About Healing Rates

Have a lot of work to do right now, so this will be a short one and blogging in general will be somewhat slow the next few days...

Have been thinking about healing rates lately. My default is how it's done in HackMaster (which is emulating AD&D 2E, so it might have been done there already), but it doesn't hurt to write it down on this here blog.

Under normal travel circumstances (being in the wilderness, with no harsh conditions like rain or heat, etc.), the healing rates are 1 hp per level, but only when resting 24 hours (a full rest). Just with the eight hours sleep it's 1 hp per day. Several conditions will improve these rates, though*:

• If someone has medical experience or is good with healing herbs or something down that line and has the tools and medicine needed, it's 1 hp more.
• Having someone in the group that is able to produce something to eat beyond what iron rations might offer (like a cook), the rate is again increased by 1 hp.
• Comfort is important, so if the characters have a roof over their head and a cozy fire going, it's one more hp they can count on.
• If two of those conditions are met, it's another plus 1 hp per rest.
• If all those conditions are met, they heal 2 hp instead of one for cooking, comfort and medical care.

So a character level 3 will, under ideal circumstances, heal 9 hp per full days rest. Staying at an inn, but without medical attention would heal 6 hp per day, etc..

I feel it's necessary for characters to have those options. For one, it makes healing not only the clerics business. So if a group is trucking without one (or lost him deep in the dungeon...), they'll still have a fair chance to heal relatively fast. It's also a bit more engaging if they have a chance to improve their conditions with a palpable effect.

What I'd really like to know, though, is how y'all handle healing rates. So please feel free to comment!

*We use a loose interpretation of the skills presented in the Rules Cyclopedia, so to be a cook, they need to have the skill, etc.. But it shouldn't be this hard to argue if skills aren't used, I guess.