Battle Healing:
Let me just preface this with the note that I am NOT the first Soulmaster that comes to mind for most people when they think "Healer". I've focused my skills more in the "Shoot the enemy in the face" style of Soulmastery. That said, I have made sure that I CAN function and be effective when forced into support roles, and have made a study of how the more usually thought of Healers, use their arts.
Between my experience, and what I've learned from other battle healers, here is a guide to using your healing arts effectively regardless of the plateau of your Restore/Healing Aura (Up to the limit of my own art levels at this point, though I will be expanding on this at a later date). And, yes.. that even includes Unplatted Restores (Yes, they CAN be used efficiently and effectively in battle even at that the 1 to 9 level range).
Restore:
There are a lot of different ways to utilize a person’s restore art, and even low plateau’s can be extremely effective if used properly. While many people (Even Soulmasters) use Restore to basically just spam evoke on a person, that is probably the least effective use of the art and element pools.. especially for non-soul masters who are not only limited in their maximum plateau, but also in the amount of Resilience they have to use in any given stretch.
While there are some variations in healing styles, the most efficient uses of Restore are heavily dependant on the plateau of the evoker’s Restore. So, I will break down the efficient healing styles by general plateau range.
Unplatted (Includes 10 plateau):
Unplatted Restore is extremely limited, healing only 1 to 5 dreamsoul per evoke (2 to 6 at 10 plateau). Thus, the ONLY effective use of Restore at these plateau’s is to wait until a target hits heavily damaged... and then rapid evoke a full pool of resilience onto them. Using restore at this plateau is not about healing the target to full dreamsoul, but rather aiding in keeping them coherant in the face of heavy enemy fire. It is a supplement to a fighters normal use of Dreamsoul elems, not in any way a replacement for them, but when an ally is faced with Heavy fire... even a couple of dreamsoul being healed between hits will very often make the difference between them floating, and staying in the fight.
Low Plat (20 – 40):
Low plateau’s in Restore give a slightly wider range of uses, since the amount healed makes a notable jump at 20 plateau to 3 to 10 dreamsoul per evoke. The average amount healed in this plateau range is 5 to 7 per evoke. The evoke speed also becomes much faster. While the general principle remains the same... focus on a SINGLE target, and start evoking when they become injured. You can now start reducing your number of evokes, and evoke sooner. So, 3 to 5 evoke barrages now are the rule, starting when the target first starts Weakening. At this range, the amount healed can significantly reduce a targets required reliance on Dreamsoul elems.
If you decide to try healing multiple targets at this plateau range, do NOT exceed 3 people covered. This use of restore, again, does not replace or reduce a healed targets need to stay on top of their dreamsoul as normal, but instead is focused on delivering enough healing to help them stay coherant while under heavy fire. Start when the target reaches Heavily Damaged, and focus only 2 or 3 evokes on that target at a stretch. Complete one full sequence of evokes on the target, even if another of your protected targets starts taking damage. Switch targets only AFTER you complete a sequence of evokes.
In either case, it is recommended that a single tap off of a flat 25, 10-30, or 12 to 40 Resilience elem be taken at the conclusion of each evoke sequence to ensure as uninterupted flow of healing as possible.
Mid Plat (50-70):
Restore in this plateau range is insanely fast, only slightly slower than equivalent level blasts, and heals a substantial amount (6-13 at 50 plat, 7-14 at 60 plat, and 8-15 at 70 plat) with each evoke. Since this level is also restricted to Soulmasters, resilience pools are substantial... allowing 12+ evokes off of a single pool.
Restoring a single target with Restore plateau’s at this level means focusing exclusively on that person, in 3 evoke sequences, as soon as you notice the target taking damage. This means that the target Very seldom needs to even tap a Dreamsoul elem, allowing them to focus substantially more uninterupted fire on an enemy.
Restoring a small group is definitely possible and efficient at these plateaus, though the more people restored.. the more each person needs to pay attention to their Dreamsoul elem use. At this stage, for healing to be effective.. your using 2 evoke sequences. When you start healing depends on how many people your covering.
2-3 targets: 2 evoke sequence once when they start weakening. If one healed target drops straight to Heavily or lower, focus a barrage of 2 to 3 sequences on the target and do not change targets until the full sequence is complete.
4-5 targets: 3 evoke sequence once a target becomes Heavily damaged. Again, complete a full sequence before switching targets. At this point you are not even suplementing the targets Dreamsoul use, just providing some support to keep their individual Dreamsoul use from being overwhelmed as easily.
6-8 targets: Even more than the 4 to 5 targets, this is simply an emergency level of healing when the target starts taking substantial damage. Going back again to a 2 evoke sequence, delivered only when a target is staying at Heavily damaged, or hits near dissolution. Again, complete a full sequence before switching targets.
For more prolonged healing ability, or when low on resilience supplies... use the same tactics as if you were healing a greater number of people. For example... down to 3 Resilience elems while healing 2 people... drop down to emergency healing as if working with 5 targets. Meditate during stretches of rest instead of drawing on your elems when you don’t need to sustain a constant level of healing. If your healing a couple of extremely skilled fighters and run low on Resilience... you can even start working with the 6-8 target tactic and relying primarily on your meditation instead of elems. This will not reduce the amount of Dreamsoul needed by your healed targets, but will significantly reduce the danger of collapse.
Healing Aura:
Healing Aura is a tricky art to use effectively given its slow evoke speed, high cost, and Force Restoration abilities. This makes use of the art extremely limited, albeit tide turning when used effectively. It’s range of effective and efficient use is also much smaller, with only really two plateau ranges. In all cases, since the art is party wide, the number of people being protected also doesn’t change.
Low to mid Plat (unplatted to 50 plat):
Healing Aura use in this range is STRICTLY for when large amounts of damage are being issued to the entire group, or when multiple party members have been collapsed. It’s low evoke speed prevents it from being useful to counteract the damage being received by your party, but does make its use for prevention of a foreseen mass damage barrage. This is most often the case when confronted by a large number of mass damage arts being used by an enemy in a short period. After the 2nd mass damage art evoke, and upon seeing the enemy start another, start the Healing Aura evoke. At this point, the evoke speed is between 7 and 5 pillars. So it is essential that the evoke be started BEFORE your party reaches critical damage levels.
An alternate use of this art, is in last ditch cases when your party has been collapsed (At least most of them, if only one party member is down.. your better off simply using restore on them). Ensure that you are as far across the room from your enemy as possible, and start the evoke. Being one of the last ones standing means that the enemy will start to focus on you. So it is best if you can give you party warning about what you are doing before you do it. With one evoke, your entire party is back on their feet in one burst... and, when appropriately forwarned, can immediately begin a full out counter attack on the enemies rear and flanks, or support fighters.
Mixed Role Healing:
For those that are Not healers as a primary role, either due to art/element pool levels, or individual preference, it is best to focus your healing on only one or two people regardless of your art levels, and Only restore when one of your protected targets is suffering heavy fire and is in danger of being overwhelmed by incoming damage. In that case, a rapid barrage of 2 to 3 restore evokes, followed up by a rapid assault on the targets assailant is suggested. Even if they do not abandon their target, the incoming fire focuses them to divide their attention. This usually causes them to miss their target more often, and focus on healing themselves instead of concentrating purely on assault. NOTE: When attacking a target in these situations, place your fire as much as possible at angles from your opponent instead of directly past them where your likely to hit your ally. It's less about healing at this point, than providing some minor aid to your targets healing ability and drawing their opponent away or taking them down before they can land a "knock out" hit.
Other arts use are on an "On Demand" basis. Fight has moved to a confined space where your going to get in the way of your allies... toss an abjure or two at the enemy. Antidote someone that you believe May have been poisoned. Purify a support fighter that doesn't seem to be landing any arts, or provide whatever burst support is called for. IE: An ally calls for Antidote while being pursued by the enemy... pause for a quick second, fire off the antidote and a quick restore, and get back to shooting. This is a viable tactic even with low art levels of antidote/restore/abjure/etc. In no case do you stop to evoke while under direct fire unless you can get the evoke off within split seconds. Wait, or break up the battle a bit by abruptly and significantly changing elevations... evoking the moment you land on the new elevation level.
~ Arnaya, Soulmistress