The armor and stats mentioned are irrelevant to what I am saying. I detailed out further in a message to some of the admins. I agree with you both, but that Is not really the mentioned reason. It's the formula for the way damage is handled itself. That is what I was bringing up is all.
The armor you equip yourself with is the formula. Inadequate gear means inadequate survivability.
Basing of your equipment you don't have adequate gear to survive attacks, Disciples gear is not gear for surviving attacks. Its gear for outputting strong skills.
The 3 types of available equipment are built around a style.
Disciples - All about boosting skills and additional survivability.
Hiram - Little bonus to damage based around being able to survive more with it boasting resilience and % damage reduction stats.
Erenor - Combination of both at T2. Having % damage reductions like hiram and special frosts that give it stronger skill boosts like Disciples gear.
You mention defense penetration a lot as though its changes but it hasn't.
Nothing about defense penetration changed with 6.1. Pentration scrolls were removed and hiram ring introduced.
Thats a loss of 700 defense pen for 300 extra if you take the hiram ring as a replacement dream ring.
Casting delay never went away and came back. It was always present. Cast time reductions are just applied differently instead of everything giving flat cast time reductions its reductions applied directly to skills of that skilltree.
Damage is normal for the patch and infact you have more sources of damage reduction than in live.
Dying to a single skill is not an issue with the patches damage. Its entirely on you; how you play and gear yourself