Which item should you use first?
Use the smallest held recovery that covers the health you need now without throwing away a large part of its result at the maximum-health cap. At 50 of 100 HP with no healing skill, two uses of restore 50 HP. They reach full health with no waste and leave the untouched.
The Medkit is the default when it is the only held health item or Bandages cannot cover the missing health before the next contact. Its base 100 HP result can fill a large gap in one use. The cost is any healing above maximum health. At 25 of 100 HP, the cap accepts 75 HP and loses 25.
This recommendation assumes the immediate task is health recovery. If infection is active, secure the infection action first when its shorter timer requires it. Bandages and Medkits do not replace Phalanx Pills or Experimental Gene Therapy.
What does one use restore?
Without a healing skill, Bandages restore 25 HP and a Medkit restores 100 HP. These are raw healing values. The Responder only receives the portion that fits below maximum health.
The healing calculation is:
raw healing = item base healing × active Skilled Medic multiplier
applied healing = the smaller of raw healing and missing health
lost healing = raw healing - applied healing
For example, one base Bandages use at 80 of 100 HP has 25 raw healing. Only 20 applies, so 5 is lost at the cap.
Healing from one use
Each card uses the current item value and the active healing multiplier. These are raw results before the maximum-health cap.
No healing skill
- Multiplier
- 1x
- 25 HP
- 100 HP
- Multiplier
- 1.5x
- 37.5 HP
- 150 HP
- Multiplier
- 2x
- 50 HP
- 200 HP
How does Skilled Medic change healing?
multiplies healing by 1.5x. One Bandages use becomes 37.5 HP, and one Medkit becomes 150 HP. uses a 2x multiplier, producing 50 HP and 200 HP.
The larger raw result does not raise maximum health. At 80 of 100 HP, Skilled Medic Bandages still apply only 20 HP. The other 17.5 is lost. Keep the item when that 20 HP is not worth spending a use yet. Use it when the next contact makes the missing health the more expensive risk.
Normal and Expert are replacement tiers, not two separate multipliers. The Responder skill mechanics guide explains the same Expert boundary for every current skill family.
Where does healing stop?
Healing stops at the Responder’s current maximum health. The cap may differ from 100, but the arithmetic stays the same. At 20 of 120 HP, one base Medkit applies its full 100 HP and ends at 120 HP with no waste.
At full health, use neither item. There is no missing health to restore, so every point from Bandages or a Medkit would be lost at the cap.
Count item uses from the gap and the active tier. From 26 to 100 HP, base Bandages require 3 uses. From 25 to 100 HP, Skilled Medic Bandages require 2 uses. A held count below that number proves a shortfall for that item.
Do not treat lost healing as extra health, a reserve, or infection protection. It disappears at the cap. If you can safely wait for a larger health gap, keeping the item avoids that loss. The alternative is to use it now when the next supported danger is more costly than the wasted amount.
Which fixed state matches your Responder?
The five cards below keep current health, maximum health, skill tier, held Bandages, and held Medkits fixed. Find the state that matches the current run. Each one gives one action, its cost, and the condition that makes the alternative sensible.
Use the state that matches now
One next action for five damaged states
Every card is a separate fixed case. Read only the state that matches the run.
80 of 100 HP, no skill, both items held
Use Bandages once. Keep the Medkit.
- Raw healing
- 25
- Applied
- 20
- Lost at cap
- 5
- Health afterward
- 100 HP
Cost: One use is spent; 5 healing is lost at the health cap.
Alternative: Use the Medkit only when Bandages must be kept for another Responder. It loses 80 healing at this cap.
50 of 100 HP, no skill, two Bandages and one Medkit held
Use Bandages twice. Keep the Medkit.
- Raw healing
- 50
- Applied
- 50
- Lost at cap
- 0
- Health afterward
- 100 HP
Cost: Two uses are spent; all 50 healing applies.
Alternative: The Medkit also reaches full health, but 50 healing is lost at the cap.
25 of 100 HP, no skill, only one Medkit held
Use the Medkit. It is the only held recovery.
- Raw healing
- 100
- Applied
- 75
- Lost at cap
- 25
- Health afterward
- 100 HP
Cost: The cap accepts 75 of its 100 healing, so 25 is lost.
Alternative: There is no held health item to preserve instead. Waiting is only an option when the current danger allows another recovery search.
80 of 100 HP, Skilled Medic, both items held
Use Bandages once. Keep the Medkit.
- Raw healing
- 37.5
- Applied
- 20
- Lost at cap
- 17.5
- Health afterward
- 100 HP
Cost: The skill raises the raw result to 37.5, but only 20 applies. The other 17.5 is lost.
Alternative: Keep both items when the missing 20 HP is not worth spending one use yet.
10 of 100 HP, contact likely, only two Bandages held
Use both Bandages before the next contact.
- Raw healing
- 50
- Applied
- 50
- Lost at cap
- 0
- Health afterward
- 60 HP
Cost: Both held uses are gone, and the Responder still cannot reach full health.
Alternative: If contact is not immediate, keep them while moving toward another health item or a teammate with recovery.
The cards follow a simple priority. First avoid health-cap waste. If two possible actions lose the same amount, spend fewer items. If that is still tied, keep the Medkit. The arithmetic checks the action printed on each card; it does not choose from your Inventory. This advice uses the healing values shown here, not a hidden game modifier.
What if held items cannot reach full health?
When every held health item falls short, the rule can only state the maximum reachable health. At 10 of 100 HP with two base Bandages and no Medkit, both uses add 50 HP. The Responder reaches 60 and remains 40 HP short of full health.
If another contact is likely, use both before it. The cost is emptying the held recovery without reaching the target. If the route is safe enough to wait, preserve them while moving toward another health item or a teammate who can cover the missing 40 HP.
The failure state is simpler when nothing is held: no health item means no healing action. Break contact, stop optional searching, and move toward a Medical pickup or help. Do not fill that gap with infection treatment unless its listed skill effect also restores health.
Does healing stop infection?
The current instruction is exact: “Bandages and Medkits will heal you but won't stop infection!” Health recovery and infection treatment are separate jobs.
Use Bandages or a Medkit for missing HP. Use Phalanx Pills to delay an active infection, or Experimental Gene Therapy to cure it through its two stated actions. changes Bandages and Medkit healing only. Resident Genes is a different skill family with healing tied to supported infection treatments.
When damage and infection happen together, protect the shorter failure first. Start Gene Therapy when enough time remains for synthesis, or use a ready Pill dose when the current infection cycle is too short. Then heal the missing HP. The infection treatment decision gives the next action for the treatment you hold.
What does this rule not cover?
This mechanism covers current Bandages and Medkit base healing, Skilled Medic Normal and Expert multipliers, the maximum-health cap, applied and lost healing, the exact result of each sequence shown, reachable health, and shortfall.
The game states no use duration, interruption behavior, guaranteed Medical loot, or healing from an unlisted item. Bandages and Medkits are not infection treatment.
Open the Medical Inventory view for current weight and item fields. Open Medical and rescue skills for Skilled Medic and the separate infection-related families. If the Responder is downed or dead rather than damaged, choose the matching path in the survive, revive, or respawn guide. These facts apply to Hotfix 1.0.4.0 and were checked on September 2, 2026.