it's actually gotten a lot worse for those low level brutes. I have about two or three between lvl 19-23 right I enter on a regular basis which used to make 9h & 10h quite frequently when lvl 13, 14, 15... but now get eliminated in the first or second match. at those lvls now you definitely need quite a few good skills, great agi & strength stats, a wolf or bear and a ridiculously good draw to have a hope of making desert batterer.
and Sub, congrats on your lvl 13 ranking, pretty nice brute for the level too, does he have much of a future?