How much you micromanage battles is largely dependent on your game speed settings and how often you use the pause button. You can simply set your characters to "attack freely, move freely" and click somewhere near an enemy and let them handle it with the weapons you've selected (while you enjoy some zoomed in carnage), or you can slow the game down a bit and tell them each which enemy to attack, use specific spells and weapons on each enemy, etc. My personal favorite method is to select only my main character, put the rest on follow and then charge in with one character letting the rest fend for themselves. Hitting the "Health" potion key during a battle causes all party members below 50% health (except packmules who don't have hands to be able to drink from bottles) to stop and drink a health potion. Similarly, hitting the "Mana" potion key will tell your needy party members to gulp a mana potion. Of course, while they're drinking they won't be able to do anything else - but they replenish as they begin drinking, so you don't have to worry that they'll die by the time they finish drinking. Additionally, you don't have to worry about wasting potions because they'll drink only as much as they need. At the beginning of the game, health potions are almost ridiculously abundant. However, as you progress you'll find yourself running out more quickly and being forced to be more careful.