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Message: <blockquote data-quote="Swarmkeeper" data-source="post: 8374981" data-attributes="member: 6921763">I see where you are going but I have to disagree with your conclusion.  Time pressure in exploration can indeed lead to a wandering monster.  However, to then say that introducing a wandering monster is solving the exploration pillar "problems" with the combat pillar is presuming quite a bit, IMO.  The players can choose many different courses of action when presented with a wandering monster - courses of action which may or may not flow into the other pillars of play.  While some of the party is searching for traps and secret doors and/or figuring out how to disarm/activate the same, others might be watching out for trouble.  If the PCs on watch perceive a wandering monster approaching they can alert the others.  Sure everyone can drop everything they're doing and engage solely in the combat pillar.  Or a few of the PCs could attempt to parley with said monster while the others continue to search/disarm/activate (social and exploration pillars).  Or a few of the PCs could hold back the wandering monster at a pinch point while the others figure out the secret door escape route (combat and exploration pillars).  Or the players could funnel (with force and/or communication) said monster towards the trap they discovered (exploration plus combat and/or social pillars) Or all the PCs could fall back to a room they passed on the way (exploration). Even if those on watch didn't notice the wandering monster until it was upon them, these options are all still viable outcomes.All that said, the wandering monster is only one possible outcome of taking too much time.  Environmental effects, timed traps, NPCs off-camera making progress in a ritual or moving captives elsewhere, etc. all could be part of the consequences for the party taking too much time.  In addition to the "ticking clock", exploration offers plenty of "tools" to ratchet up difficulty:  exhaustion; difficult terrain; obstacles; traps; illusions; puzzles; anything, really, that can impose conditions or drain resources.If you are meaning that exploration often can lead to engagement with one or both of the other pillars of play, then I would agree with that conclusion.</blockquote>

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