. Is it really that hard?
Yes. It is very hard. Or else I just suck at the game and Requiem (which is a possibility).
I didn't die in every fight, though. Just most of them
. You can kill wolves and mudcrabs for the most part with not a lot of trouble. Fighting packs of enemies can prove difficult, though, especially bandits which can block your attacks and counter, etc. And archers are a real pain, especially if they are perched behind the melee battle, sniping you with (often deadly in one or two shots) arrows.
I played more today and I died a LOT. However, I was still able to progress in most spots. My follower and I killed a few bandits at a camp, then cleared out Embershard Mine, which was difficult but not overly frustrating.
You have to approach each encounter carefully in order to win. Basically, your follower has to draw aggression from the enemies and allow you to slip behind them and attack. Or, you can weaken enemies with archery or kill them outright before they even get to you. However, if they get to you and it's one on one, you're probably in trouble, especially if your follower is down.
Also, it's best not to attract crowds. Try to pull enemies one by one, if possible.
Blocking is effective but most enemies are higher level and will wipe the floor with you anyway. But again, I was still able to progress, I just died a whole bunch first.
But man, once I finally overcame the enemies, it was extremely satisfying. You'll see if you watch my next few videos. Particularly, video #5 where I clear Embershard Mine (in #4 I die a lot in one spot and give up).
It makes a dungeon dive for loot an extremely tense, dangerous proposition. Yet if you stick with it, it's very rewarding.
If you don't like dying, it's probably not for you. But if you like something like say, Dark Souls, and overcoming great challenges, it might be great for you.
I'm still getting a feel for it, but I'm enjoying it so far.
Video #5, showing off some combat >
http://youtu.be/8xqJU07WJdw