I know I'm a dirty spender, and that's the only reason I finished it at 6 months mark, but there is something to be said about community resources we have available. People here on the forum have helped a great bit, and some of the advice that helped me the most are:
1. Share gear. FW require good gear, especially if you're putting lvl50 champs in the mix. You are not likely to have enough gear to outfit everyone, so don't shy away from sharing. I have developed some sets of gear for common roles I passed around. 6-7 of those sets (turn meter booster, healer, reviver, debuffer, nuker etc.) were just changing hands. Best tip I got from here, hands down.
2. Don't be afraid to 6* champions just for faction wars. Forge is a great place to get great gear (Perception) and CvC points, so farming FW will become a common practice for you. I was hesistant to 6* champs because "I won't use them after that"....not even close, I am gearing them out right now.
3. Team matters more than individual champs. If a rare fits your team better than a leggo, use the rare. My High Elves team has 2 rares in it, one of them at 50, and one of my first teams to finish the crypt, even before I got Arbiter.
I understant emotions, I understand frustration, I definitely understand being mad at Plarium....but none of that gets you Lydia. This isn't my first gacha game, I can tell you that complaining about the game will largely fall on deaf ears. But we can help the OP the same people here helped me.