Help me out here guys
I bought this game about a year ago on Steam, eventually got around to installing it last August, played for an hour and then just kind of got sidetracked - it didn't really pull me in. A couple of nights ago I reinstalled it and restarted from the beginning because Witcher 2 looks amazing. I finished the prologue and started Chapter 1 (I'm running around with a ring (fire emblem thing) from the Reverend trying to get the 3 various land owners on my side). I'm having a few problems with the game so far though... basically I'm lacking direction and instruction. I could use some beginners tips.
There's tons of loot that I'm not sure if I should be holding onto or not. Is there any reason to keep bread, chicken, fish, goats milk, etc in my inventory other than to regain vitality/endurance... like to make potions or anything? I assume I can just throw them away or sell them if my inventory gets full. On a similar note, I can't seem to carry enemy weapons unless I have an empty weapon slot on my character - should I just leave them on the floor? Speaking of weapons. What the hell is the point of carrying the non-Witcher weapons if I can't use the combat styles or combos with them? Should I ever be pulling out that huge axe I got or just stick with the steel/silver sword?
Then, with talents, is there anything I should know? Is anything completely useless or is it possible for me to fuck myself over if I don't pump points into certain stats? Is it better to focus or spread out in the talent tree - because there seems to be a lot of em? Like, I got herbalism but I can only pick one plant so far, everything else is unidentified (how do I "discover" a plant so I can pick it?)
I know that's a lot of questions but just a basic summary would be useful. I feel like I'm just running around willy-nilly without much of a goal in mind.