Healing

This god is the champion of doctors, medicine and other healing functions. He cures the sick and passes on his healing knowledge to his mortal doctor/priests. He is the enemy of disease and injury, and no admirer of war.

The priesthood is devoted to healing and are not allowed by their order to turn away a patient in need; if they can help him, they must.

Lesser gods of this attribute are gods of specific types of healing. One might be a god of combat injuries, one a god who heals illnesses of the mind. The god of childbirth could be considered a lesser god of healing.

Healing gods are as likely to be male as female.

The priests of this god are on good terms with the priests of Birth/Children, Dawn, Guardianship, Light, Love, Peace, and Sun. The priests of this god dislike the priests of Death, Disease, and Evil.

Alignment: The deity is lawful good. The priests may be any sort of good alignment. The flock may be of any neutral or good alignment.

Minimum Ability Scores: Wisdom 10, Intelligence 10. Wisdom or Intelligence 16 means +5% experience; Wisdom and Intelligence 16 means +10% experience.

Races Allowed: Dwarves, elves, gnomes, half-elves, halflings, humans.

Nonweapon and Weapon Proficiencies: Nonweapon Proficiencies Required: Healing. Nonweapon Proficiencies Recommended: Herbalism, Reading/Writing, Religion. Weapon Proficiencies Required: None. Nonweapon Proficiency Group Crossovers: Priest, General.

Duties of the Priest: Guidance, Marriage. Curing the sick and injured. Education: Teaching the flock, indeed anyone who is interested, the arts of medicine, sanitation, and healing. Missions to sickness-infested lands to help in the healing process. Vigilance against the activities of the priests of the god of disease.

Weapon and Armor Restrictions: Weapons Permitted: Lasso, mancatcher, net, quarterstaff. Armor Permitted: All non-metal armor; no shields. Oriental Campaigns: Also bo stick. All together, these constitute Poor combat abilities.

Other Limitations: Priests of the god of Healing must wear a symbol indicating their calling whenever they appear in public. They may not ever deliberately take sentient life. (If they do, it constitutes a "betrayal of goals" from the "Priests and Punishment" section of the "Role-Playing" chapter.)

Spheres of Influence: Major Access to All, Creation, Divination, Healing, Necromantic, Protection, Summoning. Minor Access to Animal, Charm, Guardian, Plant, Sun, Weather.

Powers: Immunity (as per the Designing Faiths chapter) to all poisons and diseases, but the priest only gets a +2 to his saving throw. Laying On of Hands (same as the Paladin ability). Soothing Word (Designing Faiths chapter). Turn Undead (same as the Cleric ability). At 3rd Level: Analysis, Identification (as per the Designing Faiths chapter) of diseases and poisons; on a Intelligence check (which the DM may modify according to the commonness or rarity of the ailment), the priest will know what sort of disease or poison afflicts his patient.

Followers and Strongholds: The followers are received at 7th level, and consist of three third-level priests and six first-level priests of the same priesthood, plus thirty Normal Men and Women, all of whom must have the Healing nonweapon proficiency, who act as chirurgeons (doctors) and nurses. The priest may take the following on adventures: Two priests (only one of whom may be third-level) and two Normal Men and Women. The priesthood will pay for half of the cost of stronghold construction at 7th level. The stronghold must act as a hospital for the nearest community, and may turn away no patient who has suffered a life-threatening injury or disease.

Possible Symbols: Snakes, Staff.

Notes: Priests of this order are supposed to use nondamaging weapons. However, since the staff is their symbol, many of them end up learning how to use one as a weapon, and the god gives his assent to this knowledge by not punishing them for using the staff in a damaging way.

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