Lunicant Posted December 21, 2005 Report Share Posted December 21, 2005 How To Run Like a Sissy and not Die A Healer Essay by Bryntryst A healer is a smart and welcome addition to just about any party, be it ranking or adventuring. Their ability to heal damage, protect their allies and create food and water makes them an invaluable resource when far away from home. A myriad of spells all designed to make life generally easy, when combined with sound tactics and effect use, can prolong any character to an extremely long life with relative ease. === Stats: As with any class, a solid character begins with solid stats. Maxing Your abilities early ensures your more hp, better ac, and best of all more mana. In general, a roll above 45 is desirable, but fluctuates by race. When distributing your points, and beginning trains, max out your con, int and wis, and make sure your dex isn’t far off. Str isn’t that important to healers, as they are geared more for passive play than flat out melee. Your strengths lay in your ability to take a licking and keep on ticking. If you follow this advice you will: - Have best possible hp gain due to your always maxed con. - Gain at least 3 practices per level (3 if Wis > 16, more if above that.) - Learn things up to 75% in two practices (17 or 18 int) - Have best possible mana gain due to your maxed Int and Wis. === Race: The races that can become healers generally have either a respectable Int, Wis, or both. The available races are each quite different and deciding which race to play will vary your character drastically. Here is a general breakdown of common healer races: Human: They can do all right, if you are looking for "no weakness" type of healer. However any other healer race has something that makes them better the human. With a prime stat at 21, and the rest at 20, they are not particularly weak in any one region. Storm Giant: Storm giants are mediocre good aligned healers. They have good combat stats, resist non-magical damage, and gain a 10% bonus to ALL skills while on water. Their ability to fight on water, and the lack of dirt-kicking makes water-fighting less of a risk. If you are caught without protective shield up, your size will help you if bashed/bodyslammed. However, they will be lacking in the mana department, so compensate with eq and/or trains. Halfling: Though small in statue and not the most strongest, halfing healers are formidable and in respect to their ability to evade damage and magic. Their great dexterity (25) makes for excellent defense and their natural resistance to magic makes them especially effective against any class that depends on magic to do their dirty work. They do suffer however against other races, especially giants as their small size generally means they get bashed to the ground fairly easily. Suffer similar mana problems as Storm Giants. Dwarves: Dwarves are similar to Haflings in that their magical resistance makes them excellent choice if you mean to shrug off magical damage, and their superb Con (25) means they can do it for even longer. Their Str allows them to dish out a bit more pain before making a run for it. However they posses vulnerability to any water based damage. Also their fear of water greatly reduces their performance on water (-10% to skills). Competitive mana and incredible hps, at the expense of dex. AC gear to compensate. Elves:Probably the most plentiful of the healer races, but with due cause. The elves’ excellent Int, and respectable Wis allow for maximum mana at 50th level, easily equipped to surpass 1200 or so, depending on whether or not you have invested trains in it. Their high dex increases your ability to dodge attacks, but your low Con severely reduces the amount of hp you will have at 50. Investing trains in hps is a sound choice if you plan on living a long time. Their ability to move around undetected is a godsend, helpful when you are unable to gate or word out of a confined area and being chased by someone. A resistance to charm also helps against pesky sleep spells as well. === SKILLS: While not exactly your strong point, there are some skills that will help you immensely. It is recommended that you master most, if not all of your skills. You don’t get many skills, but the ones you do get are quite helpful in their own way. Weapons, regardless of whether or not you are aggressive willl help you cut down on damage received if trained well, and meditation and trance will get your mana regain up, which is handy for those people who have quadruple digit mana scores. Regenerating mana without them become a long, arduous task. Scrolls, wands, and staves will also enable you to use items to cast your spells when mana is scarce. Important Skills: Most of the skills you will gain access to have their own uses, in and out of battle, and will aid you well if practiced to 75% and above. Skills to Master: Although you are no warrior and combat isn’t your strongest point, mastering all of your weapon skills is a sound decision. This will reduce the amount of damage an enemy can inflict if wielding a weapon you are mastered with. Weapons won’t win a fight for you, but it will certainly add to your longevity. The same goes for your defenses; shield block and parry. === SPELLS: Important Spells: Nearly every spell you have should be at least practiced to 75%. You never know when you will need them, and all have their uses. In addition to the obviously important spells such as cure critical, heal, sanctuary, and the various malediction cures (cure blindness, poison etc) these spells are of particular importance: - Sanctuary, Armor, Bless, Detect Invis, Fly, Stoneskin, Shield: These are your staple buffing spells that should always be up and active. Bless effect will depend on the religion you choose however, all of them are "good". While it isn’t necessary to spend time mastering them, chances are, they will master themselves with regular use. - Spirit Shield: A nice spell that will give you the benefits of wearing a shield, without actually wearing one. This will leave your hand open for potions, wands, staves, etc. - Protection: This will cast protection from evil on your, allowing you to better fare against the evil scum of the lands. Their spells and swords will do far less damage against you. - Summon: This spell is as powerful as it is flexible. You can use it to separate groups, summon creatures to request from in a safe place, and to pick the location of your fight. Never underestimate the advantage of choosing where the fight will take place. - Turn Undead, Dispel Undead: These spells are useful only against the unliving, and when used, turn undead has a chance to make the being flee from combat and lower their morale. The first effect is minor, it is the penalty to combat abilities and saves that makes this spell worthwhile against the undead. Another particularly fun use is dispersing a Necromancer's army which is as effective as it is annoying to the Necro. Dispel Undead also is only usable against the unliving, and only as an opening attack. However, the damage inflicted by the spell is immense, and can easily slay a weakened undead with a single casting. - Gate: Easily the best spell in your repertoire. Allows you to travel from one side of the world to other with a single casting. The cost is rather high, and the lag noticeable, but if used to escape combat, you’ll be far enough away from your aggressor that it won’t matter. The spell targets a mob or other player, so it best to be cautious in the even that either has moved from their normal spot. Use this spell on varying mobs. Predictability allows others to plan accordingly. Too many times have healers fallen into the rut of gating to the same creature only to find that their enemy has summoned it into the same room as an aggressive mob. - Word of Recall: Another excellent get away spell. When used during or shortly after combat, you will be lagged, so don’t use it while near your recall point, as sometimes your opponent can walk to your temple and attack you again before the lag even wears off. Master this by spamming it in a norecall room. - Dispel Magic: A highly effective spell. When mastered, it’s chances of succeeding are noticeably higher than when not. Use this spell to strip away all of the handy buff spells your opponent has stacked on, and watch him run away. Master on a sleeping mob. ::fun usage:: If you're fighting a DK with a charmie, cast it on the charmie. - Resurrection: Your bread and butter. When groups are hard to find, this spell will be your friend. You can get experience, as well as Mystic Healing, which increases your hp, mana, and mv gain. However your strength will be drained, sometimes drastically, as numerous resurrection attempts stack. Make sure you are carrying any food that you may need as you may be unable to pick it up after casting the spell. - Esuna: The divine cure-all. This spell shines when you’re low on mana, and lit up like a Christmas tree. Cast it a couple times, and watch all those nasty maledictives vanish. - Divine Intervention: Will vary depending on your religion, but always a handy spell in a given situation. Experiment to see what exactly they do. - Cure Critical, Heal: A godsend. Master on yourself or mobs. A single failed cure spell can spell doom in a sticky situation. - Cure Disease, Cure Blindness, Cure Poison: Extremely handy when fighting opponents with blind, poison and plague. Plague will negate any mana regeneration, so it pays to remove it as soon as possible. Master on yourself or mobs. - Restore Faith: You will eventually know what it’s like to be blasphemed, so why leave other healers to their cruel fate. Practice this, and earn yourself a friend down the road. - Cancellation: Stuck with a bunch of spells that are going to expire at inopportune out times? Cast this and strip them all away, then replace them with fresh ones. Effective management of spells is a primary skill that will serve you well. - Create Food/Water/Spring: Don’t bother with creating water, as when you get access to create spring, it is nigh worthless. This line of spells are a blessing. You never know when you might get stuck someplace without a snack, and don’t want to go through the hassle of getting back after having to go and get food. This alone will make you a desirable addition to a party of people who plan on going far, far away. - Faerie Fire/Fog: Two of the few offensive spells you have. Handy for making thieves, ninjas and rangers visible, but also handy for making your opponents easier to hit. Master Faerie Fire on sleeping mobs. - Curse: A staple offensive spell. This one will ensure that your opponent isn’t going to wink out of combat with the recall potion he had in his pocket. Also makes your spells easier to land and your opponent less apt to smack you around. Master this on a sleeping mob. - Invigorate: Running out of mv sucks. Make sure it doesn’t happen to you or your groupmates with this nifty blessing. Completely and utterly restores your movement. When combined with fly, you can zip all over the place and NEVER get tired. - Calm: What better way to get out of a fight than to get the fight out of your opponent. A successful use of this spell will calm your opponent, stopping the fight, and tacking on a hefty penalty to hit and damage. Even if he does start up again, he’ll be hitting like your little sister. Yay! - Locate Object: Another handy utility spell. Helpful for locating items that you want, but even handier for finding corpses that need to be resurrected! God bless medieval fantasy. - Pass Door: This spell is best used for running away with your hands flailing. Stuck in an area chock full of doors being chased by some rabid dark knight, bent on ‘feeding his blade’? Use this spell to your advantage and watch him get tired of having to open doors as you run straight through them. Doors suck, but thankfully, you don’t need to worry about that with this spell. - Divine Retribution: An exceedingly handy spell against mobs and best used against people who don’t spit out a lot of damage and can’t lag you. Wears out quicker when you move, so keep a close eye on it’s duration. - Barrier: Fighting a ranger and his gazillion pets? How about a necro who seems to have half of Aabarahn fighting alongside him? Use this! Takes the damage you would otherwise receive and instead of whittling away at your hps, it whittles away at your mana. Sure, your mana will run dry a little quicker, but at least you won’t be ground into thick red paste in three rounds. - Holy Water: Very little combat use unless you slip it into an undead’s barrel without his knowing. Otherwise, rather handy portable bless spells! Great at parties. Spells to master: Cure Critical, Heal, Cure Disease, Cure Blindness, Cure Poison, Word of Recall, Faerie Fire, Dispel Magic, Curse, Calm. === WEAPONS: Weapon Choice: Healers don’t rely upon their weapons as most of the other classes do, so your weapon selection will mostly be based on what weapons you anticipate your opponent to wield or just whatever weapon you happen to have handy. Always plan on your opponent using a weapon you don't have access to, if able to. Staffs: While unable to use a staff to its maximum potential, they still make excellent defensive weapons. Whips: Not very defensive, but difficult to disarm and defend against if you are interested in laying the hurting on your opponent. Mace: The default healer weapon. Solid defensive and offensive weapons, but easy to disarm. Noremove maces will serve you well. Flail: Even more offensive than maces, they are also easier to defend with. However, disarming them is easier as well, so if you use a flail against a disarming class, best make it a undisarmable one. === DEFENSES: This is where you excel. A combination of mundane and magical defenses practically guarantees your survivability. It definitely pays to master these in the long run. Defenses: - Shield Block: The most dependable and effective defense regardless of situation. You have it, so you may as well use it. - Parry: The most common defensive skill, EVERY class posses it. Under normal circumstance it is just as effective as shield block but is greatly affected by skill of your and opponent's weapons, weapon's innate defensive style and any adverse situations. Your choice in weapons will drastically effect this, so choose your weapons wisely or else you’ll look like someone beat you with a telephone pole. Defenses vs Class Seeing as how you posses only two defensive skills, your defenses will be used against any class consistently. The only variation will be the spells that you use. Protective Shield, Barrier and Divine Retribution cannot be used together, so based upon what class you anticipate fighting, you will need to choose one from the list. Against lagging classes, (warrior, berserker, etc) protective shield will negate any bashing lags they may attempt to dose you with. Barrier is a sound choice against non-lagging classes that tend to put out a lot of damage per round, while Divine Retribution is a good decision against thieves, shamans, etc. If you have a high dex, and not too worried about being lagged (which has the possibility of dooming a healer), try a barrier and spirit shield combo. It will soak up the damage, while you (provided you don’t get lagged) throw spells like a rabid monkey from New Jersey. === COMBAT AGAINST OTHER PLAYERS: Before: Healers in single combat are good for one thing. You can take a beating and walk out unscathed. That being said, however, you can also be carried out in a jar. It doesn’t take a lot to make a fight go contrary to what you had planned. Before engaging in combat you should run a following checklist through your mind: - Am I using a weapon that I am mastered in? - Is my opponent? - Am I flying? - Am I in sanctuary? - Are my buffs up? - Am I using an appropriate barrier-type (prot shield, barrier, divine ret) spell? If the answer is no to any of these questions, get out of Dodge. Healers fight like quadrepalegic puppies if caught with their pants down, so it pays to flee and prepare if attacked suddenly. Starting: More often than not, you aren’t going to be the one to initiate combat, but if you do, you can begin combat number of ways. The general choices come down to murder, curse, faerie fire, and if your opponent is undead, turn and dispel undead. - murder: good starter against non-counter classes when you wish a free round of attacks on the victim. - curse: good for getting the point across. A cursed opponent can’t recall, and makes him easier to track down and tickle to death. - Dispel Undead: Against undead, there is no better opener. Easily able to whack out an annihilate or better, lay this on a suckhead and watch him run like a girl late for a ballet recital. If the bastard is already heavily wounded, derail him permanently with this wicked, high damage spell. - Turn Undead: Best used in melee combat, but also effective as an opener. When landed successfully, this will lay some hefty penalties on your opponent and make him run like a wee girl. Good to use if the fight is going against you, and you want to make a get away. Beware, however. Turn Undead has significant lag. Don’t use as a last ditch effort to make him flee, chances are he’ll run back in and squash you while you’re still lagged. During: - First and foremost, land curse. This will make the rest of the battle come down to a chasing contest, and if you know the lands like the back of your hand, you’ll have no problem tracking the bugger down. - Never, ever heal in combat. It’s a waste of time. If you’re taking enough damage that you need to use your precious commands to heal it, chances are your taking more than you heal. Flee, and move a four or five rooms away, heal a couple times, and get back in. If the damage you are taking is more than the sum of what you heal, it’s an exercise in futility to try and heal it. - If you’re fighting an undead, try turning it. If you’re successful, you’ll level the field with a nice massacre or so through sanc easily and stack on penalties to hit and dam. - If you’re fighting an undead, and he’s near death, and running, use ‘dispel undead’ to finish him off. One whack with this one will shuffle him loose his mortal coil. - If the fight turns against you, flee and gate or word straight out of combat if you’re not cursed. This is why mastering word is important. You never know when you’ll need to flee the scene quickly. === INVENTORY: Although you have access to nearly every single curative spell in the world, you may, at one point or another, be unable to cast them due to blasphemy. If such is the case, this basic list will give you a healthy amount of backups to rely on. - 2 recall potions (an extra one just in case you find out you’re in a norecall area) - 4-6 gyvell or dark-red potions to cure blindness (being blind sucks) - 1 teleport pill (the ‘push only as a last resort button’ . Use sparingly) - 1 vial or pill of sanctuary - 1 flight scroll - An item that casts esuna. They exist, and are few and far between, but when you’re blasphemied, esuna will be your best friend if it works successfully. === Equipment: Generally, equipment that enhances your AC and saves will serve you well. Hit and Damroll aren’t really too important, unless you’ve got a violent streak, in which case you will need to take a blow to your vital defenses to compensate. There are items out there that provide wicked helpful services to healers, but I’ll leave them for you to find. === SUMMARY: In summary, if you want a class that is welcome in nearly any group, makes a comfortable number of allies as you rank, and can live a really really long time, healer is the choice. Their lack of dependence on variables as fighter types, and unbeatable defensive ability makes them a character that will last. Link to comment Share on other sites More sharing options...
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