Updates:

I'm definitely prioritizing Engineering x 4 and Weapons Farming for the team to increase burst DPS on the initial kill. Two 232 and three 219 weapons just aren't cutting it.

SoR vs. SoC was tried out extensively over the weekend. Honestly, one can feel the extra initial burst of SoR, but the SoC splash damage has its place as well. Two fights where I squeezed out a victory were made possible only because there was a lot of DPS from SoC that helped kill the second and third players in the match. I'm sticking with SoR for now, but I think the points that have been made about SoR not putting enough healing pressure are valid with higher ranked teams.

My matchmaking rating is up at 1200 or so, even though I'm only actually rated 700ish. I faced a nice stream of 1200-1600 teams over the weekend and really struggled as a result. I think it's good news overall, since I won't be wasting practice against totally pathetic teams where technique doesn't matter.

FIrst target selection continues to frustrate me. Combined with lower burst than I want, too many classes can survive or disrupt my team before the first big healing response comes. Ignoring classes and going for someone "out of position" seems to work best. Timing of strangulate is key.... miss it and there's a bubble/iceblock/thunderstorm/howling terror/etc and I might as well leave the arena instantly.

I get a big leg upgrade tomorrow, but I clearly need to address the weaponry issue before I will be more successful. Having fun, but it's annoying that you can't get a badge/arena point weapon...