Oracle said:earthdude said:If one is truly interested in realism, the doctor skill should be eliminated or severely curtailed. I mean really... repairing your eyesight? Repairing your mangled leg? Without instruments? In the wasteland? I could potentially see being able to use the skill on NPCs, but really shouldn't ever be usable on oneself. What about wound infections?
Of course, it's also unlikely that anyone would invest in doctor skill (or science, for that matter) if traveling from point A to point B was such a struggle. Noncombat/nonsurvivalist characters would be unlikely to survive the hardcore post-apocalyptic environment... and maybe that's the point.
I think it should be more usefull in a more "realistic" gameplay. Not only for yourself but also for your companions. Also about the guns they should be really rare as when 1 bullet becomes lethal random encounters would the hell...
...
Sneak, docter and outdoorsman being far more usefull
I agree that Doctor would certainly be far more USEFUL in the more "realistic" gameplay, it would also be more unrealistic to have acquired the ability to do surgery unless you grew up in Vault City or SF. And even then, doing surgery in combat conditions would be nigh impossible.
Now, that all being said, a Combat Medic skill could be put in its place, which allowed restoration of hit points and maybe only temporary fixes to crippled limbs. Definitive correction could only be done in VC or SF, maybe Broken Hills and Redding.