I've built 4 SK decks this patch - all Rage of the Sea - and i agree.
- Comparing the new abilities: i really dont like Battle Trance, as it can only be used to go extremely tall on a Drakkar or Draco Turtle, and i tend to avoid going tall, its not my style. Also, the passive ability of healing 1 with every alchemy just sucks, it would be much better if it boosted.
On the other hand, Rage of the Sea provides more value overall (12pts if it doesnt hit armor/shields, or 18 if combined with a GS), separate charges so you can distribute them on different rounds, but also amazing versatility - you can use it for beast decks, pirate decks or warrior decks and any mix inbetween, and it synergizes well.
- The cardpool: its still super strong indeed. SK bronzes just feel stronger than most other factions. Also the CHANGE to greatswords, stopped a lot of greedy versions (although you can still use Dagur), but made them more consistent - pop a GS and a rage of the sea charge and he usually goes to 7, outside of removal range of virtually anything.
- Dont know if there's any meta reports since the patch, but i think Shieldwall is widely considered the top deck. I would say a good SK deck can put up a fight, i've played a bit of ranked and i think i won every single match with my SK pirate deck. When i was facing Shieldwall it was a tough matchup, but i felt like my deck was strong enough to compete, so the skill level actually mattered, a feeling i hadnt felt in a long time.