Currently in the process of a long, ongoing 2e revamp myself, and I think an important mechanical barrier to break down is the mental divide between Hazard and NPC at various scales. On the extreme high-end, foes simply become ongoing damage which the Players can only avoid/endure but not directly combat meaningfully (ie, Mount Mostath), while on the extreme low-end of Hoshi the Farmer and his loyal mutt Gobber, they become an active obstacle/penalty to overcoming other challenges in the scene. It scales by the degree of just how much your players must hold back to not physically ruin this man or his livelihood simply for the sake of a supernatural scuffle in the dirt. At a given point, the only thing truly stopping the players is their character's morals and a willingness to let hostages/innocents die and collateral damage rule the day.
Its another Jackie Chan abstraction like "groups," but focused more on the idea you'd prefer to come back to this neighborhood bar again sometime, not blow the walls out of it and put the barmaid in a wheelchair.
