I'm really enjoying this game so far; good job, devs! :) While I understand that the danger zones make walking back and forth more interesting (especially if you're weak for the area but want to get through it or explore it), it becomes tedious when you're ready to clear the zone and get the experience bonus.

Currently the game rewards you for mindlessly walking back and forth waiting for a random encounter, which provides no gameplay value. Instead, I'd recommend giving the player the option to go on offense and attack the next random enemy party, without waiting or walking.

That way I can both be scared of random encounters the first time I enter a tough danger zone, but not have to aimlessly wander around when I'm ready to clear the zone.

I agree with this, I've been reduced to walking back & forth in some areas too. I still have a "great number of enemies" in the southern part of Sorrentia, which I left behind in levels long ago.

Another idea (for a future game, hopefully) is to add a tracking skill so that little danger indicator (lower right) changes through more colours as you get closer to an enemy; a hotter/colder type thing. It could also be integrated into the existing hunting skill. For this, of course, the encounters couldn't be completely random, just invisible and moving around on the map. I think they might be like this to some extent as I've had a random encounter, botched the fight, re-loaded and had the encounter again in the same place.

If the enemies are actually on the map already, but invisible, I like the improved indicator idea.

It did occur to me that one of the gameplay dynamics involved is having to spend food/time to search for enemies. If attacking the next enemy were instant, it might upset the balance.

To keep that balance, an "attack next enemy" feature could cost food/time (maybe dependent on the hunting skill).

I read somewhere that the time to walk back and forth is about 3-4 game hours before a new random encounter pops up. I don't think its a distance thing but more of a time thing. Its more like what Roccandil said, so you have to spend time and lose food reserves.
In one of the zones I just used my left and right arrow keys in conjunction and sure enough, within 3 hours a new enemy "randomly" appeared in the same area I had been walking to and fro.

Interesting. Since dangerous areas are often difficult terrain that cost more food to traverse than adjacent safe terrain, I wonder if that means the player is rewarded for wandering back and forth for a few hours in safe terrain and then foraying into the difficult terrain to find an enemy. (That would cost less food.)

Enemies do seem to have certain areas they like to spawn in, as well. I actually finished up the enemies in the desert south of Varaskel by abusing the teleporter. I'd come in through the stone arch, walk around in a loop between town, the teleporter, and slightly south of the teleporter. I'd get jumped somewhere in the area, fight, exit through the teleporter to Velegarn, which has the cheapest inn to rest at, go back through the teleporter, and repeat. By the time you get to Varaskel, it's more cost-effective to rest at Velegarn than burn the food to rest for 8 hours. This drastically cut down on food usage, since I wasn't wandering all over the desert. You don't have to wander all over the desert to find the battles, let them come to you.

Another good thing to go back to Velegarn is you do a quick food run every 3 days around the area and pick up close to 5 days worth of food. I never come close to running out this way.

Is there a mod to speed up the random encounters? Perhaps some INI variable?

I honestly haven't looked up any mods for this. I've played it thru once with the default game. If I play it again in case it gets expansions or added gameplay, I'll look up mods then.
I'm sure someone else would know better regarding mods.

still playing stuck at the mad prince (too many lighting effects)
i asked the devs in steam if thee could be a patch, lucky for me more users asked about option to disable some effects, it seems they fixed it in patch 1.7 so far no patch seen here, steam has it a few weeks or more...
I have it on steam but palying (offline) with a client running , thats not gaming, more process slow the pc etc etc etc
I knew it might take a while so i haven bothered them asking again, but now it is taking its t ime, i guess 1 month has passed at least....


So i am still waiting till they release 1.7 patch on gog in the patch you can add /change an otpion to disable that fullscreen lightning, they say it works on 1.6, it does not, i tried it but after the game has started the game sems to remove that from the .txt file so i guess the 1.9 code patch will adress that.

So i am 'on hold' cant start cleaning things up at the princes place till the 1.7 is here.
I could login old xp start up the game wait '10 hours' then the client starts .... playing using a client is redundant.
Sound like bigfishgames they also need a client to run a game..., thats what you get when you use drm.

Anyways for any wishes i guess you use their forum or steam cause that gets the most attention i guess.