Hi there, thanks for playing my game and taking the time to give some great feedback! I'm happy you enjoyed the plot and characters! I take it as a huge compliment you want to see more of the story ^-^
The begining is a little text-heavy, I will agree. I tried to be as efficient as possible with setting the scene and the society. I'll certainly look into trimming it back a bit and revealing more later rather than upfront.
Sorry you didn't enjoy the AI combat! I wanted to try a different style. You aren't supposed to die to the random encounters unless you just spam guard, and even then your teammates should pick up the slack, hence the choice to AI them. I'll look into the balancing, as I suspect you died to an aoe attack. If you are ever struggling, try Aria's healing primal tap, which gives a huge critical evasion boost. Treat her more as a healer/support than an attacker.
Thanks again for playing! I'm glad you had an overall positive experience, and I'll certainly consider what you've said :)