[quote=@BurningCold]
[@Chicken] So I've been hashing and rehashing character concepts for a little while, and for the past few days I've been chipping away at the one I want to go with. I did have confusion regarding certain proficiencies, however, specifically the medical ones.

Expertise:
Anatomy
Medicine

Skills:
Healing
Herbalism

Now I'm just a bit confused here as to how these proficiencies are technically unique from one another. There's just a great deal of overlap between all four. It makes me wonder, if someone proficient in anatomy, medicine, and herbalism, is useless if he isn't proficient in healing. Alternatively, is someone with the healing proficiency unable to make use of that skill without an understanding of herbalism or medicine or anatomy?
[/quote]

Good questions, and yes, there is some overlap. Let's talk about them - and remember, [i]these are just examples.[/i] You can make your own proficiencies.

One big note is that you're not necessarily expected to take all of them to be good at healing someone. You just take (or make) proficiencies you feel best describe what your character does.

The Healing one is an oversight, however. It was actually myself and a real life friend that tinkered on those pages. I think he added Healing. Whoopsie. I'll scratch that one.

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[b]Anatomy:[/b] A multi-use expertise. If you know anatomy, you understand basically how the body works and operates. You know where important veins are. You're familiar with You may know pressure points from outlander knowledge, even.

The thing is, understanding where all the muscles and veins and etc. are doesn't necessarily mean you're a medical expert. It helps in medicine, certainly. However, an artist might study anatomy to better her art, or a butcher might have a basic understanding of it thanks to his work. It can help you in combat, theoretically, assuming you're fighting human opponents. It can also help you perform first aid and surgery.

[b]Medicine:[/b] This one is the study of everything that the world of Men-at-Arms considers the purview of physicians. This is a very academic approach to healing. This is a character that's probably traditionally schooled, that focuses on chemical imbalances in the human body, and that would be readily available in cities like Carise but not as available in villages and the like.

[b]Herbalism:[/b] Folk healing and knowledge of plants and herbs and such. You're not as well-taught when it comes to the healing arts, but this skill can feasibly be used to identify what plants are edible, what plants are bad for you, what's poison, etc. And, of course, you can apply your folk knowledge to heal.

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All-in-all, though, the reason there is overlap among this is to hammer home the point that [i]you make up your own proficiencies.[/i] Write it however it best suits your character. Choose weaponry that isn't listed if it suits your character (quarterstaff fighting, for instance). Make up traits of your own. Don't feel limited to what I've put down.