Combats in the first area around the crash site need to be tweaked. It is insanely difficult and the only way I've been able to make much progress is save scumming. I know low level D&D is supposed to be hard and I know that DOS2 made it easy to wander into areas that were too high level, but there just doesn't feel like there are many fights that are actually appropriate for low level characters here. Every fight should consume resources, but I shouldn't be fighting a war of attrition with my party members being downed multiple times in every combat.
There are also some combats that are just insanely unbalanced. The goblin windmill in particular. It's two wargs and 5 goblin archers that start with the high ground. This combat is not doable except by sheer luck, yet you wander into that area extremely early in the game.
Same with the 3 troll things in the wrecked house that expect you to have the mark of the absolute, yet you can conceivably reach the house before you would get the mark. I'm fine with the order of that scenario, even if it does feel a bit backwards. The main issue is that the fight is ridiculously unbalanced for characters that are only going to be level 2 or 3. And I know that there is a "trick" to it, but the fight often triggers before you ever even make it into the house and can spot it.
In an even earlier example, when you find Shadowheart banging on the door of the temple and she suggests going up the cliffs, the fight you end up having on top of the temple seems a bit too much for a completely fresh party. It's doable but just barely.
It's beyond challenging and verges on frustrating. And there doesn't seem to be much guidance in terms of what is appropriate for your level and what isn't. I mean, the refugee leader asks you to kill Kagha when you're like level 2 but Kagha is level 4 and that is completely unreasonable.
I am sure people will disagree, but I've played through the first area about a half dozen times with multiple different characters and even though I know where I am going and what I am doing, it still feels like I'm just barely making it out of fights.
I mean, even the ship has some of that imbalance. In two of my games I died at the helm because the mind flayer died and suddenly the level 5 dude is hunting me down before I can make it across the map. Also. that fight just feels weird because suddenly the guy who just put a tadpole in your eye is asking you to help him? It feels out of place.
The fights really aren't that difficult. I have yet to experience a party wipe on any of the early level fights. I'm not abusing long rest either. Without saying what you've tried its hard to figure out why you're having a ton of trouble because I've had the opposite experience. It most certainly isn't "beyond challenging" however.
