The fact that you’re estus is scarce has really bumped up the difficulty for me. I love it too, it means I can’t just run into situations and have the luxury of healing right after. It’s also barring off future areas, meaning that if an area before it was too hard and I already used my estus, then I wouldn’t be able to continue. Not that I couldn’t go on if I wanted, but that I’d probably die if I went in unequipped.