"Doctor" vs "Fast Metabolism". Buff Doctor slightly maybe?

[Tamior]

There are two feats that do almost exactly the same thing: "Doctor" and "Fast Metabolism".
Both add +25% to healing effects. Since effects stack, there is no inherent problem with the fact several feats like that exist.
However, as of right now, "Fast Metabolism" is just plain better most of the time: it effects more things (i.e. healing from healing vest is also effected) and, on top of that, it also boosts you psi points recovery from psi booster.
Doctor, on the other hand, only allows you to use bandages under 40% health: useful, but hardly actually game-changing, because it still only works out of combat. And out of combat you might as well wait for hypo cool-down.

So I was thinking: let's, maybe, buff "Doctor" a bit? Say, make it also double the range where natural regeneration kicks in (out of combat): from 85%+ of HP to 70%+ of HP. That way "Fast Metabolism" will still be better for in-combat healing, but doctor will have a more clearly defined niche (resource-efficient out-of-combat healing).

[TheAverageGortsby]

Well, Doctor is a bit better than you're describing.  First, unlike Fast Metabolism, Doctor actually has one (maybe two?) world events where it can help change the outcome, so from a story perspective, that's handy.  Second, Doctor lets you bandage other NPCs who are badly hurt, so you can get them back into battle without having to try to reverse-pickpocket them and plant healing hypos.  Having a hard time on Silent Isle? Let Broderick help, then bandage him up after the fight.  Same for the Coretech warehouse defense mission, same for several other combats.  Finally, Doctor only requires that you throw 15 skill points away (and for most characters, you probably picked up enough Bio to cook your own drugs anyway so you didn't throw them away at all); Fast Metabolism requires that you have enough stat points in CON to activate it, so there's a significantly higher prerequisite cost for FM.

[Tamior]

Combats where NPC's can help you (and you want to risk NPC's getting killed) are few and far between. Core-tech warehouse fight is not even present in JKK quest line, for example.
And I don't know of any world events where having "doctor" can help you change the outcome in an impactful way (I mean, you can technically save that wounded guy hit by burrowers, but he never appears in the story again and the game gives you nothing for saving him).

As for feat requirements, it's very debatable which feat is easier to qualify for: you qualify for "Fast Metabolism" automatically as long as your base CON is 6+, while you have to actually spend some skill-points on biology (15, to be exact) before you can qualify for "doctor". I'm really not sure what's more popular with players: character that have starting CON below 6 or characters that don't train biology early on.

Bottom line: I don't think "Doctor" needs a huge buff, but I do think giving it one more (minor) effect would be nice to define it's role better. Doubling the range where natural regeneration works seems like a good choice simply because it fits well into the role of "resource-efficient out-of-combat healing", while it has no impact on in-combat healing where "Fast Metabolism" will still be notably better.

P.S. This change will also have interesting synergy with regenerative vest: while "Fast Metabolism" already increases the healing received (and "doctor" does not), updated "doctor" will make sure regenerative vest will always get you to full HP (eventually) once of out combat.

[harperfan7]

Cliff can survive even without the doctor feat, but you won't get the quest exp.

[Tamior]

Cliff can survive even without the doctor feat, but you won't get the quest exp.

How exactly can Cliff survive without the doctor feat?
And why wouldn't you get exp for the quest if he does?
As far as I know, you need persuasion to GET the quest in the first place, but if you've got it, you will get EXP for completing it irregardless of Cliff's survival.
So Doctor has nothing to do with getting the EXP, rather, persuasion does.

[harperfan7]

How exactly can Cliff survive without the doctor feat?
And why wouldn't you get exp for the quest if he does?
As far as I know, you need persuasion to GET the quest in the first place, but if you've got it, you will get EXP for completing it irregardless of Cliff's survival.
So Doctor has nothing to do with getting the EXP, rather, persuasion does.

Yes, persuasion is what gets you the EXP.  If you talk to cliff and get him to not fight you, or sneak past him, either way if you go into the burrower warehouse before he dies, he'll be alive when you get back out and he'll talk with what's her face.  If you snuck past him, the dialogue afterwards is the same, but you don't get the exp.  Honestly it seems doctor is worthless in this instance.

[Tamior]

Well, yes, that was my point.

Doctor isn't useful in that guest except for some story fluff.