[Mahlkihl]

Direct: When your direct combat spell is successfully
cast, it inflicts a number of boxes of damage equal
to your net hits on the opposed test. The opposed test
generally pits your Spellcasting + Magic [Force] against
either Body (for physical spells) or Willpower (for mana
spells).

When it says "against either Body or Willpower", does that mean
to make the Threshold for casting the spell equal to the Body or Willpower?

[Agonar]

No.  They roll either their Body or Willpower Stat, depending on what kind of Spell you cast.  Willpower for Mana Spells, Body for Physical Spells.

The Net Hits scored, if any, are how many boxes of damage the target takes,.

[Belker]

Also, there is no threshold - it's a straight opposed test versus the appropriate attribute. If the caster gets more hits, they inflict that much damage. If the defender gets equal or more hits, the spell has no effect on the target.

[Michael Chandra]

Since they're not faced with a dual-statted defense, and aren't as sensitive to cover, these are nice ways of hitting enemies that are hard to normally hit. So in a drawn-out fight they're nice to use, but in fights you can end quickly they're not that useful.

[Mahlkihl]

tHANK YOU ALL VERY MUCH.

[baronspam]

Direct spells can't be dodged, and ignore armor.  They are a great choice for very tough targets, or targets with very large defense pools that are hard to hit.  On the other hand, against weaker targets they may feel a bit underwhelming.  Against Jake the Security Guard you are probably further ahead to just hit him with a lightning bolt. 

[ZeConster]

Plus Direct Spells combine beautifully with Push the Limit (or reagents): since their damage isn't partially dependent on their Force, you can cast them at minimal Force (using one of said ways to get a higher limit) without damage suffering. A mage with 6+6+2 base dice and Edge 5 would roll an average of ~7.4 hits.

[Metasyntactic]

Direct spells can't be dodged, and ignore armor.  They are a great choice for very tough targets, or targets with very large defense pools that are hard to hit

So does this make these spells a little OP?

Go up against a tank and just send 2 or 3 Direct spells (because he's Body and Muscle, not brains and Willpower) so any 'tough' boss can just be taken down by magic.

Then you come up against a magical super being... and you just shoot him with your biggest gun

So is there a medium? A tough guy who has some sort of spell resistance tech/gadget/bioware?

[Michael Chandra]

Only Net Hits count, and the mage still takes dice penalties if the defender is in good cover. So yes, you can take someone down over multiple passes. On the other hand, my Longarms character took down a Force 5 Spirit in a single edged burst, and let me tell you, Spirits got quite high dodgepools. Put me against such a tough boss and I can take him down in two shots as well.

[Namikaze]

My wife plays a sniper type in our campaign.  She's definitely able to pump out more pure damage with APDS rounds and a burst from her Cavalier MBR than our mage can do with a manabolt.  And she can do that every turn and never suffer drain.  So I wouldn't say that direct spells are overpowered at all.

[Michael Chandra]

I didn't want to waste money on an EBR but I was planning to play 3x Dragon Song so had to. Then I had to GM two of them.

[baronspam]

Direct spells can't be dodged, and ignore armor.  They are a great choice for very tough targets, or targets with very large defense pools that are hard to hit

So does this make these spells a little OP?

Go up against a tank and just send 2 or 3 Direct spells (because he's Body and Muscle, not brains and Willpower) so any 'tough' boss can just be taken down by magic.

Then you come up against a magical super being... and you just shoot him with your biggest gun

So is there a medium? A tough guy who has some sort of spell resistance tech/gadget/bioware?

Remember, direct spells have no base damage.  If you get three net hits, its three boxes of damage, not force plus three boxes. 

If you are finding mages OP, you are not putting enough magical threats against them.  Give the badguys someone who can counterspell.  And for that matter, summon a force six spirit with the instructions "kill the mage".   Magic is best countered by magic. 

[RHat]

Go up against a tank and just send 2 or 3 Direct spells (because he's Body and Muscle, not brains and Willpower) so any 'tough' boss can just be taken down by magic.

I'd argue that if he doesn't have Willpower, he can't claim to be a tank.  And the damage is pretty small, so it takes a few of attacks to bring him down anyways.

[Michael Chandra]

Remember, direct spells have no base damage.  If you get three net hits, its three boxes of damage, not force plus three boxes. 

If you are finding mages OP, you are not putting enough magical threats against them.  Give the badguys someone who can counterspell.  And for that matter, summon a force six spirit with the instructions "kill the mage".   Magic is best countered by magic.

We established in another topic that the mistake their group was making was that gun damage was an opposed test, rather than a reduction test.

@RHat: Yeah, my own character might simply take Full Defense, having 2 IPs left thanks to using Edge for Initiative, and add 5 Willpower to all defense tests. Good luck doing decent direct damage against 10 dice. And I'm not even a dedicated tank.