There are three major play styles. Stealth, diplomacy and brute force. That said, the only way to end the battle in the beta is to fight. Of course you can just hide and lose the battle.
I think it’s great that you don’t have to win, and that the game will progress regardless. It also gives you more replayability to check out the other play styles, and see what happens if you make different choices.
Yeah, in trying to get a bow I decided to take one off the couple of cumans by the woodcutter’s camp. In approaching that battle a few different ways, I discovered that I can actually sneak up on the one in back and knock him out (via standing rear naked choke) whereupon the archer pulls his sword and tries to attack me and dies a rapid death. Kinda cool that there is a stealth component that actually works. It’s not terribly elegant so far but it’s there in the beta so I have hope for it in the final release.
Non-combat solutions are pretty common in the game. Some combat is required but otherwise you can play through the game without excessive violence.
Combat is something that is still worked on in sense of tweaking.
So for example right now, you will get your ass kicked by everyone, being it a soldier or a farmer.
Yeah I can see how that may need some tweaking… 
At least you can increase your stamina and just…run
Run, run, run…
Hahahaha !!! What is that ??? Thank you mate, thank you, that was just…great 
Dude, nice one. XD
Well, if we talk in General about the combat system etc, then the easiest option to be an Archer. You just retreat(If you fight against many enemies) and shoot at vulnerable parts of their armor(preferably in the head, but there is one snag is that if he even opened the face, the damage is not. I once fired 15 arrows at a man’s head, who was wearing Chapelle[Kettle helm]). So, it is better sometimes to shoot at armor.
P. S But, this is only in beta, what I hope.
Huh. I always found upper face hits to be quite effective, just not the armoured part or the jaw.
It is possible that I was seeing what I expected, but I don’t recall any particular issue with killing kettle helm equipped soldiers when shot in the head at around nose/eye height.
Well, same issues for me, fighting are way to harder. I’ve tried with mouse + keyboard and xbox controller, same hardcore session, each time i try to change direction while moving i lost the target and get powned or i get countered and then powned. And the most vicious thing is when I get a combo in the mouth, my stamina falls fast and i can"t even try to escape or dash away to get Stam back. One full hour to perform ONE VICTORY and the easy NPC was like bug half time in the corner of the area lol…
I don"t want to compare carrot and apple but…i really prefer to get powned by Dark Souls monster in hard mode…
Plz do something about this combat thing, I’m allready done with the game because of this…
I actually really like the combat in this game. It is very tough and challenging, and when you do win, you feel like you’ve earned it. I say don’t change the combat. I have practiced quite a bit and there some things you can do to help in a fight. Like in a boxing match, you have to find the right moment to strike. Play like Ali would box, stick and move. If you find yourself getting your butt beat, get out of there or cover up. Also, keep in mind, there are and should be better fighters than you. Some people you just don’t want to mess with and if you do, you will pay the price. The game should not be tailored for Henry to win. Put Henry in a game where there are impossible obstacles. Let Henry figure out the way to win. But keep the combat as it is. I’ve played all backgrounds and do find that the squire seems to fight better.
Just on a side note, I have actually fought in combat in full plate armor in real life. It is tough. The weight itself of the armor exhausts you and if you fall, it’s very clumsy getting up again. I about 5 mins of fighting, I was drenched in sweat. Now fighting in leather armor is quite different…
I completely agree. Though I think that frame rate issues can play a big part (I get between 35 an 40 at 1440p) most people complaining, do not give up hope. It will click and you will see. When I got the beta I didn’t do anything but combat for the first 3 days (new HEMA practitioner here) and it just felt odd at first until I learned how to properly do it. I am still to face the toughest opponent on the arena (plate is scary) and I struggle to chain longer combos but I feel like it should be like that. Honestly, darksouls always felt hard just for the sake of being hard. This game however feels rewarding. Seriously, pommel striking your opponent in the face then killing his friend and by the time he gets back up you finish him off with a single head swing… if that doesn’t make you feel like a pro, nothing will.
Some tips
I am using a controller (wanted to use mouse and keyboard but no rebindable keys is a nono to me) and I focus on one thing at a time. I still don’t fully lunderstand what triggers the enemy to parry or to just block and sometimes I get hit by blows I don’t expect but here is what I did to ensure I win against most people:
Keep an eye on stamina. Seriously, don’t go gung ho. Strike once or twice to see if it connects if it doesn’t, back off.
Keep finger on block. As soon as things start to go sour, hold that block down like your life depends on it because It does. Move back at the same time.
Practice dodge a lot. More than parry, this allows you to get out of situations where sometimes you won’t be able to block since you over exposed yourself. Also dodging an attack allows you to start the combos you want instead of the riposte that you can get with a parry.
Practice one combo at a time. I can pull off two combos pretty well. The pommel to the face (my favourite) and the belly and face stab (useful as against real foes, you get them in the unprotected face and you can cause bleeding).
And finally, practice, practice, practice. Seriously, I must’very spent 10 or 12 hours over 3 days just doing this (of which more than half were against training opponent). Now, I find it fun (hema and I was a fencer for many years) so it is easy for me to do just this (in fact I would love an online arena where you can face other players in single combat) if you struggle, go and do some quests and just schedule like an hour of each play session to go to the arena and focus on combat.
That is pretty much all the advice I can give. Hope it starts to feel better for you soon.
you are not alone… I can’t beat but the simplest unarmored bandits. I cant even sneak knockout more than a unknowing peasant woman. I wish there was a way to change setting to easy, I’m much more into the story than the fighting.
