I agree with the sentiments of the OP in this case. If you're a new player with no other classes leveled up, you are going to be butchered left, right and center.

SE is trying to force more group play, which in my opinion is a mistake. The balance before this patch of solo to group was perfectly fine because it rewarded parties rather than punishing soloers. Had they simply added chain bonuses and left it at that, the balance would have been perfect in my opinion, but I digress.

The point is that whether or not it's SE's intent to ignore new players at this juncture of the game's development, it's an issue they WILL have to face if they ever expect this game to have a strong playerbase in the future. They may not think it's critical now, but it will be, and soon. No one is going to want to play this game if a year in, it's already top-heavy in both player levels and content. It's barely been 12 months and already they're focusing almost entirely on 'end-game' content to the crippling detriment of new players and characters.

I truly hope they address this, soon. I've seen far too many issues, even trifling ones that are minor in comparison, become huge sticking points for the players just because SE chose to put them off until later.