Will Tests

[foxandwarlock]

So having concluded five or six sessions and filled in a lot of check marks for tests, I find myself staring at a very blank stretch of paper at/around the Will Stat. What triggers Will tests? I assume magic - since there was no magic available to us players, I did not read the section (I wanted to be surprised). But what about us mundanes? Is it one of those arbitrary tests awarded at the end of a Chapter?

[luke]

Will tests are hard to come by.

Practice -- deep meditation or something -- is usually the easiest way to get tests. But that takes forever.

Learning social skills also earns Will tests. We offer a choice -- you can take that test against Will or toward learning Persuasion (or whatever). Most players are pretty eager to earn skills and get past that x2 Ob penalty. But so long as the player ain't being a munchkin, such a trade off is fair.

-L

[phredd]

In Gronti's Verakai campaign, my character has made a lot of Will checks simply because there's a lot of manipulative beings who use magic to control your mind. It's an epidemic! Fortunately, most of our characters are stubborn as all get out.

[Wuxing]

As if orcs, goblins and all manner of other evil green skins weren't enough. Now you want vampires so you can make will tests against their mind control powers? We know how that turns out from experience...

"Give me your sword of super duper vampire slaying. The sword that could end my very existence. The one sword I fear above all else. Please give it to me friend."

"Okay"

*cue massacre* :shock:

[Thor]

If you're a sorcerer, dealing with a "May Not" while sustaining a bunch of spells is a good way to get a fat Will test (and blow yourself and your party up too).

[foxandwarlock]

Stupid Ravenloft. Stupid Straad.

[eruditus]

Yeah, resisting seduction, pushing yourself beyond your limits, etc.

I find Will to be a particularly defensive stat and if there is a lot of action you probably do not have a lot of social interaction to spur Will advances.

Try more intimidating, taunting, and tricking your opponents in combat. Yeah, you may fail and an empty action in that script could be the death of you but if you survive it may be worth it. And nothing burns your opponent more than you gloating over him when he scripted a GLOAT action:D

[eruditus]

Since both pools are roled together I assume the player choses which is raised in a Sorcery roll (Sorcery or Will)?

[Thor]

Since both pools are roled together I assume the player choses which is raised in a Sorcery roll (Sorcery or Will)?

Nope. To sustain a spell, you need to put a Will die toward it (i.e., you can't use it for anything else). In a "May Not" situation you only roll Will, not Sorcery. So if you are sustaining 2 spells and have a Will of 5, you only have 3 dice to work with. And to keep those spells up in a "May Not" situation, you have to roll the base Obstacle of the spell with those 3 dice.

Pretty nasty, eh?

Edit: Just realized that wasn't entirely the gist of your question. Yeah, I suppose you can assign the roll toward either pool, although generally a Sorcery pool will be big enough that it is VERY difficult to get anything more than a Routine test.

HOWEVER, there are some places for seriously fat Sorcery tests: First and Second Reading (under learning spells). Check pages 172 and 173 of the rule book.

[Kublai]

Sorcery tests should count only towards the Sorcery Skill and not the Will stat. I consider those Will dice to be as FoRK dice in a way. If not, it's too easy to get Will tests. Stat tests should be a rare thing in normal gaming.

[eruditus]

yeah, our local Sorcerer was able to get his Sorcery up pretty easily just by trying to learn campaign significant spells.