I can't speak for anyone else but my own QoL in this game has improved considerably since getting in touch with shard-mates in both Arena and Ships. No longer having to play the clock-blocking game not only has increased my net crystal gain each day but I no longer need to be tethered to my phone the hour leading up to payout.
Plus there are people on both shards who I genuinely enjoy speaking with, there's nothing devious or untoward about coordinating payout times and as others have stated more eloquently than I ever will, it's really very minimal effort to spend those exta battles at or right after the top of the hour.
