Carnal Instinct: Bugs After Halloween Update (Workarounds)

I have often said that I encounter few bugs in Carnal Instinct, but I've had several frustrating ones since I started a new game after the Halloween update, none of which seem related to the update. When playing The Avarice of Birds, twice my character walked inside the rocks, and the only way I could get out was by using Blink sorcery. I also had a devil of a time finding the place where I…

I can't find any fish anywhere near there (maybe because I haven't done the Master Baiter quest yet?). And I've experienced more bugs. Since the update, I can't equip both a shield and a melee weapon. When I equip one, the other is immediately unequipped. And when I tried Master Baiter, I can't cast the rod. It's in the ring, but when I select it nothing happens, and nothing when I try to cast…