Minor wounds and healing

[NineDaysDead]

Originally Posted by Qcumber

The issue for me is being able to model this realistically, as the campaign I am planning will involve the healing process as a significant part of the plot from time to time.

Try this rule from 3rd Ed:

Originally Posted by Compendium 2, page 156

Natural Recovery: The victim rolls vs. HT, as per p. B128, but rolls separately for each wound. Each successful roll reduces that wound by 1 point. This will, of course, cause much faster healing in characters with many minor wounds. If this bothers you, allow the roll only every second or third day, or impose severe modifiers for any environment other than absolute rest in a quiet and sanitary location.

Using this rule I would only allow a HT every 3rd day.

Originally Posted by Bio-Tech, Page 139

A patient who doesn’t rest sufficiently suffers a -3 penalty on his HT roll to regain lost HP for that day.

I wouldn't use -3, as it means people with high HT or Rapid healing don't really benefit from rest. Instead I would triple the time required, based on an effective skill of 10 succeeding 50% of the time, but an effective skill of 7 succeeding 16.2% of the time. Coupled with the above rule, thats 1 HT roll every 9 days if you don't rest sufficiently, with HT 10 that will average healing 1 HP per wound every 18 days.

[Stupid Jedi]

Originally Posted by Asta Kask

I think the only true answer to that is: "A useful abstraction of something which is far too complex to deal with in a realistic fashion."

The best answer yet! I also track individual wounds and allowed them to heal separately with daily HT rolls. However, I apply a penalty to HT rolls based on the total damage taken; each full multiple of HP/2 is -1 to HT rolls for recovery to a maximum of HT-4 (at -1 x HP). This slows recovery for characters with really serious injuries, or multiple minor ones, which seems realistic to me. The more serious the injury the more likely it is to suffer complications. It also covers the problem of healing too quickly from multiple minor wounds, which are also more problematic to heal from. I read that you need an extra 25 to 30 calories per kg of body mass when healing, which places a limit to how fast a body can heal from multiple wounds because the overall trauma is greater.

To offset these penalties, I heartily encourage my players to take Rapid Healing! Luck is also useful for healing rolls!

[Qcumber]

Originally Posted by Stupid Jedi

The best answer yet! I also track individual wounds and allowed them to heal separately with daily HT rolls. However, I apply a penalty to HT rolls based on the total damage taken; each full multiple of HP/2 is -1 to HT rolls for recovery to a maximum of HT-4 (at -1 x HP). This slows recovery for characters with really serious injuries, or multiple minor ones, which seems realistic to me. The more serious the injury the more likely it is to suffer complications. It also covers the problem of healing too quickly from multiple minor wounds, which are also more problematic to heal from.

Thanks. I like this rule and will probably be using it; or something very similar.

Originally Posted by Stupid Jedi

I that you need an extra 25 to 30 calories per kg of body mass when healing, which places a limit to how fast a body can heal from multiple wounds because the overall trauma is greater.

Any illness or injury requires extra energy and therefore a greater calorific intake. As long as the body is supplied with the correct nutrients, along with rest, graded exercise and good wound care, then injuries should heal well. I don't see why multiple minor wounds should not heal equally well as individual wounds as long as these parameters are met. However, if the person has a serious wound alongside minor ones, then this could affect the healing as the patient may not be able maintain sufficient dietary intake etc. Other factors such as local or systemic infection would also slow the healing process considerably.

[Qcumber]

Another thought on this topic is the nature of the cut. Clean, surgical-like wounds should heal quickly and well. Conversely if the cut results in jagged trauma so that the skin/underlying tissues cannot be well aligned, then the healing may be considerably delayed. Perhaps some weapon types should have additional wounding modifiers to reflect this. Thinking out loud; perhaps axes would produce less surgical-like wounds and thus longer healing process? Anyone know how axe versus sword wounds might compare?

[Lord Carnifex]

Originally Posted by Qcumber

Anyone know how axe versus sword wounds might compare?

If you want to get this finicky, I'm not sure sword vs. axe is what you're looking for. I suspect that sharper edges would create cleaner wounds, and the better measure of sharpness in GURPS is probably weapon quality. A Fine or Very Fine weapon might be considered to deal cleaner wounds.

[Flyndaran]

In reality every injury is unique.
I once fell down stairs and couldn't move one leg at all for two days without excruciating pain. After two days being immobile, it suddenly felt better without any lingering issue.
(I know that I was a weird moron for not going to the hospital, but I was lucky.)

In the end it depends on what makes the game feel real to you, not what would be a truly realistic simulation.

[Kromm]

Missing HP indicate that you are still experiencing the effects of blood loss and/or a shock to the system (generating toxins, clots, etc.), and that the effects are sufficient to strain your vital organs. Once you have had enough time to replace the blood, detoxify, and generally get your system back inside its normal operating parameters, you are no longer missing HP. You may well still have soreness, bruises, scrapes, scabs, and even small holes in you . . . but those are symptoms of having recently lost HP, not indicators that you're presently missing HP. Things like broken bones and organ damage require some basic HP of injury to cause them, but persist in a manner unrelated to HP, and can go on being a problem for some time after you've fully recovered HP; see p. B422 and Martial Arts, pp. 138-139.

A good way to look at things: FP represent short-term winding and lost capacity for work, recovering in minutes to hours; HP represent medium-term blood loss and tissue toxicity, recovering in days to weeks; and the results on p. B422 and on pp. 138-139 of Martial Arts represent long-term structural damage, recovering in months to never. Sufficient FP loss will cause HP loss, and sufficient HP loss will cause long-term structural effects, but while these severe knock-on effects can outlast the short-term spikes of fatigue or injury that triggered them, they don't in themselves stand for missing FP or HP, respectively.

[johndallman]

Originally Posted by Kromm

Things like broken bones and organ damage require some basic HP of injury to cause them, but persist in a manner unrelated to HP, and can go on being a problem for some time after you've fully recovered HP.

A real-life example: I broke my foot a couple of years ago. It was probably only 1HP of injury - slipped off a ladder, fell about 3' - but I had something a lot like a RAW crippled foot, followed by Lame, for several months.

Welcome back, boss.

[Anders]

Originally Posted by Kromm

A good way to look at things: FP represent short-term winding and lost capacity for work, recovering in minutes to hours; HP represent medium-term blood loss and tissue toxicity, recovering in days to weeks; and the results on p. B422 and on pp. 138-139 of Martial Arts represent long-term structural damage, recovering in months to never. Sufficient FP loss will cause HP loss, and sufficient HP loss will cause long-term structural effects, but while these severe knock-on effects can outlast the short-term spikes of fatigue or injury that triggered them, they don't in themselves stand for missing FP or HP, respectively.

So if I walk 25 miles and develop all kinds of blisters and sores as a result, I have lost HP, not FP. And the reason I feel like death warmed over the day after is HP loss?

[Randover]

Originally Posted by Asta Kask

So if I walk 25 miles and develop all kinds of blisters and sores as a result, I have lost HP, not FP. And the reason I feel like death warmed over the day after is HP loss?

Sounds about right. It also feel good with magic leaving scars some of the time. I guess you could miss even quite lot of HP if you overdo it with hiking under od condicions.