It is exactly how it works, pass a stealth check - and you'll get a window prompt to attack/evade. Choose attack - and you loaded into the random encounter map but far enough from the enemies to not be in combat. There could be very small maps where it is not the case, but I hadn't seen one yet.
I usually send crusade ahead of me to clean up demon's armies, since crossing them on the global map is the source of nastiest random encounters, and to claim the region. This drops the chance of random encounters to minimal. I've needed to carouse the map for a 4 days to even get one, when I've loaded my early chapter 3 save to check skill rolls.
Btw, it's looks more like a hag, not lich. We fight one too in early chapter 3.
And your second point about not being fucked up so harshly after a failed skill roll - there is lower difficulties for that one. If you've got to chapter 3 with lvl 9 party (!), chances for a lot of hurt feelings are high, in the nearest future.
It was a lich, not a hag and I killed that hag in the quest just before this. I cleared wintersun at level 9 too (and got to 11), though I play "only" on core difficulty. The mammoths are undead too.
Stop defending this. I am not against failed skill check putting me in a bad position, I am saying that it's completely nonsensical for party to start ass first in the middle of enemies in melee engagement range like this unless you failed some sort of skill check against stealthed/invisible enemies. What did this failed skill check entail, everyone in party walking with blindfolds? Even without regards to "realism", it is not good encounter design.
There are plenty of failed skill check ambushes in game that make sense and are fun encounters, like the aforementioned minotaur and cultists ambush where there are archers and mages on cliffs. It's difficult, it takes different approach than just tank and spank and it makes sense.
This one? Neither fun nor makes sense. Fanboys unable to even take one criticism about how the game starting you ass first next to two mammoths and trying to justify it with failed skill check are intolerable. No, this is not justified by a failed skill check, no it is not a good encounter design, and no hurt feelings are not why I am criticizing this.
As mentioned, the failed skill check justifies starting in combat and surrounded. Successful skill check justifies starting at corner of the map and out of combat. Failed skill check doesn't justify your entire party starting in melee engagement against two mammoths.
