Yeah if you are not going classic sword and board, Adaptability is extremely important in DS2. One thing that sets DS2 apart from other games in the series is that it has a larger number of optional bosses scattered around. The game is also much more linear after the first part of it, though you generally have two areas to work on at any given point in the game.
If you are not using casting much (and it is a lot of fun in this game, especially lightning faith casters and dark casters), getting the dragon rider bow is a great option for when you need to tap things at a distance. Also remember that if you kill things enough times (8 in most cases) they will not respawn, so you can use that mechanic to both farm an area for a bit while also making runbacks to the boss easier. You can use an item to respawn the area, but this makes it the equivalent of a new game cycle for that area including any associated boss so be careful doing that. This is also a way to get multiple rare items on a first run, such as the Sinners Sword and MLGS, but you basically have to have read spoilers to know where those things are.
If you like two handed swords and halberds, you will like this game more because there are a lot of really good options for that. The last giant sword is available early and viable the entire game. The BK Halberd that comes a little later is arguably the best halberd weapon in any souls game. But honestly, if you are avoiding magic smithing up stronger mundane weapons is probably superior until you get to the near end of the game. Just always keep fire based attacks in your arsenal because it comes up a fair amount through to the end of the game.
One last bit, the DLCs are accessible somewhat early, but dont dive in to them immediately. The enemies have stacked resistances, especially to lightning and sorcery, they hit harder, and are generally more clever in their tactics. So you want to be pretty well into your build before giving them a go.