Dumpshock Forums > Heal Spell and Damage Overflow

bit_buckethead

Mar 4 2005, 09:35 PM

Here is a question that came up last game. Does a heal spell stop you from taking more damage if it leaves you still in damage overflow. Here is the situation:

The street sammie got into an argument with troll with a LMG. To make a long story short the sammie took 15 points of damage from the argument. The sammie is still alive because he has a body of 7. Now the team didn't have the people to leave behind to biotech him until they could get him to a doc, nor could they carry him with them on the rest of the run. They figured that they would leave him there and pick him up on the way out. So the mage cast a heal on him and got three successes. Giving him back 3 points. They then left him to complete the run. Now for the questions.

1. Does the street sammie continue to bleed out while the spell is being cast? Or does the spell stop the damage from accumulating while casting?
2. Does the heal spell, when complete, stabilize the character? If not, does the character still get a chance to self-stabilize?

ShadowGhost

Mar 4 2005, 09:39 PM

1. - it depends on how long it takes the spell to be cast. If it takes longer than (unaugmented body rating) combat turns, and doesn't stage them down to Deadly (with no overflow), they will take another box of damage.

2. Nope. If you are still in overflow after the spell is cast, you are *really, royally* screwed - only prompt medical attention will help at this point (i.e. hospital or Docwagon)

So you keep gaining another box of damage every (body rating) Combat turns, until they receive medical attention, or die.

Always use Biotech first (stabilizes at Deadly), then use Heal or Treat to further reduce injuries.

QUOTE

Regardless of its success, Biotech cannot help once magical healing has been applied.
pg 129, SR3

Jrayjoker

Mar 4 2005, 09:41 PM

High rating medkits are your friend! Dyinig is bad.

hahnsoo

Mar 4 2005, 09:42 PM

I'm not reading anywhere that Magical healing can stabilize a character other than the Stabilize spell. This would mean if the healing doesn't bring the sammie back to at or below D damage, the sammie is going to die from intravascular blood loss eventually (internal or external bleeding).

On the other hand, the Stabilization procedure with First Aid states that if the roll fails, the character can make a Body check to see if he stabilizes automatically. That's probably what I would use to determine if magical healing stabilizes or not (since Magical Healing is in lieu of First Aid).

At that point, you probably should slap a trauma patch on him.

ShadowGhost

Mar 4 2005, 10:00 PM

QUOTE (hahnsoo @ Mar 4 2005, 09:42 PM)

I'm not reading anywhere that Magical healing can stabilize a character other than the Stabilize spell. This would mean if the healing doesn't bring the sammie back to at or below D damage, the sammie is going to die from intravascular blood loss eventually (internal or external bleeding).

Magical Healing will only "stabilize" a character if it brings his physical damage down to 10 boxes or less (i.e. you're no longer exceeding your condition monitor).

Stabilize Spell may be easier than Heal: TN = 4 + minutes elapsed, and even if you have overflow, you will be stabilized, and not require the body test. Force must be equal or greater than the number of overflow boxes. You will still have to (eventually) heal the damage and still be exceeding the condition monitor (overflow), but you won't gain any more boxes of damage if the spell is successful.

Otherwise, if the spell fails and you still have overflow, you gain more damage every (unaugmented body) Combat Turns.

With Treat/Heal, your TN is 10 - (Essence).

So a Street Sammie with .5 Essence gives you a TN of 10, with each success reducing each box of damage, up to a maximum of the Force of the spell.

tisoz

Mar 5 2005, 01:45 AM

Time to get a new Sammy.

[ Spoiler ]

Smiley

Mar 5 2005, 02:08 AM

Soooo... assume there's a bullet-sponge that's been shot up and is in overflow. Can you magically stabilize him, then use a medkit (gotta love the Savior), THEN use heal?

hahnsoo

Mar 5 2005, 02:18 AM

QUOTE (Smiley)

Soooo... assume there's a bullet-sponge that's been shot up and is in overflow. Can you magically stabilize him, then use a medkit (gotta love the Savior), THEN use heal?

I'd say that stabilize counts as magical healing, so you wouldn't be able to use the Savior medkit or another Heal spell.

ShadowGhost

Mar 5 2005, 02:18 AM

By definition, only "Treat and Heal" spells actually heal damage, while Stablize merely prevents a character who has overflow from dying (getting addition boxes of damage because they're in overflow) - it doesn't heal or remove boxes of damage.

So I'd say you could use Stabilize, then a medkit, then cast heal or treat.

hahnsoo

Mar 5 2005, 02:41 AM

QUOTE (ShadowGhost)

By definition, only "Treat and Heal" spells actually heal damage, while Stablize merely prevents a character who has overflow from dying (getting addition boxes of damage because they're in overflow) - it doesn't heal or remove boxes of damage.

So I'd say you could use Stabilize, then a medkit, then cast heal or treat.

Actually, you are right and I stand corrected. The rules in p127 of SR3, under Magical Healing, specifically state Treat and Heal, but not any other spells. I suppose if you have a hojillion other healing spells that healed boxes of damage that weren't Treat and Heal, you can apply them in succession.

Note that once a character is stabilized, he still has the equivalent of a Deadly wound. Thus, First Aid actually won't have any effect (page 129 from SR3) since the only thing you can do with Biotech with a character that has a Deadly wound is stabilize them. So you could Stabilize, then Heal/Treat.

Smiley

Mar 5 2005, 02:40 AM

HA! Gotta love blatant exploitation of the rules!