If you have a mage, make sure they invest in different schools. Feel free to experiment with stuff at Fort Joy, because once you're done that area, you'll get the chance to respec all of your characters at no cost. Until you have an aerothurge player that can use teleport naturally, those gloves are going to turn the tide of a lot of battles. These gloves are so insanely useful you'll wonder how you played the game without it. Early in Fort Joy there's a quest that will get you teleportation gloves. Place your guys (or, if you're playing multiplayer), coordinate your team such that they're at the right spots before initiating battle. Once found, they're a great way to expand your repertoire. Fort Joy has traders for each discipline somewhere on the island. The AI will use these against you, so make sure you use it first. Blood and water can be electrified to stun enemies. Poison will heal undead but hurt living creatures. The enrivonment is your friend Part 2: Be mindful of surfaces and clouds. Proper high ground for archers and mages will afford additional range, and a damage boost (sometimes as high as 35%). The environment is your friend, and you must ALWAYS be thinking about this. Fort Joy is pretty non-linear, so you'll find you can return to fights later on after gaining some experience and leveling your team up. If it's too hard, think about whether you need to do it right now, or at all. The early game is pretty difficult, but you don't need to fight every fight. As someone that has about 50 hours in classic mode, I can offer some thoughts, OP:

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