Healing Skills
Heal skill enables characters to perform two distinct actions: treat fatal wounds and cure diseases or poisons. Magical healing poses its primary competition; however, unlike mundane weapons which provide additional benefits upon mastery of its respective skillset, any player who mastered mundane healing cannot gain any significant advantage by investing additional resources into Heal skill development.
At 1st level, this can be an extremely significant issue; at that level a character’s financial resources may even make purchasing even a wand to heal light wounds more expensive than they can afford. By 2nd level however, their character could already possess basic masterwork gear and possibly spells that significantly change Heal as an option.
Unfortunately, even once unlocked, Heal is not particularly competitive with magical healing; for example, unlocking it to allow treating deadly wounds to restore ability score damage makes it comparable with lesser restoration wands – yet costs feats and major class features which is substantial for an early-level rogue character.
Heal can still be useful, provided no competing option exists. A player could use Heal to identify properties of drugs and pharmaceuticals used during some adventure paths that provide custom uses for this skill; but generally speaking it shouldn’t be seen as a replacement for magical healing; therefore parties without access to magic should consider other means for entering the game. There may be instances when Heal might prove useful; in such situations it would generally best serve its first aid aspect of healing an ally in need; otherwise it’s not an adequate replacement.
Combat Skills
Even without magical healing powers, natural healers can still be essential members of any party in combat. You have several options for combat healing without medical kits or items: cat tail plants can act as antiseptics while using Old Man’s Beard Lichen wraps can prevent infections.
But once Heal is unlocked, treating deadly wounds becomes a full-round action that can be performed as often as desired – and with the Healer’s Hands feat active, treating deadly wounds may even restore ability score damage healed during their healing. Though taking five levels in Heal might seem expensive for rogues considering it locks them out from taking Signature Skill Specializations; its true benefit can only be realized after making significant sacrifices elsewhere in your character’s development.
Resurrect allies during combat using a lesser restoration wand; however, this is more of a last-ditch option as it only heals one attack worth of damage at a time. Since healing abilities offer far more potency, reserve this method only as an emergency measure.
