I really like Wyll. I think he is a very well-written character. From what I understand, he was from a noble family. His family/father probably had high expectations of him, which he failed to meet. He was a disappointment to his peers in the Flaming Fist, for whatever reason, be it alcohol, theft, or deception. To me, Wyll seems like a very flawed individual. I see him as someone who is a good person deep down and wants to be good. He wants to live up to the expectations people have of him, but for whatever reason, he just continues to fail and fall short. Then comes his near-death experience at the hands of the goblins. I have seen some people describe Wyll as someone who is fake and went to a demon to be this con artist of a "hero". Some say he is a narcissist and a pathological liar. I don't see it that way. I see a very insecure man tormented by his own failings and shortcomings. From what I have gathered, Wyll was left for dead by goblins. He was beaten, humiliated, his eye cut out, and he was dying. Mizora came to him as he was lying there dying and offered to not only save him, but give him the ability -- the power -- to get revenge. And he took it. Now, he has these powers granted to him by Mizora, so he starts to become this Legend that he always wanted to be, but could never measure up to because of his own failings and shortcomings. He is human. He is fallible. Like any of us. Who knows how any one of us would act given that power. The ability to be what you always wanted to be, but just always fell short of the goal? I don't see this as horrible as some people are making it out to be. Honestly, it comes off as so very real and so very "human".
Anyways, this all comes with a price tag. Now Wyll has a price to pay -- this power comes from a demon, who probably demands some evil things of Wyll. Wyll isn't evil though, so now he's struggling with this pact that he made. He also desperately wants to keep the truth hidden, therefore all the evasion and lies. Wyll doesn't come off as narcissistic to me at all. He comes off as a very insecure man, someone who struggles with self-resentment. He hides all this behind this bravado and this "Blade of Frontiers" persona. I honestly think he is a very well-written character. Very nuanced, with complexity and layers. I noticed someone said that he should have just been a Lawful Evil "Edwin", and I disagree with that. Writing him as a Lawful Evil "Edwin" would just be another generic fantasy cliche. Oh, Evil guy makes a pact with a devil. That might give you the "consistency" in character you are looking for, but to me that would be boring. Wyll is fascinating to me. I love his character and his arch. I want to experience his story.
As for how Wyll's character is built. I think the main problem is that Pact of the Blade is not implemented yet and Wyll suffers for this. When I choose the Moderately Armored feat for Wyll at level 4, it makes him a much much less "squishy" character. He is a lot more tanky. Even up there with Laezel. However, I can't shake this feeling that I gimp him by keeping Charisma at 16, because his melee capabilities just fall short when compared to Eldritch Blast. However, if you look at the Pact of the Blade, in the PHB it states: "You can transform one magic weapon into your pact weapon by performing a special ritual over the course of one hour, which can be done during a short rest." Now depending on how or if Larian implements this, it could be very useful for Wyll. He can transform other magic weapons into a rapier? hmmm. Seems very useful. Also, the 5th level Invocation Thirsting Blade would give Wyll a second melee attack with his pact weapon, and later at level 12 the LifeDrinker Invocation would add his Charisma modifier to his pact weapon damage. It seems to me that these additions would improve Wyll as a swordsman big time. Also, if you have the Devil's Sight Invocation and utilize the Darkness spell, doesn't that give Wyll some kind of advantage with melee attacks? I think when the full release comes out and Pact of the Blade is added, Wyll will begin to shine.
