Physician

*"My, what an interesting infection. Does it always ooze like that?"*

## Advanced

(Core) Physicians are practitioners of the healing arts who study the mysteries of illness and anatomy. The science of medicine is relatively new and still distrusted by the majority of Old World citizens. Many regard unknown Physicians as either trumped up apothecaries or dangerous quacks until they’ve proven themselves. Skilled Physicians, however, are often well-respected members of their communities. They are capable of dealing with most minor ailments and a number of more straightforward injuries, such as major cuts or crushing wounds. Physicians are often eager to seek out new medicines and learn about more effective treatments.

### Secondary Profile

**Skills:** Academic Knowledge (Science), Heal, Gossip, Perception, Prepare Poison, Read/Write, Speak Language (Classical), Trade (Apothecary)

**Talents:** Resistance to Disease, Strike to Stun, Surgery,

**Trappings:** 4 Healing Draughts, Trade Tools (Medical Instruments)

### **Career Entries**

Barber-Surgeon, Interrogator, Scholar, Student

## Little Known Facts

Many physicians-in-training accompany an army on campaign so as to attend the wounded and study injuries first-hand. A battle’s aftermath provides many corpses to dissect.

Physicians are very skilled with small blades, due to their training in surgery. Although they usually use their blades to save lives, it is not wise to get into an altercation with a seasoned physician, as their knowledge of anatomy means they know exactly where to strike to cause serious injury.

Before becoming a member of the Physicians’ Guild, physicians swear a solemn oath pledging before Shallya that they will use their skills to preserve life, never take it.

Physicians often look down on “uneducated” practitioners of the healing arts. While an apothecary or village wise woman may brew poultices that heal wounds, the physician is quick to dismiss any results from such practises as mere coincidence.

Some might assume physicians would tend to be pacifists or at least disinclined toward wars and confrontation, since none know better the gruesome effect of war on the frail mortal body. However, often the opposite is true. While the physician may be among the last to take up arms in a conflict, a physician’s skills are always in demand come wartime.

Some less-than-scrupulous physicians have been known to enter into agreements with the local jailer to provide them with test subjects for their potions and concoctions, in return for a small bribe.

## Notable Figures

Before he became a physician, Matthias Gruener first worked as a butcher’s apprentice. Matthias was fascinated by the marbling of muscles and tendons, and began studying the way limbs were assembled, dissecting pork loins and turkey legs to understand them better. Finally, after his master gave him a sound beating for destroying a good leg of lamb, Matthias realised his calling lay elsewhere. He found an old surgeon whose hands shook from drink, but whose eyes and mind were still sharp. By supplying the doting surgeon a regular supply of alcohol, Matthias slowly began to learn the medical trade. Soon Matthias had hung up one bloody apron for another, and traded his cleaver for a scalpel. During the Storm of Chaos, he joined the baggage train of General Otto von Reichart, and won renown for his surgical skill with the successful amputation of the general’s leg after the fiasco of Grim Hill. Today, Matthias is considered one of the finest surgeons in the Empire, his services sought by the highest noblemen in the land.