Advice for missing a healer? [My Players No Read :P]

[reiella]

My players should know better than to read this , but anyway.

Right now, I'm running a rather high level campaign (~17th party level) and had to deal with some player shuffling due to events and am left with a party consisting of a Fighter/Kensai, a sorcerer, and a wizard.

I had been running a NPC cleric for the party until we got some more players, but since then, they have left, and the circumstances surrounding the NPC cleric retiring from the group are a bit irreversible at this point. That, and I don't want to run a NPC party member anymore.

Anycase, my problem is dealing with the fragile party (2/3 d4 hitdice), and how to get decent challenges ('boss' types) that aren't nuked to death in the first couple rounds, yet don't nearly guarantee a kill of one if not both of the spellcasters.

I'm suspecting that I'm going to have to leave most of the adventures outdoors so that the spellcasters can make better use of their typically better mobility (flight) to avoid being hit, but still just hard pressed.

Do summoned monsters tend to serve well as 'meat shields'? Party hasn't really made use of them as yet, but an introduction with an adept summoner could easily change that.

 

[Painfully]

An amulet of health is invaluable to those with low HP. It will raise the constitution stat, thus, increasing HP per level. If your cleric hasn't left the group yet, he might be willing to make amulets in return for some other valuable party treasure item.

If somebody in the group is very pious, and agreeable to the cleric, have the cleric grant a holy symbol that allows the pious one to "lay on hands" as per a paladin. It is a bit overpowered IMO, but lacking a cleric for the long term, I think it is a fair solution if you can work it into the story of the game.

Summoned creatures can work as effective protection, but at 17th level, the creatures are only going to slow down a BBEG, and take up spell slots that could be used to better effect. Allowing the caster to perform a special spell that allows a summoned creature to become a permanent familiar could be interesting. Consider it an advanced version of summon familiar, only now its summon extraplanar familiar. Requiring the leadership feat wouldn't be a bad idea, as this is much more a companion/follower than just a pet. You might even allow the creature to take class levels, or have special abilities as it advances.

I once used a druid character with a delicate vine necklace that could grow berries that were equivalent to all the various cure spells that clerics use. It could grow a lesser restoration berry every 5 days, as well as a few others. Berries could be saved for a few days before they became rotten. All of this helped to limit abuse. A plant growth spell could advance the vine's growth, while an enlarge spell could maximize a cure wounds berry. There are a lot of ways to add your own variation here.

 

[Calico_Jack73]

Just like in most of the computer games you can make healing potions fairly common and cheap.
Personally, in my campaigns I allow specialist Necromancers to research an arcane version of the healing spells albiet they are one spell level higher than their divine counterparts (Cure Light Wounds is a 2nd level Necromantic spell). It always made sense to me that Necromancers, being students of Life & Death, should be able to learn to prolong life as well as hasten death. It also works well because in most of the games I run people hate playing clerics. They get really tired of being the party medic. This option takes some of the responsibility off of them if there is a cleric in the party and is a good option for parties without one. You could have the party sent on a mission by a Necromancer and in return he could give the party wizard a scroll with an arcane version of a healing spell that the wizard could learn. If your wizard isn't a Necromancer then I'd rule that he can't research any other healing spells but would have to come back to the Necromancer. That way you can keep it from getting out of hand.

 

[Liquidsabre]

As a DM, finding a healer is the party's problem not yours! Let them worry aboout, just be aware of the alternatives and present them if the PCs go looking in the right places. If they get themselves in a situation where they'll need a healer they'll either seek on out or look for other means for healing (magic items especially).

 

[Inconsequenti-AL]

I supose it comes down to 2 different issues. In combat healing and between combat healing?

At this level, I guess 'normal' is Heal/Mass Heal spells for the first instance and wands of CLW for the second.

I guess it all depends how much of a challenge you wish to make these 2 things?



If you want to make it easy on them:

For combat healing, making potions of heal/one shot heal items would go a long way. Perhaps even heal X/day items...

Give them non class related 'wands of cure light wounds' - perhaps they cost twice as much. At 1300 for 50 charges it's still cheap. Consider a decanter of (nearly) endless cure minor wounds - it still takes 1 round per HP, so is basically useless in combat, but does allow full healing, given some reasonable rest time after a fight. If those are too clunky, how about items that offer a low rate of fast healing?


If you want to make them suffer:

They can always uses wish/limited wish for their in combat healing.

Make them buy potions of CLW at 50gp each. Or 2500 for the equivalent of a wand. Plus they get the joy of transporting lots of glass vials.

 

[Mark]

I think the party needs to step up and use a Leadership feat (or two) to secure their own healers. I also agree that, provided they are spending their funds and you aren't making low-level magic items scarce, they should be compensation with healing potions and other items to boost the Constitutions of their flimsier characters.

Let them know that you're not going to be picking up their slack anymore so that they can begin to take finding some solutions on their own more serious. They may have become too dependent on your help. This is counteractive to you giving them a challenging game as you find yourself hedging opponents and second guessing your encounter options more often.

 

[Brother Shatterstone]

I think the party needs to step up and use a Leadership feat (or two) to secure their own healers.

Yeah that was going to be my recommendation too... They should have a feat coming next level so hint at it. Also I suggest they take a look at the healer from the miniature handbook as that’s what they need with so many character with low hit points.

 

[reiella]

Hmm. Cleric left a bit ago actually (when we gained a few new players, who then left). Bit troublesome there, although a Con boost all around would be helpful, and a bit possible in the mean time, would help out a good bit, only thing there is that the spellcasters are a bit dependant on the natural armor amulets as well, could just as easily make a combined item there however.

One of the limitations I've levied on spellcasters is a wholesale block of necromancy spells unless they are specifically a necromancy (different schools of magic), and while it would actually be possibly for them to play 'half-healer', none in the party are one. Although I suppose I may be more inclined to have a NPC necromancer around to heal them than a NPC cleric (that just burned me out), but having a third vulnerable target may not be a good idea. Necromancers also are somewhat inclined toward Evil (like a cleric of an evil god, they may be neutral).

Low end magic items (potions specifically) aren't hard to come by, and I suspect that the party will begin to make amble use of their haversacks and stock them in the tens instead of ones. That's a hint matter that can become easy to push their way.

The leadership feat for cohorts I'm kinda dreading, it is an obvious answer, but as I said, I don't want to run a NPC cleric/healer type again. I'm also reluctant to give the related player full run of their NPC 'pocket healer' at the same time, of course, that's really my problem .

Hmm, anycase, right now, I'm leaning towards a premptive 'gift' to the party since it's currently it's in a situation where they have a bit of Reward and Downtime coming. Healing isn't so much of a concern for me, since I do doubt that there will be significant dungeon crawls or sessions where Teleport w/o Error cannot be used, and they are in very good standing with a handful of churches/clergy. Although more generic Healers Tokens or such.

Mostly, I'm worried about the vitality of the spellcasters, as one has proved to not be able to handle being hit too well (Criticals from Big Monsters or full iterative cycle tend to splat them). So in a bit it's Combat Healing and the lack of an additional Meat Shield target. It's really hard to protect two spellcasters with just one meat.

Anycase, my current thoughts are leaning towards a pre-emptive suggestion/gift that the party needs to remember to keep good potion stock (And to make use of their haversacks ) for combat healing, although the fighter is really the one hardest hit by the need for combat healing in the party (no potion of heal). Thinking of a +2 Con Amulet with +2 Natural Armor boost to boost the general resilance. Introduce potions of Rejuvenation (Regen 10 pts of damage/rnd for 10 rounds until healed, puts user into a lethargic state imposing a -6 penalty to strength, dex, and int and Slowing them). I am planning to have to adjust the rejuvenation potion for the party, but at a glance, it seems workable.

Honestly I don't want to make it a challenge. I'm taking partial responsibility for the current structure of the party and don't wish to 'punish'/'penalize' the party because of it. That and the idea of facing 'Assured Death' with most encounters isn't one I like .