I think you just don't understand the concept of your game, who are you making it for? How long is a beginner willing to spend on average playing your game? - And how long will he have enough patience at the first start? I will answer, 5-10 minutes, no more. What's the easiest way to get a newbie interested? - That's right, give him a taste of victory. If you don't, you will lose a player. This is the first and main rule of the developer. Your game will not be played by hardcore players, they will not play indie games. Only casuals remain. I think you need to focus to keep the player's attention by winning the first 5-10 minutes, otherwise he will leave. And only after the first victory, you can complicate the game by adding new (optional) conditions, saying to the casual - and we still have battles in real time ...
I disagree with your advice. I lost the first game to a crash and i’m still around. Hardcore gamers will very much play indie games since the strategy genre is very much underserved. It will not have mass appeal but that isn’t the developers goal.
When was the last mayor fantasy themed strategy game like WarCraft, Age of Mythology was released? I particaluarlly enjoy the lack of 3d graphics as it is much more laptop friendly.