Eureka is not for everyone. There's no real need to get the Relic either. There are other options (tokens, Savage, Extreme, etc). If it's for the look, then yeah, you just need to slog through it. Relics have always been a long, long term investment.

And yeah, gear will be replaced roughly every 3-4 months. As you say, that's how MMOs work. You can always take a break and come back for 5.0 or maybe a month or two before.