It's funny sometimes how different people approach some games, and I think this truely reflects how every game cannot cater to every persons personal tastes.  The reason I am saying this is because of the main reasons I started playing Raid is actually because of the opposite of what you are saying above.

When I started playing Raid I was told that it was Pay to Win, and that you couldn't compete in the game without spending money.  I saw it as a challenge to see how well I could do being just free to play, even if it took me a year of casual gaming.  I found that this is pretty much what Raid is.  

If you are coming in here thinking you can tackle everything in the first couple of weeks then you are going to be disappointed.  You will need to do some research, and plan ahead to do events and tournaments.  You will need to save your resources and take your time, and start to think about long term goals, not short term ones.  Will improving this champion actually contribute to a larger part of your account?  If not, then don't use the resources.

There's a wealth of information out there, including content creators and even this forum.  You just need to be open to the idea of asking some questions and taking it on board.

By the way, I do want to make sure that you know that you don't need chickens to upgrade champions.  You can farm your own "chickens" by using other champions that you have no intention of keeping.  For example, once you take a 1 star champion to level 10, you can use another 1 star champion to upgrade that initial one to a 2 star champion.  Now you have a 2 star food, which in turn can be used for other level 20 2 star champions.  You can actually completely max a champion out without using a single chicken.

In any event, welcome to the forums.  If you are interested in progressing your account and keen to stick around, then we are happy to have you

I'm not expecting anything fast - indeed, most of the mechanics in Raid are the same as in SW. It's just the feeling of being excluded versus being included from the very start that I'm talking about. Ironically, with SW experienced players have been known to complain that too many events are targeted to help newer players rather than themselves - it seems to be the other way around with Raid, which I find strange because once you've got your champion 6-starred is farming really so much harder that you need that extra help over brand new players? :)

Many late game players complain here (and the other places I moderate) that events and rewards in Raid are only catered to new players. They are upset that event rewards are earned at half the points or even less for new players, that codes are new player specific, that new players get login legendaries that they didn't have access to when they started, that new players have access to a great deal more resources they can earn in game now, etc, etc...

If you're asking me, I'd say a new player has a lot of catching up to do. But Raid has always had an incredibly steep initial grind. At least you've got some starter codes that we didn't have. (Right now that's Mordecai, who is a great champ!) Hopefully that makes your initial grind to 60, and your initial search for an epic champ, a bit easier.

Other than that, please stay, hang out, ask questions, and chat. We're here to help! Hopefully we can also make your initial on onboarding a bit easier. :)

Looks like I'm settling into both the game and community nicely. :)

However, the lack of initial chickens to help speed up progression is really noticeable - I'm nearly two weeks in but don't feel like I've actually started playing the game yet. 

It's as if Plarium have tried to pre-qualify players, by insisting everyone who starts will need to buy a chicken pack, and if they don't, they aren't welcome in the game. I would suggest better to get new players excited about their first champion and prorgession to buy packs to enjoy it more - otherwise it's like saying the in-game marketing won't work if new players get a few chickens to start them off, which I would argue as false. 

I would think that players who feel they have to buy a pack of chickens to progress will resent that and move on, but players who are happy and excited to play would be more inclined to buy, especially for more monsters. But with 20+ years in marketing, what would I know. :D

Btw, I meant to start this thread in Feedback, but there was no option to post there.

I hear you.

Just an aside... were you here early enough to get the Thanksgiving and Cyber Monday packs? Hopefully those two packs (and the new RaidRonda promo code) are helping new players with some of that initial onboarding. :)

Do you feel like those packs did a good job helping you a bit? Personally I would have loved to have stumbled on Raid when they were doing a giveaway. lol

They have helped, and the x2 raid was essential for getting the new fusion mon. But trying to 6* my first champion has really been stretching things for me. As someone who spent a good 19 months intensively playing summoners War, I'd consider myself a reasonably experienced player in this genre. Anyway, my wife and kids are interested in this game now because of me - they are all SW players, too. Will be interesting to see what their experiences are like if they do decide to join me. :)

FINALLY! Athel is now 6*. Took me 2 weeks, which is actually quicker than I'd expected, but a combination of the Black Friday rewards and Ronda promo code gave me enough resources to do it faster. And also managed to get the epic tome from the Champion Levelling tournament with 21 mins to spare. :)

Can finally rest a little and just enjoy the game for a while by simply playing with my monster box. :)

Question: Why didn't you wait and make Rhonda a 6* ?

Don't forget to mastery Athel also. Here is a good build: 

i

Also ascend her to 6* so you can use Banners and her stats will get increased.

I took advice from HellHades and other sites to 6* your starting champion first, so that's what I did. Rhonda - and much of the game - is still unknown to me, so best to play safe. I'm sure I'll have plenty of time to 6* her. :)

Making your starter 6* first was a good decision. The starter champs can easily run campaign stage 12-3 brutal with 3 food-champs and produce more lvl 60 champs that way.

Allways make a campaign farmer 6* first.