Command Under Pressure: Open Playtest

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Hidden Resolution

In Command Under Pressure, players never see the exact difficulty number or the result of the die. The Game Moderator resolves uncertain actions in secret and reports only what the characters can observe: the danger, the consequences, and how the situation changes.

This keeps attention on the unfolding crisis rather than the mathematics behind it. Training matters, but so do preparation, equipment, access, assistance, timing, and the method you choose. A carefully coordinated plan can turn a desperate gamble into a manageable risk.

Hidden resolution does not give the Moderator permission to decide outcomes arbitrarily. The likelihood of success, potential consequences, and possible effect are established from the fictional situation before the die is rolled. The uncertainty is hidden—the logic is not.

Difficult Command Decisions

Every crisis presents more problems than the crew can solve at once. A commander may need to choose between rescuing trapped survivors, stabilizing a failing reactor, protecting the ship, or confronting an approaching threat. While the crew responds to one danger, the others continue to develop.

There is rarely one perfect answer. Every order commits time, personnel, equipment, or power—and every ignored threat may become worse. Command is not about finding the safest choice. It is about deciding what matters most, accepting the risks, and leading the crew through the consequences.

Success does not always mean saving everything. Sometimes it means recognizing what can still be saved and determining what cost the crew is willing to bear.

Blackout at Orison Relay

Twenty-two minutes ago, Orison Relay vanished from the Cinder Reach navigation network. Its final transmission reported a reactor surge, sealed compartments, and an approaching radiation front. Forty-nine people remain aboard.

The rescue cutter CRS Emberline is the only vessel close enough to reach them in time. But the relay is tumbling, its automated Warden system has locked the docking spine, and the Emberline is still carrying damage from its previous mission. A salvage vessel is also approaching under a disputed recovery claim—and its crew may have priorities of its own.

In this original introductory mission, players assume the roles of the Emberline’s commander and senior specialists. They must coordinate the rescue, investigate the lockdown, manage the ship’s limited power, and decide which dangers demand immediate attention.

There is no predetermined solution. The crew may attempt a hazardous docking, launch rescue pods, stabilize the station remotely, negotiate with the Warden, bargain with the approaching salvagers, or devise an entirely different plan. Every choice protects something, risks something else, and changes what happens next.

How many people can you save before the radiation front arrives—and what will you sacrifice to bring them home?