first boss is way too hard

[DannyBoi]

Half the characters I play with can't get passed the first boss fight....

[DannyBoi]

He's literally impossible

[J_invisible]

I AGREE AND IT GETS EASIER:
I found it difficult at first and once you understand how emblems/talents work and unlocking enough heroes it'll all make it easier.

WHAT FIXED MY ISSUE:
One of the things that helped me was to avoid min/max emblems/talents (such as mosu, strength, speed etc... not talking about the elements like fire, ice etc...) because not having one of each of emblems leads to issues and consequences for the first boss.

Once I had a point on all emblems before meeting first boss I had enough speed/dodge/mosu power/ attack power/ assembly power etc... that it made it easier.

Once I also unlocked enough heroes using the blue flame currency (forgot the name of the currency), each hero unlock boosts your stats too. These things fixed my issue and eventually heroes that were difficult to play with I end up beating the final boss surprisingly.

Also if I feel I need better formation then I'd go to the king's cauldron and buy a formation if I got enough of them red crystal currency (forgot that name too).

KNOW THE BASICS:
This isn't to say you don't know the basics but if you are missing even one basic mechanic it can make any boss extremely time consuming, that was one of my other issues.

Once I removed the boss's shield and figured to use the Mosu attack WHILE Assembly is active, that was a game changer too. The Mosu attach becomes extremely powerful and clears the scene and takes a large chunk of HP or shield off the boss. So timing to have Assembly after removing boss shield made the fight faster.

OTHER DETAILS TO FOCUS ON:
I also started to pick heroes/talents/emblems that helped me get at least extra Assembly damage/ Mosu damage to make sure that not only can I take care of NPC but also have an easier boss fight. Once you figure out what they all do you'll see how your choices on choosing to bond with which heroes make more sense for your play style.

THERE'S MORE STUFF I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH:
Things like tags on each hero, combos and formation I'm really not familiar with and I'm just winging it most of the time. I realized towards end game there are some abilities that get stronger and more animation but I don't know how I did that and just realized there's more to this than I can honestly care to invest my understanding so the element of not knowing kinda leaves it as a surprise to me.

[DannyBoi]

Originally posted by J_invisible:

I AGREE AND IT GETS EASIER:
I found it difficult at first and once you understand how emblems/talents work and unlocking enough heroes it'll all make it easier.

WHAT FIXED MY ISSUE:
One of the things that helped me was to avoid min/max emblems/talents (such as mosu, strength, speed etc... not talking about the elements like fire, ice etc...) because not having one of each of emblems leads to issues and consequences for the first boss.

Once I had a point on all emblems before meeting first boss I had enough speed/dodge/mosu power/ attack power/ assembly power etc... that it made it easier.

Once I also unlocked enough heroes using the blue flame currency (forgot the name of the currency), each hero unlock boosts your stats too. These things fixed my issue and eventually heroes that were difficult to play with I end up beating the final boss surprisingly.

Also if I feel I need better formation then I'd go to the king's cauldron and buy a formation if I got enough of them red crystal currency (forgot that name too).

KNOW THE BASICS:
This isn't to say you don't know the basics but if you are missing even one basic mechanic it can make any boss extremely time consuming, that was one of my other issues.

Once I removed the boss's shield and figured to use the Mosu attack WHILE Assembly is active, that was a game changer too. The Mosu attach becomes extremely powerful and clears the scene and takes a large chunk of HP or shield off the boss. So timing to have Assembly after removing boss shield made the fight faster.

OTHER DETAILS TO FOCUS ON:
I also started to pick heroes/talents/emblems that helped me get at least extra Assembly damage/ Mosu damage to make sure that not only can I take care of NPC but also have an easier boss fight. Once you figure out what they all do you'll see how your choices on choosing to bond with which heroes make more sense for your play style.

THERE'S MORE STUFF I'M NOT FAMILIAR WITH:
Things like tags on each hero, combos and formation I'm really not familiar with and I'm just winging it most of the time. I realized towards end game there are some abilities that get stronger and more animation but I don't know how I did that and just realized there's more to this than I can honestly care to invest my understanding so the element of not knowing kinda leaves it as a surprise to me.

I have over half the characters unlocked and it feels like i never get any better.....so many of the characters just feel useless especially msot of my favorite characters like zhao yun

[J_invisible]

BIG EDIT ON MY END:
After writing all this and then trying Xun Yu (ice dude) and then I suffered the same fate as yours. It looks like all the heroes I had tried coincidentally were easy to play with and then I end up with a hero I have no match against first boss lmao... I'll have to try and see what works I guess

[VertVentus]

Get your ass beat for a bit as you build up Karma Embers to unlock heroes for stats and grind cumulative level on a single character for an attack/defense boost every 50, that will let you overwhelm up to Traversal Level 3 effortlessly.

So pick a main with a high attack value and has a passive that can increase it even further.

For Zhao Yun, his passive for +5% Attack per Shu, unique weapon for +50% on Shock, Pang Tong's +100%, Zhang Liao's +40%, and Ujiyasu's Hojo's +100% makes him like top 16 in attack right now.

You only need 1 in Vigor to interrupt peon attacks. 4 and 8 for increased attack range can be nice though.
8 in Skill for EX Attacks is good, 12 for +50% attack on barriers is nice.
Strength I wouldn't worry about.
Just 1 in Speed for i-frames ins fine.
Stacking Wisdom for Musou charge/damage & summon damage and Charm for Assemble charge/damage/duration & summon cooldown are a priority, since you'll be looping those for crowd clearing in the latter half.
Getting 16 in an element for 300 Attack and a 60% ailment chance is also a priority.

They are nerfing the 1st boss's shield gauge in the next update, but that's also nerfing Sima Yi's OP unique weapon and how you can intentionally buy only the good damage negation barriers so they show up frequently, so this current patch is the best time to win Traversal Level 5 easily.
Tough it now so you don't have to later, I personally jobbed to the first boss 7 times with the same character until reaching the final boss was consistent.