Add the Healer class to DDO

[azrael4h]

Title. There is a literal 'Healer' class in D&D 3.5e. Also known as the GF class, assuming you had a GF who didn't insist on a Barbarian that tore out the hearts of her enemies after killing them and ate them raw. Mostly, I want to see how many are actually run after the completionists get the past life done.

In DDO terms, I think it could be reworked entirely to fit.

- Give them the mass cures at the same levels as the regular. Spontaneous casting pretty much; it's the Healer, not much spell choice. Maybe even the single target vigor/regen spells as well. No need for more than 4 or 6 levels of spells. Other spells can be buffs, give them pretty much all the useful ones like FoM and DW, and even some of the useful arcane ones like Stoneskin, Blur, and GH.

- FvS/Sorcerer SP progression. Including double SP from items.

- Improved Empower Healing enhancement lines

- Devotion line built like arcane damage lines

- 1/2 Bab, it's the healer, not a melee. That won't stop anyone, though.

- Free Enlarge Spell on healing spells. Heck, give them free Eschew Materials.

- CHA-based for spell levels and SP, so UMD can be bumped up more easily.

- D8 with Toughness enhancements. Dead healers heal no one.

- Passive past life can be +1 Spell pen, +10hp, mirroring FvS PL and Barb PL, but providing incentive to desire to run it. Active can give a passive 10% Healing Amp and a Panacea-like clicky that scales up more, giving melee an incentive to want that if they can fit it in. So Fighters and maybe Monks.

- Average saves for fort and reflex, good for will. Maybe give them an innate Immunity to Fear, as a combat medic has to have balls of steel to run into oncoming fire to help a comrade. Maybe eventually resistances to Poison and Disease.

See how many run this one after getting the past lives for their completionists and casters. And how many end up doing some oddball cool Arty-splashed build or something with Monk or Sorcerer or whatever.

Partially sarcastic BTW, for those who intend to neg me. Partially serious, as I'd truly like to see how many would like a true Healer-only class, and who would run that beyond getting a past life. I would package it together with another class, some have called for Warlock, though IMO I think we need another unique melee and then this can be considered a specialist class. No separate buys.

[PNellesen]

Or they could just buff hirelings and give them a "heal-only" option

[azrael4h]

Or they could just buff hirelings and give them a "heal-only" option

The amount of buffing required to offset the AI would basically mean giving them all DR5000/-, Infinite Spell points, Improved Evasion, Saves of 100+ in everything, Perm DW, FoM, and resist 50 to everything, 33% damage absorbtion for all spell damage, 100 to all stats, SR200, 1000% Fortification and allow them to shapeshift at will into a cab over truck, which immediately plays "The Touch" when happens and triples all of the above instantly and gives them a perm Implosion aura that bypasses SR.

And they would still die. Of course, had they turned into a T-Rex and declared 'Me want to Munch Metal!", then they could, literally, kick the butt of a god.

[Karavek]

The amount of buffing required to offset the AI would basically mean giving them all DR5000/-, Infinite Spell points, Improved Evasion, Saves of 100+ in everything, Perm DW, FoM, and resist 50 to everything, 33% damage absorbtion for all spell damage, 100 to all stats, SR200, 1000% Fortification and allow them to shapeshift at will into a cab over truck, which immediately plays "The Touch" when happens and triples all of the above instantly and gives them a perm Implosion aura that bypasses SR.

And they would still die. Of course, had they turned into a T-Rex and declared 'Me want to Munch Metal!", then they could, literally, kick the butt of a god.

ID pay alot for a T REX gold seal epic companion to keep me and my panther company in the forest. He better be able to munch metal like a rusty too!

[Karavek]

Also typically also called the pacifist priest, the healer is almost always used as a DM npc support character to help avoid party wipes.

I really dont see any but completionist every using them for even single life.

[azrael4h]

Also typically also called the pacifist priest, the healer is almost always used as a DM npc support character to help avoid party wipes.

I really dont see any but completionist every using them for even single life.

Agreed, though I can see some going for the spell pen and hp so they would hit 3 times. Fighters would like the healing amp active. Then some would try to make some obscene gish build out of it, because they can. To be honest, I might be one of them. Better make that 3/4 bab then. :P

The point is though, does DDO need or want a Healer class? A class that can only heal and buff and do not much else? Some here seem to think it does, and that divine casters should fill that role instead of being casters. IMO, then if that is the case, we need a full out Healer class, and leave the divines to filling their designed role instead, able to heal and cast at the same time. Of course any competent player would take the Cleric because a real Cleric does so much more than buff or heal, but that's beside the point.

I tied it with another new class simply because I don't honestly think it will sell past those few grinding TRs and completionist otherwise, as Cleric is free and won't be much different at the higher levels. I don't see Turbine doing a new free class, though.

If it was F2P though, we'd definitely see a surge of TRed Healers for awhile.

[donfilibuster]

Sarcasm aside, there's more interesting things on 3.5e for the healer niche.
And ofc no such thing as literal healer class, lest you give source.
Or invoke Pelor, which is where the radiant servant PrE comes from.

[sirgog]

IIRC the pen and paper Healer class was worse at healing than a cleric (although I could be wrong, the books are in a box at the moment).

Outside epic elite difficulty, a few high level heroic elites and some low-level elites when not using ship buffs, the actual act of healing in DDO is just not engaging enough to be all a class can do, as healing just doesn't take many actions.

I'd much rather they tweak the Bard and the Druid to make both viable end-game healers (possibly by breaking from 3.5 traditions like 'Bards cannot cast Heal without UMD').

[azrael4h]

IIRC the pen and paper Healer class was worse at healing than a cleric (although I could be wrong, the books are in a box at the moment).

Outside epic elite difficulty, a few high level heroic elites and some low-level elites when not using ship buffs, the actual act of healing in DDO is just not engaging enough to be all a class can do, as healing just doesn't take many actions.

I'd much rather they tweak the Bard and the Druid to make both viable end-game healers (possibly by breaking from 3.5 traditions like 'Bards cannot cast Heal without UMD').

I think they were, which is why I said they probably should be reworked. Giving them Bard-like spell progression and mass cures at the same levels as single targets make them superior in early to mid heroic levels, but they should be about even afterwards, Clerics having more utility and capability, as well as sp-free healing with RS, Healer with raw SP and maybe a bit better durability with things like Blur and Stoneskin.

Really, the game should have never been designed with the thought of needing a healer in any group. As I said in another thread, my D&D sessions often had no casters in the group, and no one who could heal more often than that. But as that would take a redesign, it'll never happen.

I value my spleen more than most, so I never tried to get my gf into the healer. And my pancreas. And my appendix. And my kidneys. And that big red pumping thing in there too. That seems important. So it was bloodthirsty barbarian using two axes and the occasional kobold as an improvised weapon.

Druid should have gotten the mass cures as well, a level later, like in PnP. That wouldn't help the highest end, or raid healing where quickened mass cures are the order of the day. But it'd be plenty for most content. Then again, for most content they're already plenty enough, with different timing.

Sarcasm aside, there's more interesting things on 3.5e for the healer niche.
And ofc no such thing as literal healer class, lest you give source.
Or invoke Pelor, which is where the radiant servant PrE comes from.

You're just jealous that you didn't suggest a class out of cynicism and sarcasm first, and never had a gf who wanted nothing more than to drive her enemies before her and hear the lamentations of their women. If only she drove stick shift... I can't abide an automatic transmission.

(Read, I'd look it up but really can't be bothered, there. I ain't the only one who remembers the class though, obviously. What I posted wasn't it though, just **** I threw together in about 10 seconds, not counting wandering off in the middle of the post).

*Edit* I know I'm on to something good here. I got neg repped for the original post!

[honkuimushi]

Sarcasm aside, there's more interesting things on 3.5e for the healer niche.
And ofc no such thing as literal healer class, lest you give source.
Or invoke Pelor, which is where the radiant servant PrE comes from.

In was in the Miniatures Handbook. I never bought that, so I don't know how close the OP is to their abilities. I certainly wouldn't object to it if it kept the basic features of the class(HD, skills, spell list, etc.) with enough boosts to healing to make it a useful class in the current game. To be honest, it seems like a role the devs have been catering to recently.

[donfilibuster]

You're just jealous that you didn't suggest a class out of cynicism and sarcasm first, and never had a gf who wanted nothing more than to drive her enemies before her and hear the lamentations of their women. If only she drove stick shift... I can't abide an automatic transmission.

(Read, I'd look it up but really can't be bothered, there. I ain't the only one who remembers the class though, obviously. What I posted wasn't it though, just **** I threw together in about 10 seconds, not counting wandering off in the middle of the post).

No wonder no one would remember an actual name of a "healer" class, let alone a decent one.
As far as GFs go tho, know one that would crash the guild ship if handed the wheel.

Edit:
Good catch, now we are talking. Healer it is.
Thx for the correction. Fairly obscure book indeed.

[bigolbear]

IIRC the pen and paper Healer class was worse at healing than a cleric (although I could be wrong, the books are in a box at the moment).

Outside epic elite difficulty, a few high level heroic elites and some low-level elites when not using ship buffs, the actual act of healing in DDO is just not engaging enough to be all a class can do, as healing just doesn't take many actions.

I'd much rather they tweak the Bard and the Druid to make both viable end-game healers (possibly by breaking from 3.5 traditions like 'Bards cannot cast Heal without UMD').

and paladin.. and ranger. (atleast via appropriate feats and enhancements)

Of course come the enhancement pass - radiant servant paladins may surprise people.

Id also like dragon marks to be seriously beefed up. A jorasco dragon marked halfling is supposed to heal better than a cleric according to the lore.

[azrael4h]

In was in the Miniatures Handbook. I never bought that, so I don't know how close the OP is to their abilities. I certainly wouldn't object to it if it kept the basic features of the class(HD, skills, spell list, etc.) with enough boosts to healing to make it a useful class in the current game. To be honest, it seems like a role the devs have been catering to recently.

Not very close. As I said, I couldn't be bothered to look it up, and threw something together. Since the devs seem to be pushing towards holy trinity design, I'd prefer them to use the class designed for that role rather than Cleric or Favored Soul, which are casters and designed to be versatile and flexible.

[licho]

... or just increase the number options to heal yourself on any class.

[donfilibuster]

Thing is the Cleric is the one designed to play healer, all others are supplement.
(altough in our case we are missing the cleric domains)

Healer may not be exclusive to miniatures tho, that book gathers stuff from other places, even includes the favored soul.
Now while a fully devoted 20 lv class helps, it's as balanced as a NPC class, besides it hasn't a fvs size sp pool.

Better stick with the various PrCs like the hierophant for free maximizes, there's also a combat healer with evasion, etc.
Altough ofc then you can have both Healer levels and PrCs, naturally.

The suggestion is actually not bad, just maybe can be made via PrE, currently the fvs fills that niche.
If anything, drop the UMD, it might be too much and the healer class should cast heal scrolls without it.

[azrael4h]

Thing is the Cleric is the one designed to play healer, all others are supplement.
(altough in our case we are missing the cleric domains)

Healer may not be exclusive to miniatures tho, that book gathers stuff from other places, even includes the favored soul.
Now while a fully devoted 20 lv class helps, it's as balanced as a NPC class, besides it hasn't a fvs size sp pool.

Better stick with the various PrCs like the hierophant for free maximizes, there's also a combat healer with evasion, etc.
Altough ofc then you can have both Healer levels and PrCs, naturally.

The suggestion is actually not bad, just maybe can be made via PrE, currently the fvs fills that niche.
If anything, drop the UMD, it might be too much and the healer class should cast heal scrolls without it.

Actually, I didn't add UMD, just based their SP pool and spell levels off of CHA so that UMD would get a boost.

And the point was adding a base class that fill the "hjeal me" crowds' desired function for divine casters, and allows the devs to open up Clerics and FvS to be full casters, without worrying about giving them offensive options like they do now.

We don't have PrCs here. We have enhancement lines which mimic them. Otherwise we have base classes, and generic 'Epic' levels.

Though, TBH, giving them some of the arcane buffs anyway means they don't have much use for UMD, sort of like a FvS with a Sorc dilettante.

[Karavek]

The real question is in a game where the fast paced action system is well known to be its soul superior trait over other MMOs new and old alike, why should anyone be put in a position where that aspect is completely denied them?

[sirgog]

The real question is in a game where the fast paced action system is well known to be its soul superior trait over other MMOs new and old alike, why should anyone be put in a position where that aspect is completely denied them?

Healing EE quests or raids is very fast-paced. Hell even healing EN Caught in the Web in a PUG is intense and chaotic.

[countfitz]

100% no sarcasm /signed!

Two reasons:

One: They get a pet Unicorn! My wife SO WANTS TO PLAY A CLASS WITH A PET UNICORN! (Hence the OP's "GF class" explanation).

Two: We can finally get a healing class in this game. Most other MMOs have a healing class. We have two offensive casting/melee classes that 'can' substitute themselves into the 'healing' role when needed, aka, the Favored Soul and Cleric.

[donfilibuster]

Well, the roles are in DDO indeed, which are a MMO thing.
Not so long ago a fvs with 3000 could run out in Shroud if the dps fell so much that Harry lasted 3+rounds.
Then again if you last that long it was a disaster and you could see it coming from the portals phase.
Then there were those runs overdrinking sp pots in VoN, not sure how pugs go these days.
A pure healer class made sense back then, and fvs were asked if they were healer or melee.
Right now there's so much more healing tho, with fvs hitting above 4000 sp.

But while the need is there let's not forget tho that D&D is supposed to have versatile classes and thus not tied 100% to the MMO roles.
All classes should have some form of AC and heal available, as well as dps, plenty of non core choices out there for this.
So while a pure healer would excel at it should still be a player's choice, and not something to make you gimp.