SureAI

I'm assuming that the difficulty is high on purpose? I find that I'm pursuing the main quest and find myself in a region that is labeled 15-21 while I'm only level 4. And of course I'm getting my ass handed to me. Should I return to the starting zone and get my level up before continuing on? There just doesn't seem to be anything left there to do so I wander aimlessly. I'm a big fan of the Gothic games, and see the similarities, but I'm not sure how i can get my level up before moving on to more difficult areas.

There are 15 dungeons that are for level 1-7 characters and they'll level you up to 7 or 8 easily. All of these dungeons are in the Fold Valley area. It is advisable to make a run to the sanctuary and get a few spells. This is pretty easy to do, if you stay mostly on the roads. Don't be afraid to just run on past things that look tough. I made it in my first try, but I had to climb up rocks and take out a few beasties that way before proceeding. You can't just follow the main quest without following the advice given; level up your character. Those dungeons also have 3 sets of armor in them: one for melee, one for stealth, and one for mages.

One last piece of advice: There is a freeze spell sold at the Sanctuary that is invaluable in fights. Make sure to buy that spell if nothing else.

Ah. I haven't been to sanctuary yet, I thought I'd save that for later and just explore. I'll go there, I've got the gold. Thanks for the pointer

One good thing about exploring is that if you can survive a couple combats, you'll find gear in the high level areas that'll be worth enough coin to stock up on all the spells and such you need.

The streets are a low level zone.
Creatures fighting each other and wandering close or on the streets can be a problem though.