Difficulty lowering Talents & Opposed tests?

Mutant Chronicles
1

Greetings,

I am probably overthinking this question, but since I am unsure I’ve decided to bring it to the forums in hopes of aid.

As I understand things, when a player goes to make a Skill Test, the Difficulty is decided by the GM. For example; Player X wants to Command his tank crew in the middle of a stressful firefight. Skill Test starts off at D1, Being under fire makes it D2, There’s a fire in the engine makes it D3. Shooting someone is D1, one range beyond optimal range makes it D2, it’s at night makes it D3 etc.

These Difficulties can be reduced to 0 and remove the need for a Skill Test, such as with the Command Talent Commanding Presence (3), which lowers the Difficulty of any Command Test by 1 per rank, up to 3.

Now, when it comes to Opposed Tests, such as influencing people, I am not completely sure when a Skill Test is an Opposed one rather than against a set Difficulty (outside of combat), but I’m guessing it comes down to the GM?

In the case of Opposed Skill Tests, were I to try and Command someone unwilling and they begin an Opposed Skill Test to try and resist my influence using Willpower, with Opposed Tests starting out at D1 and the momentum gained from the tests deciding the outcome, if I lower the Difficulty of my Command Skill Test from D1 to 0 using Commanding Presence of any rank, what happens?

Do I just win? Generate additional Successes? Does the Talent not come into play with Opposed Tests, or do Opposed Tests at a difficulty lower than my ranks of Commanding Presence not come into play?

So far my group (I’m a Player) is unsure of the answer, and we’ve just ruled it as additional successes in Opposed Skill Tests, however I would like to just clear my head on this.

Any answer is appreciated. :slight_smile:

2

Oh and just to add this; I assume Opposed Test can also be more difficult for either party, so the Difficulty on my Command test could be D4, while the one resisting only has a D1 Willpower test, such as if I was trying to intimidate a member of a different corporation to give out their secrets or something? (Yes, that would probably fall under Persuade, but the question is the same.) Would that then mean that my talent would lower my D4 to a D1 Command test, and then we roll it as you would a regular Opposed Skill Test?

3

In Opposed Tests you always only compare the generated Momentum. If you have D0, the other side D1, both roll, and you still compare Momentum as usual. The only difference is, that at D0 you generate Momentum for every success you roll, where the other side needs to beat and exceed the Difficulty.
You could still roll no success at all at D0, so you end up with no Momentum, while the other side could roll 2 successes at D1 and win (your 0 Momentum compared to their 1 Momentum).

Reducing the Difficulty raises your chances to win an opposed test, but you could still fail, if the other side has more Momentum.

3 Likes
4

That clears it up. Thank you for your response! :slight_smile: