Healing Cantrip

[jrowland]

I think a cantrip that heals should grant temporary hit points instead. That way, the HP it provides don't stack. Otherwise, in combat healing stops being the limited resource it is designed to be. It seems like using HD would undermine this as well, but maybe I'm wrong.

Hmmm...

What if it had a casting time of 1 minute? Not good in combat, but ok for a quick patch after a fight without an hour long short rest.

 

[LapBandit]

Any healing cantrip is too good in my opinion. That said, having it spend a creatures HD is a great solution, but it must also be punitive as it directly lessens the power of 1st level Cure Wounds and Healing Word. I would say the cantrip can spend the target's HD, but for every HD expended the PC healed gets 1 level of exhaustion.

In my campaign I use the d20 injury table from the DMG for dropping to zero, so it is a "very bad thing" and the PCs carefully avoid it.

Hmmm...

What if it had a casting time of 1 minute? Not good in combat, but ok for a quick patch after a fight without an hour long short rest.

I prefer this or a concentration multi-round mechanic.

 

[EditorBFG]

Maybe both then? An out of combat heal cantrip, and an in-combat temp HP one?

We would still need to limit things about to keep short rests serving their intended function, but maybe this:

Quicken Healing
Necromantic Cantrip
Casting Time: 1 minute
Range: Touch
Components: V, S, M (a poultice of healing herbs)
Duration: Instantaneous*
You touch an injured creature, concentrate on its wound, and watch as it is slowly healed by its own vitality. The creature may spend 1 Hit Die. Once a creature benefits from this cantrip, they cannot benefit from it again until they finish a short rest. As you gain levels, the number of Hit Dice that may be spent increases: At 5th level, the creature may spend 2 Hit Dice, at 11th level they may spend 3, and at 17th level they may spend 4.

Stitch
Necromantic cantrip
Casting Time: 1 Action
Range: Touch
Components: V, S, M (A piece of dried sinew)
Duration: Instantaneous*
You touch an injured creature, concentrate on the wound, and grant them a quick and temporary relief from harm they have suffered. The applied sinew magically stitches wounds closed, grafts over burns and otherwise protects the creature from its injuries worsening. The creature gains 1d6 temporary hit points.

 

[bedir than]

I replaced "Spare the Dying" with First Aid (not a great name)

http://www.enworld.org/forum/showthread.php?462769-First-Aid-replacing-Spare-the-Dying

For those that don't chase links it grants a single HP to a non-undead/non-construct at 0 HP plus gives them d4 temp HP for a minute.

 

[Ahrimon]

Zombies are immune to exhaustion though.

Do zombies have HD?

Easy fix is make the target requirement a living creature.

 

[jrowland]

Quicken Healing


Stitch

I like Quicken Healing as written.

Stitch...I am wondering it is getting too close to False Life to be considered a cantrip...

 

[Jaelommiss]

Maybe both then? An out of combat heal cantrip, and an in-combat temp HP one?

We would still need to limit things about to keep short rests serving their intended function, but maybe this:

snip

I'd suggest making both of them the same cantrip, with differing casting times. The Plant Growth spell sets a precedent for this.

Quicken Healing
Necromantic Cantrip
Casting Time: 1 action or 1 minute
Range: Touch
Components: V, S, M (a poultice of healing herbs)
Duration: Instantaneous*
You touch an injured creature, concentrate on its wound, and watch as it is slowly healed by its own vitality. There are two possible uses for the spell, granting either fast, temporary vitality or slow, permanent health. The creature may spend 1 Hit Die. If the spell is cast as an action, the target gains temporary hit points that last for 1 hour instead of restoring hit points. If the spell is cast over a minute, the target restores hit points. Once a creature benefits from this cantrip, they cannot benefit from it again until they finish a short rest. As you gain levels, the number of Hit Dice that may be spent increases: at 5th level, the creature may spend 2 Hit Dice, at 11th level they may spend 3, and at 17th level they may spend 4.

In combat you can grant THP as an action. Out of combat you can restore HP over a minute. Both cost the target a hit die.

I agree with others saying that a free 1d6 THP is very similar to False Life. It very much steps on the toes of the Warlock invocation that grants False Life at-will.

 

[EditorBFG]

I'd suggest making both of them the same cantrip, with differing casting times. The Plant Growth spell sets a precedent for this.

Quicken Healing
Necromantic Cantrip
Casting Time: 1 action or 1 minute
Range: Touch
Components: V, S, M (a poultice of healing herbs)
Duration: Instantaneous*
You touch an injured creature, concentrate on its wound, and watch as it is slowly healed by its own vitality. There are two possible uses for the spell, granting either fast, temporary vitality or slow, permanent health. The creature may spend 1 Hit Die. If the spell is cast as an action, the target gains temporary hit points that last for 1 hour instead of restoring hit points. If the spell is cast over a minute, the target restores hit points. Once a creature benefits from this cantrip, they cannot benefit from it again until they finish a short rest. As you gain levels, the number of Hit Dice that may be spent increases: at 5th level, the creature may spend 2 Hit Dice, at 11th level they may spend 3, and at 17th level they may spend 4.

In combat you can grant THP as an action. Out of combat you can restore HP over a minute. Both cost the target a hit die.

That's pretty solid, actually. Better than what I had.

Stitch...I am wondering it is getting too close to False Life to be considered a cantrip...

I was about to propose a solution to this, but what Jaelommiss is smarter than what I was going to say. Gaining those temp HP at the cost of a Hit Die makes the cantrip way weaker than False Life.

 

[77IM]

A spell that lets you spend Hit Dice so that you don't need to take a short rest is a subtle nerf to short-rest-based classes like warlock, fighter, and monk.

I rather like the original spell, although I'd add a caveat that a target's maximum hit points can't be reduced to less than 1 via this cantrip, so that you can't heal people to death. I would probably change the healing amount to 1d4+Spellcasting Ability Modifier.

 

[Ahrimon]

I'd suggest making both of them the same cantrip, with differing casting times. The Plant Growth spell sets a precedent for this.

Quicken Healing
Necromantic Cantrip
Casting Time: 1 action or 1 minute
Range: Touch
Components: V, S, M (a poultice of healing herbs)
Duration: Instantaneous*
You touch a willing, living creature, concentrate on its wound, and watch as it is slowly healed by its own vitality. There are two possible uses for the spell, granting either fast, temporary vitality or slow, permanent health. The creature may spend 1 Hit Die. If the spell is cast as an action, the target gains temporary hit points that last for 1 hour instead of restoring hit points. If the spell is cast over a minute, the target restores hit points. Once a creature benefits from this cantrip, they cannot benefit from it again until they finish a short rest. As you gain levels, the number of Hit Dice that may be spent increases: at 5th level, the creature may spend 2 Hit Dice, at 11th level they may spend 3, and at 17th level they may spend 4.

In combat you can grant THP as an action. Out of combat you can restore HP over a minute. Both cost the target a hit die.

I agree with others saying that a free 1d6 THP is very similar to False Life. It very much steps on the toes of the Warlock invocation that grants False Life at-will.

I like this, but I would tweak it a little bit. I put my changes in bold above. I specified the living due to some other comments about healing zombies, although I don't think they have HD, but I'm AFB. I added the willing part so that this doesn't become an offensive thing by draining HD from a NPC. Not that it's really abuse able without these changes but I thought I'd add them.

I'd take this on my fiendish bladelock if I could.