Bearded Devil - Infernal Wound

[elawai]

There is no reference to regeneration in the Infernal Wound description (see below). One side is arguing that it isn't mentioned, so regeneration does not affect this supernatural ability; other side is arguing that it should affect this supernatural ability (either with or without a DC 16 caster check). Does this have errata and/or an official ruling somewhere?

Infernal Wound (Su)

The damage a bearded devil deals with its glaive causes a persistent wound. An injured creature loses 2 additional hit points each round. The wound does not heal naturally and resists healing spells. The continuing hit point loss can be stopped by a DC 16 Heal check, a cure spell, or a heal spell. However, a character attempting to cast a cure spell or a heal spell on a creature damaged by a bearded devil’s glaive must succeed on a DC 16 caster level check, or the spell has no effect on the injured character.

A successful Heal check automatically stops the continuing hit point loss as well as restoring hit points. The infernal wound is a supernatural ability of the bearded devil, not of the weapon. The check DC is Constitution-based.

 

[MarkB]

It seems pretty straightforward to me - the ability works as normal, but the creature's Regeneration ability converts the damage dealt to non-lethal damage.

So for each Infernal wound the creature takes, it will continue to take 2 points of non-lethal damage per round until it receives appropriate healing as detailed in the Infernal Wound description.

One thing that puzzles me, though, is this line:

A successful Heal check automatically stops the continuing hit point loss as well as restoring hit points.

Normally, the only form of Heal check that actually restores hit points is Long Term Care, and that could hardly apply here, as the victim would bleed out from continued hit point loss long before the check was completed. So, does this line mean that a successful Heal check will actually restore the hit points lost due to the Infernal Wound effect?

 

[Notmousse]

I could only hope that the line meant that healing checks *could* help restore HP that normally would not be gained through rest alone.

 

[frankthedm]

it is just a rule based on what the heal skill might have been able to do during the playtesting of 3e. When they took away the heal skill's ability to heal damage, they forgot to excise that bit of text.

Fast Healing is boned by infernal wound, though it only slows down regeneration.

Fast Healing
A creature with fast healing has the extraordinary ability to regain hit points at an exceptional rate. Except for what is noted here, fast healing is like natural healing.

 

[moritheil]

Good catch, Frank.

Interestingly enough, in an AMF this does nothing - though if you can cast antimagic field you can probably beat the CL 16 check.