Combat Pressure System

Forward — Why This Exists

Combat in this world is not only about strength or spells.
It is about tempo, decisiveness, and experience.

Veteran fighters do not pause to debate every swing.
Elite enemies do not wait patiently while plans are formed.
Hesitation creates openings — and those openings are exploited.

The Combat Pressure System exists to model this reality.

It introduces urgency, risk, and immersion by tying enemy competence and battlefield control to how much time and space the party has to think, coordinate, and react.
As the party grows more experienced, so does their ability to operate under pressure — not just through levels, but through earned tactical mastery.

This system is not meant to punish.
It is meant to make dangerous foes feel dangerous, and victories feel earned.

What Is Combat Pressure?

Combat Pressure represents how tightly contested, coordinated, and lethal an encounter is.

Pressure is:

• Set by enemy experience, not CR
• Dynamic and responsive to battlefield momentum
• A measure of who controls the tempo

Pressure affects:

• How long players have to decide actions
• How often the DM may interrupt or act between turns
• Whether hesitation carries consequences

Pressure Levels

Pressure is set at the start of combat and may change during the encounter.

Decision Time Limits

These limits represent time to commit to an action, not to resolve it.

If a player has not clearly committed to an action when time expires, the DM may trigger a Pressure Interrupt.

Pressure Interrupts (DM Tool)

At Pressure 1–4, the DM may interrupt the flow of combat to reflect enemy dominance.

A Pressure Interrupt may:

• Interrupt or pre-empt a declared action
• Insert an enemy action between turns
• Exploit hesitation or overextension
• Reposition enemies or apply immediate consequences

Pressure Interrupts should:

• Be proportional to the current Pressure level
• Be telegraphed narratively when possible
• Reflect competence, not cruelty

Tactical Tokens (Party Resource)

To balance urgency, the party gains a shared pool of Tactical Tokens.

Token Pool

• 2–6 tokens, determined by average party proficiency and experience
• Set at the start of the encounter
• Shared by the entire party

Spend 1 Token to:

• Cancel a DM Pressure Interrupt
• Pause combat pressure for up to 5 minutes of table discussion
• Allow full out-of-character coordination
• Reassert deliberate, practiced teamwork

Without spending a token:

• Decisions must be made individually
• Players act from their character’s perspective
• Hesitation carries risk

Dynamic Pressure Changes

Pressure is not fixed. It rises and falls with momentum.

Pressure May Increases When:

• Enemy reinforcements arrive
• A PC is incapacitated or isolated
• Enemies execute a coordinated tactic
• The party repeatedly hesitates
• A key position or objective is lost

Pressure Decreases When:

• Enemy leaders fall or flee
• Reinforcements are cut off
• The party executes a decisive plan
• Enemy formations break
• Foes revert to instinct over discipline

Pressure may change by 1 step per round, unless a major turning point occurs.

Pressure Limits

• Pressure cannot drop below 0
• Pressure cannot exceed 4
• Reaching Extreme Pressure should feel earned and announced

Optional:
If Pressure drops by 2 total levels in one encounter, the party may regain 1 Tactical Token. giving the feeling of the tide of battle turning in their favor

Design Principles

• Pressure reflects tempo, not hit points
• Enemy intelligence matters more than raw power
• Decisive action is rewarded
• Victory under pressure feels different — and should

This system exists to turn combat from a puzzle into a lived moment.

DM Reminder

Use Pressure to:

• Increase immersion
• Encourage trust and leadership
• Make elite enemies unforgettable

Do not use it to:

• Punish indecision without warning
• Override player agency casually
• Replace narrative logic

When Pressure is high, the battlefield is alive — and it does not wait.