Healing favored soul?

[aza9999]

After our current campaign ends we'll be starting again with new characters and changing our roles a bit.

One of the group is not usually too interested in casters because of the complexities involved with having to know all your spells etc (she's more interested in the actual role playing than the mechanics) and usually plays a rogue.

I thought as an idea that a caster with a limited spell list like favoured soul would be a good choice, but as she would be the healing role in the party i wondered if it's viable to have a favored soul as the main healer?

My initial thought was to take a first level in cleric to get turn undead and extra turning, then use those to power divine feats (sacred healing, healing boost etc), then take the rest of the levels as favored soul, possibly with a dip in fighter to give her some extra melee ability too.

I just wanted to clear up a question on "Spontaneous healing" feat from complete divine, this is only for classes that memorize their spells like druids correct?
The wording of "You can use your spellcasting ability to spontaneously cast cure spells (from your class spell list) just as a cleric can" Implies to me that because cure spells are on the favored soul class spell list" they could spontaneously cast cure spells even if they aren't in their "learned spells" list, but i may be misinterpreting it (or missing an errata)

What are peoples thoughts on this? or is there another class/combo i should be looking at that allows her to try on a new role without getting too overwhelmed? We'll probably be starting at around level 5.

[Cog]

You'd have to choose at least one Cure spell as a spell known, and you could only make the swap Wis times per day, which probably isn't going to be very many. It does work, though.

[flumphy]

My recommendation is to give her something where she doesn't have to choose her spells at all. Something with a set list, like the beguiler or warmage. They're actually even less bookkeeping than favored souls and sorcerers, IMO. Or if you prefer, a warlock or DFA, where she can spam all day to her heart's content and never have to worry about spells per day, just choosing the invocations when you level up. And that way you don't even need to worry about metamagic!

If she must heal, though, favored soul is certainly workable. I've used it for a healstick DMPC in the past for 1-2 man groups. A few tips:


Don't take a cure spell at every level. Your spell slots are too valuable. Every other level + wands will take care of your needs just fine.

The vigor line is generally more efficient than cure anyway.

If you have access to CC, make sure you take the Touch of Healing reserve feat. As long as you have a spell slot left it brings everyone to half health for free.

Thou shall not lose caster levels. Focus on buffs for combat utility instead of dipping into fighter. As a bonus, using exclusively buffs instead of spells that require saves will let you neglect wisdom, making you less MAD.

Along that same vein, you can grab turn undead from a PrC while still advancing your casting. Sacred exorcist is probably the easiest option with a feat like education to get the appropriate knowledges as class skills, but there are others. If you only need knowledge (religion) as a class skill for something, you can use the Knowledge Specialty ACF suggested here (http://www.wizards.com/default.asp?x=dnd/cwc/20070227x) to replace knowledge (arcana).

[deuxhero]

i wondered if it's viable to have a favored soul as the main healer?

It gets the cleric list for wands and scrolls, so yes, no less viable than anything else.

Honestly, "healer" is a terrible role for in-combat

[aza9999]

I know that in combat preventing damage is much more efficient than healing it, but sometimes, whether it's a bad roll or something unexpected, you have to heal in the thick of things.

Once the healing aspect of the character is effective the next part will be concentrating on combat effectiveness.

[etrpgb]

Earth Shugenja (Order of the All-Seeing Eye) X/Dragonslayer 1/Something other Y

Something other, if there at all might be Divine Oracle, Sacred Exorcist...

You have little bookeeping, but many useful spells. Divine Oracle gives you some defense and the Dragonslayer gives access to all martial weapons and armors without losing almost anything.
Sacred Exorcist gives you Turn Undead, good for a 2 level dip or for all 10 levels.

[mint]

Spontaneous healing gives you access to all the cure spells on your list. For a favored soul this means you gain access any cure in your level range, your wisdom modifier times/day. You don't need to have any cure spells as known spells for this to work. It says spell list, not spells known.
One of the starting packages in PHBII even has it as a feat.

There is also an ACF in PHBII that lets you keep deity weapon proficiency but give up focus and specialization in favor of granting a scaling amount of temp hitpoints to the target off all your beneficial spells.

[Cog]

Spontaneous healing gives you access to all the cure spells on your list. For a favored soul this means you gain access any cure in your level range, your wisdom modifier times/day. You don't need to have any cure spells as known spells for this to work. It says spell list, not spells known.
One of the starting packages in PHBII even has it as a feat.
My point wasn't that you need a Cure on your known list to use the feat - you need one to qualify for it. A Favored Soul cannot meet the requirement of "able to cast any cure wounds spell" unless they have a Cure spell known to cast.

One you have the feat, though, it meets its own prerequisite, so technically you can retrain that known Cure to something else when you get a chance.