you are right. for a layer of the game that is interacted with constantly, there are fundamental problems with combat. knockback is a pain and almost turns successful parries into a drawback, because the enemy can get pushed off ledges where they can't be hit at all. aiming vertically always favours enemies. enemies do not contend with stamina or fall damage as the player does.

these issues are fundamental in that they (a) affect the entirety of the game, and (b) punish successful actions (you basically always want to strike a parried enemy, but there are frequent circumstances in which you can't).

they should be fixed.