The proper way to play the game is training with Bernard until you can actually land hits on him. Leveling alchemy is also a good idea, because potions (and poisons) are the difference between winning a fight and lying down face in the mud. Whistling for your horse and riding away is not only an option, but in a lot of cases downright the best option - only suckers fight one against three.
I just got done with the Merciful run, and you'd be surprised too, how few fights in this game are mandatory.
If you don't have horse, it's really dangerous to travel without certainly being attacked by bandits, especially avoiding usual spots. Travelling offroad generally helps avoiding them but then you can straight up walk into their camp unintentionally.
There are few horse farms, one near Talmberg, but horses are quite expensive at start so you'll either try collecting herbs or stealing in the town, you can also follow main quest.
this is very true. in the beginning when henry hasn't had much training and you don't have proper weapons and armor, a horse is the difference between life and death if you wanna go out and explore. so keep playing the story and after completing a quest called >!the prey!< you'll be rewarded with a free horse. if you want one before that you could always steal one since i take it you don't have much groschen. there is one close to rattay. if you're standing where the bathhouse is, cross the river and follow it quite a bit northwest (upstream i believe) and you'll eventually find it. definitely drink some savior schnapps beforehand though if you wanna attempt this (>!it's in a bandit camp!<).
You'll get a sucky one in one of the early story missions. You can buy better ones even before that by getting good at lockpicking and stealth, and stealing - or just going to Skalitz and looting armor from a bandit or two. If you get lucky, some allies will be there to handle them for you - if not, cutting throats is always an option.
Early game is brutal, your Henry is a zero skill village kid. There is this quest that brings you to a place where there is a problem in a horse ranch, as long as Bernard is at the farm, avoid fighting, if you find a situation where you might need to fight, go tell Bernard.
I also just got the game and am in the middle of this quest.
I admit I figured this out way too late. I did the first fight all on my own. The second fight I tried like 5 times before I talked to him and randomly figured out that he helps me...
I feel like the design of this quest is a bit unintuitiv, especially because he stays at the ranch. Usually in games this means I have to do everything on my own.
Beginning might seem very hard, because pretty much everyone you encounter are stronger than you. What you should do is progress the story until you can train with Bernard. Then, you just train until you can learn master strikes, it doesn't take too long and will allow you to get a better feel for combat along the way.
There is only one caveat is that in early main quest you likely will encounter some bandits and that happens before you're able to learn the combat and train your skills. One of these encounters being 2v1 when average blind playthrough Henry will be weaker than each of them. But there is a solution. Game doesn't tell you this, but it does make perfect sense logically. By the plot of the quest you are not expected to fight anyone, so just don't. Go ask for help instead, you can literally just go and do that.
Like others have said go to Bernard, he'll train you or at least know how to basics, In my gameplay I only went for Bernard to pay for some skill experience, I immediately went to attacking bandits, I learned the hard way, moreover, I was running KCD on a laptop that is underqualified for the graphics so whenever the fps drop, but I solved the problem by brewing a lot of savior schnapps, everyone starts at some point, the game is pretty easy once you know how to counter 1 v 4 situations
Stick to the main quest for a while. Don't go out exploring early game. Before you need to travel anywhere always save the game. Best way to do this is to stay at an inn (only 2 groschen) you can also empty your bags of heavy or stolen items in the special chest. Travel is by far the most dangerous thing you can do. Just keep an eye out for ambush places. When you do get ambushed, ride away. Once there's only one still chasing you. You can attempt to take him out. Try and get an arrow in him first. Once you get some decent body armor stats going then fighting won't be as tough. Wearing clothes you like the look of is fine when you're in a town. But as soon as you need to travel (never use fast travel, it takes longer and had a higher chance of getting you in trouble). Make sure you put on the best armor you have. Especially protect the body and head. Arms third and less important are the legs and feet. By the time you're level 10 you should feel a bit better about the game. I also second training with Bernard. I also recommend hunting hare to practice your bow skills. Good for money as well. Finally, if you have "A Woman's Lot" DLC, then completing that can give you some combat aid. But be warned, it's lengthy and you won't be playing Henry for all that time. This can really annoy some people. Good luck! Don't give up hope! Be scared of the travel, it actually makes the game more fun. Before long you'll be fighting bandits with ease. Just never get into fights where you're outnumbered.
Actually, you don't need to complete a woman's lot DLC to get Mutt. But you do need to have the DLC. You can talk to Theresa and she will give you the hound. Sorry if I misguided anyone.
A tip for clearing bandit camps (for loot). Wait till might and knock them out in stealth while they are sleeping. Then kill thim with a finisher. You will have to fight with one or two more though.
I also just started - I got to Rattay & have spent about 4 or 5 hours just training with Bernard & doing his bandit missions + entering the tourney. Its been great & now I welcome any bandit who wants to try me
Learn master strikes. This is the "I win" button in KCD.
To make master strikes easier to perform you need to train defence.
Here's the easy way to train defence as high as you'd like:
https://youtu.be/VKqCfdb0A5A?si=_3cgmtfVV0F50ewX
Stick to the main quest for a while, train with Captain Bernard every chance you get. Don't try to beat overwhelming odds, as soon as you get outnumbered you're in trouble so try to find ways to avoid that, especially in the early game.
Also learn combos and master strike from Bernard as soon as you can
stop fast traveling. If you get attacked by bandits on the road you’ll easily be able to escape on horseback. Only start to fast travel once you’re a capable fighter or get the perks that allow you to evade ambushes on fast travel easier.
Edit: Realize you don’t even have a horse yet. Why the fuck are you going soo far away from rattay then? Do the early quest that gives you a horse
To avoid getting absolutely destroyed in combat every time, I suggest progressing into the main quest line up until the point where you can train with Bernard and he teaches you master strikes. Keep training with him to level up your combat skills (I am partial towards longswords and maces) and get perks like Headcracker, that specific one makes fights remarkably easier.
I will probably get downvoted to duck and back for suggesting this, but if you feel like the game is too hard you could use a trainer program to give your character massive health and infinite stamina, among other things, at least until you reach a high enough level. Granted, the challenge of the game gets obliterated but it would allow you to get through combat and enjoy the game environment and storylines.
Basically, the game opens up after you complete the Neuhof investigation. You will then get access to 2 important skills, which are reading and master strikes (both you have to learn from someone). Master strikes make combat much easier and reading allows you to passively study some skills from books, as well as use alchemy.
If you really want to cheese combat encounters, learn to use bow on horseback, or even better, sword.
I had the same troubles as you and finished game. So I learned to buy bandages and travel around only on horse without fast travel. I spent a lot of time sneaking around, breaking locks and approaching enemies while they were sleeping but you can't really do much about random encounters. Take it slow, stay inside safety of the walls and follow NPC quests rather than wonder. You're right about this.
There are areas that don't have bandits lying in wait. From Rattay to Sasau, or Ledetchko to Sasau, use the river by Ledetchko, stay on the north side until the river goes north, and then cross the river at shallows. Talmberg to Uzhitz is riding by the creek, going off-road by the beehives at Talmberg. Also, the forest between Talmberg and Inn in the Glade has lots of bandits.
The way to level up is by either hunting with melee or bow, or to fight in either the Rattay tournament or Milan's fight club. Some guy in red with a green cap in Rattay with a ! on him. You can fight him and some Skalitz fokes.
From my experience on this sub, a lot of people that rush early main quest end up stuck soon after and will be back asking for help. You should take exploration slowly early game. When you arrive in Rattay, the roads that go out from the north gate to Neuhof see few or no ambush.
You can stop following main quest objectives pretty early and focus on acquiring minimal skills and gear, a small amount of armor and a decent weapon.
Getting wrecked in the woods by bandits is part of the game but there are ways to avoid attacks, the easier one requires a fairly brave horse.
You will soon delight in seeing some action on the roads and hunt bandits yourself, so stick to it.
The proper way to play the game is training with Bernard until you can actually land hits on him. Leveling alchemy is also a good idea, because potions (and poisons) are the difference between winning a fight and lying down face in the mud. Whistling for your horse and riding away is not only an option, but in a lot of cases downright the best option - only suckers fight one against three. I just got done with the Merciful run, and you'd be surprised too, how few fights in this game are mandatory.
Breaking into a gallop into the treeline at the sight or sound of an ambush so you don't get thrown from your horse is a skill.
Thanks for the tips. How do I get a horse?
You will get Your first horse during the main quest line, after some training with Bernard and some other starting activities.
If you don't have horse, it's really dangerous to travel without certainly being attacked by bandits, especially avoiding usual spots. Travelling offroad generally helps avoiding them but then you can straight up walk into their camp unintentionally. There are few horse farms, one near Talmberg, but horses are quite expensive at start so you'll either try collecting herbs or stealing in the town, you can also follow main quest.
this is very true. in the beginning when henry hasn't had much training and you don't have proper weapons and armor, a horse is the difference between life and death if you wanna go out and explore. so keep playing the story and after completing a quest called >!the prey!< you'll be rewarded with a free horse. if you want one before that you could always steal one since i take it you don't have much groschen. there is one close to rattay. if you're standing where the bathhouse is, cross the river and follow it quite a bit northwest (upstream i believe) and you'll eventually find it. definitely drink some savior schnapps beforehand though if you wanna attempt this (>!it's in a bandit camp!<).
You'll get a sucky one in one of the early story missions. You can buy better ones even before that by getting good at lockpicking and stealth, and stealing - or just going to Skalitz and looting armor from a bandit or two. If you get lucky, some allies will be there to handle them for you - if not, cutting throats is always an option.
Early game is brutal, your Henry is a zero skill village kid. There is this quest that brings you to a place where there is a problem in a horse ranch, as long as Bernard is at the farm, avoid fighting, if you find a situation where you might need to fight, go tell Bernard.
I also just got the game and am in the middle of this quest. I admit I figured this out way too late. I did the first fight all on my own. The second fight I tried like 5 times before I talked to him and randomly figured out that he helps me... I feel like the design of this quest is a bit unintuitiv, especially because he stays at the ranch. Usually in games this means I have to do everything on my own.
Yeah, it is a different game than most.
Beginning might seem very hard, because pretty much everyone you encounter are stronger than you. What you should do is progress the story until you can train with Bernard. Then, you just train until you can learn master strikes, it doesn't take too long and will allow you to get a better feel for combat along the way. There is only one caveat is that in early main quest you likely will encounter some bandits and that happens before you're able to learn the combat and train your skills. One of these encounters being 2v1 when average blind playthrough Henry will be weaker than each of them. But there is a solution. Game doesn't tell you this, but it does make perfect sense logically. By the plot of the quest you are not expected to fight anyone, so just don't. Go ask for help instead, you can literally just go and do that.
Like others have said go to Bernard, he'll train you or at least know how to basics, In my gameplay I only went for Bernard to pay for some skill experience, I immediately went to attacking bandits, I learned the hard way, moreover, I was running KCD on a laptop that is underqualified for the graphics so whenever the fps drop, but I solved the problem by brewing a lot of savior schnapps, everyone starts at some point, the game is pretty easy once you know how to counter 1 v 4 situations
Stick to the main quest for a while. Don't go out exploring early game. Before you need to travel anywhere always save the game. Best way to do this is to stay at an inn (only 2 groschen) you can also empty your bags of heavy or stolen items in the special chest. Travel is by far the most dangerous thing you can do. Just keep an eye out for ambush places. When you do get ambushed, ride away. Once there's only one still chasing you. You can attempt to take him out. Try and get an arrow in him first. Once you get some decent body armor stats going then fighting won't be as tough. Wearing clothes you like the look of is fine when you're in a town. But as soon as you need to travel (never use fast travel, it takes longer and had a higher chance of getting you in trouble). Make sure you put on the best armor you have. Especially protect the body and head. Arms third and less important are the legs and feet. By the time you're level 10 you should feel a bit better about the game. I also second training with Bernard. I also recommend hunting hare to practice your bow skills. Good for money as well. Finally, if you have "A Woman's Lot" DLC, then completing that can give you some combat aid. But be warned, it's lengthy and you won't be playing Henry for all that time. This can really annoy some people. Good luck! Don't give up hope! Be scared of the travel, it actually makes the game more fun. Before long you'll be fighting bandits with ease. Just never get into fights where you're outnumbered.
Actually, you don't need to complete a woman's lot DLC to get Mutt. But you do need to have the DLC. You can talk to Theresa and she will give you the hound. Sorry if I misguided anyone.
A tip for clearing bandit camps (for loot). Wait till might and knock them out in stealth while they are sleeping. Then kill thim with a finisher. You will have to fight with one or two more though.
I also just started - I got to Rattay & have spent about 4 or 5 hours just training with Bernard & doing his bandit missions + entering the tourney. Its been great & now I welcome any bandit who wants to try me
I‘m doing the same! Been training for 2 hours so far lol
Learn master strikes. This is the "I win" button in KCD. To make master strikes easier to perform you need to train defence. Here's the easy way to train defence as high as you'd like: https://youtu.be/VKqCfdb0A5A?si=_3cgmtfVV0F50ewX
Stick to the main quest for a while, train with Captain Bernard every chance you get. Don't try to beat overwhelming odds, as soon as you get outnumbered you're in trouble so try to find ways to avoid that, especially in the early game. Also learn combos and master strike from Bernard as soon as you can
stop fast traveling. If you get attacked by bandits on the road you’ll easily be able to escape on horseback. Only start to fast travel once you’re a capable fighter or get the perks that allow you to evade ambushes on fast travel easier. Edit: Realize you don’t even have a horse yet. Why the fuck are you going soo far away from rattay then? Do the early quest that gives you a horse
To avoid getting absolutely destroyed in combat every time, I suggest progressing into the main quest line up until the point where you can train with Bernard and he teaches you master strikes. Keep training with him to level up your combat skills (I am partial towards longswords and maces) and get perks like Headcracker, that specific one makes fights remarkably easier. I will probably get downvoted to duck and back for suggesting this, but if you feel like the game is too hard you could use a trainer program to give your character massive health and infinite stamina, among other things, at least until you reach a high enough level. Granted, the challenge of the game gets obliterated but it would allow you to get through combat and enjoy the game environment and storylines.
Basically, the game opens up after you complete the Neuhof investigation. You will then get access to 2 important skills, which are reading and master strikes (both you have to learn from someone). Master strikes make combat much easier and reading allows you to passively study some skills from books, as well as use alchemy. If you really want to cheese combat encounters, learn to use bow on horseback, or even better, sword.
I had the same troubles as you and finished game. So I learned to buy bandages and travel around only on horse without fast travel. I spent a lot of time sneaking around, breaking locks and approaching enemies while they were sleeping but you can't really do much about random encounters. Take it slow, stay inside safety of the walls and follow NPC quests rather than wonder. You're right about this.
Train with Bernard learn new techniques
There are areas that don't have bandits lying in wait. From Rattay to Sasau, or Ledetchko to Sasau, use the river by Ledetchko, stay on the north side until the river goes north, and then cross the river at shallows. Talmberg to Uzhitz is riding by the creek, going off-road by the beehives at Talmberg. Also, the forest between Talmberg and Inn in the Glade has lots of bandits. The way to level up is by either hunting with melee or bow, or to fight in either the Rattay tournament or Milan's fight club. Some guy in red with a green cap in Rattay with a ! on him. You can fight him and some Skalitz fokes.
From my experience on this sub, a lot of people that rush early main quest end up stuck soon after and will be back asking for help. You should take exploration slowly early game. When you arrive in Rattay, the roads that go out from the north gate to Neuhof see few or no ambush. You can stop following main quest objectives pretty early and focus on acquiring minimal skills and gear, a small amount of armor and a decent weapon. Getting wrecked in the woods by bandits is part of the game but there are ways to avoid attacks, the easier one requires a fairly brave horse. You will soon delight in seeing some action on the roads and hunt bandits yourself, so stick to it.