Healing Magics, A Treatise

Battlefield Healing is, one might assume, an easy enough profession. After all with dozens of armed men very interested in your safety and often being surrounded by others skilled in the healing arts it seems an easy enough assignment. However being an effective healer is another matter as anyone who dodges through the battle lines with nothing more than faith in the Gods of law to protect them, diving into the thickest fighting where your defenders are all fighting for their own lives just for a man who may already be dead already knows.

There are two main edicts to be observed in any form of healing, keeping yourself alive and using your power effectively. I will cover these two subjects in detail below before going into some detail on the actual means of healing Corporialists and other mundane healers may use, with appendices covering several common poisons and ailments.

It should be borne in mind that many of the basics of spell casting apply to healing magics as well although given the personal range of most healing spells they are usually less of an issue, however bear in mind at all times that healing magic is still magic and should be treated as such.

Types of Healer

“Healers” is actually a very broad term, the differences between a pacifistic elf Corporealist and a Drow assassin who use his magics somewhat more aggressively are telling. In general those who have put some training into Physical or magical healing either for themselves or in case of emergencies; or who use corporeal magic primarily offensively are not what the author is bearing in mind in this text, rather the more vulnerable specialist healers who seldom invest in heavy armour and weapons in favour of more magical skills. That is not too say others would not benefit from this text, just that they will probably find it less useful day to day.

Staying Alive

The key problem facing most healers on a battlefield is thus, They have to treat patients swiftly, which means they need to be near source of these casualties, a minute away at most for any critical cases otherwise the patient is liable to perish before or even during treatment. Of course this can be extended with use of Sanctuary but this should really be saved for special cases, as it is usually just power inefficient.

So, a healer must be near danger at all times, a situation most are ill equipped to deal with, either by training or inclination. Generally even the most militant healer is after all hardly on a par with a fully armoured troll at close range after all. This is where the difficult balance arises.

Of course a healer is never alone, as obviously the troops he is trying to aid will do their utmost to protect him, but they are far from omniscient and when with striking distance one should always remain alert, after all you cannot fix your own staved in skull (Without Regeneration anyway). You should also keep half an eye on the ebb and flow of a fight around you, if your line is buckling and the enemy is driving you back into some obstacle be aware of it, a healer is often in a better position to see such things before the men fighting, and should not be afraid to tell them! Or in some cases attempt to escape before he joins his patients in another healers care.

Healers should always endeavour to keep a shield, ally or at worst some armour between them and enemy, a lone arrow is always a danger but a well aimed polearm should always be considered dangerous. Of course the above is not always available, but a quick wit and a keen eye aren’t beyond most of you! Remember that even whilst casting a spell upon a wounded man you can be casting your eye about for peril!

Of course, even the most inept Corporealist physically is easily able to cripple or maim enemies using their powers, but at the cost of their powers to heal of course… This means they should generally be saved for a last resort, when an enemy stands over you (or indeed an Ally, a well placed Fumble can save you a Greater Healing later on!). So use you powers to defend yourself by all means, just not recklessly!

As an addendum, healers should always endeavour to learn the faces if not names of their peers, and get their fellow healers up first in order to help, every man or woman up and helping means another few less in the graveyards.

Staying Useful

It s very easy to exhaust your supplies in a crisis, using all of your power or supplies on trivial cases or early in a day can lose lives later on so always prioritise your resources. Don’t expend a Greater Healing on the walking wounded unless you are done for the day, or volley off Blindings in a trivial skirmish lest a man die in your arms later that day for wont of your skills.

A basic Triage can be applied easily enough. If a man can walk and fight, he is not a priority, if a man's liver is sprayed fifteen feet over the earth, get a healing spell in him!

In general the Healing spells can be divided into three groups. The Damage healing spells, which directly heal physical wounds; The Restorative magics which return lost senses or mobility and the Curing spells that remove or counter diseases or poisons

In general Damage healing is most important (depending on how serious the injury) with Curing being second on your list, followed by Restoration, and then the Damage restoration of trivial wounds while lastly comes Restoration needed due to spells such as Paralyse which lasts only 30 seconds at worst, and is thus rarely worth the investment of time, let alone power…

Then, and only then, you can use your spells to take pot shots at nearby foes.

Not all limbs are born equal too; this table should help you decide which limbs to fix in a hurry if Greater Healing isn’t available. This can be varied in certain situations, for example if there is nowhere to run to fixing legs is secondary to arms.

Location Priorities

1. Head (Frequently unarmoured and easy to hit, plus possible long term effects)
2. Chest (Get them awake wherever possible)
3. Legs (then get them mobile, if only limping)
4. Main Arm (Get them fighting!)
5. Off hand (there are few situations (archers aside) where this is essential)

Also bear in mind Diagnosis although it uses an extra card it can save lives when used well. For example a man bleeding from the head whilst fighting armoured knights, assume he’s probably not poisoned. However a man with no obvious wounds or slight Injuries is worth a cast at least until you know what the foe is using. After all using Purge Poison on a subject about to recover from temporary paralysis in a waste.

Above all this don’t be afraid to use your judgement, there are a thousand different weapons, poisons and diseases out there and a hundred ways of administering them! Just bear in mind a sword wound is usually just a sword wound.

Appendix 1 - Disease

Many diseases afflict the populace of this world, however some are more dangerous than others, contained within are some common ailments, vectors and cures.

Sources of Diseases:

The Level three Corporeal Spell Cause Disease unsurprisingly causes diseases, extremely resistant ones at that, generally only stoppable outright by its level Three counter Remove Disease. Otherwise beware certain creatures, either their natural attacks or filthy equipment can spread contagion as can deliberate sabotage of supplies and water etc. Please report the source (if known) of any dangerous disease found or refer to other texts for details of common ailments.

Levels of Contagion:

Highly Contagious
Brief contact with carrier will allow the disease to transfer. For example casting a healing spell, engaging in combat, shaking hands.

Contagious
Prolonged contact with the carrier will allow the disease to transfer. For example a brief conversation, standing in close ranks whilst mustering, a loving embrace.

Mildly Contagious
Prolonged close contact with the carrier will allow the disease to transfer. For example sitting in a crowded room or sharing a tent.

Not Contagious
The disease can only be contracted by a single method; contact with victims will not transfer the disease.

The spell Diagnosis will reveal the Diseases Contagion Level. It is important to note that the Contagion Level of a Disease cannot be altered other than through the natural course of the disease. It is only removed upon the curing of a victim; therefore dead victims are still likely to remain contagious in some way.

Known Diseases:

Capricious Rot
The exact vector of this disease is unknown but the victim loses 1 hp from one location per hour. This is calculated L arm, L leg, R leg, R arm, body until limbs become immobilised and the body runs out of hits, then they are taken from the unconscious, characters head hits until death. The disease becomes apparent when they first notice a large lesion on part of their body, which will not heal. These wounds cannot be healed until the disease is cured. Once the first outbreak is noticed death will follow when the character reaches zero hits. This disease is Contagious.

Fungus skin
The victim becomes infected with a floral parasite. Over a period of 12 hours the victims skin sprouts small fungal growths all over. After 12 hours the victim will not be able to move. Generally six hours after immobilisation, the victim dies as their body succumbs to the infestation. This disease is Mildly Contagious, whilst the victim is alive, but becomes Highly Contagious when the victim has died.

Grinning Fool
A very subtle disease, which attacks the victim’s brain. The victim slowly begins to forget their active skills 1 per hour, in the order they are printed on their character card. When all their skills are gone they will then begin to be unable to recognise friends, animals and objects. Eventually as the name suggests they become completely withdrawn and unless somebody takes care of them they will simply sit and starve to death. If cured the victim will regain their skills 1 per hour in the reverse of order that they lost them. This disease is not contagious.

Magebane
This disease is thought to be magical in nature as it only affects spellcasters. Once infected, the victim will gradually lose their spell casting ability. This manifests itself as the loss of one magic card per hour. The mages power will not return the following sunrise. If the disease is allowed to continue the poor soul will eventually lose all their spellcasting abilities, even if they are later cured. If the victim is to be cured and not lose their spell casting ability then the cure needs to be affected before they lose all their power. If cured within this period spell power (cards) return the following sunrise as normal. This disease is Mildly Contagious.

This spell is extremely dangerous to the Arcane Tempest and is considered a High priority at all times and should always be cured whenever it is encountered, or if this is impossible, its victims quarantined immediately.

Trembles
This disease is sometimes also known as Warriors Curse. It affects the muscles of the victim, causing them to shake uncontrollably. As the disease gains strength the shaking will become more violent until eventually the afflicted character will be unable to hold anything in their hands at all. In the final stages of this disease the victim is unable to even walk or talk. Once the symptoms manifest themselves the victim will usually have around 12 hours before becoming completely helpless. This disease is Mildly Contagious.

Cures:

Many alchemical means exist to help sufferers, however this subject is beyond the expertise of the Arcane Tempest at present, magical cures however are not. A brief overview of relevant spells follows.

Diagnosis
A level one spell which lets you know what is wrong with a subject, including whether a disease is fatal, and at the very least how contagious and dangerous it is.

Sanctuary
A Diseased subject affected by this spell will not deteriorate, allowing further time to find a cure. However it does occupy a healer the whole time. Also level One.

Cure Disease
A level two spell, which requires Diagnose be cast first and which will cure any known disease instantly (but wont remove damage already wrought) Unkown ailments will require futher investment of power to remove (see spell description)

Remove Disease
A mighty and rare level three spell which instantly removes all diseases from the target including the effects of Cause Disease, the only magical way to cure such a spell.