This skill allows the physician to concoct treatments for diseases and poisons. Once a disease or poison is identified, the physician may attempt to formulate an antitoxin or antibiotic. The determinant is a successful Herbalism proficiency check, modified at -4 for mild diseases and -8 for critical or terminal diseases. For treating poisons, the character can concoct an antidote of intensity equal to the Herbalism skill. A character with Herbalism can also attempt to create a healing potion of intensity equal to that of the skill.
Critical Success: The physician can treat all future manifestations of this particular disease or poison at +1. Or, if preparing potions, the time to make the potion is halved and the yield is doubled.
Critical Failure: The patient has an allergic reaction to the drug. Patient must save versus system shock or break out in a rash (if applied to the skin) or vomit and suffer 1d6 damage for 1d6 rounds (if ingested). If preparing potions, the creation process fails miserably and produces a harmless cloud of stinking fumes and slimy liquids bubble over out of the potion jar.