How deadly should infected wounds be, on average?

[The Colonel]

arguably some of the pre-modern stuff based on military hospital data may be filtered by the fact that bad casualty collection procedures may mean that those with low HT had already died on the field...

[KarlKost]

Originally Posted by The Colonel

arguably some of the pre-modern stuff based on military hospital data may be filtered by the fact that bad casualty collection procedures may mean that those with low HT had already died on the field...

Im not entirely sure about just how realistic HT rolls to keep alive past HT-1 really are. Also, in wars or were mostly badly wounded or dead, there wasnt much of a middle term, HT had little impact on a grenade explosion or a bullet in the brain.

And, even superficial wounds could end up outright killing you from infection, so I wouldnt put that much weight on saying that the field of battle actively selects higher HT so much

[Varyon]

Originally Posted by KarlKost

Also, in wars or were mostly badly wounded or dead, there wasnt much of a middle term, HT had little impact on a grenade explosion or a bullet in the brain.

HT would help with both of those situations. Neither a grenade nor a bullet to the brain are unavoidably fatal, and avoiding death in those situations is largely what HT does. Granted, neither getting domed by a battle rifle nor jumping on a live grenade are situations you're likely to survive, even with incredible HT, but many serious gunshot wounds are to areas other than the brain, and many serious grenade injuries are complements of the shrapnel hitting somewhere sensitive rather than from someone jumping on a grenade.

Originally Posted by KarlKost

And, even superficial wounds could end up outright killing you from infection, so I wouldnt put that much weight on saying that the field of battle actively selects higher HT so much

That's exactly the sort of situation that would select for higher HT - higher HT means that superficial wound is less likely to get infected, and if it does get infected higher HT means you're more likely to survive it.

[The Colonel]

Originally Posted by KarlKost

Im not entirely sure about just how realistic HT rolls to keep alive past HT-1 really are. Also, in wars or were mostly badly wounded or dead, there wasnt much of a middle term, HT had little impact on a grenade explosion or a bullet in the brain.

Depends on the war - slashing weapon damage (say, from a cavalry sabre) is quite good at incapacitating without killing (usually by cutting through big muscle but missing major blood vessels) and there are plenty of accounts of wounded men lying on the field for days - especially during the Napoleonic Wars - prior to recovery. It was this sort of thing that brought the maggot back IIRC, as surgeons noted that infested wounds were less prone to fester than the maggot free ones (although that finding may only have become official in the Great War ... being monkey-run was normal for medical services prior to the C20).

[Pursuivant]

Originally Posted by The Colonel

arguably some of the pre-modern stuff based on military hospital data may be filtered by the fact that bad casualty collection procedures may mean that those with low HT had already died on the field...

But remember that you had to have had a decent enough HT to get to the battlefield.

Pre-modern basic training and field operations were pretty tough, so anyone with HT 9 or lower was probably dead or disabled by the time the unit got into combat. In some cases, it might be more reasonable to assume HT 11+ for a typical pre-modern soldier.

There's also the law of large numbers. Poor casualty collection effects might average out with a large enough sample size.

In any event, the American Civil War was one of the first conflicts that saw anything like a modern, professional medical corps with dedicated ambulances, casualty collection stations, and evacuation of the wounded from the battlefield via train or steamboat.

[Fred Brackin]

Originally Posted by Pursuivant

B, it might be more reasonable to assume HT 11+ for a typical pre-modern soldier.

t.

Better HT 10 and Fit, Marching infantry needs Fit so they can recover FP fast enough. No level of HT helps you recover FP faster. HT 11 does let expend 1 fP more before you slow to half-speed but so would a pt of FP bought by itself.