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My Approach:
I respect the mechanics and theme first and make everything else fit. What does this mean? Well, if the game does not show my character as injured or ill, then they are not injured or ill. And I accept that it is a world with bio, cyber and genetic technology that far exceeds out own. I even see it in places like the Mix for those fortunate enough to be able to afford it (like PCs).
General:
I look for injuries and illness in a few areas. The obvious is the ‘ht’ command. Anything below excellent condition or any mention of bruises, cuts and the like suggests I am injured. Also of note is the ‘@nakeds’ command. This will show you exactly where your bruises and bullet holes are.
Next is ‘@stats’. If I see stat damage or a line indicating illness or injury, then I am ill or injured. Stat damage is usually indicated by a little red minus sign next to one of your stats. Not all of these minus signs are the result of injury but if they usually aren’t there then show up after a fight or fall or something, it’s probably stat damage.
Next are messages. If I receive messages about my crotch burning or the like, I respect those. These can be automated messages or messages from the GMs. Usually these will accompany one of the above but sometimes they don’t.
If none of the above are the case, then I am fully functional. I work fine and as intended.
Healing Times:
As far as I can tell, characters heal quickly in this game so that people will take risks and not be stuck RPing bed rest for days on end. It is my impression that staff wants you out and doing cool stuff if you want and not force you into excessive down time. Of course, if RPing bed rest is your thing, I've yet to see anyone chastised for it.
As a rule, if I go to a Doc and they heal me, I take that healing as having happened right then and on the quick. This is because Withmore Docs are not using our stone age medical methods. They have advanced bio-thingies and machines that execute kickass algorithms as they slice, dice, regrow, reseal and generally fix you up. In the world of Withmore people grow bodies and twist your DNA. They meld man and machine. This isn't you daughter's medicine.
If I don’t see a Doc I still respect the game mechanics (as in I am functional unless the game indicates otherwise) and just gloss over the details. This will vary depending on what exactly happened of course. I am not alien to RPing an injury for a little longer than usual but I don't usually take it too far without really good reason.
Pre-Clone Scars and Damages:
I get pretty picky here because I am all about systems. Here is how I decide if I get a scar or lasting damage. On the damage side, I generally assume that if I’ve seen the Doc, there will be no lasting damage beyond scarring. As far as scarring goes, I make any puncture, cut or the like a scar (as seen in @nakeds) if I don’t see a doc or if it’s still around after the Doc has done their magic. The exception to this is when the GMs step in and suggest otherwise. Then I RP what I am told.
Scars and Damage post-Clone:
When I clone out, the only scars or damage that survive are those that have either been around for a while (thus becoming a part of my self image and would be jarring for my character if they no longer have them) or those from injuries that had considerable impact or meaning to the character when the injury occurred. Other then that, I am a clean slate. Missing parts are back, unimportant and newish scars are gone, and I’m as healthy as my stats say. Again, if the GMs say different, I RP out what the GMs give me.
Cloning Impact:
For me this depends on if it was a corpse clone or a normal clone. I feel it is important for those to be very different experiences. If you real ‘help clone’, it talks at length about how terrible corpse cloning is but makes little mention of the trauma that is normal cloning.
So if my character is corpse clone, I will likely RP as if they just got out of a terrible torture session. If they clone out normally, the are disoriented for a bit, are sensitive to bright lights and loud noises, and take a bit to get their legs under them.
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That’s my take on it. How I like to RP injuries and MedTech in with more. How do you approach it?