From my experience many players use gear with "abilities" to maximize effectiveness while playing. I'm not sure when this started happening because I have not played the game since it's launch but it is clear that the majority of the players prioritize damage dealing stats over defense. Lets face it... attacking things is a lot more fun than being attacked therefor the logic is to prioritize what is enjoyable.

The people in the game are evolving and the game should be changing with them. With that said I believe all gear should have damage "abilities". Every shield, every helmet, every armor should have unique combinations of damage stats and balanced separately from there defensive capabilities.

By balanced separately I mean offense and defense should not tip the scale in a direction more so than another set. Most players seem likely to choose high damage over defense so it is just simple logical to keep damage balanced at a fairly equal level for all sets. In the end choices "for all gear" should not come down to whether a person wants a defensive set or a offensive set rather what sort of weapons their sets should supplement.