The age-old issue: New player and HP-washing

Just discovered this server less than a week ago, and I was enjoying it. I was having so much fun playing with my marksman (I love crossbow), getting all 5 stumpy, mano, King Slime and all of the low-level monsters. I never played old Maple so this was a new experience for me, so this was basically a new game experience in a total brand new world (the increased size in maps and diversity of mobs REALLY helps. Old Maple maps are just 1-screen-rooms). The game devs seemed to know exactly what Maplestory was about, and the only complains I had was petty things like little typos and Monster Book not being complete.
I did saw several people buying INT scrolls and the like. At first I ignored it. I didn't knew what was so important. Maybe mages are just very popular?

Then I discovered what HP washing is.


Knowing that my character will not be able to do end-game content by an arbitrary bug ("feature" by some veterans) really dampens my mood, and even makes me not want to play any more (haven't logged in since last night) because "why I even bother" says my brain. I thought HP washing was just something optional but instead it just mandatory for my class simple because of poor game design (I didn't knew fully what it was about). I really do not want to play a mage or any character I don't like, in ways I do not want to play (Leeching people with a mage for example doesn't seems fun to me at all).

Being a new player with a less than 7 days account, what options do I have if I really want to make my first character a Marksman? I'm willing to restart my account and maybe allocate some points into INT and HP. But I am NOT willing make a mage just to farm money and INT equips (That's NOT enjoyable and it's not the way I want to play the game. Why should I be forced to play the game in a way I do not find enjoyable, just so that my main character, a marksman, can progress at all?).

I get mixed opinions from the Discord Servers and friends. People who want me to stay and enjoy the game for what it is say "you don't need to HP wash, you can get by just fine". While other people say "restart your character, no point in playing archer as your first one".

What's a new user with zero funds supposed to do? Can't I just remake my character, roll some INT, apply int on there and then use stat resets? Do I really need to make a mage just to enjoy the game?

I imagine this is not the first thread you guys see about HP washing.

EDIT: Small typos and expanded on the first paragraph introduction

 

What about stuff like Horntail's Monster Card? I do not mind not being able to do much damage (that was my problem in the NEW Neckson MapleStory after all. Damage is all that's cranked up to be there).

However, outright not being able to survive to Horntail's basic attacks is something else. I have read that even at level 180 a non-washed Marksman will have a hard time. And it's not like a Marksman damage and range are as good as mages or thieves. So this is just insult to the injury at this point, with the game basically telling me to shove my crossbow down where the sun doesn't shines.

I knew archers were on the weak side, but not like THIS.

 

The MapleTips made me believe it was something not too important. Just an end-game feature like cubing is in Neckson's MapleStory.
Lo and behold, I was wrong. If you do not play knowing what HP wash is, you might as well not play at all. This screams bad game design and something I swore would have been fixed by game devs, yet they didn't.

I have even read Kimmy plans keeping HP Washing around, and something about Neo-Tokyo needing it? What hope does a new user like me has. This is exactly like Neopets, where new accounts will NEVER be able to do anything.

 

Let's suppose I collect every card and get a high monster card level. Will I, at that point, need HP washing or not? I'm level 36 or so. Should I add some HP/INT atm?
Should I nuke my character and restart? (Collecting King Slime and Stumpy will be annoying, to say the least. Also I have done over 200 quests)

 

You can get free NX by voting, sure you can, but it's only 5K per day, and you will need well over a year to get enough for HP washing properly.
Not only that, but I want my cute cosmetics. I enjoy having a character look like I do IRL, and getting a loot pet with the free cash is also ideal.

Some others say it is tho. Who do I believe at this point.
I do not want to play if I need to do something so arbitrary to get my character to an enjoyable level. I despise every class in MapleStory besides Wild Hunter (and just now I learned to love Marksmen too)

I read so much about HP Washing.

So what should I do now, at level 36. Restart and add AP to INT/HP, or just keep on leveling now and add my AP to HP?

 

I chose marksman because I love crossbows. People just told me to go mage because they are OP. Mobbing, offensively and the like, they rule it all with zero drawbacks besides being a boring class. Also no HP wash needed for mages.

People just now, like Midnight, have said I do need some INT. Maybe i should just remake my character? I don't mind remaking, since I can move all my cute clothes. (If I do not get back the IGN "iara" tho, I will be pretty miffed).

Jeez. This game is rough.