Does D&D require healing magic? And is that a good thing?

[Emirikol]

Ok, this isn't really my question. One of my players brought it up. The question is basically, "Why does D&D require so much healing magic? Is it just to give the cleric player something to do?"

I disagreed with him (imagine that), saying that D&D really does need to give the cleric something to do. Fantasy has always had healers. Look at lord of the rings. That was non-stop healing spells and it was no big deal..like changing your underwear.

THe second part was asking whether or not it was a good thing to have D&D designed that way?

Hey, D&D is D&D. Dont' question the RAW. D&D is a combat game, not a role playing game. Healing exists in such large quantities BECAUSE IT's EXPECTED that you will be fighting.. a LOT. If lots of fighting wasn't expected, for instance, if more "interaction" was required, there wouldn't be so much healing available. Heck in 3.x, healing become MORE available as the cleric started to get free-exchange for healing spells. If that isn't a slap in the face of "let's find another way" I don't know what is.

D&D is fun because of fighting not because of the role playing. THere're no "role-playing' mechanics in the game..there are however "healin' n' fightin' " mechanics. There isn't eveen any kind of attempt at balance (just liek 1E That's the way it should be.

Thoughts?

jh
P.s. I posted appropriate artwork
..

 

[painandgreed]

Thoughts?

You have a carrot shaped nose and regenerate.

Editted to add: You post about controversial issues and deliberatly use wording to provoke knee jerk responces. If this was the only post of yours like this, I wouldn't even notice. Lately (and possibly earlier), all your threads have been like this. I don't think you actually care about the issues nor answers. I don't think provoking arguements adds to the forum in anyway.

 

[Crothian]

It is because most people do lots of combats. D&D is a role playing game though,. It is also a combat game. More people seem to want it to be and play it as a combat game.

 

[Emirikol]

It is because most people do lots of combats. D&D is a role playing game though,. It is also a combat game. More people seem to want it to be and play it as a combat game.

I think it makes a great combat game..but not such a good role playing game.

Perhaps that's why Cthulhu is still around...not such a good combat game....but that's not because of the mechanics

jh

 

[Emirikol]

I don't think provoking arguements adds to the forum in anyway.

If you don't like my posts, don't respond to them. You dont' need to make unkind remarks.

Also, this isn't to provoke arguments. You'll notice in my posts, I bring up controversial issues. I don't flame them into wars. The people here are already quite good at doing that. I've been told that I bring up issues and then the people that disagree with me fight over who's more right about disagreeing with me.

jh

 

[Crothian]

I think it makes a great combat game..but not such a good role playing game.

Well, as always YMMV but over the past 25 years plus I've found it to be a really fun Role playing game.

 

[jonathan swift]

Even though I may not always like the DnD mechanics and assumptions, you can easily RP in it as you can in any other table top RPG.

I'm still confused what all this throwing healing spells around in Lord of the Rings is about.

 

[Destil]

It's because in the core rules fights are determined by ablative HP and healing. If you use wound / vitality points (wounds come back fast, vitality requires healing) / armor as DR then you wouldn't need as much healing, without any real effect on the roleplaying vs combat aspects of the game...

In other words, that's the way the game is designed to handle combat. You get hit in the head, you get cured. The other things you mention aren't at all related, perhaps very tangentially at best.

 

[Emirikol]

Well, as always YMMV but over the past 25 years plus I've found it to be a really fun Role playing game.

Hey, I can't disagree with that I'll probably sleep D&D into my 80's!

Does the sheer amount of healing magic encourage all the combat though?

jh

 

[Crothian]

Does the sheer amount of healing magic encourage all the combat though?

No, the adventures encourage combat. All the healing magic does is make it all happen in one day.