How to build the Ultimate Healer

[Fixer]

I am not referring to the Healer class. I am referring to a character type. A character who does not engage in combat, period. A truly exalted healer and man of peace.

My first inclination, of course, is to use a cleric and go with the Vow of Peace/Poverty/Non-Violence route. This would allow the use of turning attempts to grant fast healing to companions, and access to the obvious spontaneous cure spells.

My curiosity, however, makes me wonder if someone else has already thought about this using other classes. I thought about the Dragon Shaman's auras and Touch of Vitality features (using Gold Dragon as a base for Heal skill) but was wondering about converting his draconic breath into something healing. I am unaware of any such feat or ability.

Therefore, I am putting forth to the braintrust that is GiTP and asking for your favorite healing combinations. My hope is there is some way of combining certain aspects of the various characters to make an Ultimate Healer.

[imperialspectre]

Cleric 5/Combat Medic 5/Radiant Servant of Pelor 10 probably works fine as is. You'll have a fairly ridiculous number of turn attempts, which you can convert into healing as you mentioned above.

Combat Medic is from Heroes of Battle, Radiant Servant is from Complete Divine.

Oh, and you're probably just as well off without the Vows. Mostly they just make life suck for your party members, and that's no fun for anybody.

[The Rose Dragon]

Oh, and you're probably just as well off without the Vows. Mostly they just make life suck for your party members, and that's no fun for anybody.

I had a game where I did have all three of those Vows.

None of the other players complained.

That said, the biggest fight in the game was with a player character (who was a vampire paladin of Kelemvor), so it wasn't exactly a standard game.

[Fixer]

My biggest problem with the Radiant Servant of Pelor is he doesn't get great domains (Healing is good, the others not so much). Otherwise I agree that would make a great healer. I don't see what Combat Medic offers comparatively, though. It doesn't seem that great of an addition.

But, that sort of healer is 'normal'. I was hoping someone had experience with another kind of healer that wasn't so normal.

[Starscream]

How about the alternate druid class feature Spontaneous Rejuvenation? It isn't very powerful, but it has the advantage of affecting all your party members (within 30 feet anyway) at the same time, and doesn't require touching them.

In a combat situation standing back and using that to grant everyone fast healing for a few rounds might be a better overall deal than healing people one at a time.

[Fixer]

Ok, that's not bad. Have you ever used it? How does it work during play?

[Scorpina]

In terms of not a good healer in the walking-bandage sense of the term, Healer[Minatures Handbook]/Combat Medic [Heroes of Battle] seems like it might be a good way to go. I forget why, since I don't have the books in front of me, but I seem to remember thinking that a Healer/Mystic Wanderer [Magic of Faerun] would also work well.

[Fixer]

The Healer class, honestly, seemed terribly weak to me. I cannot imagine justifying it in any build over a cleric.

Combat Medic looks like a gimmick prestige class and, after reviewing, doesn't appear to offer anything worthwhile to a healer that can't be obtained easier through other means.

[Draz74]

The Lifebond Vestments Soulmeld might open up some interesting possibilities.

Heal an ally up to a certain amount per hour, take half the damage yourself. This is especially good if you have a way to heal yourself automatically (e.g. Vow of Poverty at high levels, or Dragon Shaman Vigor aura if your health is already below half).

The amount of healing from the soulmeld is pretty good if it's filled to maximum essentia capacity -- which means, if you don't want to be a full meldshaper, I recommend being a psionic character and picking up the Psycarnum Infusion feat. Expend psionic focus to treat any soulmeld as "full" of essentia for 1 round.

As long as we're talking about incarnum, though, there's another soulmeld that augments any healing on its wearer.

So ... Wilder / Dragon Shaman / Incarnate? (Wilder for CHA synergy and a couple of healing powers, mostly Body Adjustment. Plus access to Psycarnum Infusion.) Hmmm. Still might not be as good a healer as a simple cleric, just because of the failures of multiclassing. But if you're not looking for a "better than a cleric" healer, just a dedicated healer who uses unusual methods to keep the party up, I'm sure you could do ok with a build like this, plus Exalted feats.

At the very least, I'm pretty sure a Cleric with an Incarnate dip comes out to be a better healer than a straight Cleric.

[Scorpina]

The Healer class, honestly, seemed terribly weak to me. I cannot imagine justifying it in any build over a cleric.

From a powergaming point of view, probably not. It's deisgned to be a healer and little or nothing besides. That's the advantage it has from a roleplaying standpoint, it lets you play a healer without having to play an armoured killing machine too.

Also, unicorns are awesome.

[Fixer]

So ... Wilder / Dragon Shaman / Incarnate? (Wilder for CHA synergy and a couple of healing powers, mostly Body Adjustment. Plus access to Psycarnum Infusion.) Hmmm. Still might not be as good a healer as a simple cleric, just because of the failures of multiclassing. But if you're not looking for a "better than a cleric" healer, just a dedicated healer who uses unusual methods to keep the party up, I'm sure you could do ok with a build like this, plus Exalted feats.

This is the sort of uniqueness I was searching for. I am not sure how viable it is, but it does meat the uniqueness qualification. Thanks. Still hunting for more, though.

From a powergaming point of view, probably not. It's deisgned to be a healer and little or nothing besides. That's the advantage it has from a roleplaying standpoint, it lets you play a healer without having to play an armoured killing machine too.

Also, unicorns are awesome.

Alas, the groups I play with tend to be a powergaming crowd and not role-players. As a result, I need to make certain that my Ultimate Healer can withstand dangerous opposition (not necessarily defeat or destroy, just withstand).

[MeklorIlavator]

But, if I remember correctly, Healer must prepare all spells, and lacks any unique spells. Therefore, a cleric can be a better healer than the healer class. Cue Irony.

[Starscream]

Ok, that's not bad. Have you ever used it? How does it work during play?

I used it once, but it was sort of an afterthought. Basically I was playing a druid who focused on Wild Shape, and saw no need to spontaneously summon, so I took this instead.

But it came in handy pretty often. Because it lasted for 3 rounds every time, I could cast it and then go do other things while it benefited both me and my party members. And because I was mostly wild shaper I had no problem with sacrificing the spell slots.

It was pretty good for out of combat healing as well. Other than affecting everyone, the main advantage is that you know exactly how much will be healed without any random element. Makes it almost like a mass Lay on Hands in that respect. Of course a cleric's cure spells can technically heal more, but you need multiple castings to affect everyone, and if your rolls stink.

In fact, the only downside is that the feature you are giving up is such a good one. But if you want to focus on healing it isn't a bad choice. Druids can take this feature, cast cure spells, and use the Vigor chain of spells.

Of course, druids can do EVERYTHING, often better than the classes who are specifically designed to do it.

[Draz74]

This is the sort of uniqueness I was searching for. I am not sure how viable it is, but it does meat the uniqueness qualification. Thanks. Still hunting for more, though.

Hmmm, maybe drop the Dragon Shaman aspect of it ... which means you don't need CHA synergy anymore, so you'll be better off with a Psion or Ardent instead of a Wilder.

Neither Psion nor Ardent has access to all the best healing powers, so either one will have to use Expanded Knowledge to access some things. Which means Psion is probably better, since it has bonus feats. (Besides, who needs Medium BAB or armor proficiency on a Vow of Peace character?)

Yeah, I think Azurin Psion (Egoist) 17 / Incarnate 3 could be an awesome healer indeed. At least if liberal magic-psionics transparency is in effect (so that the Therapeutic Mantle soulmeld, for example, will work with powers instead of spells).

Key soulmelds:
Lifebond Vestments, Therapeutic Mantle

Key feats:
Sacred Vow, Vow of Poverty, Vow of Nonviolence, Vow of Peace, Expanded Knowledge (x2), Psicrystal Affinity, Psycarnum Infusion, Psionic Meditation, Linked Power, Practiced Manifester

Key powers:
Open Lesser Chakra, Vigor, True Metabolism, Mend Wounds, Share Pain, Empathic Transfer, Body Adjustment, Psionic Revivify, Psionic Restoration, Restore Extremity, Hustle, Schism

[Fixer]

Actually, those are pretty good. Let me see what I can do with those.

If you are an Elan with Lifebond Vestments (from the Shape Soulmeld feat, for example) you can convert PP to HP healing directly (using Resilience to prevent the damage you deal to yourself) at a rate of 1 PP for 4 HP (or 1PP for 8HP if you are using Enhanced Elan Repletion, which I think is the wrong name for the feat). All you need to do is get an essentia pool to boost the limit on Lifebond Vestments.

Hmmm... wonder how I can tweak that one.

[Rhiannon87]

My biggest problem with the Radiant Servant of Pelor is he doesn't get great domains (Healing is good, the others not so much). Otherwise I agree that would make a great healer. I don't see what Combat Medic offers comparatively, though. It doesn't seem that great of an addition.

But, that sort of healer is 'normal'. I was hoping someone had experience with another kind of healer that wasn't so normal.

You can always talk to your DM and see if they'll let you tweak the Radiant Servant PrC to something else. In one of my games we've got a Radiant Servant of Lliira. I think that just so long as one of your domains is healing, the rest is just fluff.

Complete Divine also has some great feats for this sort of thing. Augment Healing: add +2/spell level points of healing (so you'd add an extra 4 points to a cure moderate wounds spell); Sacred Boost (burn a turn attempt, maximize all healing spells cast w/in 30 ft of you for the next round, including a spell you might cast on your next turn); and Sacred Healing (give allies fast healing 3). Grab Extra Turning for more turn attempts per day, and you're healing on a stick.

[Fixer]

Yeah, but those all revolve around the vanilla-type healer we all know about. I was wondering if there were other options.

Right now I am working on the elan egoist/incarnate concept and keep hitting the 16hp / hour / person limitation of Lifebond Vestments (with 3 points of essentia at level 6). Now, 2PP for 16 points of healing per person per hour is about on-par with two cure light wounds spells cast by a 5th level caster, if that caster was limited to casting those two spells per hour per person, which he is not.

Of course, it completely fails the same comparisons at higher levels. :/ Too bad, it was a decent concept.

EDIT: Actually, comparing that to a Lesser Vigor spell, you still don't have the same kind of efficient healing: 1 PP healing 8HP at level 6 compared to 1 spell level (essentially the same) healing 15HP at level 5.

[Baalthazaq]

One thing you might want to try:
Dragon Magazine 347 has "Domain Focus" Clerics which get 1 domain instead of 2, but get to double the effect of the domain.

For healing that's +2 Caster levels to all healing.

You might want to combine this with Domain Casting from PHB 2. You lose nothing as you still convert to the other cure spells, but you gain heal and mass heal instead of the cures in those two slots.

Complete divine lets you (with any degree of neutrality, Neutral Good I'd assume here?) and 4 ranks of knowledge nature you can spontaneously use Summon Nature's Ally too. (So what?) So you can summon Unicorns, which heal. (Here don't forget the use of the D3 or the D4+1 Unicorns at higher levels, and hell, you can always use it to summon something bigger in an emergency (Even with a vow of non violence, D4+1 Earth Elementals will block any door, or grapple any foe).

Also, as a house rule, you might want to ask for even more unicorns at higher level. So a level 8 summon actually gives you D3*D3*D3*D3 unicorns, or D4+1*D4+1 unicorns. (Then sudden maximize if you really want to be abuse your GM's kindness. :))

Spirit Domain from Dragon 312 will let you perform touch spells on one (predetermined) person up to long range. PGF has a domain with auto Contingency Cure light wounds on <0 HP once per day.

Complete Divine's Contemplative will give you extra domains too if you're lacking.

Finally, never underestimate something like Timestop for heals. Regulars don't work but any mass cures or mass heals will. Taking the time domain gives you improved initiative, which also lets you hold an action for special occassions and makes sure you act in a timely manner.

[RagnaroksChosen]

Ok so I like where you are going with the Egoist.
I think taking into account a psicrystal, Share pain, body adjustment, empathetic transfer, and vigor you could make a decent healer

I would highly sugest taking a 1 level dip in dragonshaman, Vigor is to good to pass up plus the d10 hp will help alot. Then 5 in egoist so you get all the correct psi powers. Also want to set empathetic transfer up with vigor on your psicrystal.


so i would sugest.
5 egoist/1 DS /2-3 incarnate
Feats of
Bonus:Psicrystal affinity
1st:Empower power
3rd:Psicrystal Containment
6th: Psi body
etc
Also make sure your Psicrystal takes Psi body/wildtalent for its feats.
I wonder if we can expand on it any or find a race with fast healing or some sort of healing ability.


Also ps my browsers acting funny so sory ahead of time if i double post.



Edit: OO just though of sum thing...

What about egoist 3/DS1/Dread necro 1
Race is some sort of undead tomb tainted or necropolitan. Just use empathetic transfer to heal... with Psi crystal thats gonna be alot you can absorb then heal your self with dread necro... all the while still projecting vigor as it isn't positive or negative energy.

[Draz74]

Right now I am working on the elan egoist/incarnate concept and keep hitting the 16hp / hour / person limitation of Lifebond Vestments (with 3 points of essentia at level 6). Now, 2PP for 16 points of healing per person per hour is about on-par with two cure light wounds spells cast by a 5th level caster, if that caster was limited to casting those two spells per hour per person, which he is not.

First of all, where are you getting the 16 hp limit from? Psion 3/Incarnate 3 can do 19 hp/hour per ally. Psion 5/Incarnate 1 can only do 13 hp/hour per ally. Somewhere there's a misunderstanding here.

Secondly, I think in practice, 19 hp/hour is quite a lot of healing at Level 6. If your party is taking much more than 19 damage per character per battle, they're probably doing something wrong.

But on the other hand, I never intended for the Soulmeld to be this build's only kind of healing. By Level 6, you should definitely have access to Empathic Transfer to fill in the gaps when the Soulmeld has been maxed out for an hour.

EDIT: Actually, comparing that to a Lesser Vigor spell, you still don't have the same kind of efficient healing: 1 PP healing 8HP at level 6 compared to 1 spell level (essentially the same) healing 15HP at level 5.

Ah, but that's why you shouldn't be powering the soulmeld (or Empathic Transfer for that matter) with Elan Resilience. The Vigor power is much more efficient.

1 PP gets you 5 temp HP. That's 9-10 HP of allies that you can heal with the soulmeld, for a mere 1 PP. That's almost as efficient as Lesser Vigor.

Not good enough? OK, that's why you have a psicrystal. Share the Vigor power with your Psicrystal, then manifest Share Pain on it. At level 6, that means you can give yourself, effectively, 60 temporary HP for 9 PP. Which means you can heal allies up to 120 HP. That's more efficient than Lesser Vigor ... and Share Pain lasts for hours, so you won't have to re-use 3 PP on it very often.

As a bonus, if you're using Vigor instead of Elan Resilience, you can be another race. Like an Azurin (bonus feat and 1 racial essentia).

[Tar Palantir]

Also, I'm AFB so I don't know specifics, but I believe there's a cleric alt class feature that lets you spontaneously cast domain spells instead of cure/inflicts. Combine with Radiant Servant and Healing Domain, and say hello to free empowered, maximized, or empower/maximized cure spells!

[RagnaroksChosen]

Hmm also 3rd level necro spell healing touch 1d6 per two caster levels healed to target.

I'm sure a good necro could find a way to get that back or to get temp hp to deal with the dmg.

Or just be a Warforged necromancer and heal a pc then case repair spells.

I think i need to go shower after saying that Warforged necromancer.... ick

[Arcane_Snowman]

Healing is a dastardly inefficient role, because there is no difference between being on 1 hit point or 100, other than you're that much closer to death. This makes healing in combat an ungrateful endeavour, especially seeing as you could be killng the enemy instead of trying to ondo their work.

If you really want to be healing everyone, do this instead, get Divine Metamagic Persistent, Nightsticks then Persist Mass Lesser Vigor (Spell Compendium/Complete Divine); this will provide everyone with one hit every round, that's 10 hp every minute, 600 every hour, that means that resting to regain hit points is no longer a factor.

[Waspinator]

Hmm also 3rd level necro spell healing touch 1d6 per two caster levels healed to target.

I'm sure a good necro could find a way to get that back or to get temp hp to deal with the dmg.

Or just be a Warforged necromancer and heal a pc then case repair spells.

I think i need to go shower after saying that Warforged necromancer.... ick

Look at this, and despair!

Spoiler

Show

[Sstoopidtallkid]

Or just be a Warforged necromancer and heal a pc then case repair spells.

I think i need to go shower after saying that Warforged necromancer.... ick

'There is no real difference between a live body and a dead one. They have the same basic structure. So why should I not attempt to use them to further my own ends? Is tricking a live person into helping any morally better than compelling a corpse?'

I should do that now. Sounds awesome.

[RagnaroksChosen]

I don't care what you guys say warforged necros feel wrong.


So on the drive home though of some thing

Dragonwrought kobold
Egosit 5/sorc 4/rest in cerebremancer
Taking all the psicrystal stuff before + dragonic vigor and some of the necro spells...

False life
and all the other drain ish spells
sounds like a fun idea now.

[arguskos]

Do warforged qualify for Tomb-Tainted Soul, and if so, does it get around the whole "half-effective healing" clause they've got going on? If so, then a Warforged TN Cleric who spontaneously converts to Inflict, takes Spontaneous Healing (so he can convert to either Cure of Inflict), and takes Tomb-Tainted Soul for himself would be a.. different sorta healer. Still basic Cure spells, but it's a twist on the traditional Healbitch role. Esp if you play up the whole necromancer aspect.

[AmberVael]

'There is no real difference between a live body and a dead one. They have the same basic structure. So why should I not attempt to use them to further my own ends? Is tricking a live person into helping any morally better than compelling a corpse?'

I should do that now. Sounds awesome.

That sounds disturbingly similar to something that Dr. Manhattan might say (or, in fact, already said).

Anyways... unique super healer, huh?

How about...
Cleric 3/Warlock 2/Eldritch Disciple X (you only need one level, but you can keep going for dual casting)/Something Else

Focus on eldritch blast shaping invocations and then get Healing Blast. Infinite healing every day, and with the right invocations you can get some great healing going.
Eldritch Spear allows you to have some pretty good range for your healing, while Eldritch Chain will let you target all of your allies.
You could also be wacky and get Eldritch Glaive and full attack your allies with a healing glaive. That would be fun.

Also, it might be worth looking into a different class than cleric for your three casting levels. Favored soul has Cha synergy and spontaneous casting (fun fun) but unfortunately you'd need four levels of it. Ur-Priest would be interesting to toss in, but since Eldritch Disciple requires you worship a deity, the contrast between those classes would need to be figured out...

[MeklorIlavator]

Note that the ability that you're using there requires a turn attempt to use, so Cleric is your best bet. Also, Doom could work.

[Launchpad]

The nice thing about Combat Medic is that it gives you the ability to spontaneously cast heal even if it's not on your class spell list.

And it only requires you to cast cure light wounds. So a Bard would qualify.

Getting the 8 ranks in heal takes some time (or the halfling variant from dragon magic) but its a way for bards to cast Heal. If you combine it with Sublime Chord you can cast heal faster and some other nice spells most healers won't get.

It might not be the Ultimate Healer you are looking for but it should be something unusual.