Know Your Role: Part 4 HealersWhen you look upon the front lines of any good group, you will see the tank heading up the fight, standing toe to toe with the enemy. Fighting along side him are the lighter tanks, or offensive fighters, and standing at their side are the arcane casters, wielding magic of various sorts, but standing at the rear of the group is the healer. This class, while usually at the back of the group, is one of the most important, and is responsible for keeping the group alive to carry on the fight. They are the anchors of their groups or raids, and they are often times the key to victory. Healers are the lifeblood of a group. They usually carry an abundance of beneficial spells, or buffs, for their group. They are able to mend wounds through their understanding of white magic. In games such as Everquest, the healer class stays back out of the battle, typically. They focus more on healing their group, and regenerating mana during the fight rather than dishing out damage. The Vanguard healers are said to be a bit different from their Everquest incarnations. Word has it that during battles, healers now will not only heal but will be more active participants in combat as well. Can you say "battle cleric"?Vanguard: Saga of Heroes has an assortment of healer-types set to be available to players when the game launches sometime this year. Some of the healer classes like the Cleric and the Shaman will be familiar to veteran MMORPG players, but Vanguard will spice things up a bit more, as the developers at Sigil love to do so much. Not only will you have these two traditional healer classes to choose from, but you will also have the option of two brand new Vanguard specific healer classes in the form of the Disciple and the Blood Mage. There is a lot of mystery surrounding these two new classes, but one thing we can be sure of: they bring new life to a class that you can never find in sufficient quantity.Cleric: Traditionally, clerics are arguably the best healers that the game has to offer. They have an assortment of powerful buffs to increase the hit points and armor class of their party. They possess great healing powers with the spells to heal great wounds with a single cast, or to sooth a group member's wounds as the battle rages with their heal-over-time spells. Clerics are very potent healers in Everquest, and a member no group would refuse. Clerics often times heal their party, and spend most of the battle sitting down to regenerate mana to continue the fight. There are times when clerics become very active in combat, but not often.The Vanguard cleric will be a bit different. While still possessing powers to heal and buff their party, they are said to have a much more important role in combat. Clerics of Vanguard will, in all likelihood, have the ability to cooperate with other classes to cast sympathetic abilities like the arcane casters. They will have a more active role in combat, and will have to react to situations as any other class will. This should make the cleric a much more active participant, no longer only a healer from the sidelines of a battle. The Vanguard Clerics can get right into the thick of things.Shamans: Shamans of Everquest are strong healers as well. While not possessing heals as powerful as the cleric, the Shaman is not a class to be taken lightly. They can heal a group nearly as well as a cleric, and provide a line of buffs spells that the cleric cannot. Shamans can increase the party's run speed, agility, dexterity, and hit points with buffs. The Shaman also can damage their enemies with Damage-Over-Time spells or DOTs, and even with all these powers, the shaman still has more to offer with the ability to slow an enemy's attack speed with magic. The Shamans of Everquest are a powerful class, and to be feared by enemies. Their role often times in a group is to buff the group, slow the enemy, add damage, and at times provide backup healing or to stand in for the cleric as group healer. We can assume the Shamans of Vanguard will embody some of these powers. While information on the healers is still a bit sketchy, I think it is safe to say Shamans will possess healing powers, and a nice line of buff spells to compliment a group.Blood Mage: The Blood Mage is one of the new healers specific to Vanguard. Little is known, as the developers have not leaked a great deal of information on this mysterious class. Having little information, it is almost impossible to make a comparison. Talisker, one of the developers on the OVF responded to Ominous, our local self-proclaimed "spam master". Here are the few details that can be gathered from his words regarding the Blood Mage:"I'd say they will be able to cast their healing spells using their own health instead of mana, and be able to use mana to suck the health out of enemies to replenish their own health." - originally posted by Ominous."Yeah, that is semi close. It was not a hard one to guess, but the devil is in the details, so it is a little more complex than just a life tap healer. I knew that the Blood Mage was going to be a difficult class for a variety of reasons - but I was in love with the idea. It will be great class with a unique feel. " - originally posted by Talisker.The devil is in the details, indeed. The Blood Mage could be a class we have never seen the likes of, a very different kind of healer, one.Disciple: The Disciple of Vanguard is probably the most mysterious class of the four. We know nothing of the Disciple except that he will draw his power from something called Chi. Speculation has this class beginning on the continent of Kojan. That, again, is speculation, not confirmed. Word has it that the Disciple may be able to refocus an enemy's attacks in battle.Each class has their own role when it comes to a group. They each have a role to carry out with their respective duties to perform. If, indeed, the Defensive fighter is the figurehead of a group, then the healer is undoubtedly the backbone. Healers are responsible for keeping the main tank on his feet and any overzealous wizards from getting flattened. Knowing how to balance your mana when using this class has always been important. It will only increase in importance with Vanguard. Not only will you have to use your mana efficiently to keep your group alive, but you will also be more active in combat. The ability to be efficient will likely have a larger influence on the outcome of a battle. Healers are the lifeblood of a group. Their job is to keep the people standing, and now with Vanguard to react to situations, as well. How will this effect healers? How will combat be influenced? Time will tell the tale on this one. Vanguard will go live sometime this year, and all the various classes will pour into Telon: defensive fighters, offensive fighters, arcane casters, and healers. This is the final installment of this segment of editorials: the series' general purpose was to explain the roles of each class, and give a small description of each class, as well. There are many MMO veterans who will be joining Vanguard when it goes live, and undoubtedly a large number of people will try this as their first MMO. It is my hope that this series has helped to explain things for the newcomers, and maybe even added something of interest for the old timers. When the day comes for us all to step into Telon, take the time to learn your class, and enjoy the world that Sigil is creating for us. Know your role, and, most important of all, have fun!