Trinkets are meh. I found two so far (level 12). One is "take less damage from gunner rats" and the other one is "40% more health while knocked down". As long as there are no regeneration or damage/attack speed trinkets, they're very specific.
Also, I just grouped with a dwarf who had a crossbow that shot about as fast as the swift bow of the elf (so like twice a second). He also seemed to have unlimited ammo and one shot everything but the rat ogre. Cheat or well rolled orange weapon? If its intentional, this kind of gear seems required for the higher difficulties. He pretty much soloed Nightmare with 4 times the damage of the second place guy.