ANY combo of characters just won't work at a certain point [& you hit that point fast] unless you're lucky & are able to upgrade your good characters fast[which you gotta spend real $] which sucks cause it's actually fun but because of that you can't really progress unless you pay [because no wins=no boxes=no new characters]. If it gave you a way to get resources using no $$ then it'd be 5 stars, but it doesnt so 1. Basically pay to play after playing for a very short time.