I'm a fan of the longer range healing spell. That's about it.
Title: Re: Healer PrC
Post by: Hypatia on March 12, 2019, 04:35:36 PM
Ya its certainly not about "need." I just like to play focused healers and I always appreciate when there's a path for uber healers available who don't mind trading some or all combat power for extra healing.  Myths of Atalan had a class called "Lifesworn" that was similar to what ive got above, and in trade for being a pacifist with low HP, you were given really good boosts to healing spells that were a huge bonus to a party. Given we have ways to optimize many different builds on here, I thought it might be nice to get away from the combat-machine cleric and focus as a healer with a PrC. No big.

That said; D&D worlds usually rely on magic healing, but Ravenloft offers a source opportunity for people coming form non-magic worlds that have to rely on scientific medicine. My PC is RPing a background in Roman medical training with some limited knowledge of surgery, which is something most clerics and healers in D&D worlds probably wouldn't have a lot of experience in. Combining that, and continuing to experiment on cadavers or maybe even going on a darker path and doing a little experimentation might be a cool RP path for a slightly mad healer to gain advanced healing, augmented by her study of the inner workings of the body. Could be a good RP reason to have a PrC; though I'll RP it either way.

T0rchic's idea for a mad scientist is great too, albeit without the "healing" as necromancy is the arcane's attempt at healing. But maybe a class who specializes in the crafting of golems.
Title: Re: Healer PrC
Post by: herkles on March 12, 2019, 05:32:29 PM
It sounds like you are wanting this PRC to be available for players, no?

Learned Physician
Though medicine is his stock-in-trade, the learned physician has used his medical training as a springboard into other fields of natural science. In fact, his skill with healing is only one
manifestation of a thirst for knowledge in general, and he never stops learning. Much more than a simple country doctor, the learned physician has garnered knowledge that allows him to understand the vectors of infection and the factors that affect the progress of illnesses. Not only has he learned classic medical techniques, he has acquired skills in healing far beyond what his fellow physicians — and even some clerics — are able to perform.

In addition, the learned physician’s keen eye and logical mind allow him to piece together how events must have occurred when presented with a set of mysterious circumstances. Many learned physicians go on to make scientific contributions in medicine or even in other fields based on their passion for finding out how and why the natural world works as it does.

Monks make excellent learned physicians, as do experts who have gathered sufficient medical training. Clerics and other divine spellcasters sometimes choose this path, but arcane spellcasters also favor it because of its emphasis on logic and on the piecing together of factual information and sensory observation. Paladins have also been known to choose this path on occasion, but fighters, rangers and rogues rarely do.

Requirements
To qualify to become a learned physician (Lph), a character must fulfill all the following criteria.
Skills: Knowledge (any) 5 ranks, Healing 8 ranks, Profession (herbalist) 5 ranks.
Feat: Investigator, University Education.
Special: The candidate must be a graduate of a recognized university

Class Skills
The learned physician’s class skills (and the key ability for each skill) are:
Appraise (Int), Concentration (Con), Decipher Script (Int), Knowledge (all skills, taken individually) (Int), Profession (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), plus any five additional skills chosen by the
learned physician when he first enters the class.
Skill Points at Each Level: 8 + Int modifier.

Class Features
All the following are class features of the learned physician prestige class.
Hit Die: d6.

Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Learned physicians gain no proficiency with any weapon, armor, or shield.

Spellcasting: At every even-numbered learned physician level, the character gains new spells per day (and spells known, if applicable) as if he had also gained a level in whatever spellcasting class he had before taking the level in learned physician. He does not, however, gain any other benefit a character of that class would have gained (improved ability to turn undead, and so on), except for an increased effective level of spellcasting. This essentially means that he adds the level of learned physician to the level of his previous spellcasting class, then determines spells per day, spells known and caster level accordingly.

If the character has more than one spellcasting class, he must decide to which class he adds each level of learned physician for the purpose of determining spells per day and spells known. If the character had no spellcasting ability before taking levels in this prestige class, he may instead choose one spell-like ability from the table below at each even-numbered learned physician level. He may choose any spell-like ability with a “task rating” less than or equal to his learned physician level + his Wisdom modifier. Each of these abilities is usable once per day. If the learned physician chooses the same ability multiple times, he gains one additional use per day each time he chooses it.

Saving throw DCs, where applicable, are 10 + spell level + the learned physician’s Wisdom modifier

1 or lessCure Minor Wounds
2Detect poison
3Cure light wounds
4Deathwatch
5Delay poison
6Remove paralysis
7Cure moderate wounds
8Neutralize poison
9Cure critical wounds
10Heal

Scientific Knowledge (Ex): Learned physicians gather knowledge about all sorts of topics. At 1st level, the learned physician knows information regarding various esoteric topics, just as a bard does. He adds his learned physician level and his Intelligence modifier to a 1d20 roll and compares the result with the scientific knowledge DC for the information. This ability otherwise works like the bardic knowledge ability.

A learned physician can make a scientific knowledge check to connect a power source to an item made with the Create Device* feat. He can also make a scientific knowledge check to learn how to use any spell trigger or spell completion item created with the Create Device feat as though he were a spellcaster of the appropriate type with a caster level equal to his character level. The DC for such a check is 15 + the device’s effective caster level.

Speedy Observation (Ex): Beginning at 3rd level, the learned physician becomes a keen observer who can notice apparently unrelated details and quickly form a valid conclusion. The character gains a +2 bonus on all Search checks and Heal checks. In addition, the learned physician can make a Search check over a space or volume of goods roughly 10 feet by 10 feet by 5 feet as a fullround action.

Healing Touch (Su): At 5th level, a learned physician can heal wounds (his own or those of others) by touch. Each day, he can heal a total number of hit points of damage equal to his learned physician level x his Charisma modifier (minimum 1). The learned physician may choose to divide his healing among multiple recipients, and he doesn’t have to use it all at once. Using healing touch is a standard action. Starting at 9th level, the learned physician’s healing touch can cure a number of points of damage per day equal to his learned
physician level x his Charisma modifier (minimum 1) x his Wisdom modifier (minimum 1). In addition, the learned physician can now use remove blindness/deafness or remove disease a number of times per day equal to his Charisma modifier (minimum once per day). The use of either effect counts as one daily use of this ability.

Bedside Manner (Ex): Beginning at 9th level, the learned physician develops a knack for putting people at ease and reading their body language. He gains a +2 bonus on all Bluff, Diplomacy, Gather Information and Sense Motive checks
Title: Re: Healer PrC
Post by: Hypatia on March 12, 2019, 08:37:08 PM
That's interesting, though as a healer it would be quite a bit under-powered to just sticking to cleric levels.  You'd be cutting your spell casting levels in half in exchange for bardic knowledge and lay on hands basically. You'd be far better off taking a bard level if you wanted the extra knowledge and skipping the lay on hands for mountains of cure and heal spells that you'd miss out with this.

I was looking for something that would "increase" a healer's potency, thus setting it apart from a combat cleric; even one with the healing domain. The idea being that by giving up all combat training, you're able to develop improvements on healing ability. This may be valid in Ravenloft where magic use is supposed to be viewed with fear and xenophobia, but healers seem to be okay with the locals. I was thinking something more in line with a boost in healing potency and maybe beneficial boosts that piggy-back on top of your curative spells.

I think Araleath has a "healer" path for clerics that does something similar. No big deal of course. Just a thought.
Title: Re: Healer PrC
Post by: zDark Shadowz on March 12, 2019, 10:30:28 PM
Healer clerics are best under the healing domain and you can take things like Sacred Boost so you have maximised empowered healing spells while retaining everything else that makes a cleric rock. 48 +level cure critical wound spells is a bit °_° already, or level 2 cure serious spells doing 36+lvl healing. All easily sacrificing other memorized spells so they're always on tap.

Not to mention all the free healing that gets pulled out of a great charisma modifier from turn undead uses that aren't ever actually used for turn undead outside of ML Crypts.

Clerics are in a good place. How much healing do you need?
Title: Re: Healer PrC
Post by: Hypatia on March 13, 2019, 12:35:28 AM
Healer clerics are best under the healing domain and you can take things like Sacred Boost so you have maximised empowered healing spells while retaining everything else that makes a cleric rock. 48 +level cure critical wound spells is a bit °_° already, or level 2 cure serious spells doing 36+lvl healing. All easily sacrificing other memorized spells so they're always on tap.

Not to mention all the free healing that gets pulled out of a great charisma modifier from turn undead uses that aren't ever actually used for turn undead outside of ML Crypts.

Clerics are in a good place. How much healing do you need?
Yes I love all the extra healer goodies. It's what brought me to try out Ravenloft. How much do I NEED you say? Well... as much as they'll let me have I suppose. I like making nitch characters that are the best at ONE thing and suck at most other things.  Good for party dynamics. I guess it was the idea that "any" cleric can get all that stuff that was my point. I like to play a PC who doesn't split their time between healing and training to fight, but rather just uber-focuses on healing; so when there's a PrC that lets me get a little more bang for my buck out of healing than the average cleric who also trains for battle, at the cost of AB, HP and even offensive spells, I'm all for it. The Lifesworn class on Atalan was great like that. You had to be a pacifist, but no cleric could match a Lifesworn for healing. If there isn't, its no big, I'll make due with what's available and fortunately; on Ravenloft there's quite a bit, so I'm already happy. Consider this suggestion just a letter to Santa Clause... in case.
Title: Re: Healer PrC
Post by: zDark Shadowz on March 13, 2019, 12:57:11 AM
Fair enough.