Doctor Archive

I have read an awful lot about medics and doctors having no money whatsoever. I am currently a novice doctor and I have experienced this as well. I started harvesting minerals lately because they sell within minutes on the bazaar, but I don't think that I should have to do this.

Early on in my medical career I spent most of my time in the hospital healing the wounded.I quickly learned that the tipping system does not work for my profession.While my friends were buyinghouses, factories, weapons, and armor; I was asking for travel money to Lokso that Icould harvestLokian Wild Wheat. I couldnt killanything on the planet, and was stuck there for two days because I couldn't earn enoughmoney for the trip back to Tatooine.

I think that it is timefor SOEto fix this profession, and heres how I think they could do it:

Doctors need a health insuranceterminal forhealing wounds. This fixes problems on many levels,but hereare thebasics on how they could work.

Insurance Terminals:

You can deposit any amount of money into a health insurance terminal. Amounts will be deducted from your insurance pool when wounds, bleeding, and states are healed by a medic or doctor. The amounts have not been determined, but perhaps 2c per wound point, 50 per first aid application, and 100 for curing states. When a doctor heals a player the money would be automatically deducted from the players insurance pool and deposited into the doctors bank. If the player does not have insurance, or the doctor wants to be nice you can group with the player to heal wounds, bleeding, and states for free.

What problems does this solve:

1. Multiple medics healing a single player - Early on there were very few docs hanging out in the med centers, but now there are often times 3-5 medics healing the same player. Nine times out of ten the player being healed doesnt tip all of the medics or doctors healing them. I've heard players yelling out don't heal me I'm only tipping player x. This would ensure that all of the medics healing get their fare share of money for the healing that they did provide.

2. Non-Cloners -Many, many players out there don't bother to clone and come running into the med center for healing. More often than not these players don't tip or only tip a portion of what it cost to heal them. If you don't want to clone fine with me I will gladly heal you, but I don't think that docs should be a way to avoid paying cloning fees.

3. Begging for tips - I've been starting to think that there should be a sign schematic for doctor crafting that says "Will heal for food". I hate begging for money. I am a doctor because I want to be helpful in the game instead of killing bunny rabbits. With insurance we would no longer have to beg or hear the complaints of the bunny killers when we don't heal them. Insurance will give doctors their due without begging for tips.

I'm interested in knowing what others think of this idea. I'm just tired of tips beingrarerthan loot dropping from and NPC.

Augustus Devine (Gorath)

"Turning rebel scum into rebel chum."

sounds ok in theory only it'll cause more problems than it fixes..people will just come to the forums or starting crap in game talking about how greedy doctors are or talking about how they have to take up novice medic to avoid the charges..or you'll get more and more people who come to the med center and pretend they have no money heh. Healing wounds just isn't a way to make money as a doc..it's just too unreliable BUT start selling stimpacks and the real dough comes in..problem though right now is factories are broke. I don't mind healing folks and I mind even less if they tip or not, though a thank you is always appreciated. Reason I say this is mostly cause I get nice exp from healing, lately though this is not the case as now you have several medics scrambling to heal those 60 measly wound points on an injured person. Also I am getting close to master doctor and at that point I won't need experience anymore anyway and will probably sell meds/enhancements for a price. I'll also heal if someone offers to pay too. Some people might turn their noses up at docs who expect payment..but I assure you they don't walk up to an armorsmith and plop down in front of them and wait for free composite.

Hey that idea works for me Lets see...I made a health wound pack E...at 2credits a heal...wow I can make 2,000 credits a shot! ya good idea no more missions for me or countless hours at the factory wait for the stims....only thing is animals would me expensive lol

Take a up a combat skill. Seriously, I am Novice Carbineer... and I turn over 10K+ missions with 3 other friends. I have 220K in the bank and maintain 6 harvesters, and I earn tonnes of medical XP healing people while turning over the missions and money is nota problem.

Sorry, Doctors are not a stand-alone class in the game at the moment.

Adapt. Survive. Until some time in the future where they can be fully passive careers.

The idea does have it's merits, although I know it will not fly. I can't even convince my friends to pay me the cost value for 30+ stims. Some have the nerve to tell me to forage.

One thing I have noticed is that players who are used to these types of online games seem to value a healer and pay them well. I had a bunch of EQ players hire me to go out with them to heal them while they hunted.

That was rather fun and I got paid for once.

Have hope, maybe the devs will do something about this.

Hi all,

Just my two cents. I am a doc and have never had a money problem. On the other hand I don't spend my whole day in town. I go out on hunts with people and heal. Although I am also a pistoleer I don't usually engage in combat when I'm the healer. I find I make more xp in an hour then I could have made in a week at a med center. I also get splits of loot (or mission cash) which works out great. I always have over 100k in the bank and never really have to grind. As a matter of fact I have been considering dropping artisan and just buying my materials because it takes me less time to be out in the field healing and then buy my resources then to harvest them myself.

Honestly, if you get out of the med center you will make money...even if you never fire a shot.

Tatiana Von'Zorovich

Flurry

I think this is a good idea. I have a PA to support me, folks I have played with for years, so my role as CM/Doctor for the group works fine. They gave me a house, furntiure a med droid with a f&c, keep me in good pistols and power-ups and resources. I heal and rez on group hunts and provide stimp B's to those who can use them. So my CM/Doc role works for me. I don't see how one could make it as a CM/Doc on your own though. Other professions are just much more lucrative and that is why you see fewer and fewer healers in the med centers.

We were on Dantooine the other night for a hunt and a guy comes up and asks me to heal him and he was mightily wounded. Our group is not quite assembled yet, so I pull out my med droid and heal him up....then no tip. I point out that it was he who requested the heals and a tip would be nice. I am ignored, but shrug it off....this is too typical to get upset over. A few minutes later this guy is over with our group asking if he can join us. I tell the others, in chat, he requested heals and then no tip so needless to say we go out without this loser.

I don't know if folks are ignorant of the time and effort it takes to gather resources and manufacture stimps, especially with factories on the fritz or if they know and just don't care. They certainly seem upset when there is no one around to heal up their wounds. Don't they understand the cause and effect here? I know many CM/Docs who don't show their titles cause they don't want to be harassed by bozos who want the heals but don't want to pay the price.

A system like this would make the CM/Doc role a much more attractive one, which would benefit everyone. Right now we seem on a downward spiral. With few willing to tip in a meaningful way there seem to be fewer and fewer medics around. I know I would never follow this route expect for the fact I have a good PA I can rely on; who in turn rely on me.

It's great that you have an idea, and have the gonads to stick the idea out for all to criticize.

Unfortunately, I am one of those who will criticize it. It is too impractical of a solution, ie Player A has 1000 credits in insurance terminal, goes running to be healed by groupmates, but Player B heals Player A while he is running by, thus Player A is out x ammount of credits.

Simple example, but I think it is clear that there are other reasons why this is a bad idea, like Doc's with their huge heals draining accounts quickly, unnecessary hassle of grouping with someone before I heal them if they don't have money in account, or just the fact that it adds alot of coding for something that isn't a huge priority. I would rather them be working on something a bit more beneficial than this, which I see as more of a nuisance.

-Zekiel

any system that is pay per heal would cause medics to basically try to outheal each other and fight over patients...people would be accused of heal stealing

would get ugly fast

Thanks for all of the comments, but I think there is a little confusion on this. I am not referring to damage heals at all in regards to the insurance terminals. I am only referring to wounds, states, and bleeding. These are things that only a medic/doctor can heal.

This is the first MMORPG that I have played, and maybe I am a bit naieve about player dynamics, but there is clearly something wrong with the financial viability for the medic/doctor profession. I just wanted to throw this out there for discussion to see if others were thinking the same way. The current system puts the onus on the doctor to ask for money. It just isn't my style to beg so it bothered me to run into so many rude people that don't say thank you or tip.

Anyway, thanks for all the comments. I really would be happy with a sign that says "Will heal for food" in the med centers.