2.5 EA play throughs, no DND experience. Loving them game.

1.) I am absolutely loving the Bard which is odd for me. Nice nukes, and I hate missing attacks so that Bard song is clutch to toss on heavy hitters. And a ton of out of combat utility with Persuasion and lockpicking. Looks like with release changes I can even go Woodland Elf and get Stealth. But I also love shooting bows, and was thinking of going Bard/Ranger. Maybe get Bard to 6 for it's extra attack (I read a DnD guide, are we sure it will get that?), go 3 levels into Ranger. I can go lore Bard, and I will still get medium armor. And it looks like by lv3 I will have +2 to my attack roll and an extra D8 dmg. And then finish it off going the rest of way as Bard. But that should give me the last part of the game (9-12) as a pretty nice bow shooting supporting bard. Anything I am not aware of that would make that a bad idea?

2.)I like both LaeZel and Shadowheart but I read because they dont like each other they shouldn't be in the same party. Is it really that bad?

3.) just noticed at lv5 the Cantrip damage spells go up! As best I can tell that makes them stronger than most lv 1 damage spells so does it make more sense to keep utility type spells in the 1 hole as much as possible?

4.)Any way to kill that Druid witch and get the + 1 stat? I was able to get it and keep the girl alive while letting her go but I want her dead. But not at the cost of a stat gain!

5.)Based on rewards, is their an ideal outcome for resolving the druid/Tiefling/Goblin thing?

6.) notice the weapons aren't just stat sticks they come with usable skills. Are there any really good skills I should look out for? Worried I sell an item thinking its good not realizing it contains some super awesome ability to use that's pretty rare.