<Cybercore>

Medic - Triage

In the harsh, unforgiving world of Cybercore combat, the Medic - Triage skill can mean the difference between life and death. With this skill, you are trained to quickly assess the severity of an injury and administer the appropriate medical care in a combat situation.

You are a master of triage, able to determine which injuries are life-threatening and need immediate attention, and which can be addressed later. You can perform battlefield medicine and stabilize injured allies, from applying quick clot and bandages to performing emergency surgery using advanced medical tools and nanobots.

You can also identify and treat the effects of various types of combat, from environmental hazards like radiation to exposure to unknown alien toxins. Your training and quick thinking allow you to keep your team alive in the most dire of situations, ensuring that they can fight another day.

Using Triage

Each medical emergency will have a difficulty rating based on the severity of injuries, number of casualties, available medical supplies, and environmental conditions. The more critical the wounds and chaotic the battlefield, the higher the difficulty.

When you attempt to stabilize wounded allies, perform emergency surgery, prioritize casualties, treat combat injuries, or manage mass casualty situations, you will make a Medic - Triage skill check against the situation's difficulty rating. The GM may apply Boons or Banes based on factors such as quality of medical equipment, combat stress, environmental hazards, or time pressure.

  • A Critical Success means you perform battlefield medicine at the highest level. You not only stabilize all critical patients but also optimize treatment efficiency - your quick thinking saves lives that seemed lost, you identify hidden injuries before they become fatal, you work faster than expected (treating more patients or finishing ahead of schedule), or you use limited supplies so efficiently that you have resources left over. Patients recover faster and better than normal.
  • A Regular Success allows you to successfully triage and treat your patients. You stabilize wounded allies, prioritize casualties correctly, administer appropriate emergency care, and keep your team alive. You accomplish your medical objectives under pressure.
  • A Failure means your triage efforts are incomplete or delayed. You take longer than expected to stabilize patients, you misjudge injury severity causing treatment delays, you waste medical supplies through inefficient use, or you miss secondary injuries that complicate recovery. Your patients survive but recovery is slower and more difficult.
  • A Critical Failure results in medical catastrophe: you misdiagnose critical injuries leading to patient deterioration, you waste vital medical supplies on non-critical cases while critical patients die, you administer wrong treatments that harm rather than help, you cause complications through improper technique, or you freeze under pressure allowing preventable deaths. Your mistakes have tragic consequences.

Triage Tricks

Rather than spending skill points to move up skill levels, you may instead spend skill points to purchase any of the following tricks.

Rapid Assessment:

Cost: 2 Skill points
Requires: Tactical Training
Frequency: Once per Lockdown
Effect: You can instantly assess casualty severity and prioritize treatment. When entering a mass casualty situation, you automatically identify the most critical patients, determine correct treatment priority, and spot hidden life-threatening injuries. Reduces triage time by 50% and grants +1d6 Boon to your first stabilization check of the operation.

Combat Medic:

Cost: 2 Skill points
Requires: Tactical Training
Frequency: Once per Lockdown
Effect: You can perform battlefield medicine while under fire. When treating wounded allies during active combat, you work with incredible speed and efficiency. You can stabilize a critically wounded patient in half the normal time (minimum 1 action) while maintaining your defensive posture. Patients you stabilize this way don't deteriorate for twice as long.

Supply Efficiency:

Cost: 2 Skill points
Requires: Tactical Training
Frequency: Once per Lockdown
Effect: You can stretch limited medical supplies further than most medics. For one operation, your medical supplies last twice as long - each bandage, nanite patch, or medication dose can treat two patients instead of one without loss of effectiveness. Your efficient technique ensures nothing is wasted.

Field Surgery:

Cost: 6 Skill points
Requires: Expert Training
Frequency: Once per Op
Effect: You can perform complex emergency surgery in field conditions without a proper operating theater. Using your portable medical unit and improvised sterile field, you can conduct surgical procedures that would normally require a full med-bay. Surgery takes 50% longer than normal but has the same success rate and patient outcomes.

Trauma Specialist:

Cost: 6 Skill points
Requires: Expert Training
Frequency: Once per Op
Effect: Your expertise in treating severe trauma is exceptional. When treating patients with life-threatening injuries (massive blood loss, organ damage, severe burns), you gain a +1d8 Boon to all stabilization and treatment rolls. You can save patients that other medics would consider beyond help.

Team Coordinator:

Cost: 6 Skill points
Requires: Expert Training
Frequency: Once per Op
Effect: You can coordinate a team of medics and assistants with exceptional efficiency. When working with a medical team, each additional medic adds +1d6 to treatment rolls instead of the normal +1d4. You can also train non-medics to provide basic assistance, allowing any teammate to help with medical procedures effectively.

Miraculous Recovery:

Cost: 10 Skill points
Requires: Master Training
Frequency: Once per Mission
Effect: Your medical skill borders on miraculous. Once per mission, you can save a patient from certain death - even if they've reached their wound threshold or failed their death saves. Through heroic medical intervention, you stabilize them and bring them back from the brink. They survive but remain unconscious and critically wounded until proper medical care can be provided.

Mass Casualty Expert:

Cost: 10 Skill points
Requires: Master Training
Frequency: Once per Mission
Effect: You can manage overwhelming mass casualty situations with supernatural calm and efficiency. For one emergency, you automatically organize and prioritize any number of casualties, coordinate all available medical personnel, allocate supplies optimally, and ensure every savable patient receives appropriate care. No one who could be saved dies under your watch.

Battlefield Surgeon:

Cost: 10 Skill points
Requires: Master Training
Frequency: Once per Mission
Effect: You can perform complex surgery under impossible conditions. For one mission, you can conduct advanced surgical procedures while under fire, in zero-g, during ship maneuvers, or in other extreme circumstances that would make surgery impossible for others. Your hands are steady, your focus absolute, and your patients survive procedures that should be fatal.

Crafting

Two-Stage Creation Process

Stage 1: Research and Document (Blueprint)

  • Requires: Medic - Triage check (DC varies by protocol complexity)
    • Simple Protocol (DC Easy): Basic injury treatment (gunshot wounds, blast trauma, burns)
    • Advanced Protocol (DC Medium): Complex trauma (multi-system injuries, toxic exposure, environmental hazards)
    • Elite Protocol (DC Hard): Extreme situations (zero-g surgery, alien biology, mass casualty)
  • Time: 1-3 weeks of research and documentation per protocol
  • Resources: Medical databases, case studies, trauma data

Stage 2: Train and Implement (Crafting)

  • Requires: Protocol documentation + training time + practice scenarios
  • Time: 1-2 weeks of training and drills
  • Materials:
    • Training Supplies: Medical dummies, simulation equipment (Cheap to Moderate)
    • Documentation: Protocol manuals and quick reference cards (Cheap)
    • Practice: Repeated drills to internalize procedures (Time investment)
  • Workshop: Medical bay, field hospital, or training facility

Benefits: Stacking Boons and Treatment Efficiency

Each medical protocol grants a stacking Boon to Medic - Triage rolls when treating matching injury types:

  • 1 Protocol: +1d4 Boon
  • 2 Protocols: +1d6 Boon
  • 3 Protocols: +1d8 Boon
  • 4 Protocols: +1d10 Boon
  • 5+ Protocols: +1d12 Boon (then +1d4 for each additional)

Boons apply when:

  • Treating injuries covered by your protocols
  • Performing emergency procedures you've documented
  • Managing casualties in situations you've planned for
  • Training others using your documented procedures
  • Working under pressure with familiar injury patterns

Material Benefits

Medical protocols provide practical advantages:

  • Faster Treatment: 25-50% reduction in treatment time for protocol-covered injuries
  • Supply Efficiency: 15-25% reduction in medical supply usage
  • Better Outcomes: Patients recover faster with fewer complications
  • Team Coordination: Protocols can be taught to team members
  • Stress Reduction: Familiar procedures reduce panic in crisis
  • Quality Assurance: Standardized care ensures consistent results

GM Note: Protocols represent battle-tested procedures. Unusual injuries or exotic conditions may require new protocols.

Maintenance Requirements

Medical protocols require occasional updates:

  • Practice: Run training drills monthly to maintain proficiency
  • Updates: Incorporate new medical techniques and technologies (Cheap)
  • Sharing: Protocols can be taught to other medics or team members
  • Specialization: Each protocol covers one injury type or situation
  • Reputation: Well-documented protocols enhance professional standing

Example: Combat Medic's Battlefield Protocols

Corpsman "Patch" Williams creates combat-specific procedures:

  1. Research Protocols (DC Medium): Patch spends 2 weeks documenting battlefield trauma, rolls Medic - Triage (success)
  2. Create Protocols: Develops 3 emergency procedures:
    • Gunshot wound stabilization: Rapid hemorrhage control
    • Blast trauma response: Multi-system injury management
    • Combat burns protocol: Field treatment for thermal injuries
  3. Cost: Cheap for training supplies and documentation
  4. Benefit: When treating combat injuries, Patch gains +1d8 Boon and 30% faster treatment
  5. Duration: Permanent knowledge; practice monthly to maintain

Example: Trauma Surgeon's ER Protocols

Dr. Chen maintains comprehensive emergency procedures:

  1. Multiple Protocols: Chen has developed 5 trauma protocols for different emergencies
  2. Benefit: When treating emergencies in equipped med-bay, gains +1d12 Boon
  3. Team Training: All ER staff trained on protocols for coordinated response
  4. Quality: Protocols ensure consistent high-quality care under pressure

GM Notes

  • Limit to 5 active protocols per medic to represent realistic specialization
  • Protocol Scope: Each covers one specific injury type or emergency situation
  • Story Opportunities: Developing protocols can drive research and training missions
  • Team Benefit: Trained team members can assist using the protocols
  • Professional Value: Well-documented protocols can be published or taught