D&D (2024) The Problem with Healing Powercreep

[Lanefan]

kind of agree with this.
combat healing can be a simple cantrips.

Cantrip:
healing word.
Bonus action,
range 60ft
you heal the target to 1HP.
(this would work very well with getting exhaustion level every time you drop to 0HP, this level would go away when healed over 50% max HP)

OK except the range has to be touch; the idea being that to do the curing the healer is at risk if the combat is still going on around the downed person and thus the cure could be interrupted. At 60-foot range the healer can just stand back out of the fray and heal as needed (were it me I'd hire a hench or NPC adventurer who would be given this as their one job, to stand back and patch up anyone who goes down).

and for healing:

Cure wounds.
1st level spell
Casting time, 1 minute
heal any number of creatures in 60ft radius,
Total amount of healing is 25HP divided among all targets.
anyone that gains atleast 5HP worth of healing from this spell can spend one of theirs HDs for extra healing.

Upcasting: increase healing amount by 25HP for every spell level over 1st.
increase amount of additional HDs spent by 1 for every spell level over 1st.

And a DM could tweak that flat 25-point amount up or down to suit the desired grittiness/gonzo level. Interesting.

 

[Lanefan]

The game is mathed out so that you get hit more often than not for a highly variable amount of damage.

Needing healing isn't a result of mistakes, it's a result of playing the game.

If hit points were the precious and hard-to-renew resource they should be, losing hit points would either mean you've made a mistake or made a conscious choice to expend said resource.

Ideally you win the combat before a weapon is swung or a shot is fired.

 

[Lanefan]

That's not true. Healing is simply damage prevention that only works after the damage has actually been taken. Stopping damage with crowd control and direct reductions (AC, resistances, debuffing enemy attacks, countering their spells) is more powerful, if a game wants to allow for it.

The real issue is that healing is boring in D&D. It's also wildly inconsistent. Dice rolls shouldn't be used.

Hard disagree on the die-rolling, but that's purely a preference issue.

Healing spells should be a set amount, and be more effective when the target has low health. That's how to make it interesting - force players to make a decision between efficiency and safety. Use your healing too early and you've wasted resources. But if you wait too late, then someone is going to be knocked unconscious, or outright die.

I'd do it the reverse way: have healing be less effective when the target is at low health. That makes it in everyone's interests to not lose (many) hit points in the first place, and changes the dynamic of combat approach from gonzo to more measured and cautious.

"Healing" should be an essential need for a party. It should be necessary for a group to have someone who can fulfill this role. Otherwise there isn't enough player interdependency and a DM needs to make their NPC's behave stupidly and never focus fire on one target.

I agree with this.

 

[Lanefan]

Sure, but the amount of stuff PCs are designed to handle during the expected adventuring day should absolutely bow deeply to the realities or actual gameplay. If it takes a month of weekly sessions to churn through it all while still making room for the other two pillars of gameplay the design failed because everyone forgot too much from the simple passage of time since the adventure started.

That's why you keep player-accessible game logs; so things that would otherwise be forgotten, aren't.

 

[Jefe Bergenstein]

Because it made more logical sense to them than the 4e alternative. I certainly understand that argument. Not everyone sees the game as mechanics first.

It's not mechanics first. In such a world, the body might be able to be knit back together but unless the spirit is there, the spell won't work. Its as much simulationist as anything else in D&D.

 

[Daztur]

That's why you keep player-accessible game logs; so things that would otherwise be forgotten, aren't.

Right the issue of people forgetting naughty word from one session to the next and some people showing up for some sessions and not for others can be worked around...but I'd prefer to just not have to deal with that or to have it be as simple as possible. One less headache for the DM to deal with.

Hard disagree on the die-rolling, but that's purely a preference issue.

I'd do it the reverse way: have healing be less effective when the target is at low health. That makes it in everyone's interests to not lose (many) hit points in the first place, and changes the dynamic of combat approach from gonzo to more measured and cautious.

I agree with this.

I always liked houserules that gave penalties to people who get KOed (exhaustion levels, losing hitdice, whatever) as yo-yo healing can get pretty silly in 5e and most DMs are unwilling to routinely coup de grace downed PCs.

If hit points were the precious and hard-to-renew resource they should be, losing hit points would either mean you've made a mistake or made a conscious choice to expend said resource.

Ideally you win the combat before a weapon is swung or a shot is fired.

Couldn't agree more, but the way a lot of people approach the game combat is more time for some fun asskicking than something to be avoided or worked around.

For those houseruled healing spells I don't like it being able to hit a bunch of people at once. I don't mind it healing a lot (but costing HD) but would prefer it to be the cleric tagging one dude so the cleric has to potentially run into danger.

 

[tetrasodium]

That's why you keep player-accessible game logs; so things that would otherwise be forgotten, aren't.

Honestly my experience with doing that is very much one where most players will not even look no matter how accessable they are. It used to be different a couple editions ago, but not so much these days.

 

[Micah Sweet]

It's not mechanics first. In such a world, the body might be able to be knit back together but unless the spirit is there, the spell won't work. Its as much simulationist as anything else in D&D.

You and I don't see eye to eye on simulationism. If you're right, there should be lore confirming such.

 

[Micah Sweet]

Couldn't agree more, but the way a lot of people approach the game combat is more time for some fun asskicking than something to be avoided or worked around.

True, but there's no reason your game has to follow the majority.

 

[Vaalingrade]

If hit points were the precious and hard-to-renew resource they should be, losing hit points would either mean you've made a mistake or made a conscious choice to expend said resource.

Why should they be?

Ideally you win the combat before a weapon is swung or a shot is fired.

So.. by not engaging.

Again, we're back tot he only way to win being not to play the game or at least skip a fun part.