Roleplaying a Physician

Welcome to the world of Zalanthan medicine. No anesthesia, no surgeons, no emergency heart bypasses, and no intensive care wards. Welcome to playing a physician in Armageddon. The tools you have are primitive, the information is scarce and coveted by those who have it, and the need at times is dire.

Roleplaying a physician subguild requires you to put aside most of your knowledge of twentieth century medicine. Few people would know or care that cleanliness is an integral part to healing. Sand and dust and dirt are a way of life in Zalanthas and water is so scarce that only the wealthy would be able to afford sanitary medical care. Medicine is herbs.. ground up or brewed into tablets or vials and until you test it, you yourself have no idea whether this combination is the wondrous cure you have been looking for or the mistake that could cost you your life.

This guide will be deliberately vague in places as one of the most fascinating aspects of Herbalism in Zalanthas is discovering for yourself what herbs are available where and how they mix into different combinations. I know my physician character spent literally real life days trying to figure out the simple secrets to Herbalism and I was hooked. If you don't like puzzles, Herbalism, whether it is in Zalanthas or the real world probably would not interest you. As a real life herbalist, I hope to bring a little of that knowledge, along with a knowledge of the game mechanics in regards to Herbalism to help you, the reader, get a feel for how certain actions would be performed so that you may better roleplay the role you have chosen.

In the harsh desert planet that is Zalanthas, herbs are not found everywhere. If you are searching for herbs, consider where green plants might grow and begin your journey there. The northlands is an obvious choice as are the grasslands and the Grey Forest. Different herbs will grow in different types of soil or conditions and that too you will find echoed in Zalanthas. Take close note of the descriptions of the rooms you are in. If the room says there is a bush, try to look in or on the bush. Herbs are not found lying on the ground waiting for you to walk in. Be alert.

Luckily, there are shops which will on occasion have herbs in stock, brought in by the valiant (or insane, depending on your viewpoint) hunters willing to go to these dangerous places and pick the herbs. In addition, you can always join up with a hunter and work out a trade agreement of your own, offering services or tablets in return for the raw herbs. Be prepared though, herbs, as with wood and anything else that grows in Zalanthas are often expensive and being a physician with a working knowledge of Herbalism will require a hefty investment of time and obsidian.

Herbalism in Zalanthas centers around three primary aspects: brewing, bandage making, and bandaging the wounded.

Brewing

Having managed to beg, buy, steal, gather or trade to get your herbs, you are ready to begin brewing. First, examine your herbs closely. Taste, texture, what does it look like, what properties might it have? In many cultures herbs were named for their physical appearances and to some degree that holds true in Armageddon as well. Do not be afraid to make up your own name for herbs, especially if you are from a culture or tribe that wouldn't have access to the limited "civilization" in Arm. Sure that herb is known as bimbal to half the world but your tribe always called it stickysap. That's RP. Have fun trying to explain to another herbalist or to a hunter what herb you are looking for by describing it without using the exact short description. If you spent the time getting to know your herbs you will quickly find that they have specific qualities that will, given enough time experimenting and testing, unlock the secrets to brewing what you want to make, when you want to make it, instead of the random tablet.

Brewing a tablet is a fairly simple process but here are some suggestions. First, you would normally not grind herbs and leaves on a tabletop or in your open hands. Use a container. Mortars and pestles exist in Armageddon and are normally not very expensive. A true herbalist would not be caught dead without at least one good stone mortar and pestle. However, if you are broke, use a cup, use a bowl, emote using a virtual object if you have to explain just how you are grinding a handful of arato and a pinch of redheart to make that odd looking tablet.

Even though the code does not require it, emote adding a little water to the mixture to make it into a paste and then show how you are shaping the tablets. Are you rolling them between your palms? Are you just putting dabs of paste onto something to dry? Why is that crumbly tablet crumbly? Roleplaying creatively will bring the simple mechanics of creating a tablet to life. Personally, I suggest you at least emote setting the tablet out to dry, even if you do not want to risk dropping it and having someone pick it up. Fan your hands over it. You just created a sticky paste and shaped it; shoving it in a backpack right away is going to make your backpack a MESS.

Most of all, enjoy the process. Herbalism is a complex skill with a lot of herbs to learn and a lot of possible combinations. Knowledge of what tablets do what is still rare as many people do not have access to a physician or the obsidian to afford the cures for common poisons. As a physician, you can make friends and connections and possibly trade for things you need by offering your cures in exchange. Don't like this hunter? Well darn, you really thought that was the cure to that nasty bite... sorry it made him fall asleep like that but you know how life is.. Things happen.

Bandage making

Bandage making is another skill that falls within the physician subguild. Bandages in Armageddon are currently underused and it is the physician's responsibility to help correct this. Bandages are not inexpensive but they do sell well as a means of earning obsidian, once you find the right shops or customers, and they also make excellent roleplaying devices. Bandages in Armageddon are wearable in almost every wear location, which opens up a wide avenue of roleplay potential.

To actually make the bandages experiment with different types of cloth. Try adding different herbs to the process. Again, as with fairly much every other skill in Armageddon bandage making is very much a process of trial and error. Most physicians will not be able to afford to become skilled bandage makers however you may find that the best way to get the training you need is to hire on with an established house.

Bandaging

Bandaging is a skill open to several different guilds but none will start as skilled at it as a physician. Unfortunately, in the beginning, this won't mean a lot as you will far more often cause harm than help when attempting to bandage. However, do not let that stop or dismay you, because a highly skilled physician can literally mean the difference between life and death. If you are sufficiently skilled, you will be a valuable member of almost any organization in the game.

Almost every noble and merchant house could use a good PC physician, especially one that can roleplay the art. I know that when I was playing a clan leader, one of the most frustrating things I ever ran into was trying to give my PC physician the chance to DO something and have them constantly say "That's just a scratch." For Krath's sake, use your imagination! If we are sparring and Joe Warrior forgot to take off his erdlu claw gloves and gouged someone, you as the physician have your chance to shine. RP tending the wounds.

If the character is badly injured enough to need bandaging, attempt it once IF the player agrees with your attempt. Be warned that you will most likely do more damage in the beginning and be prepared to roleplay accordingly. I personally chose to disregard the "tears the wound open further" message and instead will emote something along the lines of "binds the wound tightly, the action making the pain intense as the bleeding begins to slow". If someone is climbing and falls, don't just blow off the wound because you know out of character that resting for ten minutes will restore the blood loss. Life and death are very real in Armageddon and pain can be too. It is up to us, the healers, and our patients to take the limits of the code and make it into something real and tangible.

Finally, enjoy being a physician. This class is not as useless as it might seem; it is as useless as we the players allow it to be. A good role player playing a physician can make a mundane sparring accident into a vivid, bold story. Never forget that.