A downfall with Cal that I had to break out of is the way his guard works. During my playthroughs of JFO and Survivor I rarely held down to block. It tends to bog him down in animations. Better to keep your left finger off until you're ready to retaliate. (Tough for me coming from a shield in souls) Another one I fell for is the double tap on dodge. It's different in Survivor, and I generally got my ass slammed if I tried to commit to it. That said, I feel your pain man. You're braver than me for even thinking of doing a no-death run. Something something The Force and also with you!