Depends on the RC. If you're using a newbie friendly RC - you shouldn't be dying on DD/VD1 no matter what (nor should you ever have).
No mist elf combo is a newbie-friendly RC. They all require a lot of extra care. There's no conflict in these matters.
I think mist elves are very cool [apparently I've won w/ 3, totally forgot 1], but you should give them a pass if you're not prepared for their difficulties.
gate closers: GeWi GnMo(unarmed) DeAs/Pa/Mi(staves)/Ra GePr DrBb HrMo | p7: MeBf | p17: GnPr | p20: DrDu GnAs DeCk MeWp OrBf GnTh MeHe | R57: MeDu | R101: DrAs (26,674 turns) GnDu (26,748) DrAs (18,533)
ULE: HeRa — OCG: DeMi
currently speedrunning DrAs.
I did learn disarm traps from the master thief with my gnome mage and after practice have no problems disarming them. Finding traps also works more frequently now that my skill increased.
Most newbies can't get to level 10 with an orc barbarian consistently. That's why they're newbies.
For mist elves, you should always get the black torc, IMHO, for the guaranteed resistances. Mist elves don't need healing anyway; first aid and a few spenseweed is usually good enough.
Hoping to win with every class, doomed. Archer, Barbarian, Bard, Beastfighter, Druid, Elementalist, Farmer, Fighter, Monk, and ULE Priest down.
Yes, it does give +Curse, but, my experience is that the other torc bonuses (speed, PV, resistances) make it more than worthwhile to wear it anyway. And in the particular case of mist elves, not having to worry about Fire and the hard-to-get Lightning resistance early on is pretty nice, at least for the first part of the game.
Hoping to win with every class, doomed. Archer, Barbarian, Bard, Beastfighter, Druid, Elementalist, Farmer, Fighter, Monk, and ULE Priest down.
I never go with druid route for my mist elves. Since they are casters and have easy access to companions due to Necromancy, once you find a cure book Healer is a source of endless supply of blessed potions of extra healing - and those 1-3 permanent hp for each one are extremely useful for them, completely negating the danger of all the traps. Also, it is a good start for the Archmage route.