I'll endeavor to not spoiler anything, but a warning, I could, very unlikely.

So, can someone help me understand exactly how this works? As an example, Aedan Qel-Drake is going to try and sweet-talk Lady Orleans. He wants her aide in supporting/defending Damaris, she is an attractive woman, and Aedan is often fond of cementing good relations with what might otherwise be competitors in his endeavors. Aedan approaches, and seeks to win influence, as they might have the most in common.

Orleans has Challenging (+0) Disposition for this exercise. Aedan is a total charmer and flirt, with Fel 65 + Charm +20 + Talented (Charm), vs. Orleans WP 45 for this encounter (Charm doesn't seem to use a Skill as opposition, like Deceive does, putting her at another disadvantage. Unless he rolls terrible, and she rolls amazing, and this doesn't even seem totally dependent on his PC build, vs. her they wrote up another low-level NPC issue, He will easily shift her, in one try, to Easy, as each Degree of Success shifts her one step more positively. Since it is opposed, however, do her successes negate his, or just stand as hers, though with his PC skill level, sort of irrelevant?

Also, you need at least 4 successes to get her aide? Does this mean four separate tests against her, where you succeed? Do they all keep the ridiculous now Difficulty, and can you make several tests along the same meeting, basically gaining her trust on Day 2, or is each "meeting" granting one test, and you have to contrive 4+ separate excuses to enter her manse, prior to invasion, and keep chatting her up?

I really like this method of stuff, but I'm afraid it goes a bit beyond my scope, at present. I'm sure part of it stems from the fact that Aedan Qel-Drake is literally a Charm-machine; that's his character, in a nut-shell, but PCs often have an excuse to pimp their characters in this way. How does this work? I'm not requiring an in-depth walk through of it (wouldn't mind, obviously), but at least some pointers, based on what the Frozen Reaches intended. If you want to example with something else, so as not to hurt other's enjoyment of Frozen Reaches, that's good. Just seems weird that you might have an NPC who doesn't want to do something, but I have a pimped PC. Either he usually gets his way, and what the NPC wants is irrelevant, or the tests can't force them, and putting all that effort into the skill was a waste of points. To go Aedan's route, and sorry to be vulgar, he wouldn't find it overly difficult to seduce Orleans, and spend a pleasant evening, after the party, having a night-cap, and also getting to know her feelings on things, and earn her support, all of which he'd gladly do.

Charm IS an opposed test. 4 successes means 4 Degrees of Success, so with your character's skill at 95, if she say missed her attempt at 45, then Aedan would only need to roll a 55 or less. If she succeeds, then he needs a 45. For each additional DoS she rolls, he needs an additional DoS. I'd run it as an extended test, and this means he will probably eventually succeed. Of course, blowing it big time (whcih is something I don't leave entirely up to dice) means the extended test ends in failure.