I'm playing one right now. My very first pass through DS2, too!
I'm all the way to Act I, final chapter, without using any healing potions.
The mix of powers has interesting synergies. For example, I combine Tremor with Dual Wield, since 2 weapons means more chances to trigger a Tremor. Granted, it doesn't do much, but at Tremor 3, I also get Earthquake Aura, which is very nice when swarmed and I'm trying to concentrate on the boss.
For sudden swarmings, instead of quaffing potions I hit Nature Mage Invulnerability power and run like h*ll during the 6 seconds it gives me.
The main thing I find odds about the class is that the spells that split XP don't seem to split it properly. I'm now a Melee 12/Nature 8. It's too skewed to ever recover, unless I go exclusively Nature for a while.