Yes, this was part of the more OSR-leaning vibes, trying to make danger feel dangerous. And it's not for any action, just ones which would require a stress die to be rolled, such as combat, or perhaps leaping across a gaping spike-pit? A roll for say, trying to find a secret door, probably wouldn't require a stress die, though if a character wanted to increase their chances of success, they could choose to roll their stress die, and by rushing they might not notice the trap they might have otherwise avoided, even on a failure but with care.
One way to tone down the lethality could be to sub out death for unconsciousness? Or possibly giving combat oriented characters a bonus 1 max HP to start? Definitely makes me want to go back into this with some "new" eyes