Goodman Games

One character has a healer background and I would like those occupations to have at least some utility. I don't see healing as a skill specifically codified, but someone who is bleeding or something could benefit from a "healing check" to stop blood loss or the like. Are there any rules that cover this, or third party publications?

I am also interested in some survival mechanics. Like being in a desert and how much water you need. Effects if you run out of water. Food, etc? Any insight on that? Thanks.

For the healer, yes, they can treat wounds and such. Having them stop bleeding is a great idea. In any instance, go to page 66 and decide, based on the nature of the wounds if the DC is 5 or more (IMO) and have them roll an INT check to stop bleeding. In other cases, maybe they can make a check to double folks overnight healing, for example -- but they may be tired the next day from staying up to tend to folks and suffer penalties all day from that.

As for environmental effects on the characters, use the Dice Chain. Always look to the Dice Chain to answer questions first, because it is a fantastic and easy tool to use. It's been a day since you had water, and you've been slogging through a desert... That's at least dropping down the Dice Chain for all dice by one step, IMO. Stuff like "how much water you need" is just real-world stuff you can find on the internet. Look it up, and use it to inform how you rule, i.e., maybe it's two days before you take that drop in the Dice Chain from lack of water....