Some companions will leave the party permanently if you do not bring them with you for their subplots. It’s not metagaming to put them in the party for things that are relevant to them, it’s the opposite, it’s bringing them along for something incredibly important to their personal journey.
I tried to play this game the way I play DnD at first, conserving resources and long resting only after multiple fights. I missed a lot of dialogue in Act 1 and had a hard time in combat.
The combat and camp events are balanced around using long rests frequently. There are a few quests that you can fail by resting (such as the inn burning down or the situation in Grymforge), but generally things are much less urgent than the game makes them sound. Don’t be afraid to dump all your resources into one or two fights and then rest.
I agree. Beyond the romance bugs making him seem like a skeezy incel, his backstory is some Mary Sue shit and he has a tendency to jump on morally dubious power grabs at the slightest opportunity. (See: book in apothecary basement, Raphael, personal quest events in Act 3). He made a good first impression but he might stay in the wall on my next playthrough.
You do get locked out of traveling back to Act 1 areas some time in Act 2. I think once you enter the Temple of Shar?
I wanted to go back for another crack at the forge and I couldn’t.
You have another chance to get her just before entering Act 2 if you head to the Mountain Pass. If you enter Act 2 without her, she is gone forever.