Managed to beat the whole game with the original character - something that pleases me greatly! :D
Good fun all round. For anyone struggling, I generally suggest massing Archers and Warriors to hold the initial push, getting a tower or two if you can, and then teching up your resources and buying upgrades. Just stall for time until you've maxed out the upgrades and then go for a big push.
The original character is helpful there; he can instantly spam a horde of peasants! It doesn't sound great, but that huge swarm of units can buy time for you to pool some resources and tech up, or allow you to splurge on high-end guys once the unit cap falls enough.
I really enjoy this game, but it frustrates me how crippling it is to have to buy Tea with no profit coming back to you... it's a very bizarre business model!