There are a few key areas to grind at that are at least 10x more efficient than some of the others. I won't spoil anything for you, but if you want/need any help let me know. Keep me posted how things are going, and when you take down that Gold Knight that patrols where you first start.
FWIW, I didn't understand ashes of war until very late game, and even then it didn't help me that much. If you really know what you're doing with them I could see it being powerful. I went hack and slash because I lacked the patience to go magic/ranged attack heavy, but one of my buddies who is very familiar with these developers went all in on faith and seemed to really enjoy it. I may do that on a second playthrough if I ever come back to the main storyline. Right now when we do play it we summon each other and lure in other invaders to battle. Unfair, but they know what they are signing up for and it's a lot of fun at times.
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