I can do that and like I said, I never paid nothing. I didn't hoard, but as a longtime player you got stronger. So it's not pay to win, it's still play to win....

No offense, but your conclussion doesn't fit your description. You're angry you can't win against someone that you say might have been hoarding stuff (or is maybe doing the work for getting it daily as I used to do...) I could literally bring down Level 8's since I was Level 5, and they stood no chance if I had been scavanging with Ingress all day first and they didn't, yet catch me after one of those as a second player and you might win easily until I restock... That's gameplay, not paygame. 😅

And the fact any player on his own can only max build level 5 portals and you need 3 other people at level 8 at least to make a Level 8 portal kinda stops pay to play. On your own you stand no chance against a group... So if your entire city is just 1 guy, the portals can't be over level 5, if they are he has help.

Either way, when you attack portals, you should go stand on the Resonators, not the center of them, and when placing resonators you need to be as far as your circle allows you to stand from the portal, so they spread further apart and aren't as easily destroyed by someone bursting in 1 spot.