The Healer (SNS)

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: ﻿Martia grimaced as pain ran down her right arm and coursed through that entire side of her body. She had been injured in battle before, but never so badly. Now, it was all she could do to keep her feet. She and Prada had held off the necromancer's beasts for what seemed like hours. They had fought back to back until one of the foul creatures imbedded an axe deep into the proud halfling's chest. Her dying word to Martia had been, "Run."
: Faced with an overwhelming force against which she now had no aid, Martia did the one thing she had never done before. She took Prada's advice and fled. The shame itself threatened to overwhelm the young warrior, but it was not that which brought her down in the end. She managed to escape the horde of undead creatures, but she learned too late-these creatures were not the true danger. They were only meant to wear her down and herd her straight to the necromancer himself.
: Just when Martia thought that she had finally managed to elude the dark mage's minions, she ran smack dab into Cardax himself. He laughed at her. In her weakened state, she held no threat for him.
: Cardax had reached out and snatched the Blade of Honesty from her grasp with a magical force. Then the magical blade, the one that Martia had planned to use against the necromancer, whirled about and cut deep into her right arm, pinning it to her side.
: Horribly wounded, she had stumbled deeper and deeper into the swamp, away from the necromancer's triumphant glare. Cardax's cackling laugh echoed throughout the slime-encrusted trees and into the corners of her skull as she fled. She ran on, desperately trying to escape the man who had become the embodiment of her own personal doom.
: Martia had finally collapsed about an hour later though it had felt like days. One horrifying thought flew through her mind before she lapsed into unconsciousness: she knew that even death wouldn't free her from one with such power over the dead.
: * * * 
: Martia awoke screaming for her life, that horrifying thought still foremost in her mind. She sat bolt upright, not even realizing that she was in a bed. Arms grabbed her and pulled her back down to its soft surface, careful of the stitches and bandages that bound her arm and side.
: Martia screamed for another minute before her eyes focused well enough to realize that the kindly face looking down at her was not Cardax's. Relieved, the wounded warrior collapsed back onto the bed.
: Martia felt much more calm after resting awhile. She woke up to find a damp cloth laying upon her forehead. Her arm and side were swathed in bandages, and she was clothed in a loose, white gown. Unfortunately, she also noticed that her sword and armor were nowhere in sight.
: While she was still considering what to do next, the door to the one-room hut opened, and a young man dressed in blue robes stepped inside. His head was shaved bald, even down to his missing eyebrows, giving him an ageless look. Martia was sure she had never seen him before.
: "Who?" she began, but her voice faltered. She was still quite weak. The young man held up his hand to forestall any more questions and spoke in a soothing voice.
: "My name is Gnarvis. Some friends of mine found you unconscious in the swamp. You were bleeding badly so they brought you to me.
: "I have treated your wounds and given you something for your pain, but you are still gravely injured. You will be in my care for some time."
: "I need to kill Cardax," Martia rasped.
: "Of course," said Gnarvis. "All in good time."
Adventuring is hazardous duty. Anyone who seeks out fortune and glory will certainly encounter danger. Eventually, a hero's luck will run out. When this finally happens, that poor fellow is going to need some "stitching-up." Traditionally, many heroes turn to the cleric in their party for a quick fix. After all, instant magical healing is far more beneficial than nature's slow process.
Often, however, a cleric may not be available to ask the gods' blessings upon a wounded comrade. Alternately, a hero may find himself travelling with a war priest who refuses to magically heal wounds because he believes that they are the "gifts" of his deity.
Other times, the hero may be unable to afford the attentions of a cleric. Magic is not inexpensive, and persuading a priest to curry favor for you with his god (particularly if you're not a true believer yourself) can be costly.
In such cases, wounded heroes make their way to a healer. Healers are cheaper than priests, they don't use magic, and they don't usually worry themselves about deities. This makes the healer an invaluable resource to small villages and heroes in desperate need of assistance.
==Experience, THAC0, and Hit Dice==
Healers, like any other character class, have their own level advancement (shown on the Healer Experience Levels table).
While there are some healers who find time to take up the martial arts, they are few and far between. In general, healers concern themselves more with healing wounds than inflicting damage. In fact, many healers are downright pacifists. For these reasons, healers use the rogue's THAC0 table. In addition, they use the wizards saving throw table.
Though healers do not engage in physical training, they do realize the advantages of staying in shape. These hard-working men and women generally spend their days laboring in harsh conditions and not holed up in some dank tower engaged in research.
Because of this, healers use a six-sided die to determine their hit points for each level up to the 8th. After 8th level, healers only gain 2 hit points per level and do not receive bonus hit points for high Constitution scores.
 Table 22: Healer Experience Levels
Level	XPs 	Hit Dice (d6)
1 	0 	1
2 	1,250 	2
3 	2,500 	3
4 	5,000 	4
5 	10,000 	5
6 	20,000 	6
7 	40,000 	7
8 	80,000 	8
9 	160,000 	8+2
10 	320,000 	8+4
11 	480,000 	8+6
12 	640,000 	8+8
13 	900,000 	8+10
14 	1,060,000	8+12
15 	1,220,000	8+14
16 	1,380,000	8+16
17 	1,540,000	8+18
18 	1,700,000	8+20
19 	1,860,000	8+22
20 	2,020,000	8+24
==Ability Scores==
﻿A good healer is a rare commodity. Many people dabble in the healing arts, but few actually have the dedication to truly master them. It's a long way from the inn matron's chicken noodle soup to a really effective poultice.
Often a healer finds himself in his occupation less by choice and more by some overwhelming sense of responsibility to his fellows. For these reasons, all healers must have a Wisdom of at least 12 and a Constitution of at least 9. The healer's prime requisite is Wisdom.
==Permissible Armor and Weapons==
Battlefield medics occupy an honored position in most armies. While many healers do not fit this mold, there are those courageous few who brave the dangers of war. Even so, healers cannot perform their duties while wearing anything heavier than leather armor. In addition, a healer cannot wear gloves or gauntlets of any sort. Such things interfere with the healer's ability to work with a patient.
Healers are permitted to learn the use of the following weapons: club, dagger, dart, sling, and staff.
==Individual Experience Awards==
﻿Like other character classes, healers earn experience points in their own unique way. They tend to focus more on the aftermath of a battle rather than the combat itself, and this affects how they learn from their adventures. They gain experience for healing injuries and for learning new ways to bring relief to their patients.
 Table 23: Healer Experience Awards
Action 	Award
Per patient's hit pointhealed 	10 XP
Per discovery of newtreatment or antidote 	500 XP
Per gold piece earnedin course of actingas a healer	1 XP
﻿Occasionally, a healer will stumble upon a new way to treat a fever or disease (such as using rare herbs, or applying a standard treatment to a non-standard affliction). If, in the course of an adventure, a healer successfully uses his Healing proficiency in an original way, the DM should award him 500 XP.
==Proficiencies==
﻿A healer receives two weapon proficiency slots at 1st level and gains a new one every four levels (at the 4th level, 8th level, and so on). A healer suffers a -3 penalty when using a weapon with which he is not familiar.
A healer also receives four nonweapon proficiencies at 1st level and a new proficiency every three levels after that (at the 3rd level, 6th level, and so on). At 1st level, a healer must take both the Healing and the Herbalism proficiencies. These are the skills that define the healer as such, and without them he could not perform his duties. See the notes in the Player's Handbook for full details about how the healer can use these proficiencies to aid patients in healing in a natural, nonmagical manner.
As the healer progresses in levels, he must fill any new nonweapon proficiency slots with either the Healing or the Herbalism proficiencies. In this way, the healer actually progresses in his chosen profession.
Additionally, the healer can change any earned weapon proficiency into a nonweapon proficiency after 1st level. These slots are exchanged on a one-for-one basis: 1 weapon proficiency slot is worth 1 nonweapon proficiency slot. These transformed proficiencies do not have to be spent on Herbalism or Healing, but many healers choose to concentrate all of their efforts on improving their skills.
Healers can choose from the general and priest nonweapon proficiency groups without any additional cost.