Long post ahead, apologies...

First off, idk where people draw the line for "whaling" but I believe I would fall into said category when comparing play time to power/team composition. In regards to other high spenders, although I can't speak for us all, the goal isn't really to one shot everybody in PvP. I for sure like the power gain for letting me plow through PvE content because instances, plot/elite/TI, are all monotonous and boring at this point. I primarily recharged because I wanted two things: Cool ninjas/new toys and to compete.

The first major dilemma here is that the new ninjas, even the crappiest of them, end up costing AT LEAST $100 on release. However, even the crappy event ninjas tend to outclass any farmable ones we currently have because they are inherently designed to be better AND we don't have reasonable, or nearly enough, ST/SB to make those farmable ninja usable. So now, not only can F2P and low spenders only look on at the superior new ninja I got BUT there are also recharge events and, oftentimes, rebates as well. So not only do I get the stronger ninja, my lineup in general is strengthened because I get additional resources towards my power. So yes, I achieved one goal but in the same move I pushed the second, and probably the more meaningful of the two, further away, assuming we're speaking from ground zero. I got my new toy but now I faceroll anyone who wasn't able to put in AT LEAST half of what I did and this is only for a ninja that cost $100 and the rebates that came with. Now imagine that scale multiplied multiple levels over because the rebates get vastly better as you spend towards the maximum return. Beyond this, imagine if I didn't even go for a redeemable ninja and strictly used that massive influx of currency and rewards strictly for power? The situation is only exacerbated in every possible sense and scenario. Now I'm not saying rebates are bad because they make spending feel more worthwhile and recharging/spending optimally is, in itself, a rewarding feeling but, they are mostly limited to recharge/ingot usage with few helping smart saving F2P/low spenders. Even then, there has to be a limit, I'm looking at you Tsukuyomi Rebate. >.>

Secondly, and this is just as important and irksome. My other major issue with the game is just the amount of laziness that comes out of the development team, not the moderators and admins but the ones who actually push and publish the content that we get. Now starting with the simple, little issues...why are there still untranslated portions of the game in German? Seriously is it that hard to fix that? Moving on; there is a massive lack of effort put into meaningful match-up conditions. This alone could change the entire game and quell so much of the anger/frustration. I can't speak for all of us spenders but the desire to spend mostly just comes from what I said before; quicker progress and wanting to compete. One shotting someone is fun sometimes, seeing the big numbers being part of the reason, but in reality everyone was drawn to this game because of the depth that the combo system and mystery skills brought. Other flash games, of similar nature, are practically full auto after you put your team in and that gets boring insanely fast. Sadly though, due to the above reasoning, you have to spend a good chunk to either catch up to compete with others, because x-server range is ludicrous, or it just comes from wanting to get ninja as they release. I'm sure there are some a-holes that feel superior because they have more disposable income but I'm sure the majority would much prefer more opportunity to actual test their teams in real combat for more than just one round. The crappy Pos1 meta is only made worse because x-server is a crap shoot. The ranges are based solely on release date proximity instead of using any sort of simple algorithm to place based on power. Then even when there is a system to match similar people it isn't based on power but level...like why dawg? What does that accomplish? I'll tell you what, level freezing that just makes the situation even worse because now people are FORCED into even more unfair match-ups. It's sad how little effort is being put into the core of the game.

TL;DR for my above post and the "real feedback" we don't seem to give:
1) Make more rebates coupon friendly. I know the recharge one's aren't changing because Tencent is a * money hungry gaming superpower but at least this would appeal to everyone and significantly help lower end players.
2) Also unlikely but needs to be spammed whenever possible since we haven't said it enough...stop forcing Pos1 stacking meta...it's bland, it doesn't feel rewarding and it's not "a breath of fresh air" in any way, shape or form.
3) Please put more effort into merges. You don't have to wait until a server is dead to merge them. Compiling 10 servers with like 4-5 players in each doesn't do anything.
4) Couple with the above, please do something about x-server battles. None of the above matters if you continue to force weaker players into the jaws of death. It doesn't make the game fun for anyone. New/weaker players just stop playing and older/stronger players just go through the motions with more and more quitting from boredom over time.

I mean the thing here is:
1) As a paying player you need to know that the game is subject to change. You are paying for premium content early not exclusively. Albeit sometimes the content is, realistically, exclusive (I.e 10 tail madara, realistically what kind of F2P earns that?) there is no reason to get big mad over this instance. Be happy the game is changing and more viable teams will emerge because of it but at the same time Oasis would need to offer some compensation because, in reality, they screwed the pooch and need to mend the damage.

2) With that being the case though, I do understand where frustration would still come in. I myself have EGF with 3 books. It didn't come cheap and I only finished those 3 books and made my Kakuzu usable versus the SoSP spam meta just a few weeks ago. If it changed suddenly and anyone could have those same skills from the ST I would be a little peeved. As such, I feel that reimbursing those who already have 4* variants of the ninja(s) that get this change would be ideal. Yeah it's gonna be a bit of work for the staff but that's just what happens when you arbitrarily make changes that were, both, unexpected and unhealthy for the competitive environment. When you make mistakes you have to work to fix them. As far as reimbur*t there are plenty of ways to do it. Partial refund in form of coupons, optional packs with ninja frags, ST mats, training pots, myoboku sets etc.

Ultimately it isn't a small task but it is doable. As I mentioned, I am one of those people that played into the 4* system and went for the books so while I might be a bit annoyed with that aspect there is also the fact that if they did this for all ninjas, as should have been, I already have many of the others such as Kushina/Deidara because I am a paying player. So while I do lose out a bit on one of my units I suddenly gained a massive amount of others that can now, potentially, be viable options to play with. In my opinion that's a fine trade off. However, the crux of the matter once again goes to the overall greed of top tier players and Tencent as well as the laziness of Oasis dev team.