Fast Healing at 1st level?

[trav_laney]

How about a half-troll or troll-blood template? The feat chain provided by Nifft is a little long to be of general use.

Some other ideas: instead of high-level barbarians getting DR, they get Fast Healing (per 10 turns, not per turn - they recover from fights quickly). Or you could model it as the Paladin's Lay On Hands

I like your idea of giving Fast Healing instead of DR, but it isn't useful until higher levels. This player wanted something he could use at 1st level...which also puts the kabosh on a chain of feats. These are great ideas, and are nicely balanced power-wise, but they aren't what the player is looking for.

I'm thinking that a level adjustment might be the least-stressful way to go here. I could create a subrace of dwarf, elf, or human that gives Fast Healing (in addition to all other racial traits), and comes with a level adjustment. Perhaps these people built their ancestral homes near a magical site of great power: the site of a meteor impact, or a buried portal to the Celestial planes, and the magical residue of the area has created a unique mutation in this particular clan.

Or something.

The thing I am struggling with is, how much Fast Healing for how much Level Adjustment?

The player wants Fast Healing 5, which is way too high for 1st level, IMHO. I'd like to make it scale in power: the character could get Fast Healing 1 at 1st level, and it could increase by 1 for every 5 Hit Dice. What kind of LA would you suggest for this ability?

 

[trav_laney]

How about having him take levels in Dragon Shaman (from PHB2)? One of his first auras could be Vigor (which grants Fast Healing 1 for all PCs in a 30 ft. radius who are at or below 1/2 full HP).

I'm going to have to break down and get a copy of the PHB2, aren't I? *sigh* I was hoping I could put it off until I get my tax refund...

 

[airwalkrr]

I think Nifft is headed in he right direction. 1st level characters are not superheroes. They are neophytes. A lot of players have the misconception that their characters are already seasoned veterans with lots of cool powers, or at least they SHOULD be. If your players want to play that kind of game, then they should consider a different system or play in campaigns that start at higher level.

As a 1st level character, you are a novice, a green shirt, a newbie. You know little about the world and its ways and you are not very good at standing up to its challenges. By 5th level, you are a veteran. You have some skill and some reliable talents, but nothing legendary. By 10th level, you are a hero. You have some phenomenal abilities that place you among an elite group of individuals who have worked very hard to be where they are. By 15th level, you are a famous hero. People recognize you and you are a household name in areas you frequent. Your talents and abilities transcend those of the mundane and approach a fantastical quality. Many consider you to be super-human. By 20th level, you are a legend in your own time. You are the stuff of epic stories and tales. Your exploits will be recounted for years upon end and your mastery of various skills is peerless and beyond reproach.

As possibly the most famous X-Man, except for maybe Phoenix, not to mention one of the greatest Marvel heroes PERIOD, Wolverine is probably more in the "epic stuff of legend" category. If your player wants a character like Wolverine, he needs to start small. First of all, he is not a mutant so he is not born with some incredible super-power like regeneration or fast healing. The Faster Healing feat from Complete Warrior is a good start, but requires a 6th level character minimum; that should be your first clue that rapid healing is not something the designers think is balancing to the game. Still, as a character option it is fairly weak. I am guessing your player wants fast healing because he wants a powerful character, so this probably would not appeal to him. But you might be able to throw him a bone by offering to expand the Faster Healing feat into a feat chain for him that culminates in a feat that grants him Fast Healing. But honestly, I would tell him he has to be epic before he can get it. Giving a PC fast healing is a recipe for disaster if you have any concern about game balance at all.

I also give merit to the idea of giving him a similar ability to fast healing instead of barbarian DR. This actually seems the best solution. Start with the ability giving him 1 hp back every hour at 7th level, then slowly reduce the duration to 10 minutes, 1 minute, and then finally to 1 round at 10th, 13th, and 16th levels respectively. By the time he is 19th level, it becomes fast healing 2 and the progression continues from there. Or it could become regeneration 1 at 19th level.

 

[BRP2]

I think a level adjustment race would be a good idea. I can't really help you, you are probably better off test playing it a few times before your game. Level adjustment +2 can be crippling(see Drow).

 

[Darklone]

I like NIffts feats. Yet, considering the dragon shamans ability, I would allow the Uncanny Healing with only Rapid Metabolism as prerequ. Two feats and you have Fast Healing to up to half your hitpoints.

The third level feat and he has Fast healing 2/1.

Taken into account that he spent all his feats so far, I think it's ok assuming a normal campaign and normal healing options. In combats it won't help him too much anyhow except for the very rare case of a hit&run group.

Dragon shaman: At level 1 you know 3 auras and can project one all the time with a +1 bonus. Depending on the dragon type, you get some class skills and later a breath weapon.

...

Sheesh, immunity to paralysis at level 4. That class is sick
Only drawback: Medium BAB.

Hmm. I'd build the char as a Variant Barbarian with Dragon Totem. Multiclass that one with Dragon Shaman and allow him to take that Uncanny Healing feat from Nifft at level 3 (which only enhances his Vigor aura).
Some of the abilities of that variant barbarian will be superseded by the dragon shaman class, that helps with balancing the build.

Don't forget he still has to take his Claws somehow Psychic warrior?

 

[IceFractal]

There's a Troll Blooded regional feat somewhere that gives you Regeneration 1 (fire/acid). However, it does have a hefty side effect - you're fatigued in daylight. This would be rather problematic in a typical campaign.

As a starting feat, what about one that gave you Regeneration 0? You do heal faster as a result, but not as incredibly fast as with Regen/FH 1. And you'll eventually recover from almost any wound. However, it probably shouldn't let you regrow/reattach limbs at the start of the chain.

 

[Pyrex]

The thing I am struggling with is, how much Fast Healing for how much Level Adjustment?

The player wants Fast Healing 5, which is way too high for 1st level, IMHO. I'd like to make it scale in power: the character could get Fast Healing 1 at 1st level, and it could increase by 1 for every 5 Hit Dice. What kind of LA would you suggest for this ability?

LA +1 for Fast Healing 1, and an additional +1 LA for each additional +2 Fast Healing.

So Fast Healing 5 == LA +3.

 

[Jesus_marley]

perhaps you could simply attach a caveat to the ability. make it so that the character suffers from a ravenous hunger as his body burns energy to heal. For every turn in which the character heals damage and does not eat, they must make a DC 10 Will save with a +1 cumulative modifier per turn to avoid being forced by their hunger to immediately stop what they are doing and eat. Eating the equivalent of 1 days standard rations will forstall this for 1 hour.

If a character fails their will save and there is no food readily available, the character will enter a berserk state with a single minded goal of finding food to the exclusion of all else.

 

[Darklone]

LA +1 for Fast Healing 1, and an additional +1 LA for each additional +2 Fast Healing.

So Fast Healing 5 == LA +3.

Show him the drow thread and ask him about that LA...

Fast Healing +5 at low levels... that char is nearly unkillable (ok, a orc barbarian in rage with twohanded PA will kill him).

He wants to play a fightertype, with LA he lacks HP, that does not work. Wolverine himself is a huge bundle of hitpoints, in addition to his regeneration ability.

I'd go the bbn/dragon (perhaps 3.0 apprentice levels for level 1) shaman route with Rapid Metabolism as prerequ and Niffts Imp Uncanny Healing. That way, the char has Fast Healing 2 at level 1 if he's badly hurt (I don't think that's too broken). Allow him another Feat at level 3 that increases the Fast healing (4 below half hitpoints, 2 above).

That way he has a char that is hard to kill but cannot do anything but rage once per day and heal (himself fully and his buddies a little bit). You still need a way to get his claws... and he doesn't have many skillpoints for the whole jumping/climbing stuff Wolverine likes to do.

Fast Healing 4 at level 3... you're the DM. It's strong but not unbreakable (Bruce Willis pun). Depending on how many dragon shaman levels he want to take, his aura will get stronger.

 

[Pyrex]

He wants to play a fightertype, with LA he lacks HP, that does not work. Wolverine himself is a huge bundle of hitpoints, in addition to his regeneration ability.

I'd also argue that he's got significant DR (say, 5/Adamantine) and Moderate (75%) Fortification from his implants.