Thanks for both of those posts; they really help clear up some issues. Bring up a few other questions, of course, but these are much easier!

1) 'following the DMM route' <---- what does this mean? I assume it means by following what the game was originally like in Japan, but not sure.
2) I assume max skill level of weapons is 20 then? Seems like that would take a long time to get there. I have saved all the chalices i got from the Crom event - I assume that's how you level them beyond any reasonable level?
3) Aidoru mentioned that there were event only himes, and that every raid event has one. I was there for Crom, and I got Balor from that event - is that the type of hime you're talking about? But NOT the Aphrodite that was thrown in the jewel/gold gacha right? Those are still in the gacha?
4) What's a Union event, and how should I prepare for it (if it's missable)?
5) Jewels are easy to find in the beginning, but later on they're much more scarce, right? Should I be using them for the gacha or for stamina refresh pots?
6) When I autoset my teams, it treats higher attack power more importantly than weapon element. Take wind for example, I have a MLB R axe (from gem gacha, don't ask haha). Is it worth putting in the wind team's roster over something with more power? As in, does the wind% stacking matter more than straight attack power? A wind axe with a few hundred less power or a dark item that benefits no one, but stronger hp/atk?

Thank you both for the answers so far.