Military Threat Levels

1. Summary

The Brazilian Army controls the area around Schwarzwald, with American involvement influenced in part by earlier strategic choices. The military presence is not a static series of scripted encounters.

2. Rules

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2.1 Dynamic Brazilian Military Simulation

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2.1.1 Soldiers Within the World Simulation

Soldiers patrol according to dynamically selected priorities informed by orders, suspicion, local circumstances, previous reports, incidents, available forces, and individual behavior. Personnel may converse, laugh, smoke, eat, rest, urinate, inspect equipment, become momentarily distracted, and resume their duties. Human activity persists beyond the player's immediate field of view through an appropriate simulation level of detail.

Each soldier is a person within the world simulation, not merely an obstacle that respawns to preserve difficulty. If a soldier dies and the body is not found, a particular patrol route or future observation may disappear or change. Conversely, discovered remains, missing personnel, missed communications, or witness reports may generate investigations when the simulation supports them. No omniscient system automatically alerts every guard to every action.

Military personnel are controlled by dynamic behavioral and patrol systems rather than a fixed sequence of scripted encounters. Individual soldiers possess routines and behavioral variations. They may converse, eat, rest, smoke, become distracted, investigate unusual sounds, or change activities according to their circumstances.

A soldier's absence may affect patrol coverage. Conversely, a discovered body or missed communication may trigger an investigation, depending on the available evidence and the behavior of other personnel.

The game does not automatically replace a soldier simply because the player eliminated him. Military units continue operating within a persistent simulation.

2.1.2 Underground Presence

The Brazilian Army's security presence around the surface installation is described with the level. See: Places › D2

Its presence inside D2, however, is normally very limited.

Under ordinary conditions, encountering Brazilian soldiers inside D2 should be rare, although not impossible.

The probability of military activity increases as the player's actions raise the installation's Threat Level. Relevant events may include:

• Soldiers identifying an unauthorized intruder.
• Confirmed military casualties.
• Discovery of bodies.
• Reports of suspicious activity.
• Unauthorized use of restricted infrastructure.
• Repeated security incidents.
• Escalating investigations.
• Failed attempts to suppress military operations.

Brazilian soldiers rarely enter D2 under ordinary conditions; the likelihood increases with Threat Level. They never patrol D3 or deeper levels.

Brazilian military patrols never penetrate D3 or the deeper levels. D3 is outside their operational reach.

2.2 Brazilian Threat Level

The Brazilian Threat Level represents the military's evolving operational response.

A persistent military Threat Level reflects observed and reported incidents, not arbitrary chapter progression. It may increase through confirmed sightings, fighting, deaths, compromised installations, or repeated security problems. Responses can include revised patrol priorities, investigations, reinforced checkpoints, larger troop deployments, helicopters that relay sightings, or armored vehicles stationed along roads.

2.2.1 Behavioral Conditions

Its primary behavioral conditions include:

1. Suspicion: Individual soldiers recognize something unusual without necessarily informing others.
2. Investigation: Suspicious incidents are reported, and military personnel begin searching.
3. Combat: Hostile contact is confirmed, and personnel engage Edmund.
4. Reinforcement and Escalation: Command mobilizes additional forces according to operational conditions.

These are not rigid sequential stages. Transitions and requests depend on the circumstances and probabilistic decision-making.

Reinforcements may be requested before casualties occur, particularly when frightened or inexperienced soldiers are involved.

2.2.2 Escalation

At low Threat Levels, soldiers primarily remain in their ordinary assigned areas.

At higher levels, commanders may authorize additional inspections, reinforce checkpoints, modify patrol routes, or send limited personnel into D2.

An extreme Threat Level can result in substantial military mobilization on the surface, including infantry concentrations, helicopters, armored vehicles, and extensive search operations. This escalation can make the campaign extraordinarily difficult without automatically ending it.

At extremely high escalation, Schwarzwald may become nearly impossible to navigate: numerous infantry units, helicopter observation, heavy military road presence, and extensive searches. This is an intentionally severe, somewhat satirical emergent outcome of sustained player escalation, not an automatic scripted Game Over. There should be no guarantee that an exposed player can simply sleep or reload a checkpoint to erase the consequences.

2.3 Reinforcement System

Brazilian reinforcements are effectively unlimited at the strategic level, but individual deployments must physically arrive. The Brazilian military can mobilize reinforcements, snipers, helicopters, and armored vehicles in accordance with its probabilistic response system.

Available military assets include:

• Trucks transporting infantry reinforcements.
• Snipers positioned in tactically relevant areas.
• Esquilo helicopters conducting aerial reconnaissance.
• Military tanks capable of overwhelming Edmund in direct confrontation.

There is no mandatory deployment order.

The most probable escalation is increasing infantry reinforcements, followed by greater sniper activity, helicopters, and eventually armored support.

However, situational availability can produce unusual outcomes. A nearby tank might arrive before the first reinforcement truck.

The higher the Threat Level, the greater the probability and intensity of military mobilization.

Helicopters locate Edmund and relay information to ground forces. They can be damaged and forced to withdraw.

Tanks are effectively insurmountable in direct combat because Edmund does not possess the equipment necessary to destroy them.

2.4 Operational Task Distribution

Every Brazilian soldier stationed at Schwarzwald has a specific operational purpose. Soldiers do not occupy positions arbitrarily.

The military installation maintains a predefined set of operational assignments, including:

• Patrol routes and perimeter surveillance.
• Vehicle maintenance and logistical support.
• Security camera monitoring and administration.
• Facility access control.
• Guard posts and other security duties.
• Emergency response and reinforcement operations.

Operational assignments are persistent, but the personnel assigned to them are replaceable.

When a soldier dies, abandons a position, or is reassigned, the associated task may become temporarily vacant.

Military command can eventually detect these vacancies and redistribute available personnel or assign newly arriving reinforcements.

2.4.1 Reinforcement Assignment

Reinforcements do not exist exclusively to pursue Edmund. They can also restore the operational capacity of the installation.

For example, if two patrol routes are missing their assigned soldiers and a truck arrives carrying six reinforcements:

• Two soldiers may be assigned to the vacant patrol routes.
• The remaining four may receive emergency response, defensive, or other operational assignments.

Assignments are determined dynamically according to the installation's needs and the military command's decisions.

2.4.2 Temporary Operational Vulnerabilities

A vacant assignment creates a temporary operational vulnerability.

If Edmund kills the soldier responsible for patrolling a particular road, that road may temporarily lack its designated patrol.

Once military command recognizes the missing personnel and assigns a replacement, the vulnerability may disappear.

These opportunities arise naturally from the simulation rather than from scripted events.

2.5 American Threat Level

The American special operations force has an independent Threat Level. The American Threat Level is independent from the Brazilian Threat Level, but communications between the forces are asymmetric.

The unit consists of exactly 93 predefined operators. Its territory: See: Factions › American Special Operations Unit.

2.5.1 Asymmetric Intelligence Sharing

The two military Threat Levels are not mutually dependent.

A Brazilian alert does not automatically trigger an American alert.

However:

Any confirmed American detection that activates the American Threat Level immediately raises the Brazilian Threat Level to its normal maximum.

This occurs even if the American Threat Level itself has not reached its maximum.

The American command shares all available intelligence with Brazilian command.

Therefore, Edmund may return to the surface and discover that Brazilian forces are already operating at maximum alert.

This is a normal maximum-alert response, not the extraordinary siege event described in The Ninety-Three — Full Military Siege.

2.5.2 Camera and Patrol Robot Alerts

Patrol Robots and stationary surveillance cameras use different alert mechanisms.

When an active security camera positively identifies Edmund, the American Threat Level is raised immediately. An American alert automatically causes the Brazilian Threat Level to reach its normal maximum. The camera does not necessarily activate an audible alarm. Identification and communication may occur silently.

A Patrol Robot's delayed alert transmission, how it can be stopped and what follows when it completes, are described with the robot. See: Enemies › Patrol Robot

2.6 Reducing Alerts Through False Alarm

Amanda can potentially interfere with military communications through the optional False Alarm quest.

When the necessary systems and permissions are available, she may impersonate military personnel and manipulate communications to convince the forces that their previous alert resulted from a misunderstanding or false alarm.

This intervention may affect Brazilian or American alerts. Under normal circumstances, Amanda's False Alarm intervention may cancel alerts affecting either or both forces, subject to its probabilistic limitations. The Brazilian Threat Level may be reduced or canceled through Amanda's optional False Alarm intervention, subject to its established limitations.

Success is probabilistic.

Repeated deception progressively reduces the likelihood that the relevant commands will accept further explanations. Repeated attempts become progressively less reliable.

Eventually, the technique may become ineffective.

False Alarm is an exceptional method of reducing persistent military alerts.

Death, hiding, or simply waiting does not provide an equivalent reset.

See: Systems › Amanda's Authority And Trust

2.7 Generator Interference

Restoring the generator introduces a continuing interaction with the Brazilian Army's surface patrol system.

See: Campaign › 5. Mystery Base

2.7.1 Discovery Depends on the Simulation

Soldiers do not automatically investigate the generator simply because Edmund has activated it.

The probability of discovery depends on the dynamic simulation.

A soldier must encounter circumstances that cause him to notice the running equipment.

For example, a patrol may pass near A2, hear the generator, investigate the facility, and determine that the equipment appears to have been left operating without authorization.

A soldier may then report the situation or shut down the machinery.

Alternatively, no patrol may visit the facility for an extended period.

It is possible for the generator to remain operational throughout the entire game without attracting military attention.

2.7.2 Repeated Shutdowns

The game tracks military interference with the generator.

• First shutdown: A patrol discovers the running generator and disables it. Edmund must restore operation.
• Second shutdown: Repeated unauthorized operation raises suspicion. Reports may be communicated through the military chain of command.
• Third shutdown: The repeated incidents result in a command decision to establish a permanent security presence around the generator facility.

The third incident produces a persistent change in the world.

A2 becomes substantially more difficult to access.

Additional soldiers occupy or patrol the area, increasing the difficulty of reaching the generator without being detected.

This reinforcement is a consequence of repeated discoveries, not a scripted encounter automatically triggered when the chapter reaches a particular moment.

Hamish may be able to have the generator's operation recognized as authorized maintenance. See: Systems › Strategic Preparation

2.7.3 Interaction with Dynamic Patrol Behavior

Military detection is not guaranteed.

If a soldier who would ordinarily investigate the facility is killed and the incident is not discovered, the absence of that soldier can affect subsequent patrol coverage.

Other soldiers may still discover the facility later.

Likewise, additional military scrutiny, changing orders, or a higher Threat Level can increase the probability of generator interference.

The system must respond to the actual evolving state of the world.

2.8 The Ninety-Three — Full Military Siege

Eliminating all 93 American operators triggers a special narrative event and an extraordinary military response.

This is distinct from the Brazilian Threat Level reaching its normal maximum.

2.8.1 Trigger

After Edmund eliminates the final American operator, a delay occurs.

Hamish intercepts an American communication addressed to Brazilian command.

The transmission contains the following message:

American Command: "We have lost contact with all ninety-three operators. I repeat, all ninety-three. Recommend immediate activation of maximum military response. Establish a full perimeter. Deploy all available assets. Nobody gets in. Nobody gets out."

2.8.2 Two Separate Conditions

Maximum Threat Level and Full Military Siege are two separate conditions.

In addition to the permanent maximum Brazilian Threat Level, a separate Full Military Siege condition is activated, beyond the normal maximum alert that any American detection already causes.

The operation represents an extraordinary response that exceeds normal maximum-alert deployment.

It produces a substantially greater level of difficulty, conceptually beyond the ordinary Threat Level ceiling.

2.8.3 Permanent Maximum Threat

Following this communication, the Brazilian Threat Level becomes permanently locked at maximum.

Amanda can no longer deactivate or reduce it.

This is an irreversible consequence of eliminating the entire American contingent.

2.8.4 Full Military Perimeter

The Brazilian Armed Forces establish an extensive military cordon, a comprehensive perimeter around Schwarzwald.

The surface becomes heavily militarized.

The response includes:

• Extensive military patrols.
• Numerous concealed sniper positions.
• Frequent helicopter reconnaissance.
• Armored vehicles and tanks.
• Military roadblocks.
• Continued reinforcement deployments.
• Increased territorial control.
• Sustained surveillance of routes and access points.

The cordon also includes:

• Numerous infantry patrols throughout the surface.
• Reinforced roadblocks and controlled access routes.
• Snipers occupying forest positions.
• Additional reaction forces responding to confirmed sightings.

The military presence develops through physical deployments over time rather than appearing instantaneously.

The surface becomes an increasingly hostile operational environment.

2.8.5 Irreversibility

Once the Full Military Siege begins, Amanda cannot cancel it.

False Alarm becomes ineffective against the siege condition.

The siege persists through all subsequent deaths, checkpoint reloads, and attempts to evade detection.

The game remains theoretically completable, but surface exploration becomes exceptionally dangerous.

Eliminating the American force removes its immediate underground threat while creating a permanent strategic disaster for Edmund on the surface.

2.8.6 Gameplay Consequence

The game remains theoretically completable after the elimination of all 93 operators.

However, returning to the surface becomes exceptionally dangerous.

The player has removed the immediate American threat from the underground facility at the cost of provoking an overwhelming and permanent Brazilian military response.

This event is neither a conventional reward nor an automatic game-over condition. It is a persistent consequence of the player's actions.

3. Player Feedback

The visible indication of a Patrol Robot's active alert transmission and its remaining time: See: Enemies › Patrol Robot

4. Interactions

• The Chapter Two campaign variables Brazilian Military Alert and United States Military Involvement influence troop readiness, patrol density, inspections and security responses, and the timing and intensity of American military participation. Hamish's institutional interventions can change the military response. See: Systems › Strategic Preparation
• Soldiers who surprise an isolated companion may order surrender before shooting, which can begin an emergency rescue. See: Systems › Companions
• Deaths attributed to Edmund, and the operational assignments they leave vacant, are recorded in the registry. See: Systems › Dead Soldiers Registry
• Suspicion raised at checkpoints may travel through the military communication network. See: Systems › Military Disguise
• Soldiers also respond to creatures and other factions. See: Systems › Faction Conflicts
• Amanda's False Alarm capability. See: Systems › Amanda's Authority And Trust
• The checkpoint rules that leave both Threat Levels untouched. See: Systems › Persistent Consequences
• Soldier and operator identity, behavior, detection and combat. See: Enemies › Brazilian Soldier. See: Enemies › American Operator

5. Persistence

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5.1 Brazilian Military Threat Persistence

The Brazilian military operates under a persistent Threat Level system.

Military suspicion, investigation, confirmed hostile activity, and escalating response influence its behavior.

Confirmed military alerts do not disappear automatically when Edmund escapes or hides.

Once an alert has been established, dying does not erase the military's awareness of Edmund.

The military may lose his current location without forgetting that a hostile intruder exists.

The Brazilian Threat Level does not automatically reset after death.

5.2 American Alert Persistence

The American alert persists after Edmund dies.

The operators' deaths are permanent.

There are no replacement operators available after the original 93 have been eliminated.

6. Design Principles

Schwarzwald's two military forces, the Brazilian Armed Forces and the American special operations unit, operate under independent threat systems. Their AI is designed around emergent behavior, incomplete information, individual personalities, probabilistic decision-making, and persistent consequences. See: Factions › Brazilian Armed Forces. See: Factions › American Special Operations Unit.

Both military systems follow these core principles:

• Emergent behavior rather than rigid encounter scripts.
• Probabilistic decisions informed by context and personality.
• Imperfect knowledge and realistic information propagation.
• Persistent identities and casualties.
• Reinforcements governed by organizational resources and travel time.
• Distinct Brazilian and American jurisdictions.
• Independent but asymmetrically connected Threat Levels.
• Persistent consequences for player actions.
• Reproducible simulation behavior under equivalent seeds and event conditions.

Military casualties affect the operational structure of Schwarzwald, not merely the number of remaining enemies.

Every soldier has a purpose. Removing that soldier may interrupt an existing responsibility, creating temporary opportunities until the military organization adapts.

The Dead Soldiers registry gives Edmund a means of understanding these consequences through progressively acquired intelligence. See: Systems › Dead Soldiers Registry.

This connects individual soldier identities, emergent military behavior, operational task allocation, and player-driven tactical decisions into a unified simulation.

The Brazilian force represents escalating conventional military power.

The American unit represents a finite, clandestine, highly specialized containment force.

Together, they create two fundamentally different forms of military opposition within Schwarzwald. See: Enemies › Brazilian Soldier. See: Enemies › American Operator.

7. Open Questions

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