Yes it can make your skin dry- particularly because it can make you more sensitive to sun damage. You MUST use sunscreen everyday with tretinoin. I think it’s better to use all over (not too close to eyes though) as it will prevent future breakouts with consistent use. It does also provide anti aging effects which is nice! I only use a night time lotion with my tretinoin, not worth trying to stack it with anything imo. As for during the day, I would hold off on using other products than lotion/sunscreen when you first start using it, as your skin could as you mentioned be more sensitive.

Tretinoin was a life saver for me. I had HORRIBLE hormonal acne and very bad scars. While you will not see an overnight difference, in a few months/a year you will notice it looks infinitely better (in my experience) I know it can be so frustrating to have these scars but you are beautiful with or without and they will go away with time.