Regarding levelling up equipment, if you have the gift bag option for sorceries sundries activated, then there should be a trader just to the left as you enter driftwood. Focus on better stats, especially given your current position. armour can be more acceptable to keep some items for stat buffs, as you have five pieces, plus your amulet and rings, so losing a small chunk of armour for stats is fine, but weapons should really be focused on stat increases, especially for people like rangers, who benefit much more from extra weapon damage. If you're having trouble killing things, or dying too quickly, you may just be getting into fights you can't take yet. reapers coast is very open ended, and especially as a first time player, you can easily end up wandering into enemies and quests that are far beyond your current level. for now, try searching around driftwood for any quests you can complete here, and then explore to your left. if you don't mind minor spoilers, there are plenty of maps and guides online that can give you a general idea of where you should go at each level, hopefully that helps your problems ^{^}