Healers & Healing Magic

This rather long page has been divided into sections to make it more digestable.

The term "healer" can apply to individuals with varying skills. Human healers range from those who heal exclusively by magic to those who heal exclusively through non-magical techniques such as herbs and specialized care. (The latter type of healer may become an herbalist.) Most healers fall somewhere between these two extremes, using other methods to supplement and support whatever talent they may have for healing magic. Healing magic is a type of life magic, and as such it reacts different to and for different races. We will begin by addressing healing magic as it applies to human healers and then broaden the discussion to include elves and dwarves.

Healing magic, like life magic, exists in all living things. One property of life magic is that it always has a unique "signature" that indicates its source. Every individual's signature is slightly different. Humans are distinct from elves, for example, and people are distinct from animals or plants. The signature of each race is related to the signature of its specialty—wood elves would look much like trees to a life mage, for example. Humans are like people, even if the reverse is not true. Healers can distinguish between signatures better than others, because specifics types of healing magic work better than others.

The Actual Process: Technique & Power Sources

The key point here is that the life magic of all things is slightly different. A healer primarily uses her patient's and her own healing magic. Ideally, she uses her magic to slip in and direct, guide, and (if necessary) power the patient's magic. Healing worked through the patient is more effective and less prone to complications, as this way the magic is entirely compatible with the patient's magical signature. Everyone has some level of natural shielding against outside influence on their magic, but a properly skilled and trained healer can insinuate herself through the shields of most patients. If necessary, the healer can feed extra power through the patient from external sources.

It is possible for a healer to use external energy directly on the patient, but there are drawbacks to this approach. First, it draws more energy from the healer, and she risks wearing out herself along with the patient. (This is a risk healers must take whenever they attempt major healings.) Second, the patient may resist the magic. Direct external healing works the best with open wounds, as the resistance has already been broken.

I've hinted that the healer may draw on other sources of healing magic. Ideally, she will use the patient's magic first, then her own, then magic from other people (particularly those of the same race as the patient), then animals, plants, and anything with life magic. The further the source is removed from the magical nature of the patient, the more the healer must "filter" the magic before using it.

Instincts and Alternate Methods

Most healers know little about the technical workings of magic (unlike mages, who receive intensive instruction in magical theory), instead understanding instinctively how to use their powers. Human healers in particular receive little formal training in working healing magic, beyond perhaps learning general rules and practices. Many of these healers, if they can see life magic, either cannot use it or consider it useless. (Healers are characterized by a devotion to their profession, which is truly a calling for them. Rare is the healer can avoid healing.)

A healer-by-magic would explain that certain plants (etc.) have particular types of life magic that can be used for healing. Healers and herbalists use these plants to make medicines that work without the active invocation of healing magic.

Now, onto healing different races...

Humans

Humans are unquestionably better than any race at healing people. Your typical highly-trained elven healer would be in awe of a talented human healer, who could work feats without hesitation that he (the elf) could never dream of. Human healing abilities extend to other races, usually quite effectively. This gift does not come entirely without cost, as ordinary humans' automatic self-healing abilities are relatively weak. (Possibly other races have self-healing capabilities to compensate for their lack of healers.)

Dwarves

Dwarves fall on the opposite end of the spectrum. There is practically no such thing as a dwarven healer. First, few dwarves have the ability (unless it's to heal the earth, in which case they're not telling), and even if they did, few dwarves ever need the serves of a magical healer. Dwarves have incredible self-healing abilities, which mostly translate into indestructible immune systems and instinctive knowledge of how to fix their own bodies. The average dwarf can not only set his own broken arm, but also hold it in place until someone else can wrap it. For anything they cannot handle themselves, dwarves can always turn to others, usually elves, although healers find that dwarves are resistant to outside healing. (If dwarves are amazed by human healing abilities, they'll never say so.)

Elves

Elves fall somewhere in between. They do have better self-healing capabilities than humans, but they are not even close to being in the same league with dwarves. Human healers would find an elf remarkably easy to heal, as elven healing magic tends to require little more than encouragement and direction to heal the patient. Also, elves have the remarkable ability to replace spent healing magic with magic from nearby plants or animals, depending on the type of elf. This exchange does not require conscious control—it happens automatically.

Elven healers may have minor people-healing abilities, but they mainly rely on herbs and medicines. Elven herb lore is incredibly advanced, and elven healers receive extensive scholarly training. Elves have another type of healers who heal not people but plants and animals, depending on their specialty. For example, wood elves have tree healers who work exactly like regular healers, except they heal trees instead of people. A tree healer might be able to have a minor effect on a person, just as a people healer might be able to have some effect on a tree, but in general they stick to their own field.

The Limits of Life Magic

You may recall that life magic is magic that every living thing actually generates itself. (As opposed to the magic that is inherent in all creation.) One of the great magical debates concerns the question of the limits of life magic-is it possible to drain something's life magic completely? The question is mainly academic because, although life magic never stops generating, so theoretically one shouldn't run out, people, plants, and animals cannot survive without a certain level of life magic. At a certain point, there is no longer enough magic to control minor but necessary defenses, and the subject dies or goes into deep shock.

Healers are keenly aware of the limits of life magic. Supposedly, they constantly replace lost magic from external sources, but there is always the risk of losing too much, too fast, or running out of external power to channel. A healer will almost always drain herself rather than killing things around her, resulting in debilitating weakness, loss of consciousness, temporary or permanent burnout, or even death. Every healer knows that some patients cannot be saved, yet she is all-to-frequently tempted to stretch her limits, and sometimes she may attempt the impossible. Even if she intends to stop before it is too late, she may become lost in the healing. For this reason, healers are encouraged to perform major works only in the company of others. Healers are the ideal backup, but mages and individuals who can sense the flow of power will do, and, if nothing else, a non-magical monitor is better than no monitor at all.

Speaking of limits, no, healing magic cannot resurrect the dead. (Which I'm sure is horribly disappointing.)

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