Piotrek wrote:others use coupons and also gold for that
I think that is the key difference between our perspectives on the game. Specifically the "also gold" part.
Now first I'd like to make it clear that I don't see anything wrong with buying gold. Spending maybe $50-100 (or pounds or rubles, or whatever currency you use where you live) a month is still cheaper than spending the same amount every week to go out to a bar or have a nice dinner with your wife/ girlfriend/ mistress two or three nights a week. So if you enjoy the game and have the cash to spare, go ahead and use it.
That being said, I'd like to point out that if you're not buying gold, you're not going to get stronger quickly. It's a long term game for players who are coupons only. More so for players who aren't in galaxies with a lot of players who do buy gold. We accept that, and it's even part of the appeal. So no, it doesn't really matter if pillars are dropping as soon as protection falls, or if they stand for days on end. Both situations have occured in the short time I've played. And which one is currently happening at any given time seems more dependent on how much the players who do buy gold feel like attacking pillars than how much health pillars have or how much health pillar crystals restore. Either way, I still accumulate coupons. And I still get magic books, gems and upgrade books from visiting planets.
And as for PvP, I've got a 85% win percentage, less than your 87% admittedly, and obviosly you've got a more powerful army overall. But all the same, I'm not losing a lot of sleep over those 2 percentage points and I don't particularly feel like a farm. So maybe I'm not getting strong at lightning speed, but as it happens, I am winning my battles, and I am getting stronger.
"It's not whether you win or lose. It's how much trash you talk while you play the game."