Tearing my hair at difficulty

[Worbah]

I was incredibly frustrated with BE5 back when I first got it, you might say I had a love/hate-relationship with the game (I loved BE5, and BE5 hated me). The first few hours of the game were just painful. A bandit ambush was a death sentence. However, I found these tips to helpful with both games;

1. Solo=dead. Hire a merc ASAP. By doing so you've effectively doubled the firepower at your disposal.

2. Weapon at ready. By default, you should have your weapon prepared. Shaves a second or two that might prove fatal.

3. Use aimed shots. Whenever there's a bit of range between you and your target, you'll be far more likely to hit with the carefully aimed shots. Maximum amount of lead in the air is not always the best solution.

4. Shotguns and SMGs. In the beginning, you should try to get a decent shotgun before you leave the first town. (I do play with "Easy Money" switched on, though, so it might be quite a bit more difficult to accomplish.)

5. Crouched is the stance to use. A good compromise between mobility and safety. Standing up you're a bullet magnet, and while prone you turn slower than a snail in a tar pit.

6. Eyes on your back. The big adjustment I had to make going from BE5 to 7.62 was the fact that enemies, more often than not, come at you from many directions. It's a good idea to use a merc as a spotter/rearguard so you won't get flanked.

EDIT: Oh yeah, I have most of the easy options selected, aside from dumb enemies and low adrenaline. And sometimes the critical hit-thing. I can't imagine what kind of a strategy genius makes it on the hardest difficulty setting.