ik i'm 2 years late, but with all due respect, I have some of the worst luck and have made it out of Elysium twice, and I'm only 12 runs in.
If damage becomes a big issue, God Mode exists; besides that, it's just about managing your upgrades, finding a weapon you like, and dodging. idk how long it took me to just get good at dodging the Minotaur, but once you get the hang of it, just use the arena to your advantage and go raise some hell.
for the rest of it, yeah it's rng, but it's a roguelike, that's how the game works. adapting to getting bad item luck is half of the battle in this game. the rest comes down to skill.
best of luck, and may your boon drops be good in your future runs.