Wizards and healing spells

[irdeggman]

There is a new magic item in the Magic Item Compendium (originally in the Eberron core rules book) that I believe is called an everlasting wand.

It is not a wand though. It allows any arcane caster to cast the spell within it once per day. It can be one of the cure spells too.

If the party is having a lack of healing try providing some of those items to help them out - or if there are any divine casters (or bards) then a few wands would help a lot.

 

[Thanael]

Check out the 2E Complete Book of Necromancers, esp the section on white necromancy in chapter 4.

Although white magic can be used to heal wounds and bone fractures, it is no substitute for clerical healing. White necromancy derives its healing power from a volunteer's source of life energy (often the caster's), as in empathic wound transfer. Clerical magic, in contrast, bestows healing through a combination of faith and divine authority. Short of a wish (or for a brief duration, a limited wish), wizard spells cannot "create" new hit points - the Art usually shuttles life force from a donor to recipient.

I'm not sure if the spells Empathic Wound Transfer or Wound conferral have ever been converted to 3e though.

Also i dimly remember a spell mend broken bones in the 2E SPells & Magic Player's Option books, but this was to counter critical hit effects from Combat & Tactics, i.e. dependent on that subsystem.

 

[Thanee]

There is one such necromantic healing spell in the Forgotten Realms.
Healing Touch (3rd level) - heals 1d6/2 levels and you take that much damage.

Bye
Thanee

 

[Oni]

I'm not convinced that healing spells would overpower a wizard simply because each healing spell you have prepared is one less SoD or chance to alter the battlefield et c. It makes you less proactive and more reactive.

 

[Allegro]

How about a letting the wizard research a transmutation spell that will turn a PC into a clock-work or war forged version of themselves. The new form perhaps gives a plus to will saves versus enchantments and a penalty to reflex and initiative. Then let the wizard apply repair spells as appropriate. The wizard isn’t healing flesh he is repairing a construct.

 

[irdeggman]

I'm not convinced that healing spells would overpower a wizard simply because each healing spell you have prepared is one less SoD or chance to alter the battlefield et c. It makes you less proactive and more reactive.

If a wizard can research a healing spell then so too could a sorcerer and then "learn" it as one of normal spells (instead of one of the published ones). This would then make a sorcerer potentially much more powerful.

So be careful with this application.

 

[frankthedm]

IMHO the Cleric's main balancing factor is that the party drains their spells for healing. You keep hitting the party hard enugh where thre cleric must burn virtually all his actions healing others to prevent death. If you let the parties other casters be able to take some of that burden off the cleric, you add more power to the cleric.

If done at all, I'd say let the wizard have pseudo healing spells that convert normal damage to non lethal. This way the cleric still needs to use real curative magic next round in battle, but the effect is practically doubled. Used out of combat these spell also nicely enforce some downtime.

Cauterize 0th level, short range, Stabilizes a dying creature in the most painful way imaginable.
Stitch light wounds touch 1st level 1d8+level [Max +5] damage converted to non lethal.
Stitch moderate wounds 2nd level 2d8+level [Max +10] damage converted to non lethal.
Stitch serious wounds 3rd level 3d8+level [Max +15] damage converted to non lethal.
Stitch Critical wounds 4st level 4d8+level [Max +20] damage converted to non lethal.

 

[prospero63]

To completely simplify, IMO a wizard who can heal is... a cleric. I've never been a fan of the "party of one" concept that has become so prevalent in 3e. Players want their character to be able to do it all. "But the barbarian can deal out so much melee damage in a hit"... "yes, and if you wanted to do that, you should have been a barbarian. Instead you are a warlock. You get to fling magic all day long. Use what you have, don't complain about what others have". At least that's my policy on it. The closest houserule I would even consider is like the 2e "take your lifeforce and give it to another" type of a spell.

This is totally my opinion though, not trying to influence anyone one way or the other. Per the RAW though, I don't see an option. With houserules... well, you can do anything you want in a house rule.

 

[StreamOfTheSky]

I'm not convinced that healing spells would overpower a wizard simply because each healing spell you have prepared is one less SoD or chance to alter the battlefield et c. It makes you less proactive and more reactive.

One of my main problems with it is that once it's on the spell list, you can make wands and scrolls of it to avoid this dilemma entirely.

 

[Thanee]

Well, the one that casts the spell does not need to be the same one that makes the item, so a Cleric and a Wizard can already make such items together (given the Cleric doesn't have the feat as well).

Bye
Thanee