Does magic resistance apply to healing magic?

[Not]

The Barbarian has magic resistance on the menu. Is this a good idea? It means he resists healing magic and potions, right?

[Kromm]

Originally Posted by Not

The Barbarian has magic resistance on the menu. Is this a good idea? It means he resists healing magic and potions, right?

Magic Resistance does indeed affect magical healing:

You cannot "turn off" Magic Resistance to let friends cast spells on you (e.g., to heal you) or to benefit from helpful potions!

That's why it's optional.

It can still be a reasonable investment in a group with a good healer. Magic Resistance "counts double" against Resisted spells, but healing isn't Resisted. So even a baseline cleric with skill 14-15 can cope with a couple of levels of Magic Resistance when healing (making skill 12-13). That same Magic Resistance would be quite effective against hostile Resisted spells (that skill 12-13 would now be resisted by the barbarian's HT 13 or Will 10, which would be boosted to 15 or 12, and have good odds of resisting).

Remember as well that healing is amplified on characters with high HP; see High HP and Healing (Exploits, p. 62). Barbarians start with HP 22, so all healing is already ×2 on them. They're also the only ones who can normally have Very Rapid Healing, which can boost healing to ×3. So it takes fewer successful castings of healing spells to get good-to-absurd results.

Finally, don't overlook that Magic Resistance "has no effect on Chi Mastery, Druidic Arts, Holy Might" – that Holy abilities "aren't affected by sanctity level, countermagic (e.g., Dispel Magic), or Magic Resistance." Thus, the Faith Healing ability of clerics and holy warriors remains totally unaffected and enjoys that ×2 or ×3 I mentioned.

So a suitably designed party of characters can boast a meat-shield with Magic Resistance who's still easily healed. Indeed, a cleric with Faith Healing and perhaps a few curative spells at high levels backing a barbarian with HP 20+ (or, heaven help us, HP 30+), Magic Resistance 6+, and Very Rapid Healing can be a little game-breaking if the GM isn't ready for it.

The real loss is healing potions . . . With baseline HT 13, barbarians aren't likely to fail a roll against HT + Magic Resistance. I'm not very sure that healing potions are a primary healing source, because they have cost and weight, and are breakable, but they matter to some groups. This is a good reason to "go big or go home" with Magic Resistance; you're not going to fail a roll against 14 so much more often than one against 15, 16, etc. that it's worth holding back. If you're giving up potions, you might as well go all the way and buy lots of Magic Resistance.

TL; DR: Barbarians with Magic Resistance should strongly consider Very Rapid Healing as well. Clerics who work with barbarians like this should strongly consider Faith Healing.

[Not]

OK thank you!

[Anders]

If you're willing to bend the rules, you can give the barbarian Improved Magic Resistance from the Wizard template. That will cost 5 points/level rather than 2 points though.

Yeah, I was wrong. This wouldn't work.

[Not]

Does that work for potions? Not just heal but other buffs?

[Anders]

Originally Posted by Not

Does that work for potions? Not just heal but other buffs?

Sorry, I misremembered. You get no benefit from Improved Magical Resistance - it's just that it doesn't interfere with your own magic.

[Prince Charon]

Switchable Magic Resistance would work, IIRC.

[Dalin]

Slippery Arcana from Hand of Asgard would do the trick for 8/lvl. I suppose it could be refluffed to work as a barbarian advantage in some games.

[Not]

+300% is pretty steep. I might just boost attributes.

[ArchonShiva]

For out of combat healing, clerical scrolls are $10 per HP (often half for barbarians) and don’t care about Magic Resistance if the caster touches the subject.