For whatever unjustifiable reason, when I first laid eyes on the Healer in the Miniatures Handbook (back in the day), I felt an immediate connection to the class. I have always wanted to play something akin to that class, a pure and uncompromising healer, in Pathfinder. However, I had always felt the classes and archetypes available never really lived up to my expectations. Even the old Healer class doesn't live up to my idea of what it means to be a truly dedicated healer anymore (spoiled by the good folks at Paizo, I suppose). To that end, I have put together the Healer alternate class for Pathfinder. It is an animal friendly class "chuck full" of healing, along with various nonlethal combat options, some "leg room" for skills, and an eventual ascension into a near-deathless beacon of positive energy.
Disclaimer: The healer fluff is not mine, the majority of the mechanics are not mine (thank you open source, Paizo), and I make no claim of ownership over this totally free for anyone to use class. Play test, have fun, go nuts.
I am looking for constructive criticism and fully admit the majority of the mechanics stem from a combination of cleric, druid, and paladin class features (along with inspiration from other classes and archetypes). I have also included a list of favored class bonuses and a list of feats (almost all from Paizo) that pertain to the healer. I know I need help balancing the class and want to avoid the "one trick pony" or "heal bot" approach to healing by offering additional uses of channel energy and lay on hands. Thank you in advance for your time and feedback.
PAz
Healer Table Note: Not so much a table as a written outline of base attack bonus, saving throws, spell progression, and class features at each level. I really need to learn how to format tables on here.
Saves: Good/Poor/Good
Spells: Same spell progression as Cleric/Druid (no domain slots)
Lv Class Features
1 Aura of good, channel positive energy 1d6, combat medic, orisons, spontaneous healing, wild empathy
2 Lay on hands, nonlethal force
3 Channel positive energy 2d6, mercy
4 Remedy
5 Channel positive energy 3d6, healing arts
6 Mercy
7 Channel positive energy 4d6
8 Unicorn companion
9 Channel positive energy 5d6, mercy
10 Pact of peace
11 Channel positive energy 6d6
12 Mercy
13 Channel positive energy 7d6
14 Eternal spark
15 Channel positive energy 8d6, mercy
16 Eternal flame
17 Channel positive energy 9d6
18 Mercy
19 Channel positive energy 10d6
20 Eternal life
Empathetic, a healer is adept both at detecting the ailments of allies and understanding the coarse, unruly thoughts of beasts. Her way with animals wins her friends among otherwise savage creatures of the wild.
The healer provides aid to members of her adventuring company, the soldiers of her religion, or the alliance to which she is pledged. When a battlefield is strewn with wounded allies or an expedition team’s members are sorely hurt, a healer cures the injuries of the faithful and those who have allied themselves with the side of good. A healer might accept commission to escort a company or adventuring party on a dangerous mission, making herself available to cast divine protections and offer divine healing. The healer is much revered for her services, and she may ask her companions for daily praise to her deity—or at least an equal share in any reward garnered after the successful conclusion of the adventure.
Role: Healers are masters of curative magic, outpacing even clerics in this regard. This focus on healing comes with a trade-off. A healer’s spell list is sharply constrained, and it lacks destructive magic and violent spells. While healers have some combat capability and are familiar with basic weapons and some armor, their greatest asset to a party is their ability to remove afflictions and restore the health of injured or fallen comrades.
A healer is easy to spot. She moves about behind an adventuring company or combat unit, applying her divine skills to bring relief to the injured. After she passes, the wounded press forward with renewed vigor, and the fallen may yet rise again.
Alignment: Any good.
Hit Die: d8.
Starting Wealth: 4d6 x 10 gp (average 140 gp).
Class Skills
The healer’s class skills are Craft (Int), Diplomacy (Cha), Handle Animal (Cha), Heal (Wis), Knowledge (nature) (Int), Knowledge (religion) (Int), Perception (Wis), Profession (Wis), Sense Motive (Wis), Spellcraft (Int), and Survival (Wis).
Skill Ranks per Level: 4 + Int modifier.
Class Features
The following are class features of the healer.
Weapon and Armor Proficiency: Healers are proficient with all simple weapons and with light armor.
Additionally, a healer who uses metal armor or any kind of shield is severely hampered. The armor of a healer is restricted by traditional oaths, not simply training. A healer knows how to wear light metal armor and could become proficient with medium or heavy armor, but wearing metal armor or bearing a shield would violate her oath and suppress her healer powers. A healer’s ethos requires a certain vulnerability that allows them to more fully empathize with those in their care. A healer who uses prohibited armor is unable to cast healer spells or use any of their supernatural or spell-like class features while doing so and for 24 hours after the armor is taken off.
Aura of Good (Ex): The power of a healer's aura of good (see the detect good spell) is equal to her healer level.
Spells: A healer casts divine spells which are drawn from the healer spell list given below. A healer must choose and prepare her spells in advance.
To prepare or cast a spell, a healer must have a Wisdom score of 10 + the spell’s level. The Difficulty Class for a saving throw against a healer’s spell is 10 + the spell’s level + the healer’s Wisdom modifier.
Like other spellcasters, a healer can cast only a certain number of spells of each spell level per day. Her base daily spell allotment is given on Table X-X: The Healer. In addition, she receives bonus spells per day if she has a high Wisdom score.
Healers meditate or pray for their spells. Each healer must choose a time when she must spend 1 hour each day in quiet contemplation or supplication to regain her daily allotment of spells. A healer may prepare and cast any spell on the healer spell list, provided that she can cast spells of that level, but she must choose which spells to prepare during her daily meditation.
Channel Positive Energy (Su): A healer can release a wave of positive energy by channeling the power of her faith through her holy symbol. This energy can be used to cause or heal damage, depending on the creatures targeted.
A healer can choose to deal damage to undead creatures or to heal living creatures.
Channeling positive energy causes a burst that affects all creatures of one type (either undead or living) in a 30-foot radius centered on the healer. The amount of damage dealt or healed is equal to 1d6 points of damage plus 1d6 points of damage for every two healer levels beyond 1st (2d6 at 3rd, 3d6 at 5th, and so on). Creatures that take damage from channeled positive energy receive a Will save to half the damage. The DC of this save is equal to 10 + 1/2 the healer's level + the healer's Charisma modifier. Creatures healed by channeled positive energy cannot exceed their maximum hit points total—all excess healing is lost. A healer may channel positive energy a number of times per day equal to 3 + her Charisma modifier. This is a standard action that does not provoke an attack of opportunity. A healer can choose whether or not to include herself in this effect.
A healer must be able to present her holy symbol to use this ability.
Combat Medic (Ex): A healer does not provoke attacks of opportunity when using the Heal skill to stabilize another creature or casting healing spells.
Orisons: Healers can prepare a number of orisons, or 0-level spells, each day, as noted on Table X-X under “Spells per Day.” These spells are cast like any other spell, but they are not expended when cast and may be used again.
Spontaneous Casting: A healer can channel stored spell energy into healing spells that she did not prepare ahead of time. The healer can “lose” any prepared spell that is not an orison spell in order to cast any cure spell of the same level or lower (a cure spell is any spell with “cure” in its name).
Wild Empathy (Ex): A healer can improve the attitude of an animal. This ability functions just like a Diplomacy check made to improve the attitude of a person. The healer rolls 1d20 and adds her healer level and her Charisma modifier to determine the wild empathy check result.
The typical domestic animal has a starting attitude of indifferent, while wild animals are usually unfriendly.
To use wild empathy, the healer and the animal must be able to study each other, which means that they must be within 30 feet of one another under normal conditions. Generally, influencing an animal in this way takes 1 minute but, as with influencing people, it might take more or less time.
A healer can also use this ability to influence a magical beast with an Intelligence score of 1 or 2, but she takes a -4 penalty on the check.
Bonus Languages: A healer's bonus language options include Celestial and Sylvan (the languages of good outsiders and fey, respectively). These choices are available in addition to the bonus languages available to the character because of her race.
Lay on Hands (Su): Beginning at 2nd level, a healer can heal wounds (her own or those of others) by touch. Each day she can use this ability a number of times equal to 1/2 her healer level plus her Charisma modifier. With one use of this ability, a healer can heal 1d6 hit points of damage for every two healer levels she possesses. Using this ability is a standard action, unless the healer targets herself, in which case it is a swift action. Despite the name of this ability, a healer only needs one free hand to use this ability.
Alternatively, a healer can use this healing power to deal damage to undead creatures, dealing 1d6 points of damage for every two levels the healer possesses. Using lay on hands in this way requires a successful melee touch attack that doesn't provoke an attack of opportunity. Undead do not receive a saving throw against this damage.
Nonlethal Force (Ex): At 2nd level, a healer becomes adept at using nonlethal force to subdue her opponents. From this point on, she can deal nonlethal damage with a weapon that normally deals lethal damage (if she so chooses) without taking the normal -4 penalty on the attack roll. In addition, she gains a bonus on nonlethal damage rolls equal to 1/2 her healer level.
Mercy (Su): At 3rd level, and every three levels thereafter, a healer can select one mercy. Each mercy adds an effect to the healer's lay on hands ability. Whenever the healer uses lay on hands to heal damage to one target, the target also receives the additional effects from all of the mercies possessed by the healer. A mercy can remove a condition caused by a curse, disease, or poison without curing the affliction. Such conditions return after 1 hour unless the mercy actually removes the affliction that causes the condition.
At 3rd level, the healer can select from the following initial mercies.
• Fatigued: The target is no longer fatigued.
• Shaken: The target is no longer shaken.
• Sickened: The target is no longer sickened.
At 6th level, a healer adds the following mercies to the list of those that can be selected.
• Dazed: The target is no longer dazed.
• Diseased: The healer's lay on hands ability also acts as remove disease, using the healer's level as the caster level.
• Staggered: The target is no longer staggered, unless the target is at exactly 0 hit points.
At 9th level, a healer adds the following mercies to the list of those that can be selected.
• Cursed: The healer's lay on hands ability also acts as remove curse, using the healer's level as the caster level.
• Exhausted: The target is no longer exhausted. The healer must have the fatigue mercy before selecting this mercy.
• Frightened: The target is no longer frightened. The healer must have the shaken mercy before selecting this mercy.
• Nauseated: The target is no longer nauseated. The healer must have the sickened mercy before selecting this mercy.
• Poisoned: The healer's lay on hands ability also acts as neutralize poison, using the healer's level as the caster level.
At 12th level, a healer adds the following mercies to the list of those that can be selected.
• Blinded: The target is no longer blinded.
• Deafened: The target is no longer deafened.
• Paralyzed: The target is no longer paralyzed.
• Stunned: The target is no longer stunned.
These abilities are cumulative. For example, a 12th level healer's lay on hands ability heals 6d6 points of damage and might also cure fatigued and exhausted conditions as well as removing diseases and neutralizing poisons. Once a condition or spell effect is chosen, it can't be changed.
Remedy (Ex): At 4th level, a healer receives Brew Potion as a bonus feat and learns how to use her training as a healer when concocting curative potions and restorative oils. She may use the Heal skill when crafting a potion with any of the following spells: cure light wounds, cure moderate wounds, cure serious wounds, delay disease, delay pain, delay poison, lesser restoration, neutralize poison, remove blindness/deafness, remove curse, remove disease, remove fear, remove paralysis, remove sickness.
Starting at 10th level, when a healer uses the Heal skill to brew a potion, she may spend double the cost to create 2 identical potions that day instead of just 1. At 15th level, she may spend triple the cost to create 3 identical potions that day.
Healing Arts (Ex): At 5th level, a healer learns how to better supplement her ability to channel positive energy with more mundane healing arts. She gains Skill Focus (Heal) as a bonus feat. Any use of the Heal skill that has a risk of harming the patient (such as extracting a bard) only deals the minimum damage when performed by a healer.
Unicorn Companion (Ex): When a healer attains 8th level, the powers of good recognize her devotion and grant her a celestial unicorn companion as her mount and aide. This mount functions as a druid's animal companion, using the healer's level as her effective druid level. The unicorn, a symbol of healing and purity, serves the healer willingly and unswervingly.
Once per day, as a full-round action, the healer may magically call her companion from the celestial realms in which it resides. The companion immediately appears adjacent to the healer and remains for 2 hours per healer level. Each time the companion is called, it appears in full health, regardless of any damage it may have taken previously. The companion also appears wearing or carrying any gear it had when it was last dismissed. Calling a companion is a conjuration (calling) effect. The companion may be dismissed at any time as a free action. A healer can use this ability once per day at 8th level, and one additional time per day for every 4 levels thereafter, for a total of four times per day at 20th level.
Should a healer's companion die, it immediately disappears, leaving behind any equipment it was carrying. The healer may not call another companion for 30 days or until she gains a healer level, whichever comes first. During this 30-day period, the healer is distraught and takes a -4 penalty on attack rolls and weapon damage rolls.
Pact of Peace (Sp): At 10th level, a healer may form a pact of peace with willing creatures, granting them a measure of her nonlethal power. Each pact requires 10 minutes of uninterrupted meditation with the willing creature to complete but otherwise remains in place permanently until dismissed (by either party) as a free action or violated. While under the effects of a pact of peace, the creature gains the benefits of the healer's nonlethal force class feature, using the healer's effective level. However, the creature must abide by the healer's code of conduct (see code of conduct) or else lose the benefits of the pact of peace (dismissed with no consequence).
Likewise, a healer can force a defeated creature to accept a binding pact of peace as a condition of its surrender, as if using lesser geas. Unlike lesser geas, a healer can affect a creature of any HD who surrenders to her or her companions (no save). Rather than assigning a mission or task, the healer gives the creature a simple set of prohibitions to protect others. Example geas include "Leave this city and do not return" or "Do not attack caravans." The prohibition must be against an area no larger than 300 square miles or one specific group of people (such as a tribe or citizens of a particular city). This ability last 1 month per healer level.
Eternal Spark (Ex): At 14th level, a healer awakens an eternal spark within her soul. A healer brought back to life by any means never gains negative levels as a result.
Eternal Flame (Ex): At 16th level, a healer’s soul becomes an unquenchable and eternal flame of life. A healer gains immunity to death effects, energy drain, and spells or spell-like abilities of the necromancy school.
Eternal Life (Su): At 20th level, a healer no longer ages. She remains in her current age category forever. Even if the healer comes to a violent end, she is reborn 3 days later in a place of her choosing within 20 miles of the place she died (treat as the true resurrection spell). The healer must have visited the place in which she returns back to life at least once. In addition, whenever she channels positive energy or uses lay on hands to heal a creature, she heals the maximum possible amount.
Code of Conduct: A healer may never refuse to heal an ally or a good-aligned creature, and must show a respect for all life and a concern for the dignity of all living creatures. This in no way implies a healer cannot fight or even kill to protect herself or others. It merely means she must show dignity and respect to her opponents, giving them the chance to surrender and, failing that, lay them to rest peacefully.
Ex-Healers: A healer who ceases to be good, who willfully debases or destroys innocent life, or who grossly violates her ethos (such as by refusing to heal an ally or a good-aligned creature) loses all spells and class features (but not proficiency with simple weapons and light armor). She may not progress any further in levels as a healer. She regains her abilities and advancement potential if she atones for her violations (see atonement), as appropriate.
A healer chooses her spells from the following list.
0 Level: create water, deathwatch, detect magic, detect poison, diagnose disease, know direction, light, mending, purify food and drink, read magic, spark, stabilize
1 Level: bless water, cure light wounds, goodberry, protection from evil, remove fear, remove sickness, sanctuary, speak with animals
2 Level: calm emotions, cure moderate wounds, delay disease, delay pain, delay poison, gentle repose, remove paralysis, lesser restoration, status
3 Level: create food and water, cure serious wounds, remove blindness/deafness, remove curse, remove disease, symbol of healing
4 Level: cure critical wounds, deathward, freedom of movement, greater status, neutralize poison, restoration
5 Level: atonement, break enchantment, breath of life, mass cure light wounds, raise dead, true seeing
6 Level: heal, heroes' feast, mass cure moderate wounds, stone to flesh
7 Level: control weather, greater restoration, mass cure serious wounds, regenerate, repulsion, resurrection
8 Level: discern location, holy aura, mass cure critical wounds
9 Level: foresight, gate, mass heal, true resurrection
Instead of receiving an additional skill rank or hit point whenever they gain a level in a Favored Class, some races have the option of choosing from a number of other bonuses, depending upon their Favored Class. The following options are available to the listed race who have healer as their Favored Class, and unless otherwise stated, the bonus applies each time you select the listed Favored Class reward.
• Aasimars: Add +1 to the amount of damage the healer heals with lay on hands, but only when the healer uses that ability on a creature other than herself.
• Dwarves: Reduce the penalty for not being proficient with one weapon by 1. When the nonproficiency penalty for a weapon becomes 0 because of this ability, the healer is treated as having the appropriate Martial or Exotic Weapon Proficiency feat with that weapon.
• Elves: Add +1/2 hit points to the healer’s lay on hands ability (whether using it to heal or harm).
• Gnomes: Add +1/2 to the healer's channeled energy total when healing creatures of the animal, fey, and plant types.
• Half-Elves: Add +1/3 to the amount of damage dealt or damage healed when the healer uses channel energy.
• Half-Orcs: Add +1/2 bonus on Diplomacy, Handle Animal, and wild empathy checks made against targets the healer has healed with a conjuration healing spell or a successful Heal check within the last 24 hours.
• Halflings: Add +1/2 hit point to the healer's lay on hands ability (whether using it to heal or harm).
• Humans: Add +1 to the healer's energy resistance to one kind of energy (maximum +10).
• Orcs: Add +2 to the healer's Constitution score for the purpose of determining when she dies from negative hit points.
• Samsarans: Add +1/2 hit points to the healer's lay on hands ability (whether using it to heal or harm).
• Tieflings: Add +1 to the amount of damage the healer heals with lay on hands, but only when the healer uses that ability on herself.
The following feats pertain to the healer class.
Channeled Revival (General)
You can expend a large portion of your channeling power to reverse death itself.
Prerequisite: Channel energy 6d6 (positive energy).
Benefit: As a full-round action that provokes attacks of opportunity, you can expend three uses of your channel energy class features to restore a dead creature to life as if you had cast the breath of life spell.
Extra Channel (Channeling)
You can channel divine energy more often.
Prerequisite: Channel energy class feature.
Benefit: You can channel energy two additional times per day.
Extra Lay on Hands (General)
You can use your lay on hands ability more often.
Prerequisite: Lay on hands class feature.
Benefit: You can use your lay on hands ability two additional times per day.
Special: You can gain Extra Lay on Hands multiple times. Its effects stack.
Extra Mercy (General)
Your lay on hands ability adds an additional mercy.
Prerequisites: Lay on hands class feature, mercy class feature.
Benefit: Select one additional mercy for which you qualify. When you use lay on hands to heal damage to one target, it also receives the additional effects of this mercy.
Special: You can gain this feat multiple times. Its effects do not stack. Each time you take this feat, select a new mercy.
Greater Mercy (General)
Your mercy has incredible recuperative properties.
Prerequisites: Cha 13, lay on hands class feature, mercy class feature.
Benefit: When you use your lay on hands ability and the target of that ability does not have any conditions your mercies can remove, it instead heals an additional +1d6 points of damage.
Healer's Touch (Achievement)
The magic of life flows through your body like a river.
Prerequisites: Cure a cumulative total of 1,000 points of damage for other creatures using healing spells. Dealing damage slows progress towards this goal achievement; for every 1 point of damage you deal to another creature, reduce your cumulative healing total by 2.
Benefit: When you cast a healing spell to heal a target other than yourself, the spell is maximized as though using the Maximize Spell effect. This does not increase your casting time for the spell. When you cast a healing spell to damage a target, the spell is not maximized but its saving throw DC increases by +4.
Healing Hands (General)[This is an original feat, also need help balancing it]
You can channel ambient positive energy through your hands to aid you in your mundane healing arts.
Prerequisites: Cha 13, Heal 5 ranks, lay on hands class feature.
Benefits: You may use stabilize as a spell-like ability usable at will. In addition, you are always treated as if you had a healer's kit. Whenever you use the Heal skill to successfully treat deadly wounds, you add your Charisma modifier (if positive) to the amount of hit points restored.
Improved Channel (Channeling)
Your channeled energy is harder to resist.
Prerequisite: Channel energy class feature.
Benefit: Add 2 to the DC of saving throws made to resist the effects of your channel energy ability.
Quick Channel (General)
Your divine energies flash with dazzling speed.
Prerequisites: Knowledge (religion) 5 ranks, channel energy class feature.
Benefit: You may channel energy as a move action by spending 2 daily uses of that ability.
Radiant Charge (General)
When you charge, you do so with the power of faith.
Prerequisite: Lay on hands class feature.
Benefit: When you hit with a charge attack, you can expend all of your remaining uses of lay on hands to deal extra damage equal to 1d6 per use of lay on hands expended + your Charisma bonus. This damage comes from holy power and is not subject to damage reduction, energy immunity, or energy resistance.
Reward of Grace (General)
When you lay on hands, divine energy ripples through you, granting you grace.
Prerequisite: Lay on hands class feature.
Benefit: Each time you use your lay on hands ability, you gain a +1 sacred bonus on all attack rolls for 1 round.
Reward of Life (General)
When you lay on hands, you are also healed.
Prerequisite: Lay on hands class feature.
Benefit: Each time you use your lay on hands ability to heal a creature other than yourself, you heal a number of hit points equal to your Charisma bonus. This ability has no effect if you use lay on hands to harm undead.
Selective Channeling (Channeling)
You can choose whom to affect when you channel energy.
Prerequisites: Cha 13, channel energy class feature.
Benefit: When you channel energy, you can choose a number of target in the area up to your Charisma modifier. These targets are not affected by your channeled energy.
Normal: All targets in a 30-foot radius burst are affected when you channel energy. You can only choose whether or not you are affected.
Turn Undead (General)
Calling upon higher powers, you cause undead to flee from the might of your unleashed divine energy.
Prerequisite: Channel positive energy class feature.
Benefit: You can, as a standard action, use one of your uses of channel positive energy to cause all undead within 30 feet of you to flee, as if panicked. Undead receive a Will save to negate the effect. The DC for this Will save is equal to 10 +1/2 your healer level + your Charisma modifier. Undead that fail their save flee for 1 minute. Intelligent undead receive a new saving throw each round to end the effect. If you use channel energy in this way, it has no other effect (it does not heal or harm nearby creatures).
Ultimate Mercy (General)
By using lay on hands, you can bring the dead back to life.
Prerequisites: Cha 19, Greater Mercy, lay on hands class feature, mercy class feature.
Benefit: You can expend 10 uses of lay on hands to bring a single dead creature you touch back to life as a raise dead spell with a caster level equal to your healer level. You must provide the material components for raise dead or choose to accept 1 temporary negative level; this level automatically goes away after 24 hours, never becoming a permanent negative level, and cannot be overcome in any way except by waiting for the duration to expire.
Word of Healing (General)
Using the same divine energy as your lay on hands ability, you can heal others at a distance.
Prerequisite: Lay on hands class feature.
Benefit: You may use our lay on hands to heal another creature at a range of 30 feet as a standard action that does not provoke an attack of opportunity. You must be able to speak and have a free hand to use this ability. The target heals half the amount they would have healed if you had touched them, but gains the benefits of your mercies as normal.
I'm not really big on a class whose animal companion is contingent on a life of chastity.
Where does it say that in the build?
I know in the description for the unicorn it says "On rare occasions, lone unicorns without mates or whose partners have been slain have been known to adopt young women of exceptionally pure virtue as surrogates, allowing the women to ride on their backs and becoming their guardians and protectors for life. This bond generally ends amiably if the woman becomes more committed to someone else—such as a lover or child—giving rise to the myth that unicorns only befriend virgins." but no where does it say the rider has to live a life of chastity. Likewise, because a healer could be either male or female, it would stand to reason the celestial unicorn companion serves them out of a devoted sense of respect for their commitment to healing (not because they are virgins or women).
I do concede the life oracle has a lot going on for it and is far more versatile when it comes to straight up spellcasting. They have a variety of mysteries that provide benefits on par with the healer class I have put together and a few very unique abilities I decided not to even try to emulate. While I believe one could make a great healing character using the life oracle, I had a slightly less mystified image in mind for the version I am presenting here.
I made a Healer character once. I had a back story worked out where he was born a noble, became disenchanted with that, yada yada, and took to roaming the wilds as a prophet - preaching and healing the sick. Never got the chance to play it. Anyhow, I liked the concept of the class, but the execution wasn't so great. So, here's what I think of your take.
1) Alignment: it is time to shed this restriction, or at least change it to "Any non-evil". A clever role-player will have a little more room to work with.
2) Armor: the metal vs non-metal thing is an unnecessary complication. Drop it.
3) Aura of Good/Wild Empathy/Bonus Languages: level 1 is pretty loaded up, and these really aren't needed. I get why you're throwing them in, but I feel the class should open up to new ways to play it. I would create some class features that are useful in a general way, instead of ones that steer the player towards a specific kind off healer.
4) Channel/Spontaneous Casting/Lay on Hands, Mercy: these are all good fits.
5) Combat Medic: I would like this better as a class feature not gained at 1st level. A good level 1 might be "+4 AC against AoO provoked by using the Heal skill or a Cure spell, and +4 to concentration checks to cast Cure on defensive."
6) Non-Lethal Force: its a bit odd, but I like it.
7) Remedy: this is without doubt the best thing I've seen in this conversion, and you should expand on it. One of the complaints I have seen about the healing thing is that you're fixing something after it happens, when it is better to stop if from happening in the first place. Perhaps a higher level version of Remedy is used to create elixirs/oils that are drank/applied before battle and gives a save bonus, or DR, or immunity, or contingency healing. You could go lots of ways with it. I might also add a bonus like the alchemist has, where the healer adds his level to Heal checks made to craft items.
8) Healing Arts: this would be better at an earlier level.
9) Unicorn Companion: this made absolutely no sense to me in the first place. Drop it.
10) Pact of Peace: I really like the second half of this. You should keep working on it. Take a look at the Mark Of Justice spell.
11) Eternal misc: good stuff.
I always liked the idea of the healer class, but the execution of the class was pretty terrible. I had thought of trying to convert it, but felt the energy used for doing so would have been wasted. Why? Because people hate being the "healer" role of the group, and asking a cleric, druid, or oracle (maybe even an alchemist or witch or another class with cure spells) to give a heal is usually met with annoyance, as they feel their spell slots are better used for damage or status effects, and that you can wait for combat to end and be poked with a CLW wand.
I liked what I saw of your take on it in my quick pass over it, and will probably look more into it tomorrow when I have more time. I would agree with a lot of the suggestions of Ciaran Barnes, except for the alignment part, which I feel fits the idea of a healer (only 5 out of 19 pathfinder divinities with the Healing domain are non-good, with 2 LE, 1 NE, 1 N, and 1 LN).
1) Alignment: it is time to shed this restriction, or at least change it to "Any non-evil". A clever role-player will have a little more room to work with.
I could easily see healer as non-evil, but the focus on healing and lack of destructive spells lends itself more to an altruistic worldview. I have my own issues with the current alignment system, so I don't put too much stock in alignment (although I carried this alignment over from the original healer class from the miniature's handbook.
Likewise, the "any good" helps to thematically power the aura of good, celestial bonus language, and positive energy abilities of the healer. Not a good reason, but it is the reason I kept that as well.
2) Armor: the metal vs non-metal thing is an unnecessary complication. Drop it.
I agree. I carried this over from the original healer class from the miniature's handbook. While I do feel right keeping the shield restriction and heavier armor restrictions, the metal vs. non-metal is a little overkill.
3) Aura of Good/Wild Empathy/Bonus Languages: level 1 is pretty loaded up, and these really aren't needed. I get why you're throwing them in, but I feel the class should open up to new ways to play it. I would create some class features that are useful in a general way, instead of ones that steer the player towards a specific kind off healer.
Yes. The class is very front loaded. Part of this comes from the "hidden" abilities such as aura of good, orisons, and spontaneous casting. Yes, they are a part of the class but they are really just an extension of the divine power the healer wields. As mentioned before with alignments, aura of good is not a very important part of the class but it fit thematically if the healer was a "any good."
The bonus languages were added after the fact as fluff mechanics, so they can stay or go without too much trouble.
Wild empathy, on the other hand, is a class features I feel fits the tone of a nurturing character and provides a mechanical method for dealing with animal encounters. Consider it a step away from the standard "heal bot" and a reflection of the healer's ethos to treat all living creatures with dignity and respect. Sort of hard to respect a wild animal if your only options are to fight it or run from it. With wild empathy, the healer has a third (better) option.
4) Channel/Spontaneous Casting/Lay on Hands, Mercy: these are all good fits.
Glad you felt they fit. I was worried stacking full channel with full lay on hands/mercy, but I felt it was an important part of the healing mechanic.
5) Combat Medic: I would like this better as a class feature not gained at 1st level. A good level 1 might be "+4 AC against AoO provoked by using the Heal skill or a Cure spell, and +4 to concentration checks to cast Cure on defensive."
I included it at first level because the Dedicated Healer cleric archetype gains the same ability at 1st level and I wanted the healer to be able to stay on par with that. Not provoking for casting healing spells early on is a little powerful since other archetypes offer similar abilities at higher levels, so I might look at kicking it up to the mid levels.
6) Non-Lethal Force: its a bit odd, but I like it.
I looked at similar mechanics and tried to build something that would give the healer a combat option for dealing with opponents without killing them. Because their selection of weapons are limited and their attack bonus is poor, I know fighting isn't going to be their bread and butter. With dealing nonlethal damage and a damage bonus equal to 1/2 their level I thought it would make combat at least an interesting option to consider. I am sure cleaver players can take full advantage of such a simple mechanic as well.
7) Remedy: this is without doubt the best thing I've seen in this conversion, and you should expand on it. One of the complaints I have seen about the healing thing is that you're fixing something after it happens, when it is better to stop if from happening in the first place. Perhaps a higher level version of Remedy is used to create elixirs/oils that are drank/applied before battle and gives a save bonus, or DR, or immunity, or contingency healing. You could go lots of ways with it. I might also add a bonus like the alchemist has, where the healer adds his level to Heal checks made to craft items.
I based this ability in part off of my frustration with the Master Craftsman feat and my interest in the magic item crafting process and Witch's Brew Hex. I figured Heal would be a safe skill to use in order to concoct healing potions and giving the player access to a bonus Item Creation feat at 4th isn't very game-breaking. I limited the list of potions to the spells from the healer's spell list to avoid people using the Heal skill to craft potions that fall outside of the purview of the restorative arts.
I could easily see this ability expanded, but I would want to be careful with what was allowed to maintain a balance of power in the mechanic. An additional bonus to Heal checks when crafting potions could be implemented, but the check DCs are so low, it wouldn't really help that much.
8) Healing Arts: this would be better at an earlier level.
Perhaps exchange this with combat medic?
9) Unicorn Companion: this made absolutely no sense to me in the first place. Drop it.
I had toyed around with something called "Solace" which would be a reward from the powers of good to help you in addressing one of the four great evils of the world: death, famine, pestilence, or war. Basically, you would pick one and gain a benefit based on your choice. Solace against Death would give you benefits when fighting undead. Solace against Famine would make it so you didn't have to eat or drink to survive and could expend a class feature (lay on hands?) to provide nourishment for a touched target for 24 hours. Solace against Pestilence would render you immune to disease and allow your channel positive energy and lay on hands to remove disease (provided you don't already have the ability from your mercy). Solace against War would create a constant sanctuary spell effect around you and maybe calm emotions with lay on hands or channel energy.
Something like that would provide more character options and perhaps fit a little better thematically.
10) Pact of Peace: I really like the second half of this. You should keep working on it. Take a look at the Mark Of Justice spell.
You can thank Paizo for the bulk of that mechanic with the Redeemer paladin archetype for half-orcs. I added the first part as a means of helping the party subdue rather than outright kill opponents (especially if surrendered creatures can be magically compelled to "knock it off"). I will look at reworking the mechanics because I do love me the mark o' justice. "Justice is not blind, but if you mess around with this mark on your forehead... YOU will be."
11) Eternal misc: good stuff.
I am worried Eternal Flame might be a little overpowered because it grants immunity to necromancy spells and spell-like abilities. Eternal life is a little heavy but a solid cap for a life dedicated towards healing.
I figured this would be an easier way to show the changes I've made to the class based on feedback.