Finding the pressure without ruining the pinball

The loop is in a good place, but playing it has made a balance problem obvious: the early fights can be too comfortable. If the enemies never reach you, winning becomes a way to collect another upgrade rather than an encounter you have to think about.

I’m bringing the early melee enemies closer while keeping their stats modest. Later, tougher enemies start farther back. An armored Knight should feel threatening as it approaches, but there needs to be enough time to make meaningful shots before it starts hitting you.

Bewitching needed a similar adjustment. Turning a Goblin into an ally is useful; turning a durable Knight can change the whole fight. Occultist now has a lower chance against enemies with stronger starting health, armor, and attack. There can only be one living bewitched ally, and the last hostile enemy can’t be converted.

The Whispering Grimoire relic now uses that same resistance, with a smaller chance than Occultist. I’ve also been looking at the other relics and items that borrow character abilities. They should give another character a taste of that play style, while leaving the original character a reason to exist.

This still needs playtesting. What I’m looking for is a little tension in each encounter, room for an unusually strong run, and a table that stays fun even when the battle is going badly.