New Capital Ships

The name of the game is resource management. I hoard gear, mats, crystals, etc. I was able to unlock Levi 1st time at 6* using crystals, and decided to bring it to 7* the second time also with crystals (because I'm impatient). I didn't have to spend any actual $. If you don't want to spend crystals (or don't hoard them), you could get it for free over a long period of time. Or you can use real $. The whole game is a balance of time & resources. The original Cap ships had to be unlocked slowly over time as well, through the monthly events (which could be refreshed for crystals IIRC, been a long time), so not that different from the old cap ships, other than higher pre-reqs, but that is to be expected as the game gets older and progresses