The balance that Darktide should aim for is one where, regardless of difficulty, whether Uprising, Auric, or Havoc, all builds can be used to some extent. Perfect balance is impossible, so it is inevitable that even in a reasonably balanced environment, there will be minor disparities, such as meta builds or underperforming weapons.
However, in the current Havoc, the distinction between usable and unusable options is very clear, black or white, 0 or 1.
For example, if the top four players all use the “winning formula” of Chorus, VoC, Bubble, Inferno, DS, Plasma, and Bolter, they could clear Havoc 40 without issues.
But if all four players are Veterans using ES, equipped with Devils Claw and Infantry Lasgun, their win rate would be nearly 0%.
When success fluctuates so drastically depending on specific weapons or builds, it is not purely a test of player skill, it is essentially a different game mode where you play with limited equipment or builds. I would not call this challenging gameplay.
I don’t mind if Havoc is explicitly designed as a mode where you fight only with restricted weapons or gear, but if that is the case, I would just want a difficulty above Auric HISTG to be created.