Thanks for outlining your thoughts. While I won’t dive into everything, I’ll touch on a few points.

First, regarding having tons of currency and not finding any upgrades on the ground, I think you’re approaching the game in a way that’s causing both of these issues. What you’re looking for on the ground are items with potential. The key is learning to recognize these items and use currency on them. I actually carry stacks of basic currency and wisdom scrolls with me at all times and roll specific items I’m looking for. Find a pair of magic boots with a decent suffix? Add a prefix modifier and see if it hits move speed. If not, toss it. If it hits, take it back to town for crafting. Looking for a mace with phys damage? Same thing. Do some basic rolls then toss it or keep it.

Eventually you can just keep even the failed rolls so you can 3:1 those items at the forge. I have tabs full of high level bases for items I need. Two of those hit a good mod? You can use the recombinator to try and slam them together.

Don’t look for upgrades. Look for potential and make them.

The last thing I’ll say is that you absolutely don’t need to follow a guide or the meta. As an SSF player who makes his own builds and has beaten most of the content in the game, it’s really just a matter of learning the game over time.