Epoch of Pain is as bad as it seems, especially if you're a scrub.
Epoch of Pain is very tough and Ares is one of the most challenging bosses ever designed. Anyone saying it's not as bad has years of skill and experience, a solid roster and substantial resources to tackle a content like this. But for an average player who just do chill aq, eq, sq and don't have a diverse roster, this content is going to be extremely difficult. There are couple of not too difficult paths for a quick completion and even those require certain champions to minimize their level of difficulty. My intention is not to demotivate players who want to do this content but to make them realize that experiences might differ widely based on where you stand currently.
I speak from my personal experience but completion is much harder than exploration. Your first bout with Ares is not going to be fun especially when you can't seem to deal with his specials at all and have to sink in lots of revives and potions to slowly chip him away. The fight also ramps up in difficulty as it goes on and even getting a proper opening to deal some damage is going to feel like a challenge in the later phases. Based on how you did in the previous path fights, exhaustion of resources and mental fatigue is going to add another layer of difficulty to the fight.
My suggestion is simply: Do not rush if you're not ready. You're going to have FOMO looking at other people getting great champions and R4s but it can wait. It's a permanent content and the rewards are not going to age at least for a while. Watch tutorials on YouTube, gather resources and try to tackle the content with a relaxed but focused mindset. And don't forget to use boosts. The content is difficult and you're going to need all the help that you can get your hands on. Best of Luck.