Healing

[nittanytbone]

We know quite a bit about HP recovery now in 4E! I wish we had a look under the hood to see how healing surge numbers are generated (we know Class plays into it -- but what about race or ability scores or level?), but we still have a lot of info.

Based on the cleric's Healing Word per-encounter power, it looks like it will be the norm for a 4E party to enter an encounter "topped off." A cleric can heal 1d6+4 HP twice every 5 minutes without anyone expending any consumables (healing surges or otherwise). So given a series of short rests, you should be able to top everyone off over lunchtime. This also eliminates the nuisance of every party getting a wand of CLW as soon as they can scrape up 750 GP between all of them, which effectively does the same thing.

HP seem to be more a measure of stamina now, and seem to have more ebb and flow than in the past.

Interesting.

 

[hong]

Wrong forum...?

 

[Voss]

Uh, that power specific burns healing surges, and heals additional hp. It mainly just allows them to use a surge without using an action, or their 1/encounter second wind.

The healing surge mechanic actually worries me quite a bit. Even if you haven't used daily powers, if you're facing challenging combats, after two or three you're going to need to rest and get surges back. I was hoping for a longer (ideally uncapped) adventuring day.

 

[dervish]

An uncapped adventuring day may be a good idea in some groups/campaigns, but I hardly think it should be the norm. It is simple to make up a house-rule (ain't it always?) that goes something like: "Every time you take a short rest you regain a healing surge." That way you can still pressure the party by having no down time at all, but the day can still go on pretty much forever (not really, seeing as there are only 24 hours in a day).

As is, I think the number of healing surges each day lends itself to adventuring days that err on the side of longer rather than shorter. Good thing, all in all.

 

[bobthedog]

Also, it's pretty easy to get the numbers for healing surges.

The amount of HP healed is 1/4 total HP (or 1/2 bloodied HP), rounded down.

The number of Healing Surges per day, per class, is the number each of the pregenerated characters have minus their Con mods.

 

[Mouseferatu]

An uncapped adventuring day may be a good idea in some groups/campaigns, but I hardly think it should be the norm. It is simple to make up a house-rule (ain't it always?) that goes something like: "Every time you take a short rest you regain a healing surge." That way you can still pressure the party by having no down time at all, but the day can still go on pretty much forever (not really, seeing as there are only 24 hours in a day).

As is, I think the number of healing surges each day lends itself to adventuring days that err on the side of longer rather than shorter. Good thing, all in all.

Yep. I'm all for getting rid of the "15-minute day," but I don't think a complete removal of limits does the game (or its verisimilitude) any favors.

IME, the healing surges makes for a good way of handling it. You can go for a good long while, but eventually you're going to have to stop for a breather.

 

[Gloombunny]

A cleric can heal 1d6+4 HP twice every 5 minutes without anyone expending any consumables (healing surges or otherwise).

Are you sure about that? It looks to me like Healing Word still uses up a healing surge, it just adds some extra HP on top of the normal surge amount.

I guess the wording could be interpreted to mean that the target gets the 1d6+4 hp even if they don't use a healing surge, but I kind of doubt that's the intent. Why would they go to all the trouble of putting in this nifty surge mechanic and then totally undercut it with a level 1 power?

 

[Voss]

Maybe. But the eventually seems to be fairly short given what the monsters we've seen are capable of dishing out, and the numbers they are supposed to appear in.

 

[Mouseferatu]

Maybe. But the eventually seems to be fairly short given what the monsters we've seen are capable of dishing out, and the numbers they are supposed to appear in.

*shrug*

Hasn't been the case for us, at least. We're not fighting 20 or 30 encounters a day or anything like that, but we've definitely moved well past the "four equal combats and out" of 3E.

 

[nittanytbone]

Maybe I'm overthinking the healing word prayer given to the cleric, but I interpreted it as:

"The target can (1) spend a healing surge and (2) regain an additional 1d6+4 HP."

The target doesn't HAVE to use a healing surge (they "can" use a healing surge). After all, what if the target doesn't want to use a healing surge, or has none remaining? Also, how would this power be any better than say, triggering a healing surge with a Heal check (which has been described in other playtest reports as something even a wizard could do)?

My reading was that you get the 1d6+4 HP regardless of whether or not a healing surge is used. Perhaps that is over-parsing things though.

Perhaps someone who was playing can shed some light on the matter...